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tt0090563 | 37°2 le matin | Zorg (Jean-Hugues Anglade) is a 34-year-old aspiring writer making a living as a handyman for a community of beach houses in the seaside resort at Gruissan on France's mediterranean coast. He meets 19-year-old Betty (Béatrice Dalle), a volatile and impulsive young woman, and the two begin a passionate affair, living in his borrowed shack on the beach. After a row with him where she tears apart and smashes up the house, she finds the manuscript of his first novel, reads it in one long sitting and decides he is a genius. However, after another argument with his boss, she empties the shack and burns it down. The two decamp to the outskirts of Paris, where her friend Lisa (Consuelo de Haviland) has a small hotel. Betty laboriously types out Zorg's novel and submits it to various publishers. They meet Lisa's new boyfriend Eddy (Gérard Darmon), and the four have many fun times, often fueled by copious amounts of alcohol. They find work in Eddy's pizzeria but a fight erupts in which Betty stabs a customer with a fork. Zorg tries to slap her back to her senses.
Though Zorg hides the rejection letters Betty finds one and, going to the publisher's house, slashes his face. Zorg induces him to drop charges by threatening him with violence, saying she is the only good thing in his life and she is all he has. Eddy's mother dies and the friends go to the funeral in Marvejols. There, Eddy asks Zorg and Betty if they will live in the dead woman's house and look after her piano shop. Zorg enjoys the quiet provincial life and makes friends with the grocer Bob (Jacques Mathou), his sex-starved wife Annie (Clémentine Célarié) and various offbeat characters, but Betty's violent mood swings are a concern. One day, after an irritable comment from Zorg, she punches out a window with her bare hand and goes on a screaming flight through the town. Happiness seems on the horizon when a home test suggests Betty is pregnant, but a lab test is negative and she sinks into depression and tells him she is hearing voices talking to her in her head. Zorg, masquerading as a woman, robs an armored cash collection van delivery headquarters, holding the guards at gunpoint and tying them up. He attempts to use the money to buy Betty's happiness, but she fails to respond and enacts yet another prosecutable offense by luring a small boy away from his mother and taking him to a toy store. Zorg finds her and they both flee from the authorities as they rush to rescue the boy.
One day Zorg comes home to find blood all over the place and Betty gone. Bob tells him she has gouged out an eye and is in the hospital. Rushing there, Zorg finds her under heavy sedation and is told to come back the next day. Going home, he receives a phone call from a publisher accepting his manuscript. On his next visit to the hospital, he finds Betty restrained and catatonic. He becomes agitated and a doctor tells him she will need prolonged treatment and may never recover her sanity. Zorg reacts by blaming her illness on the medication being administered and physically attacks the doctor. He is forcefully ejected from the hospital after a violent struggle with three orderlies. Returning in disguise, he whispers his farewells and smothers Betty with a pillow. Going home, he sits down to start his next book. | insanity, cult | train | wikipedia | The same intensity that drives her sexuality and her love for Zorg is, ultimately, her downfall.Over the course of the movie, which is quite long (I saw the 178 minute director's cut), Zorg goes to increasingly frantic lengths both to please Betty and to protect her from herself.
As well as providing a narrative that may be read and interpreted on several levels, _Betty Blue_ is an exceptionally beautiful film in terms of cinematography and mise en scene.
Landscapes, city scenes, interiors are all set up and filmed beautifully.A tale of love, sex and obsession not to be missed..
A happy-go-lucky odd job man (Jean-Hugues Anglade as Zorg) falls in to a relationship with a slightly unhinged -- but very sexy/sexual -- French teenager named Betty (Béatrice Dalle in her debut role.) There are very few films that are totally different from anything you have seen before.
While sexually explicit -- it is far from objectionable because the two parties are in love and passionate about one another.Betty Blue/37°2 le matin doesn't really fall in to any one category -- going from farce to tragedy, stopping off at oddball.
Also what an amazing debut by the Dalle, although her later life has shown that she has plenty of the Betty Blue in her for real.(Was this script written with her in mind?
Even Jean-Hugues Anglade strolls around with it all on show -- thankfully he looks like he has kept up his gym membership.The scene in which Betty throws the whole of the fixtures and fittings of the beach apartment out of the window was stolen by a famous car advert (in the UK) and it really is a stretch of the imagination in that Zorg doesn't respond to it.
He just paints on and lets her get on with it -- like he doesn't care.(I think we all know how we would react in a similar situation and it wouldn't be like Zorg!)This has great cinematography with every scene framed to perfection.
A woman making love to a man she is in passionately in love with is tasteless -- a homicidal woman slicing the arms of a whole room of gangsters is OK?Roger -- I respect you a great deal, but you are as wrong as Leslie Halliwell (author of the world's most famous film guide book) when he gave Close Encounters no stars at all.You should come over here (Europe) a bit more.
True it has one or two sex scenes too many -- as I hinted before -- but it is sex that means something and is about something.Betty Blue is one of my top 200 films of all time and while it has its limits and its faults (it does sag a little in middle) it remains a powerful piece of work about living with crazy people and how easily good times can slip in to bad.
The movie focus into the life of a couple giving a huge brand of sense to the special way to love and to feel life trough Betty, a young borderline.
The borderline disorder provide to the movies the best female personalities, but in real life, this rebel, intelligent, unpredictable people finish on a tragic end.
This version concentrated more on Jean-Hugues' character Zorg and his love and devotion to the mentally disintegrating Betty.
The story takes its time, allowing us to understand Betty's illness and appreciate Zorg's erratic behaviour.
This movie sums up, for me, France; the geography (from the beaches of the Riviera to the streets of Paris)and the people (between Betty's neurotic femininity and Zorg's sullen ennui).
I came to the IMDb message board for Betty Blue because I wanted to see if anyone else thought the movie was in Zorg's mind.At the very end of the movie, Zorg hears while he is writing alone in his kitchen "are you writing?" and he says "no, I am thinking".
Zorg also looks very relaxed and fulfilled as though he had just finished his novel.My friend says he thinks the whole movie is in Zorg's mind, and the boiling pot at the beginning and the end brings the story together for this point.
Beautifully shot with amazing colours, quirky characterization, excellent acting and imaginative direction this movie is a delight for all of its 185 minutes (the director's cut is the one to go for).
We can, like Zorg at the end of this movie, only live in hope..
Jean-Huhues Anglades' natural performance as Zorg in this easy going - take life as it comes story line makes you want to see more of him.
If you want to learn about the French and their ways, watching this film is a very intense start..
Betty Blue/37.2 is a very good example of directing mood without being stupid -- scenes do make sense, characters do get revealed.
So it's not like one of those arty "ambience" films your friends drag you off to every so often.First time viewers, don't be put off by the first scene -- I think they just did it to prove they could.
Jean-Jacques Beineix's "Betty Blue" is about such a woman, only her cat gene is starting to ruin her life and the lives of those around her.
It''s horrible to watch the gorgeous, luscious-lipped Beatrice Dalle come apart at the seams and plunge into madness, but it's the stuff of a great movie, and it's why the film is so engaging.As with all gorgeous women, there's a guy out there who's sick and tired of her sh*t.
Anglade loves Betty so much that he's willing to put up with her mood swings, but, ultimately, he loses her just before she totally loses her own mind.The film is beautiful.
Once Betty's madness begins to impact on the relationship, we experience every tragic step in her decline.Director Beineix never made a better film than "Betty Blue".
I saw Betty Blue many years and many European movies later and thought it was disjointed, seemingly jumping around; I never got really got their 'love' - his love especially.
they made a massive film together full of a complex love and it's wonderful to watch the way the director intended..
Nothing like it has been made since, and I doubt any film trying to take away the light from this masterpiece could do so...Psychotic / Angry / Loving All wrapped up very well...As the subject says - this title is now available on DVD!----------------------------------------------------------------.
I've never forgotten this movie, perhaps the best french film I've ever seen.
There are many very good reviews here, but I just wanted to say that if you watch this excellent film, please make sure you watch the director's cut.
I saw the directors cut last night (having never seen the original, mind you) and i was blown away by the emotions this thing was throwing in my direction.
Is "Betty Blue" as great a movie as most people seem to believe?
All those involved should have been smothered with a pillow; Betty Blue herself for her puerile psychotic petulance; Zorg for his definitive depiction of a vapid loser and of course the director who should also have been riddled with a full-clip for having the audacity to perpetuate this gallic monstrosity without a trace of irony.For those of a carnal disposition, there are a couple of decent sex scenes but you can see those anywhere you sad person.It is incumbent on a film-maker to make his characters and the story interesting for the poor viewer.
Totally authentic portrayal of freedom, honest nudity all along, the actors are enjoying the whole thing to an extent rarely seen on movies, the music is perfect, the story great, both the girl and the guy incredibly sexy, brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are two disappointing a**holes compared to them.
I was lucky enough to see the director's cut at over three hours.Its an engaging thing, a rather delicate and rich journey within the thing, a well crafted love story.
Two actors and a director who understand.One thing I particularly liked was what I call the folding.The movie is based on an incompetent book and the story features an incompetent writer who turns that book into the lovely thing we see.
A French handyman, who aspires to be a writer, meets a wild young thing and they wander aimlessly through life until the movie ends, which, at least in the director's cut that I saw, is an agonizingly long time.
One day, Betty walks into his life, a young woman who is as beautiful as she is wild and unpredictable.Although the film is widely praised, it was "hated" by Roger Ebert, who sees it as nothing more than a film about the lead actress being naked a good deal of the time.
But in our times, I think, the people who would watch or even make such a long movie are very few.
This classic 1980s French film opens a week after handyman Zorg meets the beautiful nineteen year old Betty.
The love between Zorg and Betty seems very real making it all the more tragic as it becomes obvious that rather than just being a bit wild she is gradually losing her sanity.
The characters are fun to watch; not just Zorg and Betty but also the people they befriend during the film.
The version of the film I watched was the three hour long director's cut; I didn't feel I was watching such a long film though as I was enjoying the story so much.These comments are based on watching the film in French with English subtitles..
You know, hormones are at it's peak when you are starting to explore sex.Years later, watching the director's cut I was amazed on how solid and sexual the script is.The sex scenes shouldn't be important and are only perceptible because of the passion and caring about each other between the couple.I don't think I have seen a movie with a plot like this.
I think this is my favourite movie!Unique atmosphere, created by story, actors, colours and music - altogether.I am rarely able to disappear into a movie, as I did with this one.The movie can be enjoyed on different levels: as a fascinating STORY or just as movie ART, or both.What we are shown, is the beauty of love, how it can shelter two persons from the demanding world around them.
I could go on about the film for hours but I don't want to take away any of the effect it will undoubtedly have on you.By the way, it's a tragic love story (a scewed up Romeo & Juliet) which charts the descent of Betty into madness.The only film to ever make me cry.
Still, after all these years and 100s of films, 'Betty Blue' remains one of my favourites.I think the reason is that this is a film for romantics and dreamers and the 'left field' among us, who secretly crave 'dropping out' for a life that is an arty, hedonistic and unlikely mix of naval gazing and adventure.
In this film we can see her intense love for Zorg and her rapid descent into madness by terrible designs of nature.
Betty Blue - best film of all time!.
Zorg meets the love of his life, whilst in a menial job, although he has written what Betty believes is the 'novel of the 80s'.
Every knock-back from the publishers contributes to the down-turn in Betty's mood, leading to a heart-rending final half-hour (or hour, if you were to watch the 'director's cut').
Dalle is excellent as the alluring Betty, a manic depressive whose volatile relationship with her long-suffering boyfriend Zorg (Jean-Hugues Anglade) is put to the ultimate test when she discovers a long-forgotten manuscript penned by him many years ago and convinces him to do whatever it takes to get it published.
When BETTY BLUE was originally released in the U.S., it was severely cut down to 120 minutes although this did not hinder it from getting nominated for an Academy Award as Best Foreign-Language Film!
A Quite extensive runtime lengthens the meaning of their lovely madness and shure Contempment of nubile ideas being Plausible.I Believe Zorg With Betty Lived the way he wanted as well as needed.
Zorg, a shy, happy-go-lucky handyman and aspiring writer (Jean-Hughes Anglade) falls in love with Betty, a beautiful, free-spirited young woman (Beatrice Dalle).
As the story progresses, Zorg falls deeper in love with Betty and dismisses her increasingly bizarre behavior as quirky.
The cinematography is superb, with startling lighting and colours, and the music fits perfectly into the background of the film (unlike the overblown orchestrations so popular in Hollywood).This is a love story, but unlike any that could come out of Hollywood.
I do not know if there are dubbed versions of this film; I simply recommend you see it in its original French, to capture the force of the acting..
The sequence near the start where Zorg is driving his truck home with the setting sun behind him, the famous shot of the beach house in the evening (I even happened one day to find myself on the same beach, complete with houses on stilts) and the piano duet.The characters don't need much in the way of comment, Zorg the would-be writer who spends most of the first part of the movie just trying to come to terms with Betty, realising her to be mentally ill (of course, this must be difficult when the person in question is quite as hot as Betty, I am sure you have other things on your mind).The longer version of the film, despite reports to the contrary, actually makes a more coherent movie, angled as it is from Zorg's point of view as he tries to keep his own world from falling apart while all the while doing everything he can to stop Bettys' own from collapsing.
And on a final note, if you liked this film, dig out the other book, Maudits Manèges, that continues the Zorg story beyond the end of Bettys' life.
Despite those good points, I didn't like the character of Betty (Beatrice Dalle.) I've just watched the nearly 3-hour Director's Cut on DVD.
I've never seen another movie showing desperate passion/love (which is it, anyway??) like this.
Beautiful photography, quirky characters (as you would expect in a French movie) and a shocker of an ending.
I watched the directors cut version of this movie.
But that movie was well acted, directed and filmed, besides the fact that there are several nudes in the movie from both Zorg an Betty.
I remember having seen Jean-Hughes (Zorg) in movies like La Femme Nikita, Subway (both from director Luc Besson) and Maximum Risk.
And I did love watching Betty as she was not "flawless" but as natural and beautiful as one could be with the nudity involved in the film.
Writer-director Jean-Jacques Beineix's film follows the sad life of Betty and her lover Zorg.
And the irony is, once Betty enters, he becomes engaged in life and love due to her erratic, restless/damaged personality,which sees them travel across France.I thought the film was also about escape & frustration.
Perhaps again, it is to do with how she views the world so differently from others, the conventional, and reflected in the blue floor she gets Zorg to paint in their apartment.A film about a doomed love affair, doomed by the intrusion of outside forces and Betty's instability.
Perhaps their story is the one he comes to write at the end of the film in his new novel..
Despite the English title it's about the male perspective, Zorg's life revolves around this woman for the time they are together, but it's really Béatrice Dalle as Betty who owns the film, even though it kind of stays on the character's surface she comes across as a fascinating, fully realized character.
The last act principally seemed like a fine conclusion but felt too rushed with the very ending feeling especially anticlimactic and I guess I just didn't want the film to end which is always the most positive possible point of criticism but probably also very much implies that I should watch the one-hour longer "Version Intégrale".And so I did the very next day!
This time around Zorg killing Betty seemed like an incredibly selfish act which I figure he did so he would be able to move on with his life.
Mild SPOILER insofar as the nature of the ending is mentionedHaving read several of the user comments and external reviews of "Betty Blue" it would appear this is one of those films you either love or loathe.
My reason for not dismissing the film out of hand is that I find it works as a genuinely tender love story.
I love originality in films,.
Zorg it seems is genuinely in love with Betty and like so many young couples dream about the future when they will have a place of their own and live happily ever after..The photography in this film is magnificent.
Not easy to forget.Early in the story Betty discovers that in his spare time Zorg is writing an epic.
Anyway, just yesterday I -finally- saw it so the 185 minutes cut of Betty Blue is a near perfect film, certainly not for everyone and I believe you know why.
Anyway, we have 3 sorts of chapters in the film that we can recognize every time the protagonists, Zorg (Jean-Hugues Anglade) and Betty (Béatrice Dalle), change their place.
I don't think that Zorg would ever imagine that his personal writings, which he used to make just to feel that he was alive, could make him really important for Betty.
As for Betty those things were the only ones in her mind, she was the only one in Zorg's mind, she was his world and she gave sense to his life
This film was based on the 1985 novel 37°2 le matin by Philippe Djian and I know that he really doesn't liked this film. |
tt0267408 | Dance Party USA | Apathetic 17-year-old Gus spends most of his time hanging around doing nothing with his buddy Bill. Gus likes to tell half-true stories about all the girls he’s slept with and all the drugs he’s done. Jessica is seventeen too. She doesn't seem to have much in common with anyone anymore – not even her best friend Christie. Every year this one guy Brian throws a 4th of July party. The party’s never that great, but there's free beer, so people always go. Gus and Jessica meet each other there. They watch fireworks outside and light sparklers. Gus says that he's not the sort of guy she thinks he is. He tells her a secret he has never told anyone before. | non fiction | train | wikipedia | Ahh, the dance shows of yesteryear.
The thing that I liked about this dance show was that they used regular people off the street instead of professional dancers and models like Soul Train and Solid Gold was doing during the same period.
It was a breath of fresh air.
I wish some exec would create a Dance channel and do like Nick, showing back to back retro dance shows..
i worked on the show.
Had a great time and made a lot of friends on the show.The show started out as Dancin on Air and then the USA network picked it up.I would have to say by working on the show i met some of the most influential Singers and groups that are still around today.Madonna was on the show when she was just starting out and Debbie Gibson.
Also nine inch nails just to name a few.
My friend Kelly Ripa has done well for herself.
The show was a great place to have good clean fun while we were growing up.
More fun happened off the set than on with the parties me and my friends would throw..
Correction - DANCE PARTY USA.
Dave Raymond - who later became the Philly Phanatic - was this show's first adult host.
There were over 50 adult and "kid" hosts during the 6 years the show aired.
The show's ratings never declined with the departure of any of the hosts nor with the departure of any of the "Regulars." The show never employed any cast members or correspondents, or any writers, actors or professional dancers.
DANCE PARTY USA was the longest running national cable TV teen dance show in the history of television
anywhere in the world.
DANCE PARTY USA was a combination reality, unscripted soap opera, variety, music, theme, comedy, dance and lifestyle show that featured famous people from TV, radio, music, politics, the news, cartoons, sports and film...
against the backdrop of everyday kids dancing while having good, clean fun!!!
It was a ratings bonanza and gold mine for USA Network's Sales Department and its sponsors for over 6 years.DANCIN' ON AIR -- produced from 1981-1987 by Dance Party USA's executive producers Michael Nise and his father, Frank -- was the forerunner of DANCE PARTY USA.
DANCE PARTY USA produced from 1986 to 1992 - was taped and broadcast to 50 United States, all US territories and parts of Canada on the USA Network.
The creative work was done in the Nise's Camden, NJ offices while the show was taped at various studios located in Philadelphia, as well as at various locations including the Jersey shore, the Midwest and southern United States.
From 1981 - 1992, over 800,000 kids from all over the US and parts of Canada danced on DANCE PARTY USA and DANCIN' ON AIR.
During 1986, the same studio set was used for both DANCE PARTY USA and DANCIN' ON AIR, and both shows were taped / broadcasted live on the same days.
As a result during 1986, some of the kids that audiences saw dancing on DANCIN' ON AIR were seen dancing on DANCE PARTY USA.
Some of the artists -- such as Fresh Prince, Will Smith -- appeared on both DANCE PARTY USA and DANCIN' ON AIR.
"Dancin' On Air Presents The 80's Experience" DVD with some of DANCE PARTY USA's dancers is available at www.omni2000.com.
Michael Nise -- Executive Producer and Producer of DANCIN' ON AIR, DANCE PARTY USA, ONE HOUSE STREET, UNDER 18 NOT ADMITTED and America AFTER DARK -- holds the world's record for producing the most number of TV dance shows in the world, in any lifetime or career, and he did it in only 11 years.Both DANCIN' ON AIR and DANCE PARTY USA were the only TV dance programs to incorporate music from all music genres.
Both programs consistently played music and featured artists from the 50's, 60's, 70-'s 80's and 90's and included R&B, Soul, Funk, Pop, Country, Rock, Disco, TV, Movies, Rap, and Hip Hop. In 1985, KDOC, LA picked-up DANCIN' ON AIR and the show doubled KDOC's ratings the 1st week.
The then fledgling USA Network heard about KDOC's success and decided to give DANCIN' ON AIR and its producers a shot.
Overnight, USA Network's ratings doubled with Dancin' USA.
Shortly thereafter, the show was renamed, DANCE PARTY USA.
Both DANCIN' ON AIR and DANCE PARTY USA jumpstarted the careers of 600+ celebs, many who had their very 1st TV appearances on DANCIN' ON AIR or DANCE PARTY USA including Madonna, The Hooters, Will Smith, Duran Duran, Tommy Verica, Aly Larter, Rennie Harris and Kelly Ripa.
For a list of the celebs, visit www.omni2000.com.The real "stars" -- that kept the audience tuning-in each day were the over 800,000 kids of all races, creeds, shapes, sizes and physical & mental disabilities who danced on both shows.
Unlike other TV teen shows -- then and now -- the dancers were not chosen based on their beauty, maturity of their bodies, their clothes, or even on their ability to dance.
Kids were not even selected for their "coolness," "hipness," or popularity among their peers.
Kid dancers never auditioned, and were selected by the Producers for their ability of the audience to relate to them.
Once the kids appeared on the show, they were allowed to continue on the shows as either "Regulars" or "Permanent Guests." Both were chosen by the viewing audience -- based upon the number of fan letters received each week.
"Regulars" committed themselves to appear on every show during any one 13 week season.
"Regulars" were the first, and sometimes the only, ones allowed to sit with, or dance near, the celebs.
Only "Regulars" were featured in, or co-hosted, different program segments like Lipsyncs and Starline."Permanent Guests" were kids who committed to appearing consistently once a week during a 13 week season.
"Permanent Guests" did not co-host, and were not featured in any segments.
DANCIN' ON AIR and DANCE PARTY USA did employ one regular adult host at any given time.
The 1st Adult Host was Dave Raymond.
The best remembered adult host was Andy Gury.
Celebs including Jermaine Jackson, Danny Bonaduci and JoJo Wright were among the thousands of aspiring host candidates.
Hulk Hogan asked Michael Nise if he could Host just one show.
For more info and access to the official chat room, feel free to visit the official Dance Party USA website.
Thank You..
Little known facts about DANCE PARTY USA.
DANCE PARTY USA was broadcast daily to over 35 million households in all 50 states, all US territories and parts of Canada on the USA Network from 1986 to 1992.
Kids from as far away as Guam wrote letters to the show.
Kids from Canada as well as from every state in the nation flew to Philadelphia to appear on the show, even if it was just once.The show had over 50 different hosts, and the show's ratings never declined with the departure of any of the hosts nor with the departure of any of the "regulars." A little known fact: During it's 6 year run, DANCE PARTY USA's ratings continued to increase even though the young adult demographics dwindled.
Ratings research at the time showed that audiences consistently preferred DANCE PARTY USA 10 to 3 over American Bandstand, 10 to 2 over Soul Train and 10 to 2 over Dance Fever.
Ratings research at the time showed that audiences consistently preferred DANCE PARTY USA 10 to 3 over American Bandstand, 10 to 2 over Soul Train and 10 to 2 over Dance Fever.
DANCE PARTY USA was the 1st TV dance show to allow interracial couples to dance on TV and it was the 1st to incorporate music videos in its format (Club MTV was all music videos)..
DANCE PARTY USA was the 1st TV dance show to allow interracial couples to dance on TV and it was the 1st to incorporate music videos in its format (Club MTV was all music videos)..
The original Host for Dance Party USA was Dave Raymond.
DANCIN' ON AIR and DANCE PARTY USA did employ one regular Host.
Auditions for the Host position required candidates to host or co-host a show for a few days.
Then the Host was selected by the Producers based upon the fan mail.
The Host remained with the show as long as s/he adhered to the shows' regulations and guidelines.
The very first Host was Dave Raymond -- the Philly Fanatic -- was the 1st Host for DANCE PARTY USA.
The best remembered DANCE PARTY USA Host was Andy Gury.
Few people know that celebs including Jermaine Jackson, Danny Bonaduci and JoJo Wrightwere among the thousands of aspiring candidates.
Even Hulk Hogan asked Executive Producer, Michael Niseif he could Host just one show because his daughter was such a huge fan of DANCE PARTY USA.
"Regulars" and "Permanent Guests" are often referred to by themselves and others as "Kid Hosts," Hosts or co-hosts.
This was not always the case.
Not all "Regulars" were Hosts or co-hosts; and "Permanent Guests" never appeared as Hosts or co-hosts..
Dance Party USA did not employ cast members.
DANCE PARTY USA (and DANCIN' ON AIR) were among the first "Reality Shows" before the phrase "Reality Show" was coined.
Both programs were genuine "Reality Shows"...
life unscripted as audiences stayed glued to their TV sets so that they could remain current with the real-life drama, accentuated by music, variety and dancing, that was DANCIN' ON AIR and DANCE PARTY USA.
DANCIN' ON AIR and DANCE PARTY USA never had any cast members, and did not employ writers, actors or professional dancers.
Loyal viewers were the ones deciding who they wanted to see every day -- even though the audience was never asked to cast a vote.
The real "stars" -- that kept the audience tuning-in each day --were the over 800,000 kids of all races, creeds, shapes, sizes and physical & mental disabilities who danced on DANCIN' ON AIR (from 10/12/87 to 4/30/87) and DANCE PARTY USA (from 4/12/86 to 6/27/92).
Both shows often featured entire families including babies, parents and grandparents.Basically, the shows' official classifications of the kids who frequently appeared on the shows are "Regulars" and "Permanent Guests.".
DANCE PARTY USA and DANCIN' ON AIR.
DANCIN' ON AIR -- produced from 1981-1987 by Michael Nise and his father, Frank -- was the forerunner of DANCE PARTY USA.
Frank Nise was 70 years young when this show first broadcast.
This makes Frank the 'oldest living teenager' at the time, and an excellent candidate to claim the honor of being, 'the oldest executive producer of a young adult music TV program.' DANCE PARTY USA produced from 1986 to 1992 by Michael & Frank Nise --was broadcast to 50 United States, all US territories and parts of Canada on the USA Network.
It was the longest running national cable TV teen / young adult / variety dance show in the history of television
anywhere in the world.
The creative work for DANCE PARTY USA was done out of the Nise's Camden, NJ offices while the show was taped at various studios located in Philadelphia, as well as at various locations including the Jersey shore, the Midwest and southern united states.
During 1986, the same studio set was used for both DANCE PARTY USA and DANCIN' ON AIR.
Michael Nise -- Executive Producer and Producer of DANCIN' ON AIR, DANCE PARTY USA, ONE HOUSE STREET, UNDER 18 NOT ADMITTED and America AFTER DARK --holds the world's record for producing the most number of TV dance shows in the world, in any lifetime or career, and in only 12 years -- that is 1/3 less time than any other producer in this genre. |
tt0375791 | Gundaraj | Ajay Chauhan lives with his parents and younger sister. He is in love with Pooja, and hopes to marry her someday. His father wants him to get a job and settle down, and then get married. Ajay applies for a job in Bombay, and soon receives a letter asking him to appear for an interview. He attends the interview, and is hired. Delighted to see all his dreams coming true, he goes to offer his thanks to God, and it is there a woman named Pratika Jetley sees him and notifies the police that he is indeed the one who had brutally raped three young women in a college campus. Ajay vehemently denies this, but is personally identified and criminally held responsible, convicted and sentenced to prison. Several years later he is released from prison, and finds out that his father and Pooja had committed suicide while his mother and sister are untraceable. He sets out to put his life together and meets with a ruthless police inspector, whose daughter was one of the rape victims. It is then Ajay finds out about the conspiracy behind this plot to frame him. | revenge | train | wikipedia | Ajay Devgan's routine film. Ajay Devgan in 1990's played mostly roles wherein he is convicted for a murder or something and he takes revengeThis is one of those filmsThose days Ajay had a side parting hair look, those small fitting black jackets and those brooding eyes in most filmsThe story is done to death, though it does startle you first when Ajay is put in trouble but slowly it becomes a typical action filmGuddu Dhanoa's direction is okay Music is okayAjay Devgan repeats his by then famous act, Kajol is okay Mohinish Behl overacts Mohan Joshi is okay. Greatly Disappointing!!. For a movie with such a fast first half and an intention of bringing women safety to the forefront of the societal debate, its a disaster. The only 2 good things I can say about this film are:: 1) Ajay Devgn - He compels you to be sympathetic towards his situation. Never misses a beat. Asrani is good to have on screen as a sensitive friend. 2) Music - Anu Malik does a good job with the music with Ajay's words matching the emotional state of his mind.Bad - Kajol. A fine actress who messes up when it comes to comedy. She overacts at times. Emotional tone in overdone. The bad guys are the same faces with similar hypocritical and stereotypical lines. Even after the end credits roll, one has no idea why only Devgn was charged and no one else. The story in the end comes back to square one. |
tt1736555 | Caged | A married 19-year-old, Marie Allen (Eleanor Parker), is sent to prison after a botched armed robbery attempt with her equally young husband, Tom, who is killed. While receiving her initial prison physical, she finds out that she is two months pregnant.
Marie has trouble adjusting to the monotonous and cutthroat world of the women's prison. She meets Kitty Stark (Betty Garde), a murderous shoplifter, who says once Marie gets out, Kitty will get her a job "boosting" (shoplifting). Marie does not want to get involved in crime, but Kitty explains the realities of prison life: "You get tough or you get killed. You better wise up before it's too late."
Told she can be paroled after 9 months, Marie witnesses prisoner after prisoner being "flopped back" – granted parole, but then not released from jail because no jobs had been arranged by their parole officers. One flopped-back prisoner, June (Olive Deering), kills herself given the hopeless situation. This saps Marie's hopes of getting out early.
Despite the hardships under sadistic matron Evelyn Harper (Hope Emerson), Marie gives birth to a healthy baby and wants to "temporarily" grant full custody to her mother. The intent is to get the baby back after she is released. Marie's callous step-father has decided not to allow the baby into his house. Marie's mother uses the excuses that she's "too old" and "hasn't a penny in [her] name" as reasons why she can't help Marie. Marie is denied a parole. She half-heartedly tries to escape, but is not punished. The prison forces her to permanently give the child up for adoption.
The arrival of "vice queen" Elvira Powell (Lee Patrick) sets off a rivalry with Kitty. Elvira bribes Harper to put Kitty in solitary confinement, where Kitty is beaten. When a kitten is found in the jail yard, Marie attempts to make it a pet. When Harper tries to take the kitten away, a riot ensues, during which the kitten is accidentally killed, and Marie is put into solitary confinement as well.
Before taking Marie to solitary confinement, Harper shaves Marie's head, symbolically stripping her of her innocence. Harper has disagreements with the sympathetic reformist prison superintendent, Ruth Benton (Agnes Moorehead), especially after this latest incident with Marie. However, since Harper is a political appointee, the police commissioner refuses to fire her, and asks for Benton's resignation, instead. When Benton declares that she will request a public hearing, the resignation issue is dropped.
Out of solitary confinement after a month, Kitty is distraught and mentally ill. After being picked on by Harper in the cafeteria, Kitty stabs Harper to death as the inmates watch and make no attempt to stop it. After her exposure to hardened criminals and sadistic prison guards, Marie actually urges Kitty on.
Up for parole once again, Marie has found a "cashier's job" outside—actually just a ruse to join Elvira Powell's shoplifting gang—and leaves prison a hardened woman after 15 months. Benton asks Marie why she is going into crime when she could go back to school. Marie says she got all the education she needed in prison.
After Marie leaves, an office assistant asks Benton what to do with Marie's file. Benton replies, "Keep it active. She'll be back." | revenge, neo noir, murder | train | wikipedia | somewhere between Giallo and soft core. I came across this DVD while visiting the Netherlands. The sleeve of the DVD looked promising and it was filed in the shop under 'horror'. But I can't really classify it under that label. There are of course some scary moments but there's more going on. I guess that the director Stephan Brenninkmeijer had some kind of Giallo in mind. This is more a whodunit then a horror.Why I do refer to the giallo's is because in the torture room he used saturated green and purple lights. Reminded me of Suspiria. But the movie had on problem. There's a bit too much of talking going on especially when Stella (Chantal Demming) is visiting Mike (Victor Reinier). It's more about her past life then what is happening when she's caged.I can't classify it with Amer (2009) or Les nuits rouges du bourreau de jade (2009), 2 Belgium Giallo's. Therefore it should have some more red stuff in it. But what this flick do offers in stead of 'nederhorror' is a lot of nudity. Sometimes it's close to explicit sex. Chantal Demming comes really close to soft core. She's almost nude all the times. In fact, all the girls in this soft core movie goes full frontal. There are a lot of close ups of pubic hair and shaving. One scene even got some actual sucking by Chantal.The weirdest thing for me was that you see actors that I knew from Dutch series like Westenwind and Baantjer going in their nudies. Strange that it didn't had any subtitles, how can it be sold outside the Netherlands? I saw the uncut version but if it will be sold in the UK for example it will be heavily cut due the nudity scene's. Still, I kept watching to know who was behind the 'cage'.Gore 0/5 Nudity 4/5 Effects 0/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5. Bad porn. Seen better on pornhub. What were they thinking making this. It's literally porn with a bit more dialogue. |
tt0070533 | The Picture of Dorian Gray | The plot of the novel varies between each of the published versions. The summary below deals with the longest version, the 1891 novel. However, certain episodes described—in particular Dorian's encounter with, and murder of, James Vane—do not appear in the version originally submitted by Wilde to Lippincott's.
The Picture of Dorian Gray begins on a beautiful summer day in Victorian era England, where Lord Henry Wotton, an opinionated man, is observing the sensitive artist Basil Hallward painting the portrait of Dorian Gray, a handsome young man who is Basil's ultimate muse. While sitting for the painting, Dorian listens to Lord Henry espousing his hedonistic world view, and begins to think that beauty is the only aspect of life worth pursuing. This prompts Dorian to wish that the painted image of himself would age instead of himself.
Under the hedonist influence of Lord Henry, Dorian fully explores his sensuality. He discovers the actress Sibyl Vane, who performs Shakespeare plays in a dingy, working-class theatre. Dorian approaches and courts her, and soon proposes marriage. The enamoured Sibyl calls him "Prince Charming", and swoons with the happiness of being loved, but her protective brother, James, warns that if "Prince Charming" harms her, he will murder him.
Dorian invites Basil and Lord Henry to see Sibyl perform in Romeo and Juliet. Sibyl, too enamoured with Dorian to act, performs poorly, which makes both Basil and Lord Henry think Dorian has fallen in love with Sibyl because of her beauty instead of her acting talent. Embarrassed, Dorian rejects Sibyl, telling her that acting was her beauty; without that, she no longer interests him. On returning home, Dorian notices that the portrait has changed; his wish has come true, and the man in the portrait bears a subtle sneer of cruelty.
Conscience-stricken and lonely, Dorian decides to reconcile with Sibyl, but he is too late, as Lord Henry informs him that Sibyl has committed suicide by swallowing prussic acid. Dorian then understands that, where his life is headed, lust and good looks shall suffice. Dorian locks the portrait up, and over the following eighteen years, he experiments with every vice, influenced by a morally poisonous French novel that Lord Henry Wotton gave him.
[The narrative does not reveal the title of the French novel, but, at trial, Wilde said that the novel Dorian Gray read was À Rebours ('Against Nature', 1884), by Joris-Karl Huysmans.]
One night, before leaving for Paris, Basil goes to Dorian's house to ask him about rumours of his self-indulgent sensualism. Dorian does not deny his debauchery, and takes Basil to see the portrait. The portrait has become so hideous that Basil is only able to identify it as his work by the signature he affixes to all his portraits. Basil is horrified, and beseeches Dorian to pray for salvation. In anger, Dorian blames his fate on Basil, and stabs him to death. Dorian then calmly blackmails an old friend, the scientist Alan Campbell, into using his knowledge of chemistry to destroy the body of Basil Hallward. Alan later kills himself over the deed.
To escape the guilt of his crime, Dorian goes to an opium den, where James Vane is unknowingly present. James had been seeking vengeance upon Dorian ever since Sibyl killed herself, but had no leads to pursue: the only thing he knew about Dorian was the name Sibyl called him, "Prince Charming". In the opium den however he hears someone refer to Dorian as "Prince Charming", and he accosts Dorian. Dorian deceives James into believing that he is too young to have known Sibyl, who killed herself 18 years earlier, as his face is still that of a young man. James relents and releases Dorian, but is then approached by a woman from the opium den who reproaches James for not killing Dorian. She confirms that the man was Dorian Gray and explains that he has not aged in 18 years. James runs after Dorian, but he has gone.
James then begins to stalk Dorian, causing Dorian to fear for his life. However during a shooting party, a hunter accidentally kills James Vane who was lurking in a thicket. On returning to London, Dorian tells Lord Henry that he will live righteously from then on. His new probity begins with deliberately not breaking the heart of the naïve Hetty Merton, his current romantic interest. Dorian wonders if his new-found goodness has reverted the corruption in the picture, but when he looks he sees only an even uglier image of himself. From that, Dorian understands that his true motives for the self-sacrifice of moral reformation were the vanity and curiosity of his quest for new experiences.
Deciding that only full confession will absolve him of wrongdoing, Dorian decides to destroy the last vestige of his conscience, and the only piece of evidence remaining of his crimes – the picture. In a rage, he takes the knife with which he murdered Basil Hallward, and stabs the picture. The servants of the house awaken on hearing a cry from the locked room; on the street, passers-by who also heard the cry call the police. On entering the locked room, the servants find an unknown old man, stabbed in the heart, his face and figure withered and decrepit. The servants identify the disfigured corpse by the rings on its fingers which belonged to their master; beside him is the picture of Dorian Gray, restored to its original beauty. | gothic | train | wikipedia | This was originally broadcast in the early 1970s, by ABC Circle Films, I think, and it was a great drama for its time and it still holds up well today.
Dan Curtis, who directed this also has a big collection of the Dark Shadows series and he has a good feel for the gothic aspects of the 19th century story.
Altho it follows the old MGM story, this one has a lot sharper edge to it and is more realistic, especially about Dorian's depravity.
Davenport does really carry the show with his all-knowing, cynical observations that lead the way for Dorian's destruction and doom .
I like both this version of DORIAN GRAY and the MGM version.
Both add a little girl early in the story who grows up to have an association with Dorian (this is not in the original book), and that is my only complaint.
I especially like Angela Lansbury as Sybil Vane and George Sanders as Harry in the MGM version, but Shane Briant as Dorian in the TV-version is much better looking (I think) and far more ruthless than Hurd Hatfield in the MGM version: I think Briant is more true to the novel's Dorian.
In the end, this is a very good adaptation of the novel (it even hints at Dorian's liaison's with men, as does Wylde, which could not be done in the MGM version)..
Young Shane Briant was the prettiest Dorian Gray ever on screen.
In this version of The Picture Of Dorian Gray I got the distinct feeling that this is how Oscar Wilde probably saw his character in real life.
His inspiration probably was some pretty twink he met in passing in the London underground gay scene.Although Briant narrates this story of his life which dates from 1891 to 1911 which was after Wilde himself was gone, the story is seen from two pairs of eyes.
This was Wilde the closeted gay man so hopelessly in love with the pretty Mr. Gray.
Of course Briant is taken with the portrait and wishes a strange wish that the opposite of life comes true, that he remain young and attractive and the portrait age like we humans do.
And his sins which includes the deaths of several people either by accident or very much design.This is a nice television production of the Oscar Wilde classic, Briant is the quintessential Dorian Gray.
It really managed to scare me, partly because it was so late at night, but partly because of that whole feeling from a videotaped suspense story (the same thing that helped Dark Shadows itself).
I hardly know Shane Briant from anything else, so it might not be so right to call HIM "well-cast," but to me, he IS Dorian Gray.
And as far as the other male actors, the one who fit his part so well was Nigel Davenport (who's so good at "larger than life" characters) as Sir Henry.
And John Karlen, a sort of Dan Curtis "repertory player" at the time, because of Dark Shadows.
As one poster points out, this version manages to include the involvements with men, in a fairly subtle way.
The scene where Dorian recites a list of men's names to John Karlen's character, as a way of blackmailing him, and the look on Karlen's face, were very well-done.
(If that scene were done now, it would probably be done in a TOO OBVIOUS way, and be bad by comparison.) I saw it when "Dorian Gray" was barely a name to me, let alone more, so even more than the famous 1945 version (which is rightly famous), this is THE version to me..
ABC Movie Of The Week: THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY {TV} (Glenn Jordan, 1973) ***.
This is the fourth version I have watched of Oscar Wilde's famous supernatural tale, following the definitive 1945, the trashy 1970 and the classy 1976 British TV ones.
Producer Dan Curtis had reverently (and, generally, faithfully) tackled a number of horror classics around this time – R.L. Stevenson's THE STRANGE CASE OF DR.
Indeed, the essence of the piece emerges quite strongly in this case: the Victorian atmosphere (despite the limited resources of TV-based adaptations), the moral issues behind the protagonist's Satanic pact and his subsequent callous/hedonistic behavior, the wit (which was always Wilde's forte) and the opportunities afforded the cast (notably latter-day Hammer regular Shane Briant in the title role, Nigel Davenport, and DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS [1971]'s John Karlen) by way of superbly-delineated characters
though the all-important role of Sybil Vane is rather inadequately filled by Vanessa Howard.
Needless to say, the gradual degradation of Dorian Gray's portrait features prominently within the narrative, and this obviously emerges a highlight here as well..
Dan Curtis Produces Dorian Gray.
The story is familiar - Oscar Wilde's Dorian Gray wishes his painting would grow old whilst he remain young.
This is the version from Dan Curtis Productions, which produced the TV-series "Dark Shadows" from 1966-1971; the television show incorporated a version of "Dorian Gray" into the series' "1897 flashback" (1969).
The next film, the sexually charged "Dorian Gray" (1970), starred Helmut Berger.
But, the most well-known version remains "The Picture of Dorian Gray" (1945), which starred Hurd Hatfield.This "The Picture of Dorian Gray" (1973) was produced for late night TV, and the "videotape" quality shows, sadly.
Few actors could play the part as deliciously as Helmut Berger (who fitted the part like a glove); but, Shane Briant takes a fine turn in the lead role.
Mr. Briant's Dorian is sweeter-looking, but much more evil.
Nigel Davenport, John Karlen, and Fionnula Flanagan head a great group of supporting players.The 1973 TV film, oddly enough, portrays Dorian as more wicked than other versions.
Briant's blackmailing of pal John Karlen (as Alan) by reciting his lovers' names tops other versions; the 1970 movie had Dorian and Alan's wife in some naked photographs.
****** The Picture of Dorian Gray (4/23/73) Glenn Jordan ~ Shane Briant, Nigel Davenport, John Karlen.
This film was produced by Dan Curtis--the same guy who wrote and produced "Dark Shadows".
He also worked on several made for television monster films in the late 60s and 70s--such as a GREAT version of Frankenstein as well as Dracula and Dr. Jekyll.
While I wouldn't exactly say "The Picture of Dorian Gray" is a monster film in the traditional sense, it was pretty monstrous--mostly because unlike the monster films, Dorian is a guy who CHOOSES evil--it was not chosen for him by fate.
I must add that this version might just be better than the classic 1945 film (starring Hurd Hatfield)--and it's well worth your time.The film stars a relatively unknown actor of the time, Shane Briant.
I am sure Briant was chosen because he was amazingly pretty--the sort of guy Gray was supposed to have been.
It's the story about a vain young man who makes a passing wish--that as time passes, he remain young and handsome and his portrait would instead age for him.
All in all, a chilling story made better by excellent acting, nice direction and terrific production values.
Dark Shadows of the 1945 MGM Adaptation.
This TV adaptation of Oscar Wilde's novel, produced by Dan Curtis, the creator of the daytime TV soap opera "Dark Shadows," is a rip-off of the 1945 MGM version of the same book.
Yet, its TV aesthetics contain none of cinematic beauty of that classic film, and what alterations it does make to the adaptation and book are either trivial or for the worse.
The only elements barring this from being entirely unbearable are that there's something left of Wilde's great Victorian Gothic novel: I mean, the portraits look OK, and the acting isn't too bad.
Regardless, for a movie based on Wilde's story, and one that ludicrously quotes his preface, "Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril," it hardly begins to even scratch the surface of that work.Like the 1945 film, this one includes a niece of Basil, who will later become the second love of Dorian's life.
Perhaps, my biggest qualm with the 1945 version was that it reduced Sybil to a pub singer, whereas Wilde's Sybil acted in Shakespeare, but at least she was still an artistic performer.
Meanwhile, the fornication foil invented by the 1945 film is reused, which replaces how Wilde's Dorian falls out of love with Sybil based on her refusal to perform on stage.Moreover, while this 1973 TV version is in some ways a bit more frank about Dorian's sins than either the 1945 film or the book, the gay subtext is actually lessened.
Sure, there's a glance here or a touch there that may suggest something to someone with the knowledge that its author was gay, but nothing like in the book, or even the 1945 film, really, which still included the suggestion of Basil's inspiration for his portrait of Dorian.
The God-like narration in the 1945 film is also replaced by that of Dorian.
It's especially unfortunate because instead of the painting being the record of Dorian's conscience, as the movie states, we have to endure his actual conscience via the needlessly talkative voiceover.
Also unfortunate is the introduction of gambling debts, which replace Wilde's focus of aestheticism and his collection of beautiful objects.The 1974 Dracula TV movie by Dan Curtis, while not very good, nonetheless was original for introducing the Vlad the Impaler connection and a reincarnation romance to a screen, which Francis Ford Coppola, among others, later stole for their Dracula movies.
Despite its TV look, his Dracula also effectively employed those blasted TV zooms a couple times and in a rather painterly way, including with a painting of the Count and his love.
Yet, with a story that is all about a portrait and about art, that imitates the 1945 film, which complemented this by itself being a gorgeous piece of art, here, we have a TV movie that is dreadfully dull to look at.
Plus, the TV zooms and a score recycled from "Dark Shadows." I burst out laughing when Dorian's servant reports, "Your coffee, sir," in one scene, only for the music to blare, "dun dun dun" as the show, apparently, went to a commercial break.
Seemingly, the ring, the source of his identification in the novel, partly replaces the cat statue from the 1945 film as some sort of mystical explanation (again, not in the book) for the supernatural portrait, but, then, nothing comes of it.
A captivating thriller based on Oscar Wilde's novel..
This is a TV thriller based on Oscar Wilde's novel - a suspenseful plot from beginning to end about young English aristocrat Dorian Gray, whom after meeting the hedonistic Sir Harry Wotton, dives into a life of decadence and self-indulgence.
The story gets even more thrilling when a self portrait of Dorian changes appearances, reflecting his sinful ways.
This one I was planning on watching again after not seeing it in years but I ended up skimming though it because I found it not as good as I was remembering it was.The movie has a the look and feel of an older TV show or older soap opera.
This 1973 version will still be a good childhood memory for me, just not one I would care to watch these days.5/10.
After that, the story veers wildly off course, at least as compared with the 1945 MGM version (which won two Oscars).
Nigel Davenport as Lord Henry is really about the only thing watchable in the whole production.
A lot of the other acting is bad, the music is melodramatic, and look of the film is terrible.
Actually, it's not a film at all--it was obviously shot on video and has that characteristically claustrophobic BBC look about it.
The opening scenes are particularly poorly lit, the women's costumes are terrible (the men look all right), and a lot of the characters--including Dorian--seem to have 1970s rather than Victorian hairstyles.
The movie does well to include a lot of Wilde's dialog, but the voice-over narration in the voice of Dorian contains a lot of rubbish that directly contradicts Wilde's character.
I haven't seen either of the more recent versions, but if one is interested in seeing the story well told, I would have to recommend the 1945 MGM black-and-white over this one..
Having just read the wonderful Oscar Wilde story, I had hoped for at least a little of the magic to translate onto the screen.
This version played like a condensed, dumbed down Reader's Digest movie.
I appreciate the difficulties in trying to bring a novel to the screen, especially on what may very well have been a limited (TV) budget, but there is no excuse for mangling a great story in this way.
"Dark Shadows" Connection Amused (& Distracted) Me. Within the first 5 minutes of watching this version of "The Picture of Dorian Gray," I knew it had to be by the same people who had done "Dark Shadows" (DS)!
Another distraction was the use of several key story changes used in the 1945 MGM version.
Noting these changesalong with the feeling that the bits of dialogue preserved from Wilde's novel (i.e., Lord Henry's clever sayings) were those that were in the MGM version, made me wonder if the writer had read the original work at all or had just worked from the MGM screenplay!
Finally, in the 2 weeks prior to viewing this, I'd watched a 1976 BBC adaption (w/ Sir John Gielgud marvelous as Lord Henry), the MGM film & read the novel for the 1st time.
One thing I'll give this one, I appreciated its versions of the changes in Dorian's eponymous "Picture" the most..
THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY is one of many classic horror stories that producer Dan Curtis adapted for US television back in the early 1970s.
It's a pretty authentic version of the Oscar Wilde novel that feels interesting throughout, despite the dated atmosphere and cheap look.
Running at two hours, this is a fairly slow and ponderous story, bolstered by an excellent performance from underrated Hammer star Shane Briant in the leading role.
He gets under his character's skin and convinces totally, with Nigel Davenport excellent in support as the debauched Sir Harry.
The film has just the right creepy atmosphere and the titular portrait is well used and sufficiently horrible.
He who does not know Oscar Wilde is just uneducated.
He who does not know Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray" is just half human.
And any film adapted from Oscar Wilde's stories and plays are a must for any man in this world.
The film is discrete about the gay side of things, but a long list of men are said toward the end of the film to refuse to have anything to do any more with Dorian Gray or to step out of a room when Dorian Gray steps in it.
That discretion is not important anyway since what is at stake is a lot more than just gayness.Dorian Gray is young, about 20 at the beginning, and rich, at the beginning again since he will grow poor as years go by.
During those 20 years or so he will do all the villainies and treacheries you can imagine, with women or with men, among other things breaking the hearts of women and leading them to their death or plainly killing men or blackmailing some others like the professor and doctor he uses to get rid of the corpse of his last victim, using the professor's liking men to force him to do something absolutely unethical and make him his accomplice in this crime.But the appealing and disquieting knack of the novel and the film is the fact that the picture that was done by a famous painter when Dorian Gray was 20 leads Dorian to wishing the painting to age while he himself does not.
So at age 41 he is still looking the way he did when 20 and the portrait, hidden away from public view is aging for one and changing in agreement with the horrors Dorian Gray does.At the end what has to happen happens: Dorian Gray wants to destroy the painting and instead it is him who dies and the curse on the painting reverts itself and Dorian Gray when dead looks his age and carries his horrendous soul ugliness on his face.But the film reduced to this story line is in fact rather simple and would at best be a horror short story, and in fact was used several times here and there in horror literature.
This film and the story behind are not horror literature but deep ethical literature.
Oscar Wilde denounces the hypocrisy of English society: "The value of an idea has nothing to do with the sincerity of the man who expresses it." One can utter the most profound moral statements and yet be the most rotten character on earth.
His rotten nature does not in any way degrade the ethical value of the moral statements he proclaims.In simple words "those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril." The real theme of the novel is the fact that the surface of things means nothing and that the true nature of a man is beneath his appearance.
Note the well chosen "beneath." Oscar Wilde is careful not to use "behind" that would not mean a lower level or state.
For Oscar Wilde the social world is a superficial appearance and a lower true reality.
Aristocratic societies are necessarily hypocritical and pushing their roots in some deep mud or filth.Though this is the fundamental idea in the story, Oscar Wilde cannot resist expressing another one he borrowed from Shakespeare.
Time is the all leveller but by bringing everything superior down into the muddy pit of human manure.I will only regret one thing about this film.
The actor who plays Dorian Gray is slightly stiff and not directed into some kind of real attractiveness. |
tt0097270 | Elephant | Mr. McFarland driving erratically down a residential street on the way to drop off his son John. John notices damage to the car and realizes that his father is drunk, so John instructs him to move to the passenger seat and let him drive.
Alex and Eric are bullied at school by the so-called jocks, one of whom diverts a teacher and throws a spitball at Alex during science class. Later, Alex and Eric are shown at home ordering weapons from a website and receiving a rifle in the mail. While Alex is taking a shower, Eric gets in with him. He claims that he has never kissed anyone before, and the two kiss. The two formulate an attack plan. The next day, Alex and Eric prepare for the shooting, then make their way to school in silence in Alex's car.
After arriving at school, Alex and Eric encounter John outside and tell him to leave, as some "heavy shit's about to go down". Realizing what is about to happen, John attempts to warn others not to enter the school, to little effect. The two gunmen then enter the school, and after their plans to blow up parts of the school with propane bombs fail, begin shooting indiscriminately. Elias photographs them entering the library where they open fire, shooting several students, including Michelle and presumably Elias.
Realizing that the gunfire is real, students now begin to panic, while teachers attempt to quickly evacuate the building. The two boys separate, continuing their killing spree. Alex enters the bathroom where Brittany, Jordan and Nicole are, presumably shooting all three. Mr. Luce, cornered by Eric in a hallway, begs Eric to lower his weapon and talk to him, but Eric yells, "I ain't putting shit down!" and fires at him. He does speak to Mr. Luce, however; while he is doing so, he turns around suddenly to see Benny approaching him. Eric shoots and presumably kills Benny. Eric turns back to Luce and warns him not to bully kids like Alex and himself. He then agrees to let the man go, only to gun him down seconds later.
Alex enters the cafeteria, which is strewn with overturned chairs, backpacks, several dead bodies, and numerous abandoned half-eaten lunches, and sits down. Alex picks up a cup from an abandoned lunch and casually drinks from it. Eric meets up with him, and they have a brief conversation, which ends when Alex shoots Eric in mid-sentence. Alex leaves the cafeteria, showing no emotion over shooting Eric, and discovers Carrie and Nathan in a freezer. He tauntingly recites "Eeny, meeny, miny, moe" to them to decide whom he should kill first. The film then cuts to credits leaving the ending ambiguous. | violence, murder | train | wikipedia | There was a certain amount of hoo-ha about it, as the BBC had already put it back for a few months - films about the North of Ireland were, and are, touchy subjects.
The complete absence of story, dialogue and explanation serves to bring home the fact that, after all the talk and propaganda and fine words about freeing Ireland from the British oppressors or defending Ulster from the filthy Taigs, killing is killing - people are dying, frequently and horribly, and can there ever be a "reason" for it?
I grew up in sheltered south Dublin and witnessed the Troubles at second-hand, filtered through the language of journalism; Elephant brought home to me, in the most visceral way, the relentless insanity of the situation.
The film should be compulsory viewing in UK and Irish schools.The major criticism of Elephant is that it's too simple - that the lack of context and explanation aren't enough.
I saw it once, ten years ago, and have never forgotten it.It was directed by the late Alan Clarke, undoubtedly the best director of TV Britain has ever seen (maybe the best British director since Michael Powell).
The title comes from the writer Bernard MacLaverty, who said that the Troubles were like having an elephant in your living room.
That's what it was like to watch this film..
I grew up in Belfast through some of the worst of the troubles (and have been personally affected by the actions of both loyalist and republican terrorists) and I have to say that for me this film is pretty much it in a nutshell.
The desensitising effect mentioned by some of the other comments is precisely what happens in real life; the fact that stuff blows up occasionally and every so often someone gets shot dead eventually starts to just become part of the scenery.
I've lost count of the number of times I saw people walking through Belfast stop in their tracks for a second or two as a bomb was detonated nearby then just continue on their way.
You learn to live with it, and that's the real horror, which I think is something Clarke portrays here with an extraordinary degree of empathy.
Possibly some of it's because so many of the places in the film were so familiar to me but it really hit home in a way that no other film explicitly about Northern Ireland has ever done for me..
This film was made for British television in 1988, the last film by it's controversial creator Alan Clarke.
Set in Northern Ireland, the film depicts a series of seemingly random killings.It is shot entirely on location with completely unknown actors.
In a way the use of gliding camera movements following characters either to their own deaths or to kill someone else, as well as the film's frequent use of holding on the image of the victims for some time after the killings take place can work against the involvement you might feel for this film.
The best film about Ireland's sectarian violence.
Director Alan Clarke knew instinctively that to make a film about the sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, could be politically suicidal.
The violence was still going on when this film was made in 1989, after all.
No film about Ireland's "Troubles" will satisfy both Protestant and Catholic.
Alan Clarke's answer in making a film about the "Troubles", is "Elephant." It is not the definitive film about Northern Ireland, but it is a brave, and I think successful, attempt, that Alan Clarke should be praised rather than denigrated.
It's interesting that Gus Van Sant used the same title for his film about the random act of violence at Columbine High School.
Incidentally, eighteen years after his death, a boxed set of the films Alan Clarke is best known for, includes "Scum" (both the TV and theatrical release), "The Firm", "Made In Britain", and "Elephant", is finally available..
The film shows the executions in such a matter-of-fact way.
I remember I finished my pint before going to see what had happened - I guess I was young, then, but there was a feeling of acceptance amid the shock.
Probably set in Northern-Ireland it consists of several unrelated scenes in which we follow, with the familiar 'HandyCam' shots of Alan Clarke one or two characters for several minutes until they approach a person ...
I think it's the atmosphere, the long buildup before the actual kill, the complete lack of both emotion and conversation that made this movie work for me.
Ten years after seeing this film I still remember several scenes.
It gave me the feeling that I was watching the way the killings really happen(ed) in Ireland.
The recurring action of "Elephant" consists of the camera closely following someone walking down a small path and then shooting other person, then the camera stays there with the victim for a little while.
Pounding our minds with this cold-blooded, disturbing and unexplainable scenario, barely containing any dialog and not giving any reasons behind those acts, director Alan Clarke and his last film deals with 'the troubles' in Northern Ireland but it also seems more than just that.
It comes from Bernard MacLaverty's description of the troubles as "the elephant in our living room", a reference to people's denial of the underlying social problems of Northern Ireland.
But since no one's talking and the images are so powerful and universal, we can picture this as happening outside of Ireland, since the violence problem hits everywhere and almost everyone.But what Clarke wanted to cause on us with those images?
It is said that the director re-enacted those from similar real events that took place in his country, terrorist attacks related with the troubles.
It is as if Clarke was trying to capture the soul getting out of the body or just waiting for a sign that they could have survived the brutal attacks they were victim of.
Because of something unimportant, small and even maybe a case of being at the wrong place, at the wrong time, crossing someone who needed to kill someone.
Clarke wanted to show the banality of life, testing on us the effect all the murders would have on us.With this silent criticism where only a gun being fired was the only voice who said a thing echoing for a long time, this is a haunting and unforgettable picture, and inspired another great "Elephant", the one directed by Gus Van Sant, who heavily worked on the same principle (criticism, shot compositions) but treating in the form of the Columbine incident.
Many films about touchy political issues are analysed through a character's interpretation of how they think or how a particular story plays out but Clarke plays it out simply: people are dying...
Clarke makes fantastic use of tracking shots, slipping left and right and around to follow a person into their death.It's provocative and probably the best TV movie ever made.
Someone want`s to do a realistic docudrama on sectarian killings in Northern Ireland ?
Alan Clarke seems to be under the impression that sectarian death squads are composed entirely of young men shooting dead other young men but the reality is somewhat different .
In Northern Ireland during the troubles both loyalist and republican terrorists ( Both of which contain men and women , young and old ) viewed anyone from the other side as a legitimate target , it didn`t matter about your politics or religion , your age or sex as long as you lived in the Shankhill or the Falls you were fair game.
And the method of murder dealt differs somewhat from ELEPHANT , a car bomb in a street of Saturday shoppers was a favourite with republicans while capturing an innocent passer by and torturing them to death with a stanley knife and red hot poker was a common practice amongst loyalists .
Watching ELEPHANT you`d believe that people die quick and painless deaths - untrue.
If you want to get educated about the horrors of the troubles give ELEPHANT a miss and read a book by someone like Martin Dillon who knows what he`s talking about.
Clarke's attempt to confront the audience forces us to ponder the dehumanization of The Troubles in Northern Ireland.
The irony behind the appeal of this film is that for those who wish to watch violent action movies just for the sake of the spectacle of violence will be the most disappointed.
A series of scenes depicting acts of sudden violence absent of character and plot.
A premise so repetitive sounds like it would be a bore to watch but Alan Clarke's cinematic eye helps make the 1989 short film 'Elephant' almost hypnotic.
Using a wide lens and constant stedicam shots following anonymous killers, Clarke sculpts a vision that is unique and, in many ways, powerful.
Clarke's visual style makes almost every shot, aside from the brief closeups of gunfire found in each scene, feel as if it is depicting something from afar.
Almost everything about Clarke's approach makes the film feel cold and, in a way, brutally nihilistic.
There is a point somewhere in the middle of the film in which a character actually says a line or two of dialogue and it is legitimately more shocking than the violence that inevitably follows.
Alan Clarke makes you numb and coats the viewer with an unnerving deadpan atmosphere.
It's a miserable film that almost certainly goes on for longer than it needs to, but it is also fascinating and, in a way, oddly investing..
The name of this movie is clearly a metaphor for the mass destruction seen by gun wielding individuals and the gigantically senseless violence caused which is just as powerful and moving as Gus Van Sant's inspired film of the same name..
In each part of this strange thriller, a murderer and a sacrifice and usually but them in the shot no one.The painting "Elephant", is filled with a cold, so a neutral atmosphere.
All shorts are designed in one color, unrelated, they still look very harmonious.This film may be a benefit for young filmmakers to make films, in which there are scenes of murder.Of course, if you look at the film with plenty of imagination, it can be to make up the history of each murder, thereby determining why it happened.After a while, after this film, there is a picture of Gus Van Sant, going by the same name.
There definitely is a connection there, because in one of the interviews himself Van Sant said that after watching the "elephant" Clark, he wanted to withdraw his "Elephant." I think he is right and is the spectator Clark, who watched this movie with plenty of imagination.
That imagined Van Sant, the mass murder at the school, and quite original show cause, not as pure, but the name speaks for itself, the problem is definitely there, it is just in the minds of others, there is much we would not get.
Both elephants, a very similar atmosphere that captivates the viewer, who manages the end to inspect these movies..
The Troubles in Northern Ireland inspired a lot films and dramas.
Some more controversial than others.Alan Clarke's Elephant was totally left field.
When the BBC broadcast it, they were inundated with complaints on television programs such as 'Points of View.'Never before we had a television drama, almost wordless where one person shoots another person, a few minutes later someone else shoots another and so on and so on.Be they working in a petrol station, in a swimming pool, playing football, eating in a restaurant, at home or walking in the park, someone blasts them.These horrific random acts of violence in due course desensitizes us to the violence.
Maybe even render us bored and confused.Without dialogue we are unsure as to what is happening and just seeing people walking about until they take a gun out and shoot somebody.Alan Clarke was an early adopter of the Steadicam for television work which means we follow the various people out and about as the camera operator is alongside them.This was one of Clarke's last works.
Seeing Elephant again when the film is almost 25 years old, I was struck that this is now a period piece.Northern Ireland has moved on since the peace process of the 1990s..
Tip: this movie can be found as a feature on Gus van Sant's DVD.
Gus vanSant made my day by putting this movie as a feature on his DVD by the same name (Elephant).
It was quite a few years ago that I saw this movie on TV and I have regretted ever since that I did not tape it to VHS as I had done with all the other films by Alan Clarke (the BBC showed most of his movies over a period of some weeks).
Other beauties by Alan Clark are Scum (introducing Tim Roth) and The Firm (introducing Gary Oldman).
I thought I would never see this movie ever again until I recently rented Gus vanSant's Elephant.
According to the interview with him, which is also a feature on his DVD, he was made aware of Alan Clarke's movie by a friend.
Gus vanSant's Elephant is an entirely different movie (based on the Columbine killings), but he was definitely influenced by Alan Clarkes style of filming (long steadycam shots in which we follow characters).
Although the topic is no longer an issue (Northern Ireland killings) this is still a must-see movie..
I remember watching this when I was 15 years and living in the country south of Belfast, it caused a bit of a stir.
It was a well aligned look at the madness that was going' those days.The film was great, but will serve as a dirty birthmark on future generations.The colors of the print represent the dark-blue rainy place well, the angles are fresh, but a camera and a filter can't elude reality.
One thing that I can rave about in this film was the camera angles.I loved how the camera seemed to be following the actor.
"The single, most radical, television film ever made, both politically and ascetically!".
It's been said that this is, "The single, most radical, television film ever made, both politically and ascetically!" Right from the get-go Clarke creates a setting of tension as we find ourselves following a man, unknowing of what is about to occour.
We soon find out what we are about to witness- a number of pre-meditated murders in Northern Ireland- but do not know for what reasons.
In this film Clarke pseudo-documents the most ugly social aspect of society in the most beautiful fashion.
I would have to say that this is one of his most artistic films, in which he succeeds in, not only keeping the mood, but also creating a visually appealing masterpiece.
Clarke takes us through a number of situations in which we either begin by following the killer or the victim.
The fact that we are unaware of which we are following at the beginning of each new segment allows Clarke to maintain a mood of tension throughout the entire film, while also preventing things from becoming too predictable.
We witness the killings from the perspective of the killers, and are then forced to become onlookers of the pre-meditated crimes, reminding us that, though filmed very beautifully, we are witnessing a very ugly part of human nature.
The realism of the scenes contribute to the overall mood of the film.
Some scenes were especially affective in creating feelings of tension and unease, as we know something is going to happen, but when?
All this considered, I would have to agree with the quote mentioned at the beginning, that this is definitely one of the most radical films, politically and ascetically, ever made for television.
As I could not imagine such a film being played on television these days without evoking a dramatically angry response from most conservative viewers.
But you have to remember that this film was meant to evoke a response, both within ourselves, and in turn within society, and it succeeds in doing so.
I would definitely recommend this film for all mature viewers as it is both artistically appealing and entertaining.
"Elephant" is a 36-minute short film from over 25 years ago.
It was one of the last works of director Alan Clarke before he died from cancer.
Anyway, you certainly do not have to fear graphic violence and maybe also need a bit of a sadistic touch when you watch this.
Strange little short film.
Alan Clarke's "Elephant" consists of a series of long Steadicam shots, each dispassionately following either assassins or their targets, and each culminating with someone being gunned down in cold blood.
The film forces us to witness 18 murders, contains virtually no dialogue, and maintains a dry, detached, documentarian tone throughout.The film's title refers to the many murders – elephants in the room which were routinely overlooked by the local media - which took place within Northern Ireland during "The Troubles", a roughly three decade long period in which Northern Ireland's Roman Catholic, nationalist community, were at odds with its Unionist Community, who identified themselves as being British.
The film is designed to convey a certain inexorable feeling, that violence begets violence, that these killings are pointless, senseless, horrific, futile and directed against ordinary, innocent, working class people, but Clarke's removal of all historical context will baffle and mislead modern audiences, and the film – schematic and calculated – at times partakes in the same cruelty it abhors.If the film is simplistic, it does well (perhaps unintentionally), to banalize the violence it presents.
This captures not only the desensitisation of late 80s Northern Ireland, but the moment when desires arose for the pursuit of other solutions.The film hit 80s Britain like a bolt of lighting.
Clarke, known for his social realism, had shocked before, but here his angry cry for peace was deemed particularly timely.
The film would have a huge influence on Gus Van Sant's "Elephant". |
tt1320296 | Shank | The film is set in Bristol (several shots feature the Clifton Suspension Bridge, and one appears to show the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta). Cal (Wayne Virgo) is a 19-year-old closeted gay gang member who has nothing in his life except drugs, sex, random acts of violence and a secret that he keeps hidden from his mates. An online hookup for sex with a stranger, Scott (Garry Summers), ends in him assaulting and abandoning Scott out in the countryside. This temporarily satisfies but fails to dampen his unspoken desires for his best mate, Jonno (Tom Bott). Nessa (Alice Payne), their twisted, foul-mouthed and controlling, de facto gang leader who harbours much hatred towards everyone for losing a child at the age of 14, suspects that there is something going on between them but she can't put her finger on it. Jonno, putty in Nessa's hands, can't express his own deep rooted and unrequited attachment to Cal. Manipulating situations that bring her closer to having her suspicions confirmed, Nessa sets out about dividing loyalties and encouraging conflict.
For no good reason an innocent student, Olivier (Marc Laurent), falls victim to one of her plans and is mugged on her orders by the gang. Cal steps in to restrain them and creates a distraction allowing Olivier to run free. Ignoring Nessa's screams of contempt, he chases after him and offers him a lift by way of an apology. Fearing that the fall-out from Nessa for his actions will be harsh, Cal persuades Olivier to help him out. Seizing the moral high ground and sensing that there was something more to Cal's Good Samaritan act, Olivier allows Cal to stay with him for a few days. Acting on his own attraction to Cal, Olivier seduces him and in doing so, exposes Cal to new emotions and a tenderness that he has never experienced before.
Soon, the boys are overtaken by the embrace of the first flush of love. Cal and Olivier's relationship progress, but Olivier is warned by Scott, who happens to be one of his professors, to be wary of Cal. Scott gives Olivier his phone number and tells Olivier to contact him if he is ever in need of help. Nessa can't contain her rage for Cal's disloyalty to the gang and sets about hunting him down, intent on destroying him once and for all. With her gang in tow and Jonno tightly wound up, she kidnaps Olivier, taunting Cal with video messages via her mobile phone, to come and save his boyfriend. Arriving at the abandoned factory where they are all waiting for him, he reveals that he is equally hurt by the child she lost, as he was the father. Meanwhile, Jonno and the other gang members begin to destroy Cal's car before they turn toward him. As the showdown unfolds, Nessa loses all control of events and Jonno explodes in act of sexual aggression by raping Cal and leaving everyone traumatized. Shocked by what she has witnessed, Nessa realizes she will now never be able to break the bond between Cal and Olivier while she and the other gang members flee. Olivier then contacts Scott for help and he rescues them and tends to Cal's wounds.
As the film ends Cal sends Scott a video of the man being beat up in the opening scenes of the movie, with the message "Sorry". That man turns out to be Scott's husband (they both wore wedding rings) who is still in a coma at the hospital. Cal throws away his phone, before joining hands and boarding a train with Olivier, severing his last remaining link to the gang and his old life. | comedy, neo noir, murder, violence, flashback, revenge | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0120861 | The Theory of Flight | Richard (Branagh), an unsuccessful artist who builds primitive flying machines, attempts to fly from the roof of a London office building wearing homemade wings but fails, instead crash-landing and only being saved by a rescue squad. As a result of his actions Richard is sentenced to community service, in the form of caring for Jane (Bonham-Carter), an ill-tempered, wheelchair-bound woman who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and has run off her previous caretakers.
Over time, Richard and Jane become friends, and eventually Jane asks Richard to help her find someone to lose her virginity to, explaining that she doesn't wish to die a virgin. Reluctantly Richard helps her search for an appropriate partner, while spending his free time building yet another experimental flying machine. Eventually the two settle on a high-priced male gigolo (Ray Stevenson) for Jane, who agrees to sleep with her for two thousand pounds. As neither of them have that amount of money, they conclude that Richard must rob a bank to secure the needed cash.
Richard books a hotel suite for Jane and pays the gigolo five hundred pounds, promising the rest later. As Richard leaves for the bank job, the gigolo lays a very nervous Jane on the bed, but she begins panicking and decides she no longer wants to go through with it. Meanwhile, Richard likewise changes his mind, drawing his gun in the bank but then fleeing immediately, calling Jane's name. He returns to the room and drives off the unhappy gigolo.
Richard and Jane are seen successfully taking a flight in Richard's flying machine, although it breaks apart on landing. The pair are then seen in bed, implying that Richard has taken Jane's virginity. Jane dies soon after, and the film ends with Richard placing a commemorative sign honoring Jane's memory on the wreckage of his flying machine. | romantic | train | wikipedia | The driving force in the movie is no doubt Jane, a young woman who faces the fact that she shall die soon.
(Bonham Carter) I am a veteran of pictures which feature a dying character with a physical disability.
But those films somehow never got the character to seem like a person.
Another beautiful quality of the film is Jane refuses to be mushy and over-emotional.
Branagh's character Richard should not be overlooked.
Jane brought Richard's redemption.
"Taking flight has more than one meaning"..Jane utters to Richard.
"The Theory of Flight" is an original movie which I recommend to anyone looking for a fresh look on a dying person, whether you see the dying person as Jane or Richard..
Not wishing to give *anything* away here, I would just say this technically excellent, flawlessly acted and uplifting little flic will reward the viewer with an excellent hour and a half's entertainment: It will amuse, surprise, possibly embarrass occasionally and almost certainly tug at the heartstrings from time to time, as it approaches the inevitable, but not obvious, ending without becoming clichéd or predictable in any way.
Most definitely recommended.A previous User's Comment gives 8 out of 10 for the film and 10 out of 10 for both Branagh and Bonham-Carter's outstanding performances - I agree entirely.....
This film does a superb job of depicting the plight of an ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease)sufferer.
Helena Bonham Carter is so convincing as a person with ALS that I found it hard to believe that she was only acting.
Kenneth Branagh, a superb actor, lives up to expectations as the quirky artist who misbehaves and is forced to provide companionship to Helena's character as part of his "community service", an alternative to prison time.
The sentimentality does occasionally threaten to choke it, but it's overcome by the playing of the two leads.It's easy to win plaudits just because you're playing a physical or mental cripple (Daniel Day-Lewis, Geoffrey Rush, Dustin Hoffman, etc.), and Helena Bonham-Carter may not quite capture the physical degradation of MND, but her vocal stretching and ruthless emotional drive compensate entirely.
Awards must surely follow, though not, alas, for this fine performance.Branagh, one feels, has never quite given his best on film (except possibly 'Hamlet', and there his playing was diluted by the large cast).
This is surely his finest performance yet - so why could he not produce the goods much earlier?As a film, it looks more like a television offering, and without its stars it probably wouldn't amount to very much.
If you're looking for a film about slightly offbeat characters outside the mainstream of society and how they help each other, this would be a good choice..
Worth seeing for Bonham Carter's performance..
Although this movie has some weaknesses, it is worth seeing.
I chose it because of the cast, and applaud Bonham Carter and Branagh for choosing roles different from those they have taken in the past.
Bonham Carter's "Jane" is a remarkable achievement, whose quest for romance opened my eyes to aspects of being disabled that I had not thought of before, but was interesting as well for other reasons.
I felt the movie ended too abruptly, but better that than a drawn out emotionally manipulative ending (see "Stepmom.") The very real English setting added to my enjoyment - it was England in the 90's, both urban and rural, without being depressing..
Shamefully, before I saw this film, I was unfamiliar with Helena Bonham Carter.I had to do some research, in order to assure myself she wasn't actually afflicted, as was her character, with (well?), what she was afflicted with.
She pulled it of flawlessly.Who would have thought that sexually explicit circumstances involving the final wants, and needs, of a unique young lady, could be interpreted as tender, and romantic?
Well, they can be, when the right performers present them in the proper manner, as they did in this wonderful movie.
I forgot to mention how dynamically beautiful Miss Carter looked in this movie.
American style movies, you look forward to seeing one from Europe that does not deal much with the art's technological aspects but the story and the feelings alone.
I have thought that "The Theory of Flight" was a film of emotions and atmosphere.
The characters were not deeply analysed maybe, or the situation of being "cripped" was mentioned better in other films (remember "My Left Foot").
minute of the movie, we have learned that Jane was desiring to lose her virginity like normal people.
How about Richard's own problems, Anne's point of view on having a daughter like Jane?
In fact, we don't understand Jane's feelings, too.
We just make guesses depending on our knowledge of other movie characters.
I finally must say that seeing K.B. and H.B.C. together in a movie was nice.
But as a whole, "The Theory of Flight" is a shallow movie.
From the minute I saw Helena Bonham-Carter, I said to myself : Oh!
My Left Foot was a John Ford alike movie and this one is a Chaplin alike movie (not because this is funny, but Chaplin at that great sense of melodrama that brings tears to your eyes.) I was right because in 1990 handsome Daniel Day-Lewis turn a little bit ugly by playing an crippled person and he did it with a great sense of reality.
Here, very beautiful Bonham-Carter did exactly the same thing, but with very feminine emotions.
For me, miss Bonham-Carter gives one of the greatest woman's part of the 1990's, with Emily Lloyd in Breaking The Waves.
She's also a true talent, as seen on many other movies.
Kenneth Branagh is one of my favourite actors having seen some of his work in Dead Again & Mary Shelley's Frankenstein his performance was both clever and incredible.
Helena Bonham Carter's portrayal of Jane a young woman dying from motor neurone disease was touching and heartfelt, you see the character go through the difficulty of the illness and sympathize with the situation.When I saw this film I began to enjoy it after the first few minutes it was funny, heartbreaking and a little romantic.
One of my favourite scenes was when Jane asked for help to lose her virginity, the expression on Richard's face was hilarious and yet stunned.The Theory Of Flight is a charming story filled with enough comedy, drama and the right amount of romance to keep viewers entertained..
I had my doubts about another love story wherein disabled individuals find meaning and redemption through honest communication.
But the performances from Helena Bonham Carter and Kenneth Branagh and exemplary, almost stunning, and rescue this from being just another tear-jerker.
The story of the film centres around Jane a young woman in the last stages of MND and the friendship that grows between her and Richard, a man on the verge of a breakdown.
This could have so easily been a dull and worthy piece but it is so humorous, humane and lacking in sentimentality that it wins you over completely and against the odds is a feel good movie.
The acting from Branagh and Bonham-Carter is superb especially the latter who is always believable and strong in her role.
Flying here is a symbol for both Richards and Janes living life to the full so that one can carry on and the other can face the end.
A beautiful and funny movie that I would recommend to anyone.
I'm a fan of Branagh, even more his Shakespeare' films, and, in the beginning, I saw it only for this...
This film starts with advantages few have:Branagh plays Hamlet here, a role and achievement at world class level.
Bonham-Carter plays a role with her eyes, of which she is among the very best, perhaps the best alive.
Richard (Kenneth Branagh) is a dreamer who tries an unpowered flight off of a London building.
He is given Jane Hatchard (Helena Bonham Carter) to care for.
The wheelchair-bound sex-obsessed Jane suffers from Lou Gehrig's Disease.
Richard helps to find a gigolo for her.This is set up for a pretty simple feel-good movie.
Also Jane's speech impediment prevents the jokes from getting the right timing.
If Richard is wackier, this movie could be more fun..
I just finished watching The Theory Of Flight.
This movie is only worth watching for the chemistry between the two leads.
Other then that, this movie goes to the silly side way too often, and loses its beat.
Don't be surprised if Helena Bonham-Carter receives another Oscar nomination for her work in this film..
also, the movie progresses into something better towards the end and actually does make a point.helena bonham carter also surprised me with her character.
the only thing that surprised me even more was branagh's character...this was a triumph of acting, the movie itself is nothing unique.see if you are an acting student...if you're looking for pure entertainment you can skip this one.
I thought I should drop my 2 cents in considering all the other reviews were lauding the exemplary talents of Branagh and Bonham-Carter.
No doubt these two are fabulously wonderful actors, and I'd rather watch them in schlock than Jennifer Love-Hewitt in anything, but am I the only one just a little skeeved out by this story?
I guess this is a true story, though I can't seem to find any evidence to the truth, except for that last tribute page at the end of the film.
Kenneth Branagh's performance came close to stealing this movie from Helena Bonham Carter, but their strong chemistry together made for a much more enjoyable movie.
Carter's star turn here as a disabled young women seeking to complete herself was as good a performance as I have seen from a female lead in a long time.
Portraying a disabled person is hard to pull off, but with basically only her eyes to show her pain about her situation in life, she made it so believable.
If this movie had come out after the current wave of movies with beautiful women "uglying" themselves up for roles (Charlize Theron, Halle Berry), I fell sure Carter would have had strong consideration for an Oscar.
This movie truly captures the feeling of freedom.......and what the freedom of your own integrity is worth....in the most delightful, light-hearted way.
And this movie is truly about finding love and knowing one has found it and that it totally changed one's life.It is one of my all time favorites......not easy to find but worth the hunt.........I guarantee you will watch it more than once!.
See it for Helena Bonham Carter..
Helena Bonham Carter is the center of this movie.
The movie itself was good not exceptional.
If you are a Helena Bonham Carter fan it is worth seeing..
Carter's performance is good but the script has problems.
The Theory of Flight has a good performance from Bonham Carter but in a underdeveloped role.
Too much of Branagh's character.
Her "My Left Foot" the movie is not.
A movie that was more about Carter's character would have been better because her performance is so good that it deserved the Oscar buzz it received.
Because the movie is not about her however and is so focused on Branagh's unbalanced but not as interesting character the movie is basically just OK rather than being a film like My Left Foot.
The direction from Greengrass has some interesting moments but a lot of time there is just too much overdoing of scenes with Branagh..
i thought this movie was really really great!
I thought she played her character very well!
:)the movie was also really funny too!
An emotive, beautiful masterwork from Kenneth Branagh and Helena Bonham Carter.
I love Branagh, love Helena Bonham-Carter, loved them together in "Mary Shelley's Frankenstein" - but THIS -I can understand an actor's desire to stretch, to avoid the romantic stereotype.
Well, they did, but really - the script droned on, Bonham-Carter's clothes were tres chic, and the occasional speeded-up "madcap" sequence could have been an outtake from a Beatles' movie, or the old Rowan and Martin Laugh-In.I never got the point - other commenters say the Branagh character was a dreamer.
Certainly not amusing.Bonham-Carter's realistic (one supposes) attempts as realistic speech were harder to understand than the first 15 minutes of Lancashire accent in "Full Monty."The poetic ending, with him high on a hill with her buried under the monstrosity of his airplane was too orchestrated.
The main difference between Richard (Kenneth Branagh) and I - in 1998 - is that I'd have given Jane (Helena Bonham-Carter) what used to be called "a good seeing to" in a remote shed in Wales in the late evening without any hesitation - as she is obviously gagging for it and nobody's about.She's shown in a care institution watching space age crash dummy porno films with a realistic panting and moaning audio track.
That's why only gay directors and gay leading men thrived in the theatre.Anyway this is a great, English 'will the young man ever work out where to put his penis ?' film in which Richard's chances of ever leaving the ground in a pile of old scrap metal are about as likely as Jane's are to get him to politely insert a working dildo with a new set of batteries into her willing vagina - or even have the straightforward ingenuity to hot-wire it from the battery on her three-phase, space-age, wheelchair.But I'm not going to spoil the magic "Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid - 1969" moment where one of them admits "I've never shot anybody before !
The rumour that I get any residual on Netflix and Amazon viewings is laughable, but possible.When a strange kind of aeronautical intimacy is finally achieved you will understand why the Civil Aviation Authority and British Airways Flying Club doesn't let Ken Branagh and Helena Bonham-Carter up in real aeroplanes in googles and leather helmets - however much they get paid for acting.Children in those days were very naughty - well into their thirties.
A wheelchair-bound young woman Jane Hatchard(Helena Bonham Carter)is teamed with a reluctant caregiver, Richard(Kenneth Branagh).
Richard is an artist that daydreams of human flight.
He wants to resurrect his own troubled life by taking care of the independent, dying Jane, who suffers from an neurological disease that has all but left her speechless and very little motor skills.
She offers herself to Richard, who won't help her directly; but is willing to rob a bank in order to pay a gigolo to do the deed.
That is, good in parts.The good: enjoyably twisted and unsentimental approach to disability, good acting (probably Branagh's best work in a questionable film career), some interesting images (Branagh in flying goggles!) and a cinematic sense unusual in Brit cinema.
First seeing Helena Bonham Carter in the chair was a bit of a "black and white minstrels" moment, although I think she overcame it with a fine, tough performance.We never believe Branagh's plane really flies, although I guess as it's mainly intended symbolically that doesn't matter too much.All in all, much better than one would have expected, even if it didn't quite hang together as a movie.
I caught the beginning by chance and stayed up to watch till the end so I guess that's a recommendation.
Loser Richard is sentenced to community service and becomes a visitor for Jane, a young woman who in the last stages of Motor Neurone Disease.
Potential spoiler: Richard and Jane develop a friendship that is tested when HBC asks that KB assist her in her plan to lose her virginity.
I was pleased that this movie attempted (in the main) to deal seriously with the issue of disability and sexuality.
I think the overall impression was that we should not think of those who use wheelchairs as mentally challenged or not sensual.It bugged me that an intelligent and web-literate woman like Jane had not researched her enterprise better or even acted on it independently.
This damaged the positive images by making her more helpless.Also, the cynical feel-good ending left me cold.
I was annoyed that Richard's life became the primary cause for concern - but maybe that was the key flaw in the whole movie.
The character of Jane (and HBC's performance) were the highlights.Happy to discuss..
Richard, whose relationship with Anne apparently ended badly, decides to relocate to a rural area where he finds a place in the country with a large barn he plans to use to construct his own plane.Richard ends up trying to help Jane Harchard reluctantly.
What Jane loves to do is to lose her virginity, at any cost.
Jane and Richard clash as they meet, but a mutual tolerance soon makes them comfortable with one another.Jane, who watches porn on her computer, has a notion for finding someone like Richard Gere in "American Gigolo", who will, for a fee, have sex with her.
When Richard takes her to London, they find the right man for the job.
Unfortunately, things don't go according to plan when Jane realizes that she can't go through with what she had wanted.
At the end, Richard takes Jane for a ride in his crudely built plane for the thrill of her life, something that brings them closer, as they find an affinity with one another.Peter Greengrass directed this quirky film which presents an unusual situation.
Jane is clearly not the romantic heroine in mainstream films, and yet, she has such a sweet aura about her that is hard not to feel for her and what she is trying to accomplish.
The movie doesn't try to be cute or give a rosy picture of a young woman afflicted with an incurable disease.Helena Bonham Carter is the main reason for watching the film.
She makes a wonderful Jane.
Gemma Jones has some good moments as Anne, Richard's former love."The Theory of Flight" shows a good director. |
tt0371922 | Saaya | Akash "Akki" (John Abraham) and his wife Maya (Tara Sharma) are doctors. When malaria strikes India on the Burmese border, pregnant Maya rushes over to help, despite Akki's disapproval. Akash soon receives the news of her death caused by a bus crash. The bus crashed into water at heavy rains.
Akash cannot accept Maya's passing away and believes strongly that she did not die. Akash himself has paranormal experiences where he feels that Maya's ghost is trying to communicate with him. He tries to communicate with her through the hospital patients who have suffered a near-death experience. Every patient draws a strange symbol, and one corpse starts talking to Akash when he is alone. Tanya (Mahima Chaudhry), a close friend of Maya, tries to console Akash, because when her lover died in an accident it was Akash who treated her. Now, she believes it is her turn, and she believes he is hallucinating.
With the help of a nun called Sister Martha and clues, Akash decides to go back to where it all began — the border. There, with the help of a guide, he tries to find out about Maya but is not very successful, following which Akash jumps off a waterfall near the crash site and finds the sunken bus. He sees Maya's spirit beckoning him, and she shows him her accident and the incidents that followed. He goes to the nearby village tribe and asks if they saved Maya. They say she died, but they saved her soul. They take Akash inside and show him a surprise — though Maya died, she gave birth to their daughter. Akash thus realises that Maya was teaching him to trust, because their baby survived among the tribe without any medical attention despite being premature. He also realizes that Maya's spirit was trying to reach him so that he could meet their daughter. He takes their child home and lives happily ever after. | romantic, haunting, flashback | train | wikipedia | Thoughtful and mature.
So the story goes like this: Akash Bhatnagar (John Abraham; a.k.a Akki) is a doctor who loses his wife Maya (Tara Sharma) in an accident.
Unable to cope with his loss, he begins to see and hear things that convince him that his dead wife is trying to contact him.
His friends, like Tanya (Mahima Chaudhary) try to convince him that his mind is getting affected by the tragedy and advise him to move on with his life.
Nevertheless the strange happenings continue and eventually lead Akash to what his wife was trying to tell him.One of the strongest points of the film is its short running time.
But the beginning of the movie starts out slow and it takes awhile for the viewer to get into the story.
But once in, it keeps you hooked.
The scenes just before and just after the intermission are excellent.
There are some scary scenes, not horror but just unexpected happenings.
Otherwise, Saaya is basically a drama and a good one at that.
Although the story has been copied from Kevin Costner's Dragonfly, it still seems novel when compared to the run of the mill love stories (that we all still love to watch, no matter how overdone).Direction is good.
Screenplay could have used a teeny bit of help but some dialogues were thoughtful, especially the ones about faith.
Music is excellent: dark, brooding, thoughtful and haunting.
Performance wise, Tara Sharma thankfully has a very small role.
Although pretty, she is wooden and impassive.
Mahima Chaudhary in a supporting role is good.
She has this wonderful way of morphing into different roles.
Here she looks very much like the young widow she plays.
Lastly, John Abraham is surprising.
He does well in the complex role of a widower whose faith is questioned.
Of course it doesn't hurt that he is major eye-candy.
I can't wait for his next movie.
There is still room for improvement though..
Saaya - a tribute to eternal love..
Saaya is a movie which is not worth a "Hit" or "Superhit" status.
This movie is a tribute to eternal love.
Full credit goes to the writer Amol Shetge and director Anubhav Sinha.The movie will be cherished and appreciated by all the people in true love.
The performance by John is much beyond words.
Tara Sharma in a brief but most significant role leaves an impact.
But the winner is Anu Malik.
The music is the hero of the film.
Songs being aplenty, are wonderful, melodious and well-suited to the mood of the film.After watching the movie, I really remembered of my girl and thought "Do I love my partner as much as Akki (i.e. John) does?" I really recommend one and all to watch the movie with your loved ones and please do not forward any songs.
If after watching this movie, u start loving your partner more than you do now, then the purpose of writing of this preview is accomplished..
Good work.
An adaptation of the Hollywood movie 'Dragonfly'.
The movie has an okay-okay screenplay, but the movie is saved by the brilliant direction of the mastero, Anurag Basu.
Without a good director, the movie could have been a total mismash, but thank God, it didn't happen!The story is not seen many times, it is kind of story dealing with the connection between 'this world' and 'that world'.
Few loopholes are there in the movie, but not a problem..This is one of the early movies of John Abraham, but he is perfectly fine, without any newcomer feeling.
The show almost belongs to him only, and he handles it well.
His expression was very good in the climax.
Tara Sharma had more song presence, than scenes.
She is alright, but seems uncomfortable in a sequence or two.
Mahima Chaudhary also does a supporting role, she does it well.
Raj Zutshi irritates with his accent...
Zohra Sehgal was good for her role.Songs by Anu Malik are okay, and surprisingly, Shreya Ghoshal appears in a song, as a school girl.
The song is sung by herself, she looks good, and the song too!!On the whole, an average script, made above average with a good direction.
"(Average+Good)/2= Above Average".
Well made version of a Hollywood original.
A very good and well made film.
Another worthy Bollywood copy of a recent Hollywood movie : Dragonfly - starring Kevin Costner (in one of his better roles).
John (Abraham) did well as main lead and supporting cast weren't too bad either.
A worthy recommendation, but Costner's performance made you feel more for the character..
Good supernatural drama/thriller.
John Abraham seems to have matured tremendously since Jism and did a great job.
Mahima, as always, gave a great performance in her short yet noticable role.
The girl opposite John was barely in the movie and didn't make much of a mark.
The ending and theme are also interesting..
Not Only Is It Ripped Off...It's Incredibly Boring.
Anurag Basu's 'Saaya' is almost a scene by scene ripoff of 'Dragonfly'.
Basu has since gained recognition as a hack director.
However, this time, even after being ripped off, 'Saaya' is mind numbingly boring.
It's pretty much about a man grieving his wife's death and Basu has cast one of the worst actors in this role.
Abraham, though less wooden than he usually is, delivers yet another weak performance.
His forced and yet clueless puppy-dog wannabe expressions are quite funny (unintentionally of course).
Tara Sharma is miscast.
Mahima Chaudhry is wasted in a less significant role but she is a scene stealer and acts better than the rest of the cast put together.
Needless to say, she's the only one that acts at all.
The song in the opening sequence has catchy lyrics while the rest of them are forgettable.
The cinematography is sometimes very good but otherwise dull.
Anyway, 'Saaya' is quite a waste and I'd only recommend it if you're having a hard time getting some sleep..
A Beautiful, Emotional, Touching Film!.
I loved this movie!
John Abraham is a very versatile actor, and he really shines through in this movie.
Mahesh and Mukesh Bhatt's collaboration paid dividends, and they really came up with an all-round entertaining production.
The locales are exquisitely beautiful, the music and songs are hauntingly beautiful, and the suspense and scare factor is maintained till the very end.
The science of near-death experiences and the spiritual aspects are dealt with deftly and expertly, and the pace is fast and adequate to maintain the viewers' interest throughout.
The end is heart-wrenching and emotional, and brings a lump to the throat.
Do watch it!.
Dragonfly.
Bhatt films are known for copying films but many times they do come with good stories, SAAYA was the second release of John after Jism(produced by Pooja Bhatt) The film is a remake of Dragonfly.
However there were no bold scenes in the film which normally Bhatt films have The story is like a mix of horror and love story which is well handled.
The film is a bit too slow for Indian audiences but yet the scenes are well handled Director Anurag Basu does a good job handling the film Music by Anu Malik is good, the songs are melidiousJohn Abraham in his second film showed tremendous growth sadly he is hardly known for his acting and people often criticise him, though his voice is dubbed by Viraj and affects his act, but then it's Bhatt tradition to dub their actors in their first few films Tara Sharma is average in a brief role, her voice too is dubbed which is no complain since her voice is horrible Mahima Chaudhary is fab in a small role, sadly she never could make it big, Zohra Sehgal is fab in a small role, she was 90 years in the film in real life Vishwajeet Pradhan is as usual in a brief role, Raj Jhutsi overacts.
Yes it is a scene by scene copy of Dragonfly but....
It has its own uniqueness as well.
It's not as thematically scary as its Hollywood counterpart, but you can always trust the Bhatts to make every steal their own signature.
John Abraham plays Dr. Akash, husband to Tara Sharma's Dr. Maya, both very young and hopelessly in love with a baby on the way.
One day, Maya packs her bags and decides she has to go help the less fortunate in villages that have been ravaged by natural disasters.
Much to Akash's dismay, he begs her not to go but she uses the love card on him and gets her way.
Unfortunately, she dies during a bus accident during a monsoon flood and Akash has to come to terms with this.
Somehow he gets it through his head that Maya is trying to speak to him from beyond the grave and the whole movie from then on is spent trying to prove or disprove his theory.
Mahima Choudry shows up here in the Kathy Bates character from the original movie, only she is a more sexier neighbour than Bates.
Every time she appears on screen with Abraham, you just hope that somehow the Bhatt's wouldn't twist the script up and make Maya slap her from beyond the grave as Tanya (Choudry) has an undeniable sexual chemistry with Akash (Abraham) although this is never explored in the film.
Tanya slaps Akash around a few times but this doesn't help to dissolve the chemistry between them.
In one scene, Akash lashes out at Maya's mum during a dinner that she ought to know that only Maya referred to him as "Akki," yet somehow inexplicably Tanya ends up calling him Akki as well throughout the film.
And even in some scenes, Tanya almost looks like a carbon copy of Maya.
But yet again, this could have just been the Bhatt's trying to mark their own mark on the telling because there was no such possibilities with those two characters in the original movie.
Abraham shines nevertheless as the heartbroken Akash and Choudry in the few scenes that she has, manages to steal them away from the main characters.
Tara Sharma is good too, but her time on screen was just too brief to be a full fledged character.
Her counterpart in the original film had more screen time, but that could be chocked up to the love scenes she (the original character) had to do with Kevin Costner in Dragonfly, which at the time Saaya was shot, such scenes were considered taboo in a mainstream Bollywood film.
I give it 8 out of 10 stars.
It's definitely worth seeing. |
tt0112572 | The Brady Bunch Movie | Larry Dittmeyer, an unscrupulous real estate developer, explains to his supervisor that almost all the families in his neighborhood have agreed to sell their property as part of a plan to turn the area into a shopping mall, except for the Brady family.
At the Bradys' house, Mike and Carol are having breakfast prepared by their housekeeper, Alice, while the six children prepare for school. Jan is jealous of her elder, popular sister Marcia. Cindy is tattling about everything she's hearing. Greg is dreaming of becoming a singer (but sings folk songs more appropriate to the seventies). Peter is nervous that his voice is breaking. Bobby is excited about his new role as hall monitor at school.
Cindy gives Mike and Carol a tax delinquency notice (which was earlier mistakenly delivered to the Dittmeyers) stating that they face foreclosure on their house if they do not pay $20,000 in back taxes. The two initially ignore the crisis, but when Mike's architectural design (which is exactly the same as their house) is turned down by two potential clients, he tells Carol that they may have to sell the house. Cindy overhears this and tells her siblings and they look for work to raise money to save the house, but their earnings are nowhere near enough to reach the required sum. Mike manages to sell a Japanese company on one of his dated designs, thereby securing the money, only for Larry to sabotage it by claiming that Mike's last building collapsed.
On the night before the Bradys have to move out, Marcia suggests that they enter a "Search for the Stars" contest, the prize of which is exactly $20,000. Jan, having originally suggested this and been rejected, runs away from home. Cindy sees her leave and tattles, and the whole family goes on a search for her. They use their car's citizens' band radio, and their transmission is heard by Schultzy, a driver who picks up Jan and convinces her to return home.
The next day, the children join the "Search for the Stars" contest with a dated performance that receives poor audience response compared to the more modern performances of other bands. However, the judges — Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz, and Peter Tork of The Monkees — vote for them, and they win the contest as a result. The tax bill is paid and their neighbors withdraw their homes from the market, foiling Larry's plan and securing the neighborhood.
Later, Carol's mother arrives and finally convinces Jan to stop being jealous of Marcia, only for Cindy to start feeling jealous of Jan. | romantic, comedy, satire | train | wikipedia | An excellent movie on the whole, complete with cameos by the original Brady Bunch cast and '70s icons.The beauty of this movie, has I've mentioned before, is that it is done so authentically.
There are little touches here and there (you may need to watch the movie a few times to notice), such as 'The Partridge Family' bus going by just before the singing competition scene.There are some hilarious moments (some quite cringe worthy too!).
I'm still not sure if they actually "froze" Maureen McCormick (the REAL Marcia Brady), only to unthaw her in time to return to her role in this film; the actress playing Marcia in this film looks like a clone of the original!
The best bit of self mocking is the modern expansion of the characters this thing is full of innuendoes and nice touches like Jan hearing voices etcThe cast are all spot on.
The Brady Bunch Movie is a fine tribute to the original television series and the film retains enough of the humor from the series to make the film work, despite an entire new cast.
The jokes are really good, but the main joke is seeing how the Bradys react in the 1990's, and fortunately that joke did not disappoint.Betty Thomas's film has all the original characters from the television series, including my favorite: Alice the housekeeper.
Davis's Alice very much so.Overall, The Brady Bunch Movie is an effective comedy and a successful reboot showing a new generation the wonders of the Brady family.
RuPaul even gets into the Brady act, appearing as the kid's school guidance person - helping Jan through her 'Marcia, Marica, Marcia!' obsession.Plenty of laughs (if not for the sheer corn factor) and it's actually quite fun.
For anyone old enough to have seen the original series, this movie truly blows the lid off of the whole TV show and pokes fun at the whole whole family and concept at every turn.
but for me the movie really started to pick up from the moment (49 min) Davy Jones give an exceptional performance of his 70's Brady's hit 'girl' while Marcia Brady 70's character drive an entire 90's grunge crowed to dance to is song, and the schoolteachers are gathering around him.
In other words, the clothes, the language, the actors and their spot-on impersonations of the originals (I particularly loved Gary Cole and the way he talked just like Mike Brady) and the music are all circa 1970--and everyone around the Brady family just stares at them in total disbelief.
THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE, in my opinion, is an excellent film adaptation of a classic TV show with smashing performances.
THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE is a twisted and clever lampooning of the classic 1969-74 TV show about the saccharine sweet blended family and the adventures they faced.
Director Betty Thomas has cleverly set this movie in 1995; however,has kept the Bradys stuck in a 1970's time warp, talking, acting, and dressing like they are still in the 70's and it this clash of opposing pop cultures that help to make this movie so funny; however be forewarned: This movie is solely aimed at people who watched every single episode of the TV series.
The kids are well cast too, special mention to Christine Taylor' Marcia (whose physical and vocal resemblance to Maureen McCormick is uncanny)and the brilliant Jennifer Elise Cox, who just about steals the movie as Jan. She doesn't look too much live Eve Plumb, but the voice, the walk, the mannerisms and the attitude are dead solid perfect.
I first saw this at a cinema with my best friend, we grew up with the Bradys and to be honest, I think for one to really enjoy this movie, you have to feel as if you are on the inside of an inside joke.
THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE (1995) *** Shelley Long, Gary Cole, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Christine Taylor, Michael McKean, Jennifer Elise Cox, Paul Sutera, Jesse Lee, Olivia Hack, Henriette Mantel, David Graf, Jack Noseworthy, Megan Ward, (Cameos: RuPaul, Davy Jones, Florence Henderson, Barry Williams, Christopher McKnight, Ann B.
It sucked!!" Well , not to praise the The Brady Bunch Movie anymore than I already have, but this has the exact same sappy jokes or situational comedy that we've all grown to know and hate.
After almost 30 years, Sherwood Schwartz, the still living original creator of The Brady Bunch TV series finally got a feature film of his show off the ground.
Amazingly, The Brady Bunch Movie (1995) is very funny and self-mocking, hip fun.The beginning sets the tone, when Mr Ditmeier, the slimy realtor (played by fabulous mockumentarian and the Lenny half of Lenny & Squiggy from TV's Laverne and Shirley, Michael McKean) is trying to explain the Bradys to his client: "it's like they're not normal".
Ms Ubach is completely adorable - but she's not God. Even she needs * better material * than the asinine Clockwatchers (1998).A key touch during the movie is the adherence to plot elements from the TV series, such as the Bradys needing $20,000 to save their house, which the kids try to fix on their own by entering a talent contest.
Florence Henderson, Ann B Davis, Barry Williams, and Christopher Knight all put in quickie appearances (as other characters, of course, which doesn't detract from the new cast at all).As with the TV series, the Bradys' singing and dancing is actually quite crucial to their charm.
Davis(Alice), the original Peter Brady and Greg Brady all have cameos in the movie!!!If you still have not seen the TV series , the watch it and then watch the movie!!This movie was followed by "A Very Brady Sequel" the next year!!Both "Brady Bunch " movies are my favorites because I can relate to them in a big family(I am in a family of 11)!Of course I also grew up watching the series as a kid, it still is one of my favorite TV series(besides Doctor Who,Buffy and Angel!!) IF you have seen this awesome spoof go see it ASAP!!!.
For anyone who's watched the show, there are countless references and spoofs of the original, and I for one found this movie to be one of the funniest thing I've seen in a long while.
of 3 out of 4 of the Monkees make it all the more nostalgic in addition to all of the recreations from the TV Show & the new & updated Brady Humor also.Oh Yes that's right Stevie's Favorite Family Each time they come back Ste is more glad to see,They Drive Ste Brady true,true.Like no one else, They Drive Ste Brady & I can't help myself.Also do watch for the "jump rope" scene,it's very hysterical.As Critic Leonard Maltin states in his TV-Movie-Video Guide predictably previous TV Brady Vets do make Cameo apps.But this what makes it all the more enjoyable too.Gary Cole does a great succession to the Late Robert Reed's Role.The 3 Monkees making a cameo give a nice touch of Familarity too.Christine Taylor as Marcia is uncanny and she and Maureen McCormick even agree that looking at each other is like looking in the mirror.Shelley Long mimic's Carol Brady very well too.All the lead players do well on the whole too.
THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE(1995)Shelly Long, Gary Cole, Christine Taylor, Chris Daniel Barnes, Jennifer Else Cox. In this film, based on the 70s TV Show The Brady Bunch, Carol and Mike need 20,000 dollars by the end of the week, or else their house gets auctioned off.
When I first heard about the concept of this movie, I thought it was dumb-I liked the idea of a BB movie, especially since the previews looked great, but then I read I review about how the Bradys are in a "time warp" and the rest of the world is in the late 90's.
There's some little sexual innuendo thrown in, but it fits in with the movie and the characters perfectly-one of the funniest scenes is when Carol and Mike think they're alone, and she's sitting on his lap whispering what is probably talking dirty in his ear, and he's saying "Uh-huh...You would...I see..." exactly like Mike Brady does when he's talking to someone on the phone.
Watch for the cameos from 4 original cast members-the best was the real Alice playing a truck driver (hmmm, always though Alice was a little butch) picking up hitch-hiking Jan who has run away from home.
All their naivete (spelled wrong, I know...) is actually sweet rather than annoying-Marcia wears hideous 70's clothes but carries herself like a princess, Greg wants to make friends with the car-jacker, assuming he must need a spare tire, Mike explains how he wouldn't sell his house for any price because he designed it himself with love.
You look really happening in a far out way!" are actually endearing.Everyone with a sense of humor and fun will probably like this movie, and those of us who grew up on the show will absolutely love it..
If you were looking for something similar to an era long-gone (The Brady Bunch (original show), Leave it to Beaver, Father Knows Best, etc.), then skip this one.
The culture clash of the film is what makes this what it is, I can't say this is exactly like the TV show but the way in which they kind of bring them back from the past in a new setting makes this even better, a great decision by someone.Now the direction isn't always done well, it creates some good humour but also creates some of the worst.
This movie isn't always great to review as there is very little to say, but one thing is that the jokes can, now I repeat can be hit and miss but still remain fairly well done and the movie is as always I have said, a funny one.I recommend this to people who like good old humour, not a comedy wasting around trying to create a smart plot or anything, just comedy that makes you chuckle but not over think things.
The actual plot is not exactly exciting but that's the good thing for me, it focuses on making you laugh more than thrilling or entertaining with boring and seen before plots so common of the day.Overall a kind of good movie and one that although not entirely brilliant, still a movie that should entertain and if a fan of the original series, please watch it.
This movie even has a sequel so you can see that people did enjoy the humour and do like the film so please disregard any poor reviews but also don't listen to one's that say this is flawless, in fact my review is pretty worthless too but make your own mind up on this one and if you find it funny too..
This 1995 movie pokes fun at the Brady's wholesome and unified spirit, but also highlight their early-70's outlandishness by having the story take place in the mid-90s.While the last act loses some luster, the rest of the film is a laugh riot if you're familiar with the original show.
Based on the classic TV series, Mike Brady and his wife Carol have one week to come up with $20,000 in back taxes or their house is sold to their scheming neighbor, Larry Dittmeyer.This is a PG-13 version of the family show; it still contains much cheery and carefree elements that render the movie annoying some times, but it isn't totally a waste of time as I've found that plot of the Brady kids helping to raise money to save their family's home to be pretty entertaining.
The acting wasn't bad and it was interesting that the movie pays tribute to 60s/70s icons like the Partridge Family and Davey Jones, and well as appearances by some of the original Brady Bunch TV cast.Overall, it's not a bad film for some laughs.
Jennifer Elise Cox has taken over nicely the role of the ever dissatisfied middle sister Jan who the real and original Carol Brady as the grandmother finally deals with in the appropriate manner.As in any of the television Brady episodes goodness and vacuity ultimately triumph and to find out how and which episode plot lines are used to bring that about, you'll have to sit back and enjoy the big screen version of America's most famous blended family..
Self mocking and fun, The Brady Bunch Movie is much funnier, though less wholesome than the television series..
If a Brady Bunch movie were made during or soon after the television series, it probably would have had the original cast and most definitely would have been as wholesome.
Many silly sub-plots ensue, like Marcia and Greg falling for each other and Jan making up a boyfriend.All throughout, this movie was silly fun.
Carefully-picked cast members have the look and groovy idiom down perfectly, and they are complimented further by recognizable faces in most of the supporting roles, but the plot (about evil next-door neighbors the Dittmeyers trying to oust the Bradys from their home) is just an outline, hung with familiar jokes and situations from the series.
The thing certainly looks good (great care was taken to reproduce the Bradys' world down to the smallest detail), but the film cannot sustain itself on visual gags and innuendos alone.
This movie was the most terrible thing I have ever seen in my life So corny so TERRIBELE but Marcia looks like the real Marcia And mike Brady is the guy from office space U yeah u huh did you get the memo?
terrible movie who wants to see a most terrible movie I mean they were mocking it to so that was good i only laughed one time on where Mrs.Brady said Tiger tiger what ever happened to that dog its true i think the real tiger got ran over by a car and they never played him on a episode again.Jan does not look like Jan i mean the soft voice and stuff and the werid part is OWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH My noes Ahh My noeses so freaky so fake....
I actually found his portrayal of Mike Brady more believable than Robert's hmmm.Shelley Long did a great portrayal of Carol Brady, she even looks just like Florence Henderson did in the original, love the flip hair-do too.
I got to give it to the designer/set guys they did awesome, I wonder if they borrowed stuff from the set of the Brady Bunch because everything looked like it.Anyways, this movie is great, it's one of the best movies based on a TV series, what am I talking about, it is the best!
And look for some great cameos as well.Good, hilarious fun for Brady fans.
This movie has the eponymous wholesome family living in the 1990s but time-locked in the 1970s, thus enabling a comparison/contrast between the two eras.The plot has the Bradys trying to keep from getting evicted, while Jan gets jealous of Marcia and Greg tries to start up a career as a singer.
Lest I spoil it, I'll say no more except that if you truly know everything about the Brady Bunch, stop reading these reviews and go watch this movie!!.
Everything is made fun of in this movie.Of course, it has a happy ending (it is, after all, The Brady Bunch we are talking about), but it still leaves you wondering if life ever was this good.
I can think of a lot of people both younger than myself and my own age (who grew up with the Brady Bunch since it first came out) who would enjoy this film.And every once in a while, I rent it just to give myself a little nostalgia kick.
We all wish we had neighbors or just people in the world we could trust like the Bradys.Gary Cole as Mike was hilarious trying to sell the same structure to his boss(a model of his own home).
I guiltily liked The Brady Bunch Movie.Starring: Gary Cole, Shelley Long, Henriette Mantel, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Christine Taylor, Paul Sutera, Jennifer Elise Cox, Jesse Lee, Alanna Ubach, and Olivia Hack.
Personelly the movie would be 5 time better if the whole family, but Shelly Long was re-cast and the script was more like the original.
I am not saying that this movie is not worth your time, but if you can be watching the original Brady Bunch I personally recommend it instead.2/10.
You know you're getting old when you can remember when the show originally first aired and these plot lines (all rolled into one ninety minute movie) are more stupid than they were at first.But then, the times have changed, but the Bradys have not.
the brady bunch movie is almost never funny.
I didn't think 'The Brady Bunch' television series was so stupid it was funny, I just thought it was stupid.
If you always loved the Brady Bunch, this movie won't anger you by the way they were treated.
"The Brady Bunch Movie" is one of the most clever spoofs I have ever seen.
I think Jennifer Elise Cox stands out the most, as the psycho middle-child Jan Brady.All-in-all the cast nailed it, and this goes down hands-down as one of the funniest movies I have seen in a long time..
As a big fan of the original Brady Bunch show, seeing this movie always makes me laugh harder than the show.
You're not going to watch the Brady Bunch movie!
Then I think that it is something that would detract from a Brady Bunch Movie anyway.
They may have cleaned up the original script, but not enough for younger viewers.Love the movie for its casting mannerisms of the family, in addition to the great believability of the characters in playing the original Brady roles to near perfection.
However the PG-13 humor taints the movie's enjoyment.For the greatest Brady Bunch moments of all time, it is best to stick with the original classic series.. |
tt0246404 | The 24th Day | Tom (Scott Speedman) and Dan (James Marsden) meet in a bar and then proceed to Tom's apartment together. While there, Dan realizes that he had been in that same apartment before. Five years earlier, Dan and Tom had a one night stand there. According to Tom, that encounter with Dan was his first and only homosexual experience. Some years later, Tom's wife is found to be HIV positive. Despondent after receiving this diagnosis from her doctor, Tom's wife drives through a red traffic light and is killed in an ensuing collision. Subsequent to these events, medical tests reveal that Tom is also HIV positive. Tom blames himself for passing HIV on to his wife and, in turn, he blames Dan for passing the virus on to him. Reasoning that Dan, ultimately, is to blame for his wife's death, Tom devises a plan to exact revenge. He holds Dan hostage, keeping him bound and gagged to a chair in his apartment. He draws blood from Dan in order to conduct a test to determine Dan's HIV status. If Dan's test results are positive for HIV, Tom vows to kill Dan. If the results are negative, Tom agrees to release Dan unharmed. In the end, Tom returns to the apartment and lets Dan go. As Dan is leaving, Tom asks him when he had last been tested. A few moments later, he reveals that Dan's test was, in fact, positive. He decided to let Dan go because he realized that his positive status was the result of his choices which he couldn't blame on anyone else. The screen fades with Dan standing in Tom's doorway in shock. | revenge, suspenseful, queer, flashback | train | wikipedia | Without giving away the plot, let me say that almost every minute of the taught, carefully crafted script is imbued with thoughtful discussion on issues that are all to frequently ignored by sexually active gay men.
As great as the material is on its own, it takes a couple of powerhouse actors to sustain tension and interest throughout what is essentially a ninety-minute two-man show, and James Marsden and Scott Speedman are more than up to the task.
Seek out this movie -- find it in a theater, rent it when it becomes available -- because it's worth it, and because films like this need to be encouraged and rewarded..
One can argue it's a homophobic piece or one can argue entirely the opposite, but one can't argue that it's a well scripted, well paced and well acted movie that is worthy of 90 minutes of anyone's time in the world of Hollywood formulaic drama that dominates the mainstream.
Scott Speedman and James Marsden's one-night stand turns into an intense power play between captor and captive.A independent film adaptation from a play by Tony Piccirillo and directed by same, is a tour de force with very good acting by Scott Speedman and James Marsden.
It was nice to see 2 actors, relying on their acting skills alone, making the movie work from all angles.I liked this film for it's simplicity and storyline.
If the movie were untrue to life about how gay men go out and have sex frequently, then the rates of new HIV infection would be dropping incredibly, since everyone would use protection.
"The 24th Day" is a very thought-provoking film, which due to it's content is not everyone's sort of film, but being such an unusual and rare sort of film, is a great film to watch and perhaps for some people, after watching, may come out with a greater understanding of the issues in the film, one of the obvious being HIV.Few and far between are there films where homosexual characters are portrayed as normal people, and this is one of them, so when the HIV aspect of the film was introduced it seemed rather odd - do all gay related films have to be about HIV?
The answer is of course no, and the film does, through Marsden's character Dan, strongly point out that HIV is in no way a "gay disease", which is a good point, as there seems to be not enough awareness of this, however, the people that need to be aware of that are probably not going to be the ones watching this film anyway.
Scott Speedman also did a fantastic job of portraying his character Tom. Essentially a 2-character film (as it is adapted from a theatrical performance), it can get quite monotonous at points, but the actors both stay in good form.
During the night, Tom (Scott Speedman) invites Dan (James Marsden) to his apartment for one night stand.
"The 24th Day" is indeed a play in a low budget movie, having a magnificent screenplay and stunning performances of James Marsden and Scott Speedman.
The 24th Day is a tense, low-budget gay thriller which focuses on Tom who holds Dan (an ex-trick) captive.
He extracts a blood sample from Dan and threatens to do bad things if it comes back HIV positive.The 24th Day has a well conceived story-line (apparently it was based on a play written by the Director or something) - and although it takes a little while to get going - I think it sets the scene well and draws you to the characters.It's basically a two-man film and the two leads are quite well acted - Dan (played by X-Men's James Marsden) is cocky, self-assured (for the most part) and defiant while Scott Speedman's Tom is uneasy and simmering (in the angry sense).The film quality (as in picture) is fairly poor - but it doesn't distract from the film.24th Day is a cool little thriller which is worth checking out if you like low-budget movies..
Director, P.J. Castellaneta, did close to this same thing (minus the death threats) 13 years earlier in his 1991 release, "Together Alone." Here's how the two films line up:--2 hunky guys (one married / one not---in both "24th" and "TA").--A night of lovemaking (remembered+talked about in "24th" / actually in bed in "TA").--AIDS as a factor (does he have it / does he not---in both films).--A night of philosophizing (what if this / what if not this---in both films).Apparently 1991's "Together Alone" garnered even lesser acclaim than has "24th" (but Castellaneta did go on 7 years later to make a somewhat more successful 'little number' you've probably heard of titled, "Relax......It's Just Sex").
Nonetheless, his physical attributes are far surpassed by a freshness and depth of feeling, rare in such a young performer, which he brings to his dramatic roles, that of Dan being no exception.Since I can add nothing more concerning performances and plot points than is contained in the several 7- to 10-Star reviews already here, I will mention only one character detail: Tom is, at his most basic and essential, a good and honest human being.
24th Day looks like the typical low budget movie with only 2 actors (the others appear for less than 20 seconds each) in a constant dialog.
He has a way to prove it.The movie has many strong points: it is very (Dan's favorite word) believable; it has a high influence on its viewers; the directing, the dialogs and the overall mood are world class; ultimately it touches a subject of the highest importance: HIV from the inside.Be prepared for a high emotional impact.
When the film first started I wasn't paying attention because it looked like another lame movie that was so bad they were showing it on network TV on a Sunday afternoon.
I couldn't believe the plot because it's a story you very rarely see depicted in film, it's a subject Hollywood basically ignores, HIV/AIDS.
When you hear "Cyclops from X-Men" and "Ben from TV's 'Felicity'" you don't exactly sense that the acting chops will be there to make up the necessary lost ground.This is why the movie was an unexpected revelation, as the director and two actors committed fully to the complicated material, claustrophobic set, and see-sawing intensity.
I certainly intend to watch it again, and hope to see a play mounted some day nearby so I can experience it live.) I very much recommend this movie..
It is a good example of how you don't need billions and billions of dollars to make a movie if only you bother to have a good story.It is quite simple, but it never loses it's originality and tension.The actors are both very good and both hold up their end in the film.
Especially James Marsden surprised me a great deal, very positive thing thereI definitely recommend this little nice bit, and it's one of the few I've decided to go out and buy on DVD when I can find it.8/10.
the movie is about two guys, Tom (Scott Speedman) and Dan (James Marsden), who are about to have a one night stand but end up in a situation where Dan becomes a hostage.
Writer-director Tony Piccirillo adapted his own play about a straight man, recently widowed, learning in the last three weeks he is HIV-positive; he tracks down the one homosexual partner he ever had, brings him to an apartment and ties him up, forcing a blood test on the guy and promising bloody revenge if the results come back positive.
James Marsden's captive is realistically cynical and snotty, but the actor's own artificial mannerisms are disconcerting--it's like watching a roadshow version of Tom Cruise.
It's too arrogant: it could be a very good movie - the two main characters alone (I wouldn't put the initial part with the girl, every action would happen inside the apartment), and concerned only to the fact he fucked the guy without remembering and bringing up just the issue of aids un-conscientious dissemination!
this film is so intense, now i know why some people love to watch plays live in theaters.
when one of them was talking about a broken frog, i thought that this film was about time machine, etc.of course, james is a good looking dude, if they hired some ugly guy, this film may not be so attractive to watch.and i think that it is time to hire gay people to play gay roles.
Overall, an excellent film, well acted, well directed and emotionally charged.The storyline is quite straight-forward: 2 guys Tom (Speedman) and Dan (Marsden) who had an sexual encounter 5 years earlier meet again - unbeknowsnt to one of them.
Watch the first 25 minutes carefully - you'll find it hard not to.The film centers around Toms discovery that he is HIV positive, and is certain Dan gave him the disease.
It puts the topic of sex, unsafe sex, multiple partners, trust and honesty all on the table, no holds barred.On a personal level, if you are not in a relationship, this film will certainly challenge your own ability to ever believe anyone again.I liked this film because it dealt with a topic our society seems to be struggling with again - people having unsafe sex, and being afraid of getting tested for HIV.In addition, it is an erotic thriller, full of suspense, unexpected turns and twists, and emotion.
The action is focused on the superb dialogs between captor and captive, the reasons the captor has for the kidnapping and the tricks the latter plays in order to break free.Half way the film it is inevitable to start making judgment about both characters (watch the movie to know why), and for sure after the end, or even earlier, you will be involved in a moral disquisition with other watching the film or with yourself, why not?All in all it is a recommendable film with enough suspense to engage the viewer and a very interesting and credible story..
While Speedman's and Marsden's performances are solid, the mere fact of thinking how intense the theater play should be leaves the movie as a weak effort.
The script provides some twists and turns but at some point I started figuring out the result of the HIV test.Actually, I don't consider that the point of the movie is to know if Speedman is going to kill Marsden or not.
Speedman holds Marsden responsible for the fact that he now tests positive for AIDs. As he originally states his one and only venture into gay sex was with Marsden who gave him the HIV virus.
I think Tony Piccirillo really did a great job growing a story like "The 24th Day" from HIV?AIDS genre.
Something of a cross between "Misery" and "Rent" with a little Stockholm Syndrome-teasing thrown in, "The 24th Day" is probably the one movie that manages to be intensely gripping while dulling you with sheer mind-numbing boredom.Featuring "Underworld"'s Scott Speedman as a chef and "X-Men"'s James Marsden as his former one night stand, it tells what happens when they wind up on opposite ends of a hostage situation: Speedman abducts Marsden so he can find out if he's the one who gave him AIDs.The talks, from football to "Charlie's Angels", are about as boring and unnecessary as if Cecil B.
Marsden's previous work in X-men series made me think of him not a very outstanding performer but an average action movie youthful actor...
any gay person watching and listening to this little brave masterpiece and finds it remotely homophobic is living in total denial.this film holds up a mirror and many will not like the reflection looking back..
James Marsden, who had a total of only 6 minutes in last X Men movie has made this film where he plays a homosexual.
"24th Day" is just another downhill cheaply made film shot in Philadelphia and Marsden has flopped again with less than $25,000 gross.Since then he has made another independent film that will only have a straight to video release if that, "Heights",and "24th Day" is a pitiful movie for Hollywood to turn out.Marsden's performance is unbelievable.The fact that this film didn't even play but 2 weeks in one theatre to almost empty theaters tells the whole story..
this movie is worthless, its like 1 star out of 10 is a generosity for this one, what did people think when rating this movie here, 7,6 i mean come on, this movie is so lame i was thanking for that fast forward button, cast is terrible, there were few actors in it anyway 4-5 i think, and u mostly see just 2, it is about some man who kidnaps another man and has him bound in his apartment, a pathetic kinda person, that goes on for 24 days, god what a nightmare, movie that is.this may be worst movie i have ever seen, if u want to see this type of movie go see 'Alexandra's Project' at least that one is kinda funny and has its nice moments.rating: 0/10.
Both Scott Speedman and James Marsden are very good in their respect roles and I really enjoyed both the beginning and end of this film, unfortunately the middle is somewhat boring and takes away from an otherwise original and outstanding story..
This is not a great Hollywood production, but we have a very interesting story performed by two brilliant actors (yes,James Mardsden & Scott Speedman are great in this movie)in what in Alfred Hitchcock's hands would have been a master piece but here the director just gets a correct but not brilliant movie with a good actors direction but with an unnecessary flashbacks along the film that I'm still wondering what was the purpose of the director with it, perhaps to give a more modern looking to the film because that flashbacks doesn't contribute to the understanding of the story (!),finally the best of this play made movie is the story itself that turns around AIDS and the responsibility of our acts.Well,a 6 to the movie, a 10 to the story..
The 24th Day is, contrary to some of the other commentator?s opinions, a movie that should be seen by anyone who appreciates the art of film acting.
I bought the movie without knowing a thing about it other than there were two hot guys from other movies I liked in it and it was gay themed (call me shallow) and I was pleasantly surprised to find a film that I will watch and share with friends both gay and straight, for years to come.9/10.
Not only is the script one of the best pieces of writing around, the acting of here-to-for underused pretty boys James Marsden and Scott Speedman is of the quality for which awards were invented.After opening credits (which only in retrospect tell the entire story in beautifully executed photography), the story begins in a singles bar and moves slowly to the musty, dark, cluttered apartment of Tom (Scott Speedman from 'Underworld', 'Duets', etc) where it becomes clear that his 'guest' Dan (James Marsden of 'The Notebook' and the 'X Men' series - a 31 year old actor who lost out on the lead role in 'Primal Fear' to Edward Norton!) has been cruising Tom with the intention of a sexual tryst for the evening.
- Tom informs Dan that they had an evening of sex five years ago (Dan was drunk and doesn't remember) and since that has been Tom's only gay sexual liaison: Tom has been stalking Dan in revenge for his transmitting HIV to Tom, a transmission which has resulted in Tom's wife falling victim to AIDS and dying in a car crash 24 days ago!Tom therefore becomes the captor and Dan the captive in this two-person drama.
The real surprise (in a film full of professional surprises) is the caliber of acting from James Marsden and Scott Speedman.
These two fine actors each deliver the quality of performance that deserves Oscar attention.Without reservation this film is high on the list of the finest 'indie movies' (read very low budget) of the year.
I saw this movie a few years ago and liked it and wanted to see it again so I bought a copy recently and re-watched it.It was nice seeing it a second time and I got more out of it.I thought Scott and James did a great job playing these two characters and it's hard to imagine them being played by anyone else.I have met people in my life similar to both these guys and they both nailed it!It's a simple movie but really keeps you interested and then gets intense and your glued to the TV.The dialog was really well written and it was so naturally portrayed that it could have been ad-libbed.
The way the two characters developed was very interesting with Marsdens' character becoming less likable (at first you believe he's not a slut) as Speedmans' becoming more so (part of you can't blame him for what he's doing).I may have to watch it a second time though; I missed a few facts.
What kind of movie was that when you see the only gay "the bad guy" character by James Marsden to be treated that way by the "supposed non gay character" "the good guy" by Scott Speedman.
As a film buff who enjoys the performances of talented actors, there's no question, Marsden and Speedman do a stellar job.
He gets aids and doesn't know it and gives it to his wife and she dies and he goes to find the man who gave him the disease and takes his blood and holds him captive while he awaits the results from the test proving that he got it from him.The two men have some interesting talks and discussions showing them as being human and real and not just a kidnapper and his victim.
Scott Speedman and James Marsden were great casting choices, neither were hugely famous and that made them even more believable.Based on writer/director Tony Piccirillo's play this film was perhaps an important subject to be put on film, but it also should've been told without making gay people look like aids carrying sluts. |
tt0108432 | Umi ga kikoeru | At Kichijōji Station, Tokyo, Taku Morisaki glimpses a familiar woman on the platform opposite. Later, as his flight to Kōchi Prefecture takes off, he narrates the events that brought her into his life. The story is told in flashback.
In Kōchi, two years prior, Taku receives a call from his friend, Yutaka Matsuno, asking to meet at their high school. He finds Yutaka at a window, watching an attractive female transfer student whom Yutaka was asked to show around. The boys discuss their upcoming school trip to Hawaii. At the school gates, Taku is introduced to the new girl, Rikako Muto. She thanks Yutaka for providing directions to a bookstore. Taku teases Yutaka about his infatuation.
Rikako is academically gifted and good at sports, but also arrogant. Taku believes she is unhappy about leaving Tokyo. His mother learns from gossip that a divorce brought Rikako's mother to Kōchi. In a phone conversation with Yutaka, he discovers that Rikako is living away from the family house.
The school year ends, heralding the Hawaii trip. Taku, suffering from an upset stomach, is stopped in the hotel lobby by Rikako. She explains that she has lost her money and asks to borrow some. As Taku has a part-time job, he lends her ¥60,000. Promising to repay him, she warns not to tell anyone. As she departs, Taku sees a stern Yutaka and feels compelled to explain. Later, Rikako admonishes him for telling Yutaka about the money, saying that he also loaned her ¥20,000.
Back in Kōchi, the third year begins with Rikako making a friend, Yumi Kohama. Rikako hasn't returned Taku's money and he wonders if she has forgotten. Out of the blue, a distressed Yumi calls Taku, explaining that Rikako had tricked her into coming to the airport on the pretence of a concert trip, only to discover that their real destination is Tokyo, tickets paid for with Taku's money. He races to the airport, sending Yumi home, saying that he will accompany Rikako.
Upon arrival, it appears that Rikako has not forewarned her father, interrupting his planned trip with a girlfriend. Her father thanks Taku, repays the loan and arranges a room at the Hyatt Regency hotel. Later, Rikako explains that when her parents were fighting, she'd always sided with her father, but had now discovered he wasn't on her side. Comforting her, Taku offers his bed and attempts to sleep in the bathtub. The next morning, Rikako seems back to her normal self and kicks Taku out so that she can change clothes to meet a friend for lunch. Taku wanders around the city. After catching up on sleep at the hotel, Taku receives a call from Rikako asking to be rescued from former boyfriend, Okada, who is not as she remembered him.
Returning home, Rikako ignores Taku, but doesn't hide from others that they spent a night together. Taku discovers this from Yutaka, who had earlier confronted Rikako to confess his feelings toward her, but had been rebuffed. Taku confronts Rikako in class for hurting his best friend, calling her "The worst!". She responds by slapping him and he slaps her in return.
The autumn school cultural festival arrives and Rikako, who has been avoiding Yosakoi dance rehearsals, becomes more distant from the other girls, many of whom openly dislike her. Confronting her behind the school, Rikako stands firm as one girl, believing that Rikako was flirting with her boyfriend, attempts to strike her but is held back. Taku, who has seen all, approaches Rikako and comments that he is impressed with the way she handled herself. She slaps him. Yutaka confronts a somewhat stunned Taku, who tries to explain. Yutaka punches him to the ground and walks away. They do not talk for the rest of the year.
In the present, Taku's plane lands and he is offered a lift home by Yutaka, who explains he punched him because he'd realized Taku had held back his feelings for his sake. At a class reunion, former student president Shimizu mentions she had met Rikako earlier. She explains that as Rikako was attending Kochi University, she had flown to Tokyo for her school break, missing the reunion. Taku realizes that Rikako was the woman he'd seen at the station. Walking home, Yumi tells Taku that she too had met Rikako, explaining she couldn't make it to the reunion and that she wanted to meet someone, but wouldn't say who... just that he slept in bathtubs.
In Tokyo, Taku again sees Rikako across the platforms, but this time runs to find her. As the train pulls away, he finds Rikako and realises that he had always been in love with her. | psychedelic, romantic, flashback | train | wikipedia | If you appreciate a fine subtle authentic slice-of-life story of high school romance, this is as good as it gets.Its told from the point of view of a male student.
By the end of the film lessons are learned and the heart strings are pulled.This movie doesn't try to do too much; it simply focuses on the main characters and tells their story honestly.
First off let me say that this is my top 3 favorite films from Ghibli Studio (the other two being Castle in the Sky, and My Neighbor Totoro).
And the more I watch this film and the older I get, the more I appreciate it.It's a shame that this little gem is often underrated, under-appreciated and neglected by Ghibli fans, because it's so not like anything Ghibli or Miyazaki has done so far (which, ironically, is one of the reasons why I love it so much).
Instead, it just tells a simple (yet highly-effective) coming-of-age story about an ordinary high school teenager in a realistic and sincere way.
And it helps a great deal too if you also know a thing or two about the Japanese culture and life in small town there.Truth to be told I never really enjoyed all those Miyazaki extravaganzas such as Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away or Howl's Moving Castle, which of course isn't to say that they are not great.
Don't get me wrong, I can see why they are great masterpieces and why people would love them, but personally I just couldn't connect with any of those movies nor can I relate to the characters.
But with "The Ocean Waves/Umi Ga Kikoeru", I felt like I was the main character and his story was my story.
It might be an animated TV movie, but to me it felt more real than most of the live-action TV dramas out there, because everything shown in that movie seems so realistic and familiar and therefore gives you a similar warm and nostalgic feeling that you also get while watching movies like My Neighbor Totoro.
I've heard it said that it's the small things in life that make living wonderful (or something like that), and I think this best describes how I feel about "Umi ga Kikoeru".If you're into big epic/fantasy movies like Spirited Away or Howl's Moving Castle, chances are you probably won't like this one.
The knowledge that Ocean Waves is a TV movie put me off watching this 'lesser Ghibli' until I'd covered the rest of their catalogue.
It's not quite in the same league as The Grave of the Fireflies, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Akira, My Neighbor Totoro, Whisper of the Heart, Only Yesterday, or a few other excellent anime I have had a chance to see, but it is easily better than 99% of the rest of the animated films out there.
Perhaps what caught my attention was that the staff that animated the movie were all in their 20s and 30s, coming into their own since being recruited for "Only Yesterday" two years earlier, when Hayao Miyasaki and Ghibli decided to cultivate their own animators rather than delegating to external studios.Upon first viewing this film exceeded my expectations, and the energy and enthusiasm of youth simply surged throughout its ~72 minutes.
I feel more connected to this film than some other Ghibli works mainly because the it involves characters in their late-teens to 20s living in the 90s, has a male protagonist, and also because the characters are so exquisitely deep and textured, and are the heart of the piece.
And as with all Studio Ghibli films; no matter who composes it, the score is first-rate, working in concert with the visuals to create the whole spectrum of moods and emotions exerted by the cast.In all, "The Ocean Waves" was a brilliant success on the part of the young animation team deserving of a 10 in my humble opinion - and proof that Studio Ghibli is just as proficient portraying real life in the present-day time settings as it is at creating sublime works of fantasy.
The story involves a boy who tries to find true love in high school.
Ocean Waves is a Studio Ghibli's production for TV, made by the young artists in the studio, that tells a charming story of love and friendship during High School in the small town of Kochi.
The main characters are Taku Morisaki and his friend Yutaka Matsuno, and the quirky opinionated newly-arrived-in-town girl they like - Rikako Muto.The movie tells a simple story of growing up and becoming adults, and shows all of the dramas surrounding teenagers, but it is well narrated and animated.
The animation is not as impressive and detailed as others Ghibli's movies, but it has Ghibli's quality stamp on it, and is very realistic and beautiful.The mood of the movie is great and captures with great mastery the spirit of a small town and its people, and also the spirit of summertime in those years in High School, with all the activities, romances and friendships that we experience during our teen years; it really transports the viewers to their High School days.
The characters are well drawn, psychologically and emotionally believable, and very likable.A very enjoyable animation movie perfect for teenagers and adults, not for children..
Beautiful high school romance story from Studio Ghibli.
Slowly, but surely, we start to understand each of the actors and the story comes full circle after graduation, at the first highschool reunion.I've learned so much about Japanese culture from animes, but the ones from Ghibli make me understand the people.
The stories often have what is missing in not only animation, but real actor movies as well: people that you can empathise with, because they are like you (or rather, like you would like to be, but not in infantile fantasies, but in your hopeful dreams).Really nice movie, it certainly worth seeing..
Being the first Studio Ghibli creation directed by Tomomo Mochizuki, Ocean Waves (also known as I Can Hear the Sea) comes as a very well-structured, exceptionally beautiful, intensely emotional picture, which shows that this acclaimed Japanese animation studio is able to produce not only marvelous, fantasy-filled movies, but also ones that carry a deeply realistic overtone, and are set cleverly in real-life locations.When you think about it, the story shown in Ocean Waves is so authentic that it could have been made into a feature film as well.
While Taku seems to be getting closer to Rikako, because of an unexpected journey to Tokyo, he still isn't able to work out what's really happening in the girl's confused mind.The movie is told in retrospective, with an insightful narration, provided by Taku, the protagonist of the whole story, making it look even more like a regular feature of flesh and blood.
The pitch-perfect art direction brings out all the magically colorful landscapes, whether it's in cities like Kochi and Tokyo, or on sunny Hawaiian beaches, and gives them an incomparable charm.While some people might say that nothing really happens, or that the movie lacks a steady storyline, Ocean Waves proves to be a wonderful character-driven experience, rather than a plot-driven one.
Even though the movie runs for only 72 minutes, the characters are all well developed, which makes it easy for the viewer to get to know them and recognize their true feelings.
All in all, if you want to get a glimpse of the magnificence of the other, more realistic than fantastical, Studio Ghibli you should watch Ocean Waves right away.
So those who aren't familiar with Japanese High School culture might be a little confused.This TV movie is very good to see.
I saw Ocean Waves as a big fan of Studio Ghibli and their films.
The animation is stunning, not quite as sophisticated or as detailed(understandable seeing as it is a TV movie, and even then it is a million miles beyond some of the other TV movies I've sat through) above as some of their films such as Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and Castle in The Sky, but it still has the ethereal backgrounds and beautiful colouring.
The characters behave very realistically, they feel much more humane than those in similar slice-of-life movies.
This movie is a hour-and-a-quarter long contemplation, a travel into the past - just like the main character, you will catch yourself wondering about loves, friends and memories long gone.
The two movies share a common feel and theme (great reunions, evaluating your roots, and a change of life), and while I think "Only Yesterday" somewhat works better, "Ocean Waves" is an otherwise unrivaled choice for gloomy Sunday afternoon homecinema..
Although it can be fairly predictable and having a similar story as Only Yesterday (due to the backwards and forwards time line, in my opinion), Ocean Waves has a sweet and simple story focusing around the friendship of Taku and Rikako.
Produced by Studio Ghibli, Ocean Waves first aired on Japanese television in 1993.
The 1 hour and 10 minutes film is very underrated, as the more well-known and 'greater' Studio Ghibli films are pushed into the limelight moving the focus away from small gems like Ocean Waves.
Its a basic film and if you want to watch a short movie with a 'romance' based theme don't pass up the chance!
"Ocean Waves" is likewise a hidden gem in Studio Ghibli's catalogue.
The film has received little attention, being the studio's only made-for-television film, but despite its lower budget, "Ocean Waves" is far from a minor effort.The film's main strength is found in its characters: Adolescents actually act and talk like adolescents would, which is unfortunately rare for an animated film.
And seeing them growing up and reuniting in the final scenes is genuinely touching, reflecting on the development these characters have gone through, gently smiling at the thought that so much more is awaiting them.As should be the case, the most interesting character is the protagonist, Taku, who struggles with his feelings for the new girl in school, Rikako, who happens to be his best friends' crush as well, and seems to be using him.
There is a certain dark comedy to be found in the near-existential struggle between Taku's reason and emotions, and how he fails to determine what either of those dictates in the first place, as he lets himself be dragged from one undesirable situation into the other.Rikako is, contrary to most anime crushes, an interesting character of herself.
Like the best of stories, there is room for interpretation, but the film acknowledges beside this, that sometimes people, and especially young people, just do stupid things.As delightful as the interaction between characters may be, the film is not without its flaws: The narration is superfluous and ironically only distracts from the narrative, and flashbacks are outlined by frames of increasing and decreasing size, a very obnoxious visual device, which (to put it simple) just feels weird - perhaps a lesson should have been taken from Takahata's marvellous "Only Yesterday", produced only two years earlier."Ocean Waves" is nonetheless notable for brushing aside many genre conventions in its execution and presenting the audience a remarkably interesting and darkly funny character study in the mould of a love triangle story, animated with the expected talent and devotion of the Ghibli team.
Really well animated film, especially knowing it came from Ghibli's "junior" producers.
Two observations about Ocean Waves: The first is that it comes from Studio Ghibli – and it shows.
The second is that it is not the work of Hayao Miyazaki or of Isao Takahata – and that shows, too.Ocean Waves was made for TV and released in 1993 by young staff members of Studio Ghibli as a kind of apprenticeship piece.
The technical quality of the film maintains the high standards expected of the studio – animation and design are exemplary and the film is a visual feast.
It concerns his relationship with his high school friend Yutaka, and their rivalry for the affections of Rikako, a beautiful but rather condescending and manipulative girl who has transferred from a school in Tokyo following the breakup of her parents' marriage.
Other Ghibli films which have explored the world of school days and coming of age are Only Yesterday and Whisper of the Heart.
In no way does Ocean Waves approach the complexity and subtlety of these beautiful films.
That does not mean that this film is bad, it isn't by a long way, but we do expect rather more from this studio.
I've made a deliberate effort to see as much as I can from Japan's Studio Ghibli, makers of such wonderful films as "My Neighbor Totoro", "Spirited Away" and "The Wind Rises".
The animation is nice...but the story left me completely flat.The story is told from the viewpoint of Taku, a high school boy who becomes infatuated with a girl who has just transferred to his small town school from Tokyo.
As the film progresses, however, you wonder WHY does he like this girl so much.
Ocean Waves was Studio Ghibli's attempt to allow its younger staff to showcase their movie-making talents and although what they manage to put on screen is a fascinating & surprisingly mature take on high school romance, it lacks the refined quality that could have hurled it into the leagues of the studio's best works.Based on the novel of the same name, the story of Ocean Waves follows a young college kid who's returning home after his first year at university but after glimpsing a familiar girl at the train station, recalls his senior year of high school when that same girl transferred to his school from Tokyo and turned his life upside down.Directed by Saeko Himuro, the plot is always focused on the characters & their relationships, all of which is portrayed in a very subtle & authentic manner.
The story is grounded & lifelike, and it never tries to do more than it can handle.Of the three people caught in the love triangle, it is the character of Rikako Muto who exhibits the most interesting arc.
However, despite being only 72 minutes long, the film still feels somewhat stretched out.On an overall scale, Ocean Waves is a gentle meditation on teen relationships and is brought to life with sufficient care, affection & sincerity.
Working as both an intriguing coming-of-age drama & a muted love story, Studio Ghibli's first & only TV feature still remains their least seen work and even though it is no match to their greatest efforts, it nonetheless deserves a watch or two..
Despite being predisposed towards liking this movie (I stubbornly held out hope until the end credits, despite all rationale,) I consider the time I spent watching it as waste, and here's why: The story wanders around aimlessly, with zero surprises (you can't twist what's not there, I guess) and reaches a conclusion that the viewer basically makes during the first 5-10 minutes of the film.While the movie is supposed to be a "slice of life" type of film, it's too bad the life being sliced is a boring one.
There are many missed opportunities where something exciting could have happened, or something could have been revealed to add depth to the main characters (and thus increase the chances of the viewer developing some hint of empathy with them.) Open your window at home, and spend 70 minutes watching passersby instead of this film.
I had heard it about it online because I am also a fan of many other studio ghibli's films such as Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, Ponyo and The Cat Returns.
How can I call myself a true Otaku if I do not love the good anime with the bad, right?
Not that Ocean Waves is a bad movie overall.
It was a sweet story about reconnecting with those you care about that you lost contact with, and coming home.But the animation seem like a waste of time.
It was a story that could have easily been told in live action and most likely would have taken less time to produce (but maybe it would cost more, I don't know).So while it's a nice story, I can't help but to be so disappointed because that animation did nothing for the story and that is what I expect from my anime.It may be more fair for me to watch the movie again now that the shock of the animation being the bare minimum has taken it's toll.
It's a nice romantic slice of life film as it is, but definitely not the anime I like.http://cinemagardens.com.
The Ghibli film that this reminded me of the most was "Only Yesterday" in that it contains no fantasy elements but instead concentrated on the ordinary lives of ordinary people.The protagonist is a high school student called Taku and the story follows his life after Rikako Muto, a girl from Tokyo transfers to his school.
Music is interesting,like waves of ocean.
Slight but engaging character tale from Studio Ghibli.
OCEAN WAVES is one of the lesser films from the Studio Ghibli studio, thanks in part to a more simple and straightforward story set in the contemporary world and the lack of a director of Hayao Miyazaki's calibre.
The most popular Ghibli movies tend to be the brash and moving fantasy epics about saving the environment and quirky creatures and the like, whereas OCEAN WAVES is all about high school life and romance.In many ways it's a simple two hander charting the relationship between an awkward high school student and the hot-headed girl he loves.
The voice actors are very good although the quality of the animation is more basic than usual for a Ghibli movie.
If I was Taku, the main character in this dreck, I would have absolutely NO nostalgic feelings for any of the events that occurred, let alone for the SURELY bi-polar Rikako.That H.
And on top of that the main character wonders several times about her manners and (bad) upbringing. |
tt0405833 | The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay | === Setting and characters ===
Escape from Butcher Bay is set in the futuristic science fiction universe of the Chronicles of Riddick franchise, and is a prequel to the film Pitch Black. The game takes place inside Butcher Bay, a maximum-security prison from which no prisoner has escaped. The facility—constructed on a barren planet—contains three increasingly secure holding areas, and a subterranean mining operation.
The game's protagonist is Richard B. Riddick (reprised by Vin Diesel), a murderer recently confined in Butcher Bay. Riddick is resourceful, and seeks to break out of the prison by any means necessary. His capturer is the bounty hunter William J. Johns (Cole Hauser); the two have had previous encounters. Butcher Bay's warden is a man named Hoxie (Dwight Schultz), while Abbott (Xzibit) is a prison guard disliked by the inmates. The inmate Pope Joe (Willis Burks II) is an insane old man, who lives in the sewer tunnels beneath the prison.
=== Story ===
The opening cinematic shows Riddick in hiding, having grown out his hair and beard, before the opening scene of the Chronicles of Riddick movie. He hunts an animal and after killing it, a disembodied voice starts talking to him asking him where he got his eyes. He states that he received them from a "slam preacher" and this causes him to remember his time at Butcher Bay. The game takes place in a flashback.
Another opening cinematic takes place in which Riddick is being transported for collection on the bounty. He and Johns have a brief conversation in which Riddick tells Johns that there is no way he is going to get the price he wants. Riddick wakes up as they land and stands out front of Butcher Bay waiting for the warden. He sneaks up behind Johns and breaks his neck and proceeds to escape. After getting his hands on a gun, he goes through the ventilation ducts and seemingly escapes into the desert. Everything fades to white as Riddick hears Johns saying "Rise and shine, Riddick." It turns out this escape was simply a dream.
Riddick wakes up and Johns escorts him off the ship. Johns meets with Hoxie to negotiate his pay, while Abbott escorts Riddick to his cell in the "single-max" security area. After making enemies with and killing a gang leader named Rust, Riddick familiarizes himself with the facility, and soon instigates a riot; during the confusion, he escapes into the prison's sewer system. Armed with a shotgun and a dying flashlight, Riddick discovers he is not alone in the sewers. Fighting through the sewers against mutant "dwellers", Riddick eventually meets Pope Joe, for whom he retrieves a lost radio, which Joe calls a blessed voicebox. A woman named Shirah (Kristin Lehman) tells Riddick that he "has been blind too long", and he gains his trademark "eyeshine" night vision. Afterwards, he accuses Pope Joe of tampering with his eyes; Joe says that he merely treated Riddick's injured arm. Riddick then continues his escape, while using the eyeshine to his advantage.
After emerging from a manhole in the showers of the guard living quarters, Riddick uses a guard uniform to blend in as he makes his way to the space port and his chance at escape. Realizing he requires a guard to get through the retinal scanner that locks the doors to the space port, Riddick decides to go after Abbott and take his eyes. He gains access to Abbott's apartment by telling him there is a delivery for him. A fire fight ensues and after that, as Abbott bleeds out on the floor, Riddick moves in for the kill but is stopped by Johns.
Riddick is captured and transferred to the "double-max" security area. Gaining the trust of the inmates by participating in fighting matches, Riddick eventually kills the champion of the fighting matches, a guard named Bam. This leads him to be taken to a room where no surveillance is seen and several guards await to kill Riddick. Abbott walks into the room, fully healed, holding a baseball bat. Shirah returns to him and tells him that the fury of all of his kind is within him, and he can release it if he chooses. A blast of energy called the 'Rage of Furya' kills all the guards around him except Abbott, who hides and then panics and attacks Riddick. Riddick kills Abbott and proceeds to find another way to escape. Using a secret entrance to an elevator, he infiltrates a mining facility. He meets an inmate of great influence in the area named Jagger Valance (Ron Perlman), who wishes to escape with him. He makes a bomb and plants it in a mining site with a massive gas leak. However, Riddick is discovered and caught by the guards. During his transfer to another section, the prison is disrupted by an outbreak of creatures called "Xeno", due to the bomb Riddick planted, in order to create the confusion necessary for his escape, and Riddick attempts to escape with Valance. His plans are foiled again by Johns. After a fist fight, Riddick and Johns are both shot by Valance (who only meant to hit Johns) and Valance is killed by the guards. After meeting again with the warden, and telling him that he is just getting started, Riddick is placed in the "triple-max" area, where inmates are kept in cryonic sleep. They are awakened daily for two minutes of exercise; during this time, Riddick discovers a flaw in the system and escapes. He then hijacks a large robot and fights his way through Butcher Bay to reach Hoxie.
Tired of dealing with the prison officials, Johns helps Riddick to elude the guards. Riddick knocks Johns out and flies the ship into the warden's office. The warden calls in two robot guards with cloaking abilities and Riddick defeats them. After Hoxie surrenders, Riddick receives the codes to Hoxie's ship and Riddick and Johns escape disguised as a guard and prisoner. Two guards enter Hoxie's room, where Hoxie is bound and covered in Riddick's former attire. They mistake him for Riddick and kill him. Riddick and Johns take off in Hoxie's ship, ending the game. | violence | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1182908 | Krazzy 4 | Raja (Arshad Warsi) has a temper problem, Gangadhar (Rajpal Yadav) has an obsession of freedom, Dr. Mukherjee (Irrfan Khan), is a clean freak and Dabboo (Suresh Menon), has not spoken in years. Dr. Sonali (Juhi Chawla) is treating all four of them.
While Raja is diagnosed with Intermittent Explosive Disorder due to his sudden anger at the slightest provocation, schizophrenic Gangadhar is living in the past where he shares friendships with Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi, Lokamanya Tilak and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. He seems busy in fighting for the country's freedom, which was achieved long back. Dr. Mukherjee is a perfect doctor and always keeps himself tidy and prim. He has been diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder. Dabboo suffers from Selective Mutism. He has not spoken for years, and appears frightened all the time. He is loved by one and all.
Dr. Sonali negotiates with the mental hospital's top doctors to allow her to take the four of them for a cricket match between India and England which is being held on Independence Day. She eventually manages to get permission and the four of them get ready. The following morning, she takes them to the match and on the way stops at her clinic to pick up some important papers. She tells the group to stay in the car.
After a while, Dabboo gets out of the car and goes to a spot nearby to pee. From there, he watches Dr. Sonali being kidnapped by thugs. He notices one of the faces as a thug removes his mask. Dabboo then goes back to the car where his friends realize that something is wrong from the expression on his face, but soon ignore it as Dabboo cannot speak.
As time goes on, the four become bored. One by one, all of them except Dabboo get out of the car to look for Dr. Sonali. They split up and go to different places. Meanwhile, Dr. Sonali is being bribed to sign papers for declaring a criminal called Rana as insane at a hospital at 11 am the following day. As Raja searches for her, he passes by a store where there is a TV set showing a news report about Independence Day. Raja notices that the woman who is speaking is actually his ex-girlfriend, Shikha (Dia Mirza), who he had lost a long time ago. He tracks her, and the two have a tearful reunion.
Raja decides to go to Shikha's house to apologize to her father (Kenneth Desai), as he had been rude to him the last time they had met. He however meets Shikha's new boyfriend Pranav to who she will be engaged and married to soon. Raja becomes angry and starts beating Pranav up, and is once again thrown out of the house. Meanwhile, Gangadhar returns after having followed some school children singing Jana Gana Mana, and accidentally bumps into Dr. Mukherjee. They realise that the car is gone. Raja then returns and goes with the group to a nearby traffic station, where they find Dabboo and register a complaint that Dr. Sonali is missing.
Raja then comes up with the idea that they should call up Sonali's husband, R K Sanyal (Rajat Kapoor), and tell him what has happened. They get his number from the traffic station and find out that he is at a hotel. They find him there but he receives a call from a man who tells him that Sonali has been captured and is safe which leads the team to realize that he was behind the kidnapping. They are caught by the same man who Dabboo saw kidnapping Sonali. They manage to escape and head off to Shikha's office, begging her to help them. She reluctantly agrees, and they kidnap Sanyal at the Star Awards function. They make him announce that he will pay Rs50 million to anyone who finds Sonali. Sanyal then escapes but this is just part of the plan as they have hidden a camera that films what he does and says.
Then, they go to Pranav's office and beg him to play the video as he works with Shikha, but he doesn't agree. They however play the tape and a very distressed husband and his partner watch it. The next day, a taxi driver picks up four people who have found Dr. Sonali and he immediately recognizes who she is and takes the four men to a village close by where they are captured and put into the earth like seeds. He then calls them and tells the four about the news. When they arrive at the scene, they find her missing again. They eventually find her wrapped in a bag and walk away only to be caught by the board of directors but escape after Sonali again when she suddenly disappears.
She gets into the car which her husband's partner is driving and goes to the hospital. The four follow her in an auto and arrive at the hospital moments later after Sonali was dropped off there. Dr. Mukherjee runs somewhere in the building leaving the others lost. When Sonali goes to the room where Rana is being held, the other three turn out to be the doctors who are also meant to examine Rana shortly joined by Dr. Mukherjee who ran off to see his wife who worked in the same hospital. They then torture him by injecting him with needles, electrocuting him and by giving him a heart shock. They then explain to Sonali that her husband was the one that kidnapped her and that it was just a trick to get her to do what they wanted. They then catch the criminals responsible and the movie ends when all of them go back home. | satire, flashback | train | wikipedia | A movie from Rakesh Roshan expected lot more than this script and dialogues.
Juhi Chawla and Arsad Warsi's acting are wasted in this movie.
It is an entertainer but doesn't have excellent humour.
The plot of four mental people running around the city to save their doctor who is kidnapped doesn't enthral you.It could have been made more interesting.
Sharukh's item song is good but Hrithik steals the screen with his stunning dance.
Don't watch this movie if you like sense in movies..!!!!.
Not Crazy, Not Funny But Definitely Bad Enough To Avoid.
Jaideep Sen's crappy 'Krazzy 4' is a headache, a very bad one.
One may wonder how a movie that stars Arshad Warsi, Irfan Khan, Juhi Chawla and Rajpal Yadav can be so bad.
Then again, can anyone expect anything good from Roshan's factory?
Starting with the cast that got me interested to see this movie, none of them impress.
Irfan Khan acts as if he's uninterested (why should he be otherwise?), Arshad Warsi terribly overacts, Rajpal Yadav is annoying, Zakir Hussain is the caricature bad cop, Diya Mirza is the whiny angry news-anchor girlfriend, Rajat Kapoor is miscast and Juhi Chawla barely has footage.
There's hardly much comedy and the few jokes and 'skits' were not funny but only worsened the headache.
Oh and in the end there's even a message: 4 crazy people are better than the sane people of the Indian population (cringe).
The songs are truly abysmal, especially the Hinglish ones.
Thankfully Hritik's baboon break-dance was in the end, so I didn't have to sit through that but Rakhi Sawant's item song is one of the sleaziest item songs in Bollywood.
I'm surprised this song goes unnoticed when people are quick to point fingers at Urmila for playing a prostitute in the item song of 'ki Aag'.
Now what about the director Jaideep Sen?
Well, did this film actually have a director?
It looked like very bad improvisation by uninterested actors who were following a horrendously clichéd script.
Was it supposed to be funny??.
Well I am not sure what the director had in mind while making this, but at least I got crazy after watching this movie, and I needed a sari-don.
Though Irrfan and Rajpal are quite good in the movie, the weakest link is the storyline which has nothing to offer.
And what a waste of talent of Juhi Chawla and Suresh Menon.The movie promised to be good initially but it turned out to be pathetic, thanks to poor screenplay, non humorous dialogs and average direction.The only saving grace in the movie were the few songs it had- especially Sharukh's item no.
and Hrithik in the end.
Go watch it at your own risk..
A movie from the house of Rakesh Roshan certainly raises expectations.
But all pump and show is nothing and the film disappoints in all departments.First of all the movie is completely predictable from the very first scene and it simply goes on with sequences which are just repetition of stuff seen many times before.
In a nutshell the story is about some friends witnessing a crime and then the villains keep following them in the rest of the movie.
Only this time the novelty is that the four friends are all mental patients who find an opportunity to roam out of their hospital.All the talented artists including Irfan Khan, Rajpal Yadav, Arshad Warsi and Juhi Chawla are just wasted and no one gets any scenes to talk about.
Rajpal Yadav is the one who is better among the four patients as the freedom fighter.
Arshad Warsi, strangely is not doing any comedy but shows that he can be an angry young man too.
Irfan Khan can be seen trying to do the hard work as a mental doctor.
Suresh Menon has no dialogues and speaks through his facial expressions.
The movie is inspired from a 1989 movie "THE DREAM TEAM" but it's not at all an impressive copy.The greatest drawback is that it's not a comedy, though it was publicised as a hilarious comedy flick.
You keep waiting for comedy scenes to come but they are never there.
All the songs come as an interruption and are also not enjoyable at all.
The biggest let down is the "Ek Rupaiya" song after the interval, which makes you think, why the director chose this song to be there in final print.
Only the last scene with some good dialogues is a kind of silver lining in the dark clouds.The biggest asset of the movie "Shahrukh Khan's Item Number" is well shot but it alone cannot save the film from sinking.
Neither can the dance numbers by Hrithik Roshan and Rakhi Sawant.
Rajesh Roshan / Ram Sampat music has nothing to talk about except the item numbers.
The pace picks up just before the movie ends and the director tries to imitate a Priyadarshan kind of hilarious climax sequence which falls flat.After you finish the screening you just wonder why Rakesh Roshan backed up this project.
In my opinion the talented father and son (Rakesh & Hrithik) knew that they have a weak final product so that is the reason they added 2 item numbers and also had a last moment publicity gimmick of plagiarism.A Big Let Down with a huge difference between the expectations and the final outcome.
It is neither a good comedy nor a good thriller..
It's a tragedy disguised as a comedy.
Krazzy 4 is one of those comedies that's not very funny in the first place.
Irrfan Khan, Arshad Warsi, Rajpal Yadav and Suresh Menon play four mentally challenged patients who're taken to watch an India vs England cricket match because their psychiatrist Juhi Chawla thinks it might teach them a few things about team spirit.
When Dr Juhi is mysteriously kidnapped however, our four protagonists are left to their own devices, roaming the streets unsupervised, with both cops and gangsters in hot pursuit.
Blatantly ripped off from the Michael Keaton-Christopher Lloyd starrer The Dream Team, I'm willing to agree the plot of Krazzy 4 does inspire maybe three or four genuine laughs, but that's it, really that's just it.
For the most part, the script is flat and unfunny, relying almost entirely on the four leads to save the day.
That, unfortunately, is an impossible task even for talented actors such as these who pull faces, deliver clever one-liners, and try every trick in the book, but can't sadly rise above this severely flawed script.
Usually even the worst films have at least some redeeming qualities, but where Krazzy 4 is concerned, it's difficult to understand exactly why this film was made.
Didn't anyone concerned with the film notice that the script is incoherent?
Didn't anyone realize that the humour is juvenile and slapstick and it's the kind of humour you've seen so many times before?
Didn't anyone think of re-shooting all the dull bits so at least some part of the film might actually be watchable?
Krazzy 4, if you ask me, is a fitting title for this film except that I'd like to change the number four to the number 12 or 13, or whatever number of crazy people are responsible for bringing this film to the screen.
It's a shame that talented actors like Juhi Chawla, Irrfan Khan and Rajpal Yadav have been wasted in a thankless film like this which they will look back at years later and think of as a bad dream.
If there's anything at all besides the end credits that brings a smile to your face while watching Krazzy 4, I'd have to say it's the two item songs in the film -- one each by Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan.
And to be honest, even the one with Rakhi Sawant isn't too bad.
But these are alas, small pleasures in an otherwise miserable movie-going experience.
A word here for Ashwani Dhir, the film's dialogue writer who holds the unique distinction of delivering a triple whammy of disasters like 1 2 3, U, Me Aur Hum and Krazzy 4 .
Dhir's lines are amateurish and laboured and they're largely responsible for why none of these films worked for me.
But blame has to be shared by the film's director Jaideep Sen whose treatment here is indifferent, showing neither artistic flair nor solid grip over screenplay.
Because it's a khichdi of cheap humour, unimpressive acting, and a directionless plot.
It's a tragedy disguised as a comedy that I wouldn't even wish upon an enemy..
"Everyone thinks they are crazy but they're not." It is the main theme the movie is trying to show.
4 mental patients and watching their effort to rescue their kidnapped doctor is somewhat interesting but I don't see any way to say that this movie is a good one.
This movie was made by crazy people for the crazy people.
I don't blame actors for this, because they have done the good job.
Story was fine.
But, I didn't really like the dialogs at the ending scene of the movie.
I enjoyed while watching the movie, but not much when I left.
The whole movie wasn't as good as the opening scene.
But, the movie is not that bad for one time viewing..
Pointless and Not Funny.
I am confused after seeing Krazzy 4.
What was it intended to be - a comedy film, a film with a moral, or what?
The film was promising with the cast it had.
Arshad Warsi, Irfan Khan, Rajpal Yadav and Suresh Menon - any one of them on their day can give you stomach aches laughing.
I wonder why is Diya Mirza doing such itsy-bitsy roles these days.
Anyway, this role of hers is not going to do her any good.
Let me also mention this - I feel sad and enraged when films 'exploit' the national anthem.
This happens in Krazzy 4 too.
I wonder what the film-makers wanted to achieve with that.It is not a comedy film, for sure.
Not too bad.
Storyline is poor, but I enjoyed the movie as it has some funny scenes and dialogues and the acting was good.
Most of the Indian reviewers will surprise you as they think: movies like Karan Arjun is flamboyant, movies like Main hoon na are super hits.
To me, these 2 movies are boring (boring means: typical formula of bollywood) with boring acting of Shahrukh Khan.
Go and watch it.
You will enjoy and forget, it's not a memorable movie but it will not bore you unlike other silly action, romantic, exaggerated sensitive movies ( like Karan Johar :) ) and some other Directors.
To me, this movie is average, but it's much better than other super hit movies , I will give it 5.
Hritik Roshan special appearance is good, he did the dance sequence very well.
Rest is good, it should not be that bad for an Indian audience as they are habituated to watch much worse movies, so I hope this movie is okay.
Story is written over here, read and decide.
Crap.
Rakesh Roshan seems to got the success mantra and makes a comedy afterall so many comedies have workedHe copied A DREAM TEAM and indianised it in such a way it makes the worst comedies look greatThe film has an okay story but the handling of the comic scenes slowly get so bizarre and boring they make you cringe The problem lies in the way the director has handled the scenes Scenes like Irrfan's index finger showing are crude and also the national anthem scene is so bizarre Even the entire Sunil Pal act and the last speech which ruins everything even more Directorally (Jaideep Sen) the film is a dabaa Music is decent, the forced item songs are well shotActing wiseArshad Warsi- he acts the angry character very well which reminds u of his headache provoking comic act in DHAMAAL but here is good Irrfan Khan- After Sunday again he tries slapstick comedy and he isn't utilised fully and is just okayRajpal Yadav- he does lend credence to his role but his comedy isn't at his usual bestSuresh Menon- does a good jobJuhi Chawla- wastedZakir Hussain- Another villain role and the same actRajat Kapur- lostDia Mirza- getting better with every film.
In the world of Krazzy people..
Observe, One Two Three and Race (Yes, it was crap).
I expected a slapstick comedy after looking at the promos of Krazzy 4, choosing this over the weeks other release, U Me aur Hum.The story is simple enough.
Four 'mad' guys, are taken out on a field trip by their doctor.
Doctor gets kidnapped, havoc ensues, or should I say, krazziness.
Doesn't torture you like the 'come-sit-down-and-let-me-tell-you-how-I-planned-your-murder' way of Race.The mad people under question..
Arshad playing Raja, a man suffering from sudden bouts of rage.
Irrfan playing Dr. Mukherjee, suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder.
Rajpal playing Gangadhar.
He thinks he still lives in the Gandhian era.
Krazzy d.
Krazzy d.
Krazzy d.
Krazzy d.
Krazzy d.
Suresh playing Dabboo.
Hasn't talked since he was four years old.Their doctor played to utter sweetness by Juhi Chawla.
Don't think I'm being sarcastic.
The places where Krazzy 4 succeed are its utter sweet moments.
Apart from being extremely tenderly acted by everyone, it also isn't very long.
All four leads play their roles very efficiently.
Rajpal being the one who offers the most laughs.
Just wait till his ending speech.
Irrfan Khan, the great actor that he is, gets a small role, easy for him to play.
He plays this even more delicately.
Suresh Menon, for a guy who hardly talks, is fun to watch.
His expressions will get you laughing.
Rajpal Yadav had me in splits every time he spoke.
His way of delivery is such.
Watch out for the scenes with 'Aazadi - 50% off' and the one with Gandhiji and Nehru.
The backing actors, Rajat Kapoor, Dia Mirza, and the 'bad guys', serve their purpose well.
The guy playing Dia's father deserves special mention.
You've seen him before.The songs are merely there.
Shah Rukh Khan has never looked better.
Stay back till the end to watch Hrithik too.
The two music videos are sheer eye candy proving to us who the real pin-up boys of Bollywood really are.
High point of the movie is where a little girl sings Jana Gana Mana.
If the people in the hall stand up to attention to it, like they did in the show I went to, you'll feel good.
I shall not go far enough to say Rakhi Sawant 'does not' look good in the music video, but I would have preferred Mallika Sherawat in it.
The song is Beedi'ish, but not nearly good enough.
And we finally did it people.
They've written a song about One Rupee.
Hilarious.Krazzy 4 tries the Munnabhai-way of entertainment, preaching about the ways of society and how people who are 'different' have no place in it.
It misses the Munnabhai mark by a long shot.
It's a sweet short movie.
You could say it was made with a lot of care, and they promised us a sequel at the end.
So, to be continued..7/10 for acting.
6/10 for the story.
6/10 for music.
10/10 for the two pin-up boys.
P.S.: Get Mallika to do an item number in the sequel..
An Entertaining One. A movie from Raakesh Roshan definitely means a lot of expectations but unfortunately this doesn't live quite up to it and more so after hearing about the movie almost being stopped from release due to copyrights on a certain song and then being told that "King Khan" was upset with the Roshans and Hrithik coming out to deny it - basically all the hype.Four men who are considered to be mentally unstable are on their way to watch a cricket match with their doctor, when suddenly she is kidnapped and the men try to locate her.The movie, starring Juhi Chawla, Arshad Wasi, Diya Mirza, Irfan Khan, Rajpal Yadav, Suresh Menon and Rajat Kapoor, is a good concept and is also entertaining.
But one can tell exactly what is going to happen in the next scene and it was obvious who the kidnapper was.
The item songs by Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan are worth watching and waiting for (if you are ardent fans of theirs).
But unfortunately, I can't say that for Rakhi Sawant's item song - not so catchy.Incidentally, the movie was on the point of being stopped from release because of a particular issue as mentioned before and Raakesh Roshan had to pay the original artist / composer of the song, Ram Sampat 20 million Rupees.Conclusion: Its an entertaining movie but not something that one can feel that one must watch..
Best characters of a Hindi comedy!!!.
I am so shocked the rating on Krazzy 4 is so low!!
The acting was so great to these excellent characters.
Rajpal Yadav plays a poor crazy man thinking Ghandi and freedom fighters are still around, Irrfan Khan as a was-doctor now in a mental patient trying to pick up everyone's trash...
Arshad Warsi has an explosive temper and poor Suresh Menon is a mute and says nothing pretty much...
4 mental patients going to see a cricket game under the guise this should help them learn to work as a team who get mixed up in a crazy kidnapping...
now are loose in the city trying to find their doctor...this movie had the most crazy shenanigans and made me laugh so hard.
The characters mad this film.
I especially loved Irrfan Khan as an quiet introverted neat freak.
This movie was great Oh yeah and one of the last films Shah Rukh is in where he doesn't look too old...
(his song must be the shortest in the film BTW)!!!
Hrithik dancing on the end credits was great too!
Obviously it won't go down in cinematic history but it is a great time pass and not some sleazy comedy!!
Just good fun film |
tt0119164 | The Full Monty | The once-successful steel mills of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, have shut down and most of the employees have been laid off. Former steel workers Gary "Gaz" Schofield and Dave Horsefall have resorted to stealing scrap metal from the abandoned mills to sell. Gaz is facing trouble from his former wife, Mandy and her boyfriend Barry over child support payments that he has failed to make since losing his job. Gaz's son, Nathan, loves his father but wishes they could do more "normal stuff" in their time together.
One day, Gaz spots a crowd of women lined up outside a local club to see a Chippendale's striptease act. He gets the idea to form his own strip tease group using local men in hopes of making enough money to pay off his child support obligations. The first to join the group is Lomper, a security guard at the steel mill where Dave and Gaz once worked. Depressed, Lomper attempts suicide, but is rescued by Dave who convinces him to join the group. Next, they recruit Gerald Cooper, their former foreman at the mill, who is hiding the fact that he is unemployed from his wife. Gaz and Dave see Gerald and his wife, Linda, at a dance class and recruit him to teach them some actual dance moves.
The four men hold an open audition to recruit more members and settle on Horse, an older man who is nevertheless a good dancer, and Guy, who can't dance but proves himself to be well-endowed. The six men begin to practice their act. Gaz then learns that he has to pay £100 in order to secure the club for the night. He cannot afford this, but Nathan gets the money out of his savings. When they are greeted by two local women while they put up posters for the show, Gaz boasts they're better than the real Chippendales because they go "the full monty". Dave drops out due to body image issues and gets a job as a security guard at Asda. The others do a public rehearsal at the mill in front of some female relatives of Horse, but are caught mid-show by a passing policeman, and Gaz, Gerald and Horse are arrested for indecent exposure.
This costs Gaz the right to see Nathan. Lomper and Guy manage to escape arrest, and go to Lomper's house where they look lovingly at each other, starting a relationship. Gerald, meanwhile is thrown out by Linda after bailiffs arrive at their house and seize their belongings to pay Gerald's debts, resulting in him having to stay with Gaz. Later Gaz goes to Asda and asks Dave if he could borrow a jacket for Lomper's mother's funeral. Dave agrees and also decides to quit his job and they go to the funeral together. Soon, the group find the act and arrest has made them famous.
They decide to forgo the plan, until Gaz learns that the show is sold out. He convinces the others to do it for one night only. Gerald is unsure as he has now got the job that Gaz and Dave earlier tried to sabotage his interview for, but agrees to do it just once. Initially, Dave still refuses, however re-gains his confidence after encouragement from his wife, Jean, and joins the rest of the group minutes before they go on stage. Nathan also arrives with Dave, having secretly come, and tells Gaz that Mandy is there but she would not let Barry go with her.
However, Gaz himself refuses to do the act because there are men in the audience (including the police force members who watched the footage of the security camera's recording of them earlier), when the posters said it was for women only. The other five are starting the act when Nathan orders his father to go out on stage. Gaz, proud of his son, joins the others and performs in front of the audience and Mandy, who seems to see him in a new light.
The film ends with the group performing on stage in front of a packed house, stripping to Tom Jones' version of "You Can Leave Your Hat On" (their hats being the final item removed) with an astounding success. | cute, comedy, entertaining, sentimental | train | wikipedia | Peter Cattaneo's direction was inspired, and he knew the right angles to use (check out the scene when the lads were auditioning new members, particularly Guy) for perfect comedic effect.I admit that some of the sub-plots needed more fleshing out, particularly between Gaz and Nathan as well as Gerald and his wife.
And as many times as I've seen the movie, I don't know much about Guy other than his love for Singing in the Rain and his obvious natural endowment that took the breath away from his mates!The music was terrific as well.
One thing I've always appreciated in British films is that the actors look like Real People.
As in other British films, the characters seem real, like people we would know if we lived in their town.
Robert Carlyle and Mark Addy combine with a great support cast to bring one of the freshest comedies in years to the big screen.
Set in Sheffield after the great 'City of Steel' Days, there are more people in the dole queue, than out at work.Struggling for money the pair decide that if the Chippendale's can get the kit off and make a packet, then why can't they.
Now all they need is to learn how to dance, learn how to overcome there fear of the Full Monty and sell some tickets.This film is a very funny view of a struggling community in what was once a thriving city.
I grew up watching Bristish shows like "Mr. Bean" and "Are You Being Served?" I love those shows and I love this movie, I think it is one of the best comedies ever made.
We all loved the movie right off...My sister bought it and we watched it with captioning, and boy had we missed a lot of lines at the theater and funny ones at that!
It's like watching a movie with English being your second language, and I B.S. you not!The English working class has a different way of expressing themselves--its so charming and hilarious...I think Robert Carlysle is brilliant "Gaz".
Besides being a light comedy, the film in its subtle way makes an effective commentary on the wages of capitalism, or, to be more direct and precicee, what happens when capitalism takes wages away.
But the movie's gentle suggestion is that not only is beauty in the eye of the beholder, but so is self-respect...and in following through with their plans, they gain a LOT more than just 2000 pounds each.Robert Carlyle is good as the anchor of the piece, always pushing and planning and cajoling and begging and even stealing, as need be, but it's the rest of the cast that makes this movie work -- from Tom Wilkinson as a manager ashamed to tell his wife he's lost his job to Mark Addy as a man who's so ashamed of how fat and unattractive he is, he's driving his wife away right down to Hugo Speer and his joyful "let's have a blast" attitude."The Full Monty" is a gem of human comedy aimed not at the gut but at the sense of hope we all carry.
Could never have been made in the USA; if they do an American remake, I'll tell you now, it won't come close to this great time at the movies..
Charming film from the other side of the pond about a bunch of working class blokes at the ends of their ropes who decide to stage a strip show for cash.
The gimmick is that they promise to go "the full monty," much to the delight of their wives and girlfriends."The Full Monty" was a minor sensation in 1997, and started a movie trend that exists to this day: the little indie film that could and makes it all the way to the Best Picture category at the Academy Awards.
I don't know that it's quite that good, but you could probably fit three "Full Monty"s into one "Titanic," the film that DID win Best Picture that year, and if I had to pick one of them to watch again now, I'd pick the naked dudes over the sinking ship any day.Grade: A-.
The Full Monty is the type of movie that surprises you from the get go, even though you know the general idea of the plot (6 unemployed steelworkers decide to become strippers), that's because all of them become so lovable you're rooting for them to succeed at the end of the movie in a big way.The story mainly focuses on three of the six.
This movie deserved all the attention it got, and it's too bad the film lost the Academy Award for best original screenplay (Damn you Good Will Hunting!
The unemployment line scene - where each "dancer" unconsciously works through their routine when their dance number is piped in - is an all-time movie sequence.
Recently, I saw her again after almost a year of absence, and over dinner she said, "I can't stand in the line at the bank without thinking about The Full Monty and 'Hot Stuff'." That's how much staying power the film has.Not to get too analytical (a requirement for an English major), I loved the mixture of metaphor, irony, and pathos.
Wrinkle cream, cling film, sun beds, sexual "enhancement" devices...the men turn to them all, just as women have forever, and with about the same result.The pathos revolving around Gaz's love for his son, Nathan, and his despair at the threat of losing him made my eyes well up, especially in the scene when Nathan wants Gaz to go swimming with his mother and her smarmy boyfriend.
He even gets a love life, also ironic, for reasons I won't go into here.Some men of my acquaintance announced that the movie was the most depressing thing they had ever seen.
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.
Tough times and desperation bring these six very different men together for money, and sweetest of all, the love of a child.I came away thinking that the characters in this film were much better off as a result of their experience.
Then there is the immediate downbeat 'cut' to thirty years later and an empty factory in a drab looking area of the world surely we are meant to laugh, but in doing so you are laughing at great failure and a heartache of epic proportions since so many people lost so many jobs to do with factories as well as mines.Then again perhaps this newsreel footage early on is a reason why the film did so well in America.
At a time when the American cinemas were lapping up 'dark' comedies in Pulp Fiction, Fargo and Go, The Full Monty can certainly be seen as a 'realist' urban drama focusing on respective inhabitants of a certain built up area.
The reason the newsreel introduction is so perfectly placed is because it informs us of the setting, tells us what things used to be like before hitting us with some dark comic timing we are informed, entertained and then humoured.Then there is the film's primary theme.
British films Chariots of Fire showed us males can be track athletes; Brassed Off showed us men can get together and partake in a brass band and in a few years time, Billy Elliot showed us males can be ballerinas.
There is social commentary, yes, and it's well made (in my opinion, obviously), but the bigger message, I think, is that when life sucks - and it can do, most of the time - you don't have to give in to the feelings of utter despair.You can fight back, you can refuse to be bowed, and for everyone in the awful predicament of being willing and able to work but being unable to find anyone willing to give you a chance, there is the possibility of finding a ray of sunshine, even if only temporarily, in an otherwise grey and depressing condition.And it's those little rays of sunshine that help to give you hope.
A laugh here, a giggle there, a bit of extreme silliness once in a while - it all helps keep you sane.And that's what is enjoyable about this movie: it's the story of a group of men trying to stay sane even if it means losing some of their dignity in the process.
This movie has real pathos and features first-rate performances by all the members of the strip-tease group -- but especially Robert Carlyle as Bazzer.
Among those forced to go on the dole are Gaz Schofield (Robert Carlyle) and his friend, Dave (Mark Addy), whose lives become especially complicated by their current status of `unemployed.' Unable to make child support payments, Gaz is about to lose visitation rights with his son, Nathan (William Snape), and losing his job has left Dave emasculated, leading to problems with his wife, Jean (Lesley Sharp).Then one night the `Chippendales' show arrives in town, and for the `ladies only' performance, the local venue is sold out, at ten quid a head.
Who will be able to come away from this film NOT at least humming Hot Chocolate's `You Sexy Thing,' or thinking about the scene in which `Horse' (Paul Barber) `auditions' to Wilson Pickett's `Land of 1000 Dances?' Or when the guys, after having rehearsed for awhile, are on line at the employment office when Donna Summer's `Hot Stuff' comes on and they can't keep still.
Cattaneo takes a positive approach to negative issues, wraps it all up in humility, humanity and hard work, and in doing so he gives his audience a film that is highly entertaining, emotionally involving and unforgettable.Heading up the ensemble cast, Robert Carlyle is right on with his portrayal of Gaz.
And, in Dave's case, especially, Addy manages to elicit empathy without making him unduly sympathetic, which affords him, as well as the others and the film, the ability to maintain a semblance of dignity in the face of adversity, which is essentially one of the main tenets of the story.Also turning in an effective performance is Tom Wilkinson as Gerald, the former foreman of the steel mill, now reduced to being just one of the guys, and on the dole along with the rest of them.
The point is it's a funny movie with fine acting, which at the same time manages to be endearing and warm-hearted.
No Rip Off. Social comment about the sad lot of the northern English working class may not seem the basis for a great movie, but this one has pulled it off (in more ways than one).Not a classic by any means and has a fairly predictable plot, but the wonderful self-denegrating, unpretentious nature of the movie make it worth watching more than once.
THE FULL MONTY was one of those movies that HURT to watch: by the time I left the theater, my face was actually sore from smiling.
(I wish I'd thought of doing something like this when I was really down and out- and in better shape...) Robert Carlyle has long been one of my favorite actors- in part because of this movie (not to mention HAMISH MACBETH or 28 WEEKS LATER); he's great as the down-and-out father forced to do SOMETHING to distance himself from The Dole and all its attendant stigma.
The movie focus on funny characters, not the sad story.The funny part is this would probably work for real!.
The story, The characters, all the things in this film were very good.
That is the sad and real side of story but comedy the overrides the seriousness making it a funny and true film.
The Full Monty is a film about men's emotional short-comings, and these were explored in an engaging and profoundly touching way.The script does have some hilarious moments, often verging on hysterical at times, but it never fails to be touching as well.
I even liked the music, You Sexy Thing, Make Me Smile, Rock & Roll, We are Family and the Full Monty all to name a few were really pleasant and entertaining.And of course, the acting is brilliant, every single person gives an honest and appealing performance.
Mark Addy, Lesley Sharp, Tom Wilkinson and Hugo Speer give terrific support and manage to be really likable.Overall, wonderful film, definitely worth seeing if you like movies that are both funny and touching.
Still they manage to go through the movie with comedy instead of this movie being completely serious movie, because that couldn't work as well as this does.One thing I especially like about this film is that the men all look different and they're not all as fit as the blokes on Magic Mike.
The women cheer them on to go for "the full monty" - total nudity.I have not seen "Magic Mike" yet, but that and this are the only two films that come to find that focus on male strippers.
Coming from England I must admit to being biased perhaps...But i thought this film was sooooooo bloody funny I still cry laughing every time i see it 50 runs later...Brilliant acting amazing down to earth characters...Its a must see if you want to know about the real england and its people.....
The Full Monty is one of my all time favorite movies.
It's a touching story with great characters, and you find yourself rooting for these guys the whole time.
It was still fun and had some laughs, but it also had some seriousness and the story of a man wanting to spend time with his son was good.
I watched "Full Monty" directed by Peter Cattaneo first time when it was released ten years ago in 1997, became a surprising hit, and was nominated for several Academy awards.
I think every boy would dream about having a father like Carlyle's Gaz - he is more like a buddy, not a father.Did I mention that after seeing the movie first three times I bought a Donna Summer's CD?
I suppose depending on who you are, that will get you to watch the film or disappoint you."The Full Monty" is a straight-forward British comedy accompanied by some family drama.
Then there's plenty of British humor to go around as these men deal with humiliation and desperation.The biggest problem with this film is its 90 minute run time.
The humor is also somewhat limited and there's definitely potential for more."Full Monty" is a nice, quick, change-of-pace comedy that takes a good idea and does a solid job of turning it into a film..
I first saw this film when at 13, I illegally snook in to watch the 15-rated movie.
It doesn't fail to make me laugh even now when I have seen it a million times and sorry but that Sheffield accent is to die for!!!You have to see this film, you actually have to watch it because it is just amazing I have never met anyone who doesn't like it, I make everyone who comes round to my house watch it!
By the end of the film I was just as engaged in the story as I was the first time I saw it.
'The Full Monty' is a very funny 90s comedy with some classic British humour.
The main two, played by Robert Carlyle and Mark Addy, are very funny together - a dumb but likable duo who can't seem to get anything right.Despite the silly plot, this is a film with a big heart.
Anybody who likes British humour who hasn't seen 'The Full Monty' should definitely give it a watch..
With his best friend Dave (Mark Addy) he is reduced to stealing steel girders for spare cash.When they stumble upon women lining up at a working men's club to see The Chippendales, they hit upon the idea of doing their own strip show but go fully naked.They get a group of six together but they really cannot dance and some of them do not have the physique.
Only Gerald (Tom Wilkinson) their former foreman has dance training and sets about teaching the rest the dance moves.As time goes on the men bond as they deal with issues such as being in debt, without a job or relationship problems.In some ways the film was inspired by The Boys from the Blackstuff without too much of the black comedy and grimness although it does have raw and rowdy humour.Robert Carlyle does a good northern accent more chipper than Chippendale who is confident until the time to start the show comes.
Robert Carlyle can be so many sorts of characters, such as horror, He creeped me out in the beach and other films, programs.Peter Cattaneo done a great job to create a unique men stripping, drama, comedy.
This mix of comedy and drama is almost perfect, and like in any English film the acting is absolutely brilliant.
Begbie was one of the more frightening movie characters of recent years and in this film he comes off in totally the opposite way.
THE FULL MONTY isn`t a comedy at all it`s a dour social drama about the disenfranchisement of men with some funny bits that you`ve already seen in the film`s trailers.
Unemployment is high, people don't know how to make money and then they see something as an easy way out.There is language and some nudity to be taken into account, if you feel they matter in any way.The actors involved have done quite a few good movies and especially one interaction between Wilkinson and Carlyle might not have worked with a weaker set of actors. |
tt0046783 | The Black Dakotas | Over footage from The Man from Colorado, opening titles inform the audience that during the Civil War the Confederate States of America sent agitators to the American West to incite Indian tribes against the Federal Government to draw troops away from battles in the East.
In 1864 a stagecoach containing two passengers is attacked by an armed band who kill the driver and stop the stage. One of the passengers, Zachary Paige offers the armed but polite band his money but is surprised when they inform him that they are not interested in his money but know his identity as a diplomatic emissary of President Abraham Lincoln sent to the Dakota Territory to negoitate a treaty with the Sioux than includes payment of $130,000 in gold to the tribe. The band take his credentials and Paige is further surprised when his travelling companion, Brock Marsh tells him he is a secret agent of the Confederacy who will impersonate Paige in his diplomacy but will use the opportunity to break the promises and lure the Sioux into attacking the white settlements. The leader of the band John Lawrence informs Paige he will be held until after Marsh completes his mission then released. As Lawrence goes away Marsh further explains his mission in a courteous manner, then shoots and kills Paige to protect the mission to the surprise of Lawrence and his band.
Arriving in the nearest city, Marsh as Paige informs the town authorities of his mission and tells them his stage was attacked by an armed Indian band. Marsh meets "Gimpy" Joe Woods who offers to take him to the Sioux, but Marsh chooses Daugherty to take him. Before their departure a posse bring in John Lawrence who they have identified as a Confederate agent and seek to lynch him. The lynch mob becomes an impromptu court run by Judge Baker who try Lawrence for treason on the spot and sentence him to hanging. Gimpy implores Marsh as Paige to use his Federal authority to make the case a Federal matter and delay Lawrence's fate to a trial by Federal authorities. Marsh refuses and is hanged in front of his daughter Ruth, who swears vengeance on the town and its population. Gimpy takes Marsh aside and reveals himself as Lawrence's second in command and asks him why he did not save Lawrence with Marsh replying that his mission is more important to the Confederacy.
Daugherty informs Marsh that though Chief War Cloud is a reasonable man his son Black Buffalo desires the extermination of all whites. Proving his point, the pair are attacked by a war party led by Black Buffalo where his brother is killed by a proficient pistol shot by Marsh. The pair split up where Daugherty escapes but Marsh is captured. When Marsh realises Black Buffalo is not interested in the peace treaty and will burn him alive the clever Marsh shames the Indians that they are cowards and will be punished in the afterlife for not giving a prisoner a fair and sporting chance for his life. Marsh is pitted against a brave, both armed with knives in a fight to the death that Marsh wins by throwing his knife into the brave's back gaining him time for a rescue by Daugherty's posse.
Upon return to the town where Marsh intends to buy drinks for the posse he is called into the office of Judge Baker and Marshal Collins who show him the body of the real Paige who was buried in a shallow grave dug up by coyotes. As he is dressed as an Easterner and not dressed for riding the only possible way he could have come to the area would be as a passenger on the stage that Marsh came in on. Marsh denies he had a travelling companion; as the Marshal and Judge examine the body they find a label in the dead man's jacket with the name of Zachary Paige. As Marsh draws his pistol the pair are shot in the back from an open window by Gimpy armed with a rifle. When the townspeople burst in and see Marsh's weapon unfired they believe Ruth Lawrence is responsible.
Gimpy and his band discover the hard way that in addition to starting an Indian uprising, Marsh wants the $130,000 in gold for himself alone. | violence, murder, historical fiction | train | wikipedia | Murky Machinations Afoot..
Ray Nazarro directs from a screenplay written by Ray Buffum and DeVallon Scott.
It stars Gary Merrill, Wanda Hendrix, John Bromfield, Noah Beery Junior, Jay Silverheels, Fay Roope and Howard Wendell.
Music is by Mischa Bakaleinikoff and Technicolor cinematography is by Ellis W.
Carter."During the Civil War, Southern sympathisers made desperate efforts to aid the Confederacy by inciting Indian uprisings against defenceless towns along the Western frontier.
The objective was to force large withdrawals of Northern troops from the main battlefronts, leaving them more vulnerable to Southern attack.
This is the story of one such attempt that took place in Dakota territory in the year 1864."A colourful and brisk picture that finds the efficient Nazarro cramming as much Oater styled fun as he can into just over an hour of film.
The core basics of the story is full of intrigue, with undercover Confederate operatives moving amongst Union denizens as the Sioux argue amongst themselves about the viability of Abe Lincoln's offer of peace.
There's a bit of thought gone into the screenplay, even offering up one or two genuine surprises, while it's nice to find that the lead female role played by Hendrix gives us a feisty femme of substance as opposed to the many other dressage characterisations that so dominated other 50s Oaters.
California location landscapes a bonus, as is Beery Junior's commitment to his role, and Nazarro knows his way around a violent action scene.Fun enough while it's on without ever breaking out of its very basic "B" Western worth, The Black Dakotas is regardless above average and worth some viewing time by fans of such high spirited dusters.
So-so film with interesting cast.
This color western from the 1950's is most notable for a rare, non-Lone Ranger appearance by Clayton Moore (unbilled) and Jay Silverheels.
The story is engaging but most of the cast seems detached from their performances.Jay Silverheels stands out in a great role as the Native-American leader.
Gary Merrill does the best with the script given him.
the action scenes are well-staged and help move the average script along.The storyline is a familiar one, but the top-notch production value makes this one worth checking out This is not a great western, but there are worse ways to kill an hour of your free time..
In business for himself.
Gary Merrill stars in this low budget B western from Columbia in which the villain is top billed.
Merrill plays a southerner sent out on a mission to disrupt treaty negotiations with the Sioux in the Dakota territory while the Civil War is on.
There's a treaty on its way to the Sioux already signed on the Union end by President Abraham Lincoln and arriving later a shipment of gold for the Sioux valued at $100,000.00.
That's for not attacking the settlers out in Dakota.But Merrill is in business for himself.
He shoots the American envoy and takes his place.
He nearly gets away with what he's doing, but it's a question of one double cross too many.Merrill's villainy totally dominates the proceedings here.
John Bromfield is the northern boy and Wanda Hendrix the southern girl who help put a stop to things.
Some more western familiar faces are here.
A lot of the cast is killed most by Merrill, some on his behalf before things are set right.A little far fetched but entertaining nonetheless..
Manages a Few Surprises.
Complex B-western with shifting loyalties and a few surprises.
In the Dakotas, it's Civil War southerners conspiring against northerners for possession of big money, with the Sioux nation as a wild card.
Needless to say, you may need a scorecard to keep track.
Nonetheless, the screenplay is offbeat and generally unpredictable, always a plus for a western.
There's also some surprisingly graphic violence on-screen, without the usual cut-aways to spare viewer feelings.
Merrill's not a typical western lead, but then he's not playing a cowboy.
Instead, he's an agent from Washington, but of uncertain loyalty.
Watch for Noah Beery Jr. as Gimpy, bringing his usual down-home color to the role.
All in all, it's an offbeat little western with some pleasant LA area scenery, which is enough for most of us..
"I take it I'm dealing with traitors.".
When you come right down to it, there aren't a lot of good guys here.
The only one that comes to mind is moderate Mike Daugherty (John Bromfield) as the head of a stage line company.
Everyone else, and that includes fiancée Ruth Lawrence (Wanda Hendrix), had at least a little bit of larceny in their heart which leads to the undoing of more or less everybody in the picture.The premise is laid out in the opening screen narrative that states how Southern sympathizers aided the Confederacy during the Civil War by fomenting trouble in remote parts of the country to draw away Union forces from the main areas of battle.
Interestingly, there really aren't any direct confrontations between the Blue and the Gray in the story, what we have is the old double cross perpetrated by a Southern Reb (Gary Merrill) who we eventually learn has loyalty to neither side.
He's in it for himself.What's really troubling is when you drill down to the motives of the Southern sympathizers led by the short lived John Lawrence (Fay Roope).
He and his bunch were quite willing to deceive the nearby Sioux Indian tribe led by Chief War Cloud (John War Eagle, love that name) with a government peace treaty and a promise of a hundred thousand dollars in gold.
Intending all along to steal the gold for the Confederate cause, this betrayal would have led to the Sioux massacre of the entire nearby town.
That takes a special kind of villainy that isn't found in your usual old time Western fare.Nice to see some familiar faces in unfamiliar territory here.
Jay Silverheels steps off the set of 'The Lone Ranger' TV show to portray the war hawk of his tribe, Black Buffalo, while Clayton Moore makes a couple of spot appearances as henchman Stone, one of the Lawrence gang.
A puzzler is the role Noah Beery Jr. has, he's a Southern loyalist with that friendly good guy persona who takes out the town marshal (Robert F.
Simon) and judge (Howard Wendell) by bushwhacking them through the jail-house window.
As mentioned earlier, he would have been one of the guys who wouldn't have had a problem if the Sioux wiped out his fellow citizens as a means to an end.In the finale, level headed Mike Daugherty makes the save by taking down Brock Marsh (Merrill) following an outlaw shoot out with the stage carrying the gold shipment.
If you take note of that battle, you'd have to agree there's a fair degree of marksmanship on both sides as stage guards and bandits routinely pick each other off as they seek cover behind boulders and other protection.
It didn't make a whole lot of sense to me, but it was getting time to wrap things up..
Plenty of Treachery in This One!.
"The Black Dakotas" is a tight action packed little 65 minutes of a western.
It takes place in 1864 during the American Civil War.An emissary from President Lincoln, Zachary Paige (Frank Wilcox) is being sent to negotiate a treaty with the Sioux Indians under Chief War Cloud (John War Eagle).
The Indians are to be paid $100K as part of the deal.
Brock Marsh (Gary Merrill) is travelling with him when their stage coach is stopped.
John Lawrence (Fay Roope) is a southern patriot who plans to substitute Marsh for Zachary and divert the gold shipment to the confederacy.
After Lawrence leaves, Marsh , who has his own plans, murders Paige.Later in town a posse headed by Marshal Collins (Robert F.
Simon) brings Lawrence in under arrest.
With the urging of loud mouthed townsman Grimes (Peter Whitney) a trial is quickly held and Lawrence sentenced to be hanged.
In spite of the intervention of stage line owner Mike Daugherty (John Bromfield) and Lawrence's fiery young daughter Ruth (Wanda Hendrix), Lawrence is hanged and Marsh puts his plan into action.
Gimpy Joe Woods (Noah Beery Jr.) reveals himself to Marsh as Lawrence's right hand man and agrees to help him get the gold for the south.Daugherty agrees to take Marsh (as Paige) to the Indian village but are attacked by renegade Black Buffalo (Jay Silverheels).
Marsh almost is burned at the stake before being rescued by Gimpy and a posse.
They go on to meet with the Chief to negotiate the treaty.Later, Sheriff Collins and Judge Baker(Howard Wendell) discover that Marsh is an impostor forcing Gimpy to reluctantly gun them down.
Grimes and the townspeople believe that Ruth did the shooting and set out to get her.
Then as the stage carrying the gold approaches......................................As it turns out, top billed Merrill is the chief villain who ruthlessly guns down several people over the course of the film.
Bromfield is the hero and Hendrix the object of his affections.
Lawrence's gang includes such recognizable faces as James Griffith, Richard Webb, Clayton Moore and Chris Alcaide.
Silent screen veterans Heinie Conklin and Hank Mann have small parts as townsmen.
There's also a couple of good scraps involving Bromfield with Whitney and Merrill.
I'm not sure but I think that this was the only feature film in which Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels appeared not as The Lone Ranger and Tonto. |
tt0086617 | The Year of Living Dangerously | Guy Hamilton (Mel Gibson), a neophyte foreign correspondent for an Australian network, arrives in Jakarta on assignment. He meets the close-knit members of the foreign correspondent community including journalists from the United Kingdom, the United States, and New Zealand, diplomatic personnel, and a Chinese-Australian dwarf of high intelligence and moral seriousness, Billy Kwan (Linda Hunt). Hamilton is initially unsuccessful because his predecessor, tired of life in Indonesia, had departed without introducing Hamilton to his contacts. He receives limited sympathy from the journalist community, which competes for scraps of information from Sukarno's (Mike Emperio) government, the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI), and the conservative Muslim military. However, Kwan takes a liking to Hamilton and arranges interviews for him with key political figures.
Kwan introduces Hamilton to Jill Bryant (Sigourney Weaver), a beautiful young assistant at the British embassy. Kwan and Bryant are close friends, and he subtly manipulates her encounters with Hamilton. After resisting Hamilton because she's returning to the United Kingdom, Bryant falls in love with him. Discovering that the Communist Chinese are arming the PKI, Bryant passes this information to Hamilton to save his life, but he wants to cover the Communist rebellion that will occur when the arms shipment reaches Jakarta. Shocked, Kwan and Bryant withdraw their friendship from Hamilton, and he is left with the American journalist Pete Curtis (Michael Murphy), and his own assistant and driver Kumar (Bembol Roco), who is secretly PKI. Kumar, however, remains loyal to Hamilton and tries to open his eyes to all that is going on.
Kwan, outraged by Sukarno's failure to meet the needs of most Indonesians, decides to hang a sign saying "Sukarno feed your people" from the Hotel Indonesia expressing his outrage but is thrown from the window by security men, and dies in Hamilton's arms. His death is also witnessed by Jill. Still in search of "the big story", Hamilton visits the Presidential palace after the army generals have taken over and unleashed executions, after they learned of the Communist shipment. Struck down by an Army officer, Hamilton suffers a detached retina.
Resting alone in Kwan's bungalow, Hamilton recalls a passage from the Bhagavad Gita ("all is clouded by desire") which Billy told him. Kumar visits him and tells him about the failed coup attempt. Risking permanent damage to his eye, a heavily bandaged Hamilton implores Kumar to drive him to the airport, where he boards the last plane out of Jakarta and is reunited with Bryant. | murder | train | wikipedia | Eventually Hamilton must confront moral conflicts and the relationship between Billy and him reaches some problems connected with a British diplomatic attaché , at the same time the political upheaval takes place in coup détat.Mel Gibson is good as correspondent covering a conflict and finding himself becoming personally involved when he befriends a free-lance photographer named Billy Kwan and falling for a beautiful Embassy assistant, a mesmerizing Sigourney Weaver .The movie has its touching moments found primarily in the superb supporting performances as Michael Murphy as lively journalist , Bill Kerr as veteran Colonel and of course diminutive Linda Hunt who steals the show as sensible photographer in her Academy Award-winning character, a woman acting a man, and well deservedly prized.
Peter Weir's movie, set in Sukarno's Indonesia in 1965, can be seen as four films in one.
The third - and most important in commercial-cinema terms - is a convincingly acted romance between rookie foreign correspondent Guy Hamilton (Mel Gibson) and British diplomat Jill Bryant (Sigourney Weaver), culminating in an unlikely and sentimental ending to the film.But it is the fourth of these "sub-movies" which is the most intriguing; this concerns the diminutive and enigmatic Australian/Chinese photographer Billy Kwan, an astonishing - and Oscar winning - portrayal by actress Linda Hunt.
15 years after its release, I finally get to see what to my knowledge is the only english-speaking film that tells the story of Indonesia circa the 1965 revolution.A very young Gibson is convincing as the inexperienced but ambitious reported determined to make his mark in telling the story of Sukarno's last moments in power.
Equally brilliant is Sigourney Weaver, and yet one feels that this film did not give her the opportunity to show her true calibre.The one who ultimately steals the show, then, is Linda Hunt, playing the enigmatic and passionate Billy, who understands the true psyche of Indonesia better than any of the other foreign characters in this story.When Billy solemnly expresses his disappointment to Guy, proclaiming, "I created you", it evoked images of Weir's latest masterpiece, The Truman Show, where Christof has fashioned the persona of Truman Burbank for his TV spectacle.
Linda Hunt's portrayal of Billy Kwan is astonishing and won her a well-deserved Oscar in an incredible gender-switching performance that was inspired casting.One thing I never noticed before was how Billy placed each of the three main characters in their perspective as the Indonesian puppets he explains to Guy.
The chemistry between Mel Gibson and Sigourney Weaver, as young lovers in exciting times, is breath-taking!But Linda Hunt is the biggest gem in the movie, playing a little man named Billy Kwan.
First, it captures the feel of westerners living abroad, the cluster of expat personalities that you find were you to live or work abroad.Second, it is one of the best love stories ever crafted, with a "fleeting end of summer feel" between Mel Gibson and Sigourney Weaver.
Who could not be riveted by Linda Hunt's performance as "Billy?" Who could not be charmed and chided by Sigourney Weaver's sexy-yet-pragmatic character "Jill?" And who better than a devilishly handsome rogue like Mel Gibson to portray "Guy," a self-centered journalist whose nearly loses an eye because he can't really "see" the way Billy tries to get him to.
Mel Gibson, Sigourney Weaver and Linda Hunt all deal with the question through their characters in an interesting sort of "love triangle." The film is practically flawless with Peter Weir at the helm.
There are many strands in it - love story; evocation of a particular moment in history; the shadow puppets theme of how, Arjuna-like, good and evil can come together in one (Sukarno had started with good aims but had become a corrupt dictator); the shadow puppets theme of Billy benignly pulling the strings in people's lives; the question of how ethical it is for journalists just to report and not become involved in issues, etc.One strand I can relate to is the theme of "what should we do then?" in the direct face of developing world corruption and poverty.
When I decided to see TYOLD one weekday afternoon in 1983, I didn't expect a comedy and knew nothing more about the film than that Australians had written and directed it, so as I drove alone to the theater I only hoped that I had chosen a thought-provoking story that might offset the uneventful life I was living at the time.The Year of Living Dangerously did much more than provide me with a pleasant 2-hour escape from my dull routine.
While holding my interest with a compelling story about a passionate little photographer and an inexperienced journalist on a dangerous assignment, TYOLD clarified for me significant differences between Southeast Asian and Western cultures and enlightened me about Indonesian history (During the 1960's people talked about the possibility of a communist revolution in Viet Nam, not in Indonesia.).
In a review I once read of TYOLD, a professional critic mocked Mel Gibson and Sigourney Weaver by asserting, "Bogart and Hepburn they're not." Though I didn't leave the movie theater wishing that other actors had played their parts, I did see the relationship between Guy Hamilton, the journalist, and Jill Bryant, an assistant to an attaché of the British embassy, as the film's one weakness.That he pursued her and she ultimately accepted after much reluctance came across as believable enough, but since their relationship developed so little -- few meaningful conversations, not much exclusive time, her sudden transformation into lustful from discreet and aloof -- the apparent message that by story's end the two had bonded didn't feel convincing.
After taking on the themes of innocence and camaraderie in war in Gallipoli, Peter Weir and Mel Gibson teamed up once again to tell the story of a young Australian reporter who travels to the conflicted Indonesia in 1965 in The Year of Living Dangerously.
Gibson's Guy Hamilton is another classic character type, the hotshot reporter whose arrogance can sometimes make him a little too naive and die hard, getting him into dangerous situations but he's got the charm to come out on top.Of course this does eventually get him into some hot water, as the films focuses on his relationships with two people, the British diplomat Jill Bryant (Sigourney Weaver) and his helpful photographer Billy Kwan (Linda Hunt, playing a man in an Oscar-winning performance).
Like the majority of Weir's films, The Year of Living Dangerously is first and foremost a character study, focused on Hamilton and pulling him apart through the midst of this country in revolt.
He's a journalist who will do anything for his story, but the tragedy of the people he comes across lead him to learn that there are things much more important.It's a classic story, complete with betrayals and romance, but Weir's clarity and Gibson's endlessly compelling screen presence make it feel as though you're seeing it all for the first time.
Gibson shines in a role he was born to play, but it's Linda Hunt who steals the movie out from under him.She gives a performance that could have easily been entirely about the physicality of it (a woman actually playing a man straight-up with no gender confusion or anything of the sort), but Hunt manages to breathe such life and depth to the whole thing.
Their performances, coupled with Peter Weir's direction (he made the great Witness a few years later, and Dead Poets' Society after that), this film is extremely powerful and poetic, with a very moving portrait of what life must have been like in Jakarta at this time for many Indonesians and foreign journalists who weren't guaranteed protection from the warring political forces.
Signourney Weaver gives a decent performance but I found it difficult to think of her as English.Linda Hunt got an Oscar for her performance because the Academy thought it would be quirky and historical to give the Best Actress award to a Caucasian woman playing an Asian man.
It's the eve of his overthrowing by the military and the communist purge that quickly followed, and journalists in Jakarta huddle in sweaty bars, feeding on scraps thrown to them by Sukarno, knocking back beers and chasing tail to pass the time.The last guy left in a hurry, so young Australian foreign correspondent Guy Hamilton (Mel Gibson) arrives in Jakarta without a single informant or friend to lean on.
Peter Weir directed this account of the Indonesian revolution of 1965, which sees inexperienced Australian foreign correspondent Guy Hamilton(played by Mel Gibson) covering this story, with the help of a dwarf photographer(played by Linda Hunt, who won a best supporting actress Academy Award playing a man!) who has come to care deeply about the country, though will feel betrayed by its outcome.
It's Indonesia at the time of the 1965 revolution, and a young, ambitious reporter, played by Mel Gibson, is in Jakata to cover it in "The Year of Living Dangerously," a 1982 film that also stars Sigourney Weaver and Linda Hunt.Peter Weir does an incredible job at evoking the atmosphere of poverty, homelessness, crowds, oppression, danger, and ugly Americans in this film, and also what it feels like to be a foreigner.Guy Hamilton, the Australian reporter, is determined that this assignment will pay off for him, and it is his good luck that a tiny photographer, Billy Kwan (Hunt) offers to help him make connections.
Instead I applaud Weir for his contribution to pick the fine cast of Australian Gibson, American Weaver who plays a credible Brit, and the wonderful Linda Hunt to play a male character.
This powerful 1983 film, starring Mel Gibson, Sigourney Weaver, and Linda Hunt takes place in 1965 Indonesia where the forces of the left (PKI) and the right-wing military are threatening to overthrow the regime of Sukarno.
Billy Kwan, a Eurasian cameraman, played brilliantly by Linda Hunt (Best Supporting Actress), however, makes Hamilton look at the social conditions of the people and to report on it with honesty.
Indonesian affairs hit a fevered political and international level as Australian journalist Mel Gibson covers the events with a male dwarf guide (out of this world Oscar winner Linda Hunt as she plays the opposite sex) and has a torrid affair with an American (Sigourney Weaver).
There is nothing special about the romantic relationship between Mel and Sigourney but Linda Hunt personality and the poverty condition of Jakarta make it to be an interesting movie..
Peter Weir's "The Year of Living Dangerously" gives us an Australian foreign correspondent desperate to prove himself in his career, a marvelously strange character as his photographer sidekick, sets the whole thing in the politically tumultuous Indonesia of the 1960s, and then can think of nothing better to do with any of this material than focus on a boring love story between two white people.Ah well.
The movie's shining asset is Linda Hunt in the role of the photographer, an American Chinese dwarf named Billy Kwan, whose mysterious and ambiguous motives give the film what suspense it has, and far more than the "will civil war keep our two lovers apart?" story line that comprises most of the film.
THis movie is more about personality and moral dilemmas than it is about love.The acting is spectacular (though its a shame Sigourney Weaver is really underused), and most people are aware of Linda Hunt's achievement in this film, though just in case you're not, I won't tell you.
Linda Hunt most deserving of her oscar has the best time in the film playing a male dwarf photo journalist using the people in his world as shadow puppets dictating their future and changing their being.
In fact, Siqourney said of Mel Gibson after making the film; "He is the sexiest man alive" Weir chooses moments of closeups of the couple and we can see and feel the desire pouring out and the game of romantics taking place.
Both the leads Mel Gibson and Sigourney Weaver are stunning (in my opinion one of the best movie couples ever committed on film) and Linda Hunt is amazing as the male dwarf (she won an Oscar for her work here).
Both the leads Mel Gibson and Sigourney Weaver are stunning (in my opinion one of the best movie couples ever committed on film) and Linda Hunt is amazing as the male dwarf (she won an Oscar for her work here).
I JUST finished watching it again this afternoon and found it to be as good since the last time I saw it.It's a rare & unique piece of film making that rises above the subject matter it covers and becomes its own piece of cinematic art.The movie tells the tale of a new, young reporter arriving in Jakarta on the brink of civil war.
This is played by 20something Mel Gibson turning in a wonderful performance as a naive reporter learning the ways of politics in a foreign culture.He is selected as a protégé by Billy Kwan, a photographer played by Linda Hunt.
(Yes she plays a man's character in the movie and quite convincingly).While there, Mel Gibson meets Sigourny Weaver who has been working there for about 5 years and is set to leave in a matter of weeks.The movie shows how the Billy Kwan character picks Mel's character as a protégé if you will, because he sees something within Mel that he believes has a greater depth than the rest of the typical press corp.Billy's character also comments on the fact that both he & Mel are born of parents of two different countries and perhaps that is why they don't 'fit' in with the typical mentality of your everyday press corp.Peter Weir creates a wonderful, mystical atmosphere in this movie that touches on several themes of brotherhood, loyalty and empathy of foreign cultures to name a few.The music is reminiscent of Chariots of Fire and works well to heighten the tension.Ms. Weaver is restrained and effective in her handling of her role of a woman of well heeled background who has perhaps become hardened to the strife around her yet carries within her a true loyalty and passion for the good cause.Mel Gibson must navigate himself through the intrigues surrounding him and learn what's important in his quest to get the big story.I think Weir has created a cinematically compelling tale that concerns itself with more than the superficial as most stories covering this ground would do.The movie delivers on many levels and really deserves a higher place in the pantheon of movies than it currently enjoys.If you enjoy movies with plenty of tropical atmosphere, good performances, and the unexpected movie 'moment', than you can't go wrong by choosing this flick.I think it's a great film.
A young Australian reporter (Mel Gibson) tries to navigate the political turmoil of Indonesia during the rule of President Sukarno with the help of a diminutive photographer (Linda Hunt).Of course, a film about Indonesia needed to be made.
And to do him credit, Mel Gibson, in one of his earlier appearances, manages a remarkably credible performance as the enterprising, if somewhat maverick, journalist Guy Hamilton, and is convincingly supported by Sigourney Weaver, who, despite being essentially his love interest and nothing more, is dependable as always.Where, perhaps, the film does falter, at times, is in putting the pieces together, so that it transcends the "docudrama" genre and becomes epic.
Someone watching this film today could easily not understand this political context...as well as the country's nearing civil war at the same time Southeast Asia was in crisis.Mel Gibson plays Guy Hamilton, an Australian journalist working in the capital, Jakarta.
Rookie Australian journalist Mel Gibson is sent to Indonesia in 1965 to cover the strife boiling over in Djakarta under President Sukarno's government; he's befriended by a half-Chinese male dwarf (impeccably played by Oscar-winner Linda Hunt), and gets inside information from him as well as from a beautiful, flirtatious assistant from the British Embassy.
I personally admire Peter Weir, the director of this film who also created such atmospheric masterpieces as "Picnic at Hanging Rock" and "The Last Wave." However, his decision to use an unattractive white woman to play a Chinese (Asian) man in "The Year
" is not only politically incorrect in the extreme, but even, bizarre and grotesque.
THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY is an Australian film shot by Peter Weir that looks at a military coup in Indonesia in the 1960s.
I don't know how the other 6 could have left, because my date and I were nailed to our chairs by the story, performances and the direction.If there is a sexier scene in cinema than the one of Weaver and Gibson coming down the hill from the ambassador's party, I haven't seen it...and I see a lot of films.Linda Hunt deserved the Oscar....I wish she worked more often.
Continuing my plan to watch every Mel Gibson movie in order, I come toThe Year Of Living Dangerously (1982)Plot In A Paragraph: Guy Hamilton (Gibson) an Australian reporter, tries to navigate the political minefield of mid 1960's Indonesia during the reign of Presidant Surkarno.
He is aided by photographer Billy Kwan, who introduces him to Jill Bryant (Sigourney Weaver) and the pair start an affair.After working with George Miller for a second time on Mad Max 2, Gibson re-teamed with Peter Weir, in this very under rated movie.
Billy Kwan (Linda Hunt) mentions to Guy Hamilton (Mel Gibson) at the film's beginning Luke 3:10.
What with the rebel communists planning a military coup, Indonesia in 1965 was not the safest place to be.Chinese-Australian photographer Billy Kwan (Linda Hunt) takes a shining to Guy and so goes out of his way to help the enthusiastic journo make a name for himself, and a few friends as well.
It is sad that he melted down in recent years, because there were few actors as talented as he.Of course, much has been made of Linda Hunt's performance as the male dwarf Billy Kwan, who is the real focus of the film, around whom all the rest of the action takes place. |
tt0098486 | Der Todesking | Monday A man comes home, phones his boss to resign from his job, writes mysterious letters, cleans his apartment and swallows poison in his bathtub. His death is simultaneous with the death of his fish, the only being that was close to him.
Tuesday A man rents a film in a video store, a Nazisploitation movie in which Nazi soldiers are torturing a prisoner in a concentration camp, castrating him and painting a swastika on his breast. When the young man's girlfriend comes home, she yells at him until he shoots her. He then places a picture frame over the place on the wall where her brain matter was splattered. This whole episode is revealed as being shown on a TV screen in a room where somebody else committed suicide by hanging.
Wednesday A man and a girl meet in a park in the pouring rain. The man tells the girl about his disastrous sex life with his wife which led to him killing her. The girl pulls out a gun to kill him, but the man takes it from her and shoots himself.
Thursday A motorway bridge somewhere in Germany, superimposed by the names, ages, and occupations of the people who have jumped from it.
Friday A woman, alone in her apartment, is observing a young, seemingly happy couple in the neighbourhood. She spies on them and finds a chain letter in front of her door, urging her to kill herself. Obviously everybody in the house got the letter. She ignores it, eats chocolates and falls asleep, dreaming of surprising her parents when they make love. The camera shows the young couple, dead on their bed.
Saturday A young woman, equipped with a camera and a gun, kills several people in the audience of a rock concert (the frontman is played by Die Ärzte drummer Bela B.) and records it on film, until someone kills her.
Sunday A man, alone on his bed, is crying and banging his head over and over, violently against the wall, until he succumbs to brain damage. | cruelty, murder, violence, flashback, insanity, sadist | train | wikipedia | 'Der Todesking' is my first experience with Jorg Buttgereit.
This of course awoke my curiosity so I ordered Nekromantik 1 & 2 and Der Todesking (The Death King).
The Nekromantik movies are Ok, even kind of interesting and unique in their approach to the subject Necrophilia (even if they obviously are horror-opera entries rather than intended to invoke fear in the viewers mind, they are actually quite funny.)TODESKING, on the other hand is, in my opinion, one of the best films ever made.
"Who wants to live forever?"I believe that when Buttgereit shows a body, that are being consumed by maggots, he shows not only decomposition, but GENERATION of new life.
Is it not better to die and give life to maggots and then birds and eventually become soil, than to remain the living dead zombie that is one of the the favorite pets of the genre?When you realize this, you see Der Todesking it its right context.Sieben Tage hat die Woche, siebenmal letzte Stunden.
Seven are the days of week (weak, mortal !), seven times the last hour.Dont fear the Reaper, Buttgereit tells us, because the Reaper takes only what is ripe.
And apples that are not plucked for food will rot!Have a good life, fellow IMDB'ers !(And watch this film, that compares only to Ingemar Bergmans "The Seventh Seal" in terms of depth and universality).
Buttgereit's masterpiece is one of the best movies I've ever seen.
Der Todesking is an Art film with the soul of a Horror film.
Jorg "Nekromantik" Buttgereit continued his serious obsession with death on this harrowing suicide-fest.
"Der Todesking"-Jorg Buttgereit's second full-length feature film(the first one was notorious "Nekromantik")has no central character or characters,but instead thematic continuity in the act of suicide.Divided into days of the week,it comprises of a series of set-pieces,each of which featuring the self-destruction of a complete stranger.Yes,the production values are low and it's disturbing,but in many ways "Der Todesking" is extremely effective.It makes you think which is sometimes more important than pure entertainment.Unlike the other Buttgereit's works it isn't very gory,but there are some unpleasant images like castration scene in the Tuesday episode,a decomposing corpse and various acts of suicide.The last(Sunday)episode is so depressing and full of pain!-just amazing if you want my opinion.10 out of 10-check out this post-modernism shocker!Disturbing art in the purest form!.
Jörg Buttgereit's films are not for everyone, but I have to say he has become my favorite horror director in the period 1985-1995.
Buttgeriet has made his own art-house-horror genre and the more I watch, the more I like his style.In Der Todesking Jörg Buttgereit was obviously inspired by Ole Luk-Oie (transl: "Ole Shut-Eye") - H.C. Anderssen's famous fairytale about the Sandman.
As a kid the Sunday story always got me, the one where Ole Luk-Oie tells he has brother - also named Ole Luk-Oie - who only comes to you once and another name for him is...Death Jørg Buttgereit's fairytale is similar in structure: For every day in the week we are presented with a short story.
In the end you learn the truth about people going crazy and killing others and who the Death King really is...As usual the film is accompanied by Buttgereit's trademark soundtracks: The lonely piano, the dissonant (bit amateurish) fiddle tunes etc.
Actually it's seven movies about suicide.
We get to follow Buttgereit in to his strange world of death, it's not a fun trip, but I can guarantee you that it's not meant to be an enjoyable film.
The film is divided into different short stories, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday...
If you haven't seen any of Buttgereits earlier movies this one can be pretty hard to sit through cause it is pretty bizarre although not as graphic as his other movies, Nekromantik, Schramm.
I wouldn't care if Spielberg, Scorsese and Coppola never made another film (actually, I'd be rather grateful), but the possibility that Joerg Buttgereit might never direct another movie is truly upsetting.
It's been 13 years since his last film, Schramm, but I live in hope.Der Todesking is one of Buttgereit's most accessible films.
The film is a collection of vignettes relating to suicide and death, linked by footage of a rotting corpse.
Buttgereit has always exceeded in making the most repulsive act (having a threesome with a rotting corpse, for example) visually appealing.
In the meantime, Der Todesking is a great reminder of Joerg Buttgereit's skill and genius..
"Der Todesking" is not exactly the type of film that makes you merry
Jörg Buttgereit's second cult monument in a row, which is actually a lot better than the infamous "Nekromantik", exists of seven short episodes one for each day of the week revolving on unrelated people's suicides.
In between these already very disturbing episodes, Buttgereit inserts truly horrifying images of a severely decomposing male corpse.
The episodes aren't all equally powerful but, as a wholesome, "Der Todesking" is ranked quite high on the list of all-time most depressing art-house films.
The added value of this film, or any other shockumenary like it, is debatable and I'm not even sure whether or not Buttgereit had any type of message to communicate here.
There's the vague mentioning of an eerie chain letter that encourages its readers to commit suicide but mostly we remain uninformed about these people's motivations to end their lives so dramatically.
The Thursday episode is a perfect example of this, as it stylishly shows different viewpoints of a famous German bridge while the names, ages and occupations of persons who jumped off appear on the screen.
Only a handful of horror directors are true craftsmen when it comes to constructing fear out of celluloid, and Jorg Buttgereit is one of them.
"Der Todesking" is an early, virtually plot less effort from the German auteur that follows a week in the life of a deadly chain letter.
The film possesses a stream-of-consciousness style which strings together a series of random, nightmarish images (the sped-up decomposition of a corpse; castration; suicide) that rely on a coldly realistic tone to deliver chills.
What's more, it explores the odd impulse of suicide in a very frank way, not pulling any punches in what it shows, yet not dwelling and over-sensationalising the subject matter.
it has hints of documentary about it as well as horror and art-house cinema, and deserves a place amongst the canon of 'different' horror films like The Blair Witch Project and the original Ring (both of which it predates and could well be an unacknowledged influence on).
Der Todesking, the first film that I ever saw by the amazing director Jorg Buttereit, and what a profound film this is!
I will admit, that the intervals between each story of a decomposing body, can be quite slow, and I would suggest fast-forwading (because they seem to drag forever) but dont let you stray you away from the actual film!
Buttgereit does a beautiful film about suicide?
Who would have thought that the same director of the filthy, Nekromantik, would be capable of bringing us such a moving portrait about suicide.
Well, it is also a film about violent death, not just suicide.
The film itself is actually seven short films each one dealing with violent death/suicide from different aspects.
There are indeed some parts that will move you to tears such as a bridge (somewhere in Germany, we don't know where but that's not important) and on film captions of the occupations (no real names given) and ages of the people who have used the bridge to meet their end.
I am initially underwhelmed by Der Todesking (The Death King).
So what we basically get is an anti-suicide movie made on a shoe- string budget it does work quite well for what its trying to achieve with the budget they had.
However, Its a bit of a hit and miss with some of the stories some of the scenes tend to drag on and one day which was Thursday was just shots of the bridge in Germany called the suicide bridge.
check it out if you're a film student or interested in the themes presented here but i can't recommend it personally..
Der Todesking (1990) ** 1/2 (out of 4) The "story" of this Jorg Buttgereit film is pretty simple.
All seven stories deal with people who commit suicide.DER TODESKING was made by the director right after his notorious NEKROMANTIK and it seems that a lot of people call this film here his masterpiece but I'd argue that it's not nearly as good as the film that came before it.
With that said, not too many filmmakers would make an entire movie based around suicide since, obviously, the story isn't going to go over well with the masses but it probably wouldn't go over too well even inside the horror community.I must say that I was really letdown by this film.
The film does manage to have a certain dark atmosphere that really works to its favor and the director also throws in some gore.
The problem I had with the film is that none of the seven stories really struck me as being anything overly interesting.
The subject notwithstanding, this is an amateur, exhibitionist movie--or an effort at one--which is about as interesting and daring as a moody high school student's composition book full of death "poetry".
I cannot state enough what a piece of s**t this movie is - Avoid this movie at all costs (and ignore the comments that praise this film as 'art').
The only Buttgereit film I'd seen previously was Nekromantik and I hated every minute of it, but - shockingly - this film is worse!
Der Todesking is pointless in the same way as Nekromantik, but it's a worse film because it's boring in a way that few movies have ever managed (it's not far off The Blair Witch Project, seriously).
The director may have been making a point about death, but only he knows what it is.
How anyone could watch this film and be anything other than bored with it is completely beyond me.
The film revolves around the theme of suicide, and follows the deaths of seven different people over the course of a week.
Der Todesking is apparently an 'art' film, although this would appear to be a reference to the way that not very much makes sense rather than a reference to the film bearing any resemblance to 'art'.
Buttgereit uses a few evocative images; but I'm unlikely to remember any of them for more than a week or so because this film just isn't that memorable.
There's a shot involving a decomposing man's body that features fairly often, but that gets old pretty quick and all you're left with is the rest of the film, which is unfortunate.
As I mentioned, Nekromantik is the only other film I've seen from this amateur director; I have copies of Schramm and Nekromantik 2, and now I'm really in no rush to watch either.
Der Todesking is a dull film with no point and anyone that calls it 'art' is very much mistaken.
Interesting "Art-House" Film From Jorg Buttgereit.
DER TODESKING is not one of my favorite Jorg Buttgereit film - but still is an interesting film dealing with suicide and it's reasons and ramifications.
Those looking for a gore-fest, or exploitation in the style of the NEKROMANTIK films or SCHRAMM will probably be disappointed.
DER TODESKING is definitely an "art-house" style film, so those that need linear, explainable narratives need not apply...The basic concept of DER TODESKING is that there is an "episode" for each day of the week that revolves around a strange chain letter that apparently causes people to commit suicide, interspersed with scenes of a slowly decomposing corpse...There are some very well done and thought provoking scenes, including the man talking about the "problems" with his wife, and the concert massacre (which unfortunately lost some of it's "power" on me, because I was too busy laughing at the SCORPIONS look-alike band on stage...).
But seriously - this is a sometimes beautiful (the scene that shows different angles of that huge bridge is particularly effective - especially if you understand the significance of the scene, and that the names shown are of people that actually committed suicide from jumping from the bridge...), sometimes confusing, sometimes silly (the SHE WOLF OF THE SS rip-off is pretty amusing), sometimes harrowing (I found the scene of the guy talking to the girl in the park about his wife particularly effective) film that is more of an "experience" then just entertainment, as many of these "art" films are meant to be.
Definitely worth a look to any Buttgereit or "art" film fan.
If you dig this type of film - check out SUBCONSCIOUS CRUELTY - in my opinion the BEST art-house/horror film that I've seen.
This film wishes so hard to be art, but it just doesn't have what it takes to get there.
Not that it matters much, since it is an "art" film.
As for this movie, I have seen better from the likes of Jorg.
The reason why I've rated this movie a five is because I do like certain parts of the film.
The decomposing corpse is particularly good and life-like, and the concept is okay (from what I understand), but it lacks importance, and it's definitely over-played.
If you're looking for something that is a good "art" movie, I'd recommend Un Chein Andelou, or Tetsuo: The Iron Man. Both are remarkable pieces of film art..
Jörg Buttgereit goes a bit too far with his movies and themes at times, even for my taste but his movies are always something special and hard to classify.
It also doesn't have a main character but instead focuses on 7 different suicides and killings, on 7 different days.All different stories are being told with lots of class, though some of them are of course more 'interesting' and realistic than the others.
It helps to make this movie an effective one to watch.Again, the production values all aren't too high and this might be something that might scare off some people.
It however helps for this particular movie to set the right tone and atmosphere for the entire movie and its dark, disturbing and depressing themes.A Buttgereit movie that I 'enjoyed' watching.7/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/.
This film is brought to you by the controversial German director, Jörg Buttgereit.
I had a difficult time understanding the premise to its maximum potential – but from what I've gathered, for each day of the week, a short tale is told with the theme of death or suicide present in each one.
It makes reference to a religious chain letter in circulation from a group calling themselves "The Brotherhood of the 7th Day." Also, the reoccurring scene of a decomposing corpse against a black back drop is shown with the use of classical music in the background.
Each person has control over their destiny and this enables them to become "The King of Death." This concept is not without interest, but Buttgereit's delivery was lackluster.
Buttgereit doesn't spell the message of his film out to the audience, and whatever feeling you're left with after watching Der Todesking is the right one.
So Der Todesking is not the most feel good film of all time, as it's subject matter is suicide, loneliness, depression, and also redemption in the absolute worst ways.
It is a film about people who get the short end of the stick in life and how people at their worst can take control of their miserable lives through suicide, thus becoming Der TodesKing (or King of Death).
The King of Death supposedly exists within all minds and can manifest when we are at our worst, driving suicidal thoughts into our minds.
The film is broken up into 7 days following different people who are struggling to cope with existence in a world they view as empty.
The film attempts to explain the concept of suicide as a radical escape from harsh reality, and a way of taking revenge against society for it's progressiveness that tends to leave so many behind.
When left behind those who tend to take their own life know for but a moment that they will not be ignored if only for the moment, and in spite remind everybody of the emptiness in their existence that others may have contributed to.Overall being a Jorg Buttgereit (Nekromantik 1 & 2, and Schramm) film, I couldn't help but be surprised the film wasn't more exploitive like his past works.
He says the film is supposed to be anti-suicide, but nobody in the film really has anything good happening in life.
This appears to be a movie about suicide.
Then back again to the corpse which has almost been reduced to a skeleton.Day seven...a guy writhes about on a bed for no apparent reason and the film ends with a little girl drawing a skeleton labelled The Death King (the name of the film).
More experiment then successful film its a look at seven deaths in seven days.
Jörg Buttgereit's second feature film has a simple plot, well not even a plot, its seven days and seven deaths.
Seven seemingly unconnected people die over the course of the film.
Made between his two Nekromantic films this is a dark mediation on death and despair.
With the exception of the fake decaying corpse that bridges the stories, this is probably his least graphic film.
Give Jörg Buttgereit points for trying to go and do something different, and give him points for almost pulling it off (and breaking conventions) but in the end it's an interesting misfire nothing more.
"Der Todesking" is a 72-minute German movie from the fairly famous Jörg Buttgereit.
This is basically a collection of 7 short films and we get a new tale for every day of the week.
All in all, I would not recommend it, but it may be a good way to start if you want to explore the world of Jörg Buttgereit. |
tt0122264 | The Spirit of Christmas | While on a school field trip to a candy factory, Butters spots actor Tom Cruise working there, packing fudge into boxes. Stan, who previously told Cruise that his acting is not as good as others' in "Trapped in the Closet", accidentally insults him again by calling him a "fudge packer", as Cruise claims to be fly fishing. Cruise then recruits 200 other celebrities who have been ridiculed by the town of South Park to bring a class action lawsuit against the town. Stan returns to the factory with his father Randy to try to apologize and convince Cruise to drop the suit, but also finds it difficult not to call him a fudge packer as well since he was literally packing fudge while they spoke. An angry Cruise agrees to do so, but only if they can help Cruise meet Muhammad. This causes an uproar because depictions of Muhammad are forbidden, and the townsfolk fear that forcing Muhammad to appear in public will drive Muslim radicals to bomb the town. Stan and Kyle go to the Super Best Friends, a squad of superhero-like religious figures (Jesus Christ, Gautama Buddha, Moses, Krishna, Laozi, Joseph Smith) of which Muhammad is a member, to request he return with them to South Park. Meanwhile, it is revealed that Cruise and the other celebrities only want Muhammad for his "goo", as Rob Reiner, previously shown to be filled with "goo" in "Butt Out", has invented a machine to transfer Muhammad's "goo" to the celebrities, which they believe will make them immune to ridicule, just like Muhammad.
By this time, Cartman arrives with "Mitch Connor", a face painted on his hand as one-half of a ventriloquist act. Previously, Connor had successfully impersonated actress Jennifer Lopez in "Fat Butt and Pancake Head", and now Cartman and Connor return to the Lopez imitation in order to get involved in the lawsuit along with the other celebrities. Connor soon secretly convinces Cartman that they should steal Muhammad's goo for themselves to sell on the black market for more than the lawsuit could offer. Meanwhile, Kyle and Stan convince the Super Best Friends to let Muhammad come to town, but only if he stays in the back of a U-Haul truck and is not seen. When the townspeople realize they must bring Muhammad to Cruise's limo, they allegedly put him inside a bear mascot outfit. South Park is about to give Muhammad to the celebrities when the exchange is interrupted by a bomb planted by the Ginger Kids, a group of fair-skinned, red-haired children who are tired of being made fun of for their physical appearance. The Gingers want Muhammad for themselves, hoping to use his goo for their own means. They threaten to blow up the town if Muhammad is not turned over to them.
The people of South Park decide to turn Muhammad over to the Gingers, fearing the violence that will befall their town if they do not. The celebrities are angered by this change in events, but refuse to resort to violence for fear of ruining their careers. Instead, the celebrities decide to awaken the rebuilt Mecha-Streisand, a giant mechanical monster form of Barbra Streisand, who previously terrorized the town of South Park before being destroyed. The celebrities hope to use Mecha-Streisand to force South Park to accept their demands. Meanwhile, due to the chain of events, Cartman decides Connor's scheme has become too complicated and tries to quit, but Connor convinces him to stay involved by revealing that the townspeople of South Park have lied to Cartman about his true father. Although they previously claimed his hermaphroditic mother was also his father, Connor insists this is a lie. Cartman confronts his school teacher Mr. Garrison and Garrison's old hand puppet Mr. Hat, who admits to Cartman there was indeed a cover-up. Mecha-Streisand roars threateningly and continues her reign of destruction as the episode ends. | cult, psychedelic | train | wikipedia | Jesus, Santa Claus and Brian Boitano visit South Park for Christmas.
The Spirit of Christmas (a.k.a South Park The Un-Aired Plot of 1995), is actually the second instalment of South Park Christmas shorts, with 1992 The Spirit of Christmas: Mr.Frost being the pioneer.
And if you are looking for an original South Park short with what every fan loves most about, you shouldn't miss this one.
And here is why:* A strong character goal -->> Stan and Kyle seek the true meaning of Christmas during a discussion * One Amazing Story Catalyst -->> Jesus descends into town in the middle of Stan and Kyle's discussion * Not a character driven story, but story driven characters -->> One of the unique episodes that doesn't follow what Stan does, it follows instead what Jesus does * Memorable lines -->> (1) Jesus: Tomorrow is my birthday Stan: Your birthday is on Christmas?
That sucks dude!
(2) Cartman: I say we help Santa Claus.
Kyle: Your just saying that because he brings you candy.
Cartman: Hey I don't have to take that kind of sh*t from a Jew. Kyle: Your such a fat f*ck Cartman that when you walk down the street people go darn that kids a big fat f*ck.
* Kenny is getting killed losing her nob, alongside to 6 other Southpark civilians, her screaming for death is her only line* And the best of all -->> Jesus combats Santa Claus hand to hand.
If my research is not wrong, this animation short has come out just before the Chipmunks' Christmas Special that year, remember where Dave tells the chipmunks that Christmas is not just about presents when Alvin collects money to buy himself a Christmas gift.
Of all the Christmas animations and cartoons, I'd vote for the South Park Christmas short.
This is pure and original fun..
Sick but fun.
This is probably the sickest, most demented thing ever put on film.
Which, of course, is what makes it so brilliant.
It is disgusting and banal, not to mention perverse and profane.
But simply the idea of Santa and Jesus fighting it out at a Mall to decide who Christmas is really about is something worth watching.
There's a reason SOUTH PARK is such a brilliant television show and it's all here..
100% Pure South Park.
A very funny short that premiered the the "South Park" universe to the world.
See Stan, Kyle, Kenny, Cartman, and Brian Boytano in the middle of the epic feud between Jesus and Santa.It is tremendously funny and true to the South Park we know and love.
Funny, but will not be appreciated by everyone.
'The Spirit of Christmas' is the animated short film made by Trey Parker and Matt Stone that would lead up to the big comedy hit 'South Park' and the movie 'South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut'.
If you like 'South Park' you just have to see this hilarious piece of comedy.The characters as we know them meet Jesus and later Santa Clause.
The two get in a fight over who is more important for Christmas.
Brian Botano shows up and learns them about the true meaning of Christmas.'The Spirit of Christmas' is too offensive for some people, like 'South Park' is, but if you understand it is all in good fun there is good a chance you will appreciate this very funny short..
A true comedy classic..
I've been a fan of this short for years, and the biggest surprise of life came when I found out that the two guys that did Cannibal: The Musical also did this.
This short is a classic little bit of comedy that proves just how far some imagination and construction paper can get a person..
The Pig Fu*king Bad-boys That We Love.
This, as most of you know is the second "Spirit of Christmas" the first being re-titled to "Mr. Frosty" both contained the sharp wit, the crudeness that we all enjoy.
It took me a while to find a good quality copy of this cartoon to watch, and I am glad I did.
In this golden Parker-nugget the boys have an encounter with Jesus looking for Santa Claus...to kick the living sh*t out of him.
When Ole' St. Nick and Jesus battle it out the boys consult one of their idols: Brian Biotana.
Brian Teaches them the way and shows the boys that shouldn't think of things like "who's going to win Santa or Jesus" but to focus on the true meaning of Christmas.
In the end the South Park boys find the true meaning of Christmas....PRESENTS!.
Very funny.
This is the funniest short film I've ever seen!
It's about 4 boys who meet Jesus and he asks them where the mall is.
Jesus and Santa meet face to face and fight to settle what the real meaning of christmas is.
Meanwhile, the boys watch and wonder what some Brian guy would do.
This film is very funny.
The 1991 verson pretty much sucked.
This short is very funny, and I think any one who likes South Park, should watch it.I give it an A+ (a perfect 10).
A Must For South Park Fans!.
Rated NR(would be Rated R for Strong Language and Violence).Back in 1992 college students Trey Parker and Matt Stone made a short film called The Spirit Of Christmas which was the basis for South Park which would be released in 1997.However FOX executives saw the original short and asked Trey Parker and Matt Stone to make a Christmas card.Then another Spirit Of Christmas short was born.Unlike the 1992 short this one is more like the series.The boys now have names.Cartman talks and makes racist jokes.Kenny's voice is muffled and he dies.There is even a small part with Stan's girlfriend Wendy but she does not speak.This short is also called Jesus Vs Santa.In the South Park episode "A Very Crappy Christmas" the boys make the same Spirit Of Christmas short.As with the 1992 one you can find this on youtube.Spirit Of Christmas is about Jesus who confronts the four South Park boys.He is looking for Santa Claus because he wants to fight him.So they fight but the boys try to put a stop to it.Spirit Of Christmas is a hilarious South Park short and I recommend it!Runtime:5min 10/10.
Pretty darn funny..
stars: Trey Parker as Stan, Cartman, Santa and Brian Boitano.Matt Stone as Kyle, Jesus and Kenny.A cheaply done 5 minute Chrismtas card....and it's pretty good.
it's about Jesus coming to South Park to find Santa and they get in a fight (killing Kenny).
Meanwhile the foul mouthed boys cuss and cuss and even meet Brian Boitano.
i watched it on the internet and I'm not sure where to find it.
It's good though and any fan of South Park should watch it.
Contains language and violence.My rating: B.
5 mins.Funny!.
This is the funniest thing I've ever seen.
I got a hold of it back in 97 and I still watch it all the time.Jesus and Santa yelling profanities at each other while asking the kids to vote for them is more than many can stand, but it makes me roll!.
A Southpark Classic!!!!!!.
This is definitely a classic.
10000000000000 times better than the original one with Frosty.
That one was stupid.
It took me about 4 or 5 hours to download, but I have this saved on my computer as a Quicktime file.
I thought Cartman had some great lines.
Kyle was good too.
In other words it kicked ASS!!!!.
Cool.
Brutal demented and hilarious.
This is south park before the television series was made.
This is not sold in stores and cannot be found anywhere except for bootlegs on the internet.Very crude language take place in this short 5 minute film where santa and jesus beat each other senseless.
(it would be rated NC-17).
Its Brian Boitano!!!.
Just before Matt Stone and Trey Parker made history with South Park, Fox executive Brian Graden commissioned a Christmas card for the duo to create.
The Spirit of Christmas is the very funny and aggressive look at the modern Christmas ideal through the eyes of our favorite foursome form South Park.What makes it funny to start off is it begins like a normal Christmas card, but then sinks right into the racist and crude humor that the series is most famous for.
But the true inspiration is the religious and Christmas symbols, Jesus and Santa Claus, dueling a-la Mortal Combat about whether Christmas is for giving or remembering Jesus' birth.
Then out of nowhere comes ice skater Brian Boitano to explain the meaning of Christmas.
A small taste of random celebrity teasing found later in the show.
Of course Jesus and Santa make up (not acknowledging they have killed Kenny and other students in the crossfire) and Stan and Kyle reveal the true meaning of Christmas, I will not dare spoil it for those who haven't seen it.This short is both offensive, aggressive, profane, and outrageously funny.
A classic for South Park fans and non-fans alike..
The Shape of Things to Come.
If you're a nice one you could say Parker and Trey Parker and Matt Stone were among the most creative 20-something-year-old's of the 90s, if not you could say their creative process pretty much rested during this and the start of the TV series South Park two years later.
In any case, the two are in their early 40s now and the show is two weeks away from going into its 17th season.
A truly respectable feat.
While many say that it's gotten worse over the years, I think it's still one of the most entertaining animated shows on television and if there was any decline in quality, it was minor.In any case, this short film is pretty much your usual South Park episode packed in 25% of the running time.
The boys are all there and also look pretty much exactly the same on the show.
Their behavior doesn't differ much, including the obscene language.
Cartman is the prick he's always been.
Kenny shall die.
And we also get our piece of South Park moral at the end.It's South Park meets Celebrity Deathmatch as old acquaintances Santa and Jesus battle each other other in their fight to show humanity (metaphorically the 4 kids) what Christmas really is about and convince them that their position is the right one.
And as always with South Park, there is no black and white result, but the solution to the issue is all kinds of shades.
I'm pretty sure, nobody really watches this before he actually came across the series, but those 5 minutes are surely worth a watch for fans of the show when the newest season goes into Christmas break again..
"Oh my god!
"Oh my god!
"Oh my god!
They killed Kenny!".
You can read elsewhere that this short is a must-see for anyone who has enjoyed the work of Trey Parker and Matt Stone and you will read that here too.
The Spirit of Christmas is a great must-see piece of South Park and basically no matter if you end not loving it you will fell glad for seen it however I think is just impossible not to love this short.
I saw it for the very first time back in 2006 when I got the South Park The Hits DVD and just a couple of days ago I saw it again so is the perfect time to do a nice comment for it.The now legends Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny are ready to celebrate one more time Christmas (right now I'm also ready!
The Godfather set on Blu-ray!) but they will have a certain fight because of the fact that Kyle is a Jew and he is suppose not to celebrate Christmas (ALL RELIGIONS DIVIDE).
Then we see Jesus in South Park, he certainly was not there to kill Kyle because he's a Jew but yes, he was there to fight
against Santa Claus!
"Christmas is for celebrating my birth" says Jesus and "Christmas is for giving" says Santa.
Their fight will have as consequence many children dead and yes they killed Kenny!
Couple of bastards!
(here we don't have the line "you bastards", by the way).
Certain moments from this short were later part of certain episodes and of the movie.
As we saw Cartman singing "Kyle's mom's a bitch" during one episode and later during the movie we see here Brian Boitano as we see him in the movie.
Certainly Brian Boitano will help the boys and they will understand everything, the fight between Jesus and Santa is finally over and we have some more laughs.
They boys earned something and we learned that for them was more relevant to spoke with Brian Boitano than with Jesus and Santa and also that for Cartman Christmas is just about one very important thing: ham.
This is just South Park, this is the beginnings of a magnificent show, you really should watch this short or where else you will see Jesus saying "you f****** p**sy" to Santa Claus? |
tt0478305 | Triloquist | In a hotel in Hollywood California, a young lady (Dagmar Peterson) is a down and out ventriloquist who can't find work anymore. She is also a drug addict. One night the hotel manager comes in and tells her she has to pay the rent tomorrow or her and her two kids, Angelina and Norbert, will be thrown out.
The mother doesn't know what to do, so she drugs herself again, this time killing her. The Dummy (Bruce Weitz) watches and wakes up Angelina and Norbert from sleep. The Dummy tells them that it is now the three of them. Later on, Angelina, Norbert, and the Dummy are sent to their perverted uncle's house. The uncle (Fred Cameron) ends up abusing Angelina and the Dummy is not happy. While the uncle is sleeping, Dummy suffocates him.
Dummy is then put in a suitcase for several years. He is then taken out to see Angelina (Paydin LoPachin) and Norbert (Rocky Marquette) all grown up. Dummy is used to talk for Norbert (He was in shock when he saw his mother died). On Halloween night, Dummy ends up killing a young kid for not believing Norbert is not a magic Triloquist. Angelina ends up blaming Norbert for cutting off the boy's fingers. Norbert is taking away and Angelina and Dummy have to break him out.
Angelina and Dummy end up working at a strip club, killing the manager (Andrew Zak)for not letting Angelina do a ventriloquist act. Taking his car, Angelina ends up going after Norbert. When the doctor won't let Norbert leave, Dummy ends up having to kill another person, this time a worker. Norbert and Dummy reunite with Angelina with a "group hug".
Angelina, Norbert, and Dummy head down to Vegas so Norbert can do his ventriloquist act. While eating at a restaurant, Angelina reveals that if Norbert doesn't have a son, their triloquist name would die out. Angelina thinks that a girl named Robin Patterson (Katie Chonacas) would be the perfect mother. They end up kidnapping Robin and place her in the trunk of the car.
While on the road, they are stopped by the police again. He sees Robin tied up and Angelina ends up shooting him with a gun. Back on the road, they stop help out another man with car trouble. They end up robbing him and killing him.
They stop at a gas station and Dummy thinks it would be a perfect time to ditch Angelina and be free. Norbert refuses and Angelina comes back hearing Dummy and throwing him out of the car. Angelina and Dummy agree not to leave each other. Angelina gives Dummy back to Norbert. The police show up and Angelina tries to blame Norbert again. They take Norbert and Angelina into the car and rescue Robin.
While driving in the police car, Robin reveals to the officer (Brian Krause) that Norbert never said a word. When they realize that an officer has been killed, Angelina kills the officer that rescued Robin. They take her to a cabin and Norbert is to get her pregnant and hopefully have a son. When Robin talks Dummy and Norbert into letting her use the phone, Angelina shows up and shoves Robin into a room and Norbert ties her up. Angelina decides to punish Dummy by having Dummy set his tongue on fire with a match.
Later on, Angelina says that they should go to Vegas and leave the dummy behind. The Next Morning, a janitor comes into the cabin and finds Robin, who ends up dead by Dummy who rides him like a horse (choking him in the process) Angelina and Norbert discover that they are being followed by the police. Angelina decides to kill Robin in the woods and head to Vegas.
That night, Angelina, Norbert, Dummy, and Robin end up in the woods. Robin begins to bury her grave when she escapes into an old DJ room. Robin finds Detective Shane Kinslow (the person who saved her) dead. Angelina, Norbert, and Dummy show up again. Angelina says that Norbert should rape Robin and get her pregnant. Before Norbert could, Robin reveals that she is in love with him. Being tricked, Robin takes a knife and stabs Dummy. While trying to escape, Robin is knocked out by Angelina. Angelina reveals that she made up the triloquist act and that she has been doing the voice of Dummy.
Furious, Norbert attempts to kill Angelina. But Angelina pushes Norbert into cables and is shocked to death. Still alive, Norbert starts talking for the first time to Dummy that he is dying. Waking up, Robin finally escapes. When Angelina takes Dummy outside, Norbert tries to kill Angelina, but ends up getting stabbed by a knife. Dying, Norbert ask is Dummy could sing to him, Dummy accepts and sings to Norbert. When Norbert dies, Dummy does too. Robin is able to find help and shows the police where she was attacked.
When they arrive, Dummy and Angelina are gone leaving Norbert's dead body lying there. Robin reveals that they got magic and are heading to Vegas. Dummy reveals that Angelina got to depressed and never became a star in Vegas. Angelina figures out the she is pregnant with Norbert's baby, she gives birth to the baby in the hotel from the beginning, and dies after. Dummy (still alive) holds the baby boy like a proud papa. The film goes to black and the credits role. | murder | train | wikipedia | Pretty much from the start it's clear where this movie is coming from and what you should expect from it.
If you are looking for an even vaguely serious, linear movie that tells a story that all hangs together and makes sense then you better look elsewhere.
There's a good smattering of silicone free nudity however, so the director clearly knows what people who watch this kind of stuff want.
You have to pretty much totally suspend disbelief to enjoy this film, as quite frankly it doesn't really make much sense or try to explain itself at all.
I liked this movie a lot, but it's only worth a 7, because it could have been better and there were a few times that it didn't quite hold it together.
Still very good for those of you who like trash cheesy "horror" comedy.
Having read rubbish reviews i thought the film can't be that bad.
I love every film I've seen with dummy's or dolls but this one just didn't hit the bar and pales in comparison to The Leprechaun, that is a franchise so bad its good.
This however could never ever hope to be held in the same regard as The Leprechaun, from the pitifully bad acting to the rubbish dummy it self the film fails in every quarter.Stay away from this film unless you love the worst films out there or this is going to be the first film you will ever watch because from here the only way is up and for the Triloquist I don't think it could get any lower..
If you are looking to have fun with a corny, grisly and badly executed B-Movie, Triloquist is perfect for you.
Sure, it's not the best of the Dimension Extremes, but it's definitely not the worst, because as a film itself, this was pretty good on a cheesiness level.
The movie, when it actually gets into the main story, starts off with a really cool (yet unfindable) song in which the songstress repeats "f*ck you" in the chorus.
I was immediately interested because the main character looked really awesome and kick-ass, and since the movie right away is so cheesy, I knew what I was in for, and I couldn't help but be intrigued by how the rest of the film was going to turn out.Like I said, it's certainly not the masterpiece of the decade, but if you can enjoy films like this, it's gritty, obnoxious, all out enjoyment from start to finish.
The characters are very likable, and even though there is so much crappy material in this movie, such as, right before they kill someone they play one of the most retarded songs ever, which I can only assume is called, "Hello Sunshine," and the brother Norbert for some reason has to dance like a dumbass every second, which is supposedly meant to be scary or some sh*t, it works for them because you shouldn't have been expecting it to be that wonderful in the first place and you can laugh at what's meant to be exploitation.Aside from some material that is neither funny or enjoyable, and aside from the movie being completely bland at times to the point I want to throw up, this is worth the watch for a laugh or just to be entertained, to some extent.
The most original American horror film of the year..
It's not a sequel or a remake, and sadly, is the most original American horror film of the year.
I thought Paydin LoPachin who played Angelina was excellent and wish her an accomplished film career.
The film wasn't made to be taken seriously--just like LEPRECHAUN.
This is better than LEPRECHAUN in my opinion and I have seen in FOURTEEN TIMES and it hasn't gotten old.
Probably--the reason being is because it is the most original American horror film of the year which is frankly quite depressing.
Go into this with bad expectations and leave feeling pleased with this light comedic horror which is laugh-out-loud funny..
Still, a crazy killer doll movie, with offbeat white trash slasher moments and a road-movie vibe reminiscent of NATURAL BORN KILLERS by the guy (Mark Jones) who previously brought us enjoyable nonsense like LEPRECHAUN and RUMPELSTILTSKIN...
That alone is reason enough to watch TRILOQUIST and like it, regardless.
When she has an overdose and dies, the siblings Norbert and Angelina are sent to a foster house with their dummy.
Later they are sent to their uncle's house; the man sexually abuses of Angelina and the dummy kills him.
Years later, the autistic dumb Norbert (Rocky Marquette) and his seventeen year-old alcoholic sister and whore Angelina (Paydin LoPachin) are living on the streets; when the dummy slaughters a boy, Norbert is accused and arrested by the police and sent to an asylum with his dummy.
When they meet Robin (Katie Chonacas) on the road, Angelina decides that the teenager will be the mother of her nephew and they abduct the girl in a journey of killings.What a crap this "Triloquist" is!
The director and writer Mark Jones certainly had the intention of making a film with black humor, but his "heavy hand" made actually an unpleasant and annoying movie but never funny.
The story is of a total bad taste and the amateurish acting is awful.
'. OK, "Saw" the ad in Fangoria, Dimension Extreme brand more often good then bad, Weinstein brothers always good for a laugh , "FROM THE WRITER AND DIRECTOR OF LEPRECHAUN" first one good, the rest ugh !!!, spotted the DVD looking lonely on shelf, rented it not expecting much.What I got though was 80 minutes of perverse glee !!!!.Don't get me wrong, I'm not much for horror/comedy.I like my gore straight up.But this demented tail is Chucky, Billy and Howdy Dudie with a twist of John Waters.
A wonderful abnormal film for wonderfully abnormal people.Give it a try if you enjoy movies that that are outside the main stream.
I guess it's a horror/comedy hybrid, but it fails on both fronts.
Man, I expected a lot from this movie.
It sounded like one of those puppet horror movies with a killer twist.
Trailer seemed nice, but what a let down this was.The role of Angelina seemed way over the top; first it was like watching a killer spoof from Scary Movie.
I guess in a way I blame myself for not liking it, expecting something at least a little bit like Dead Silence.This movie is mainly a comedy, or at least I thought so, because I was not frightened one bit.
The voice of the dummy is not scary it all, in fact it reminded me a little of Chris from Family Guy.The soundtrack is the worst of recent films.
You may get some laughs, but overall, this movie is not good..
when i saw the trailer to this film i had high hopes and then when i found out that Mark Jones was behind it i figured it would be good i loved the first leprechaun but even though the trailer was good sadly thats about the only good thing about the film, it trys to hard to be funny and you just start feeling sorry a quarter of the way through asking yourself why am i still watching this maybe it might get better I've seen it all the way and let me answer that question with a big no.some spoilers: the actress playing the sister was not convincing and seemed way to out of place, the story was OK but really did not make sense not one of the bigger problems but it did confuse the 3 people i was watching it with.
this is like a bad sequel around the lines of leprechaun in space, but i forgave that movie simply because the first one was good but this on the other hand you cant forgive it trys way to hard at times and throws a little blood and boobs ur way every now and then to keep u watching, a part made me smile close to the end because it was simply a scene stolen from dead silence..
Mark Jones makes another attempt at 'Small Horror' leaves small results..
Once they become adults Norbert (Marquette) is so withdrawn he can only talk through the dummy and Angelina (Lopachin) is a hot blonde who also is a raging psycho.
On their way to Vegas where Angelina seems to think Norbert will be a big star they kidnap a girl named Robin (Chonacas) in hopes of Norbert impregnating her to carry on their bloodline.
From Writer/Producer/Director Mark Jones, the guy behind "Leprechaun" comes yet another unfortunate approach at small terror and laughs.
There are a few crude jokes that might make you crack a smile but if you go into this thinking there is any real horror you will be sadly disappointed.
Lovely, but lethal psychotic Angelina (an incredibly fierce, fearless, and foul-mouthed performance by gorgeous blonde stunner Paydin LoPachin) and her meek mute ventriloquist brother Norbert (well played by Rocky Marquette) are a couple of crazy teenagers who embark on a road trip to Las Vegas.
Norbert's creepy and evil ventriloquist dummy (robustly voiced with jolly cracked gusto by Bruce Weitz; Belker on "Hill Street Blues") tags along for the loopy ride.
Writer/director Mark Jones brings a hardcore sick, nasty, and twisted no-holds-barred outrageous sensibility to the gleefully nutty premise that goes way overboard on the tasty female nudity, in-your-face brutal violence, and hilariously warped pitch-black humor with always entertaining and often sidesplitting results.
Seriously warped horror comedy about an unlikely trio, a demented family of weirdos driving across the desert wreaking havoc on whoever they meet.
A mute, seemingly autistic brother, Norbert who communicates through his ventriloquist dummy, Dummy(..voiced by Bruce Weitz)and psychotic foul-mouthed sister Angelina(Paydin LoPachin, a real blond babe with things that come out of her mouth that make a ghetto gangster blush)were left to fend for themselves after their mother overdosed on heroine.
Sent to live with an uncle, who would sexually abuse Angelina(..perhaps shaping the monster she would become)while Norbert closed his eyes in horror, they would soon murder him, winding up in a foster home before chopping the fingers off a kid who insulted them.
Blaming Norbert, Angelina and Dummy concoct a plan to break him free from his asylum, hitting the road to Vegas, often killing various victims for their vehicles, and kidnapping a female traveler, Robin(Katie Chonacas)who is to carry their family's seed.
Angelina is quite a cold-hearted sociopath always scheming while tormenting Robin (..who tries endlessly to find ways to escape), while constantly at odds with Dummy who begs Norbert to leave her behind.
We watch as Angelina's trail-blazing psychopathic ways leads to a countryside manhunt for her and Norbert as Robin attempts to get away before she is killed.A great deal of the film shows the crazy antics of a demented family, but the film is more or less a gore-less, colorful send-up of killer-clans-on-the-road thrillers.
This movie is built around the often very obscene dialogue, particularly the nasty mouth of Angelina who often blatantly asks strangers if they are looking at her tits(..or telling them that they would love to do sexual acts towards her).
The trio as a unit are seemingly unstoppable, until the cracks start to show and Angelina's violent streak(..along with Dummy's desire to break free from her hold on Norbert)gets out of hand.
It's only a matter of time before their "happy" union sours, and Robin pleas towards Nobert and Dummy begin to work.
It doesn't really have a plot, but is a series of comic vignettes showcasing Angelina's unpredictable nature and her manipulative hold over her brother and dummy.
And, the way the film embraces Dummy as a vehicle for humor(..and he is one ugly wooden creation)and the twisted acts performed by Angelina so that she and her posse can continue their quest for Vegas won't always appeal to everyone(..or even most people).
Plenty of time is spent showing how Angelina keeps Dummy in check by threatening his livelihood with matches.
There's incest played out with Angelina initiating contact with her brother, and this might be the first time I've ever seen a dummy giving head..
"Triloquist" centers around a sister and brother who are taken in by their abusive uncle after the death of their mother, a famous veltriloquist.
Their characters are badly written, the story is supposed to be scary and funny at the same time, but the result is neither.
How many more of these awful horror films will I subject myself to?.
Triloquist starts way back in 1993 in Las Vegas as a female drug addicted ventriloquist(!) & her two young children are about to get thrown out of their motel & onto the streets.
Jump forward to the present & now the teenage Angelina (Paydin LaPachin) & her mute brother Norbert (Rocky Marquette) decide to head back to Las Vegas after going from foster home to foster home with Dummy to find the fame & fortune as a ventriloquist act their late poor mother never did.
Angelina also wants to continue the family bloodline so kidnaps a teenage girl (Katie Chonacas) for Norbert to rape & impregnate.
With the cops hot on their tail will they find the success & happiness they crave?Retitled to simply Dummy (which was apparently the films original working title) here in the UK this was written & directed by Mark Jones the man responsible for starting the Leprechaun (1993) franchise (gee, thanks a million mate...) & I have to say that I thought Triloquist was rubbish & there's not a lot else to add although i will attempt to try & explain why I am of that opinion.
The first thing to say about Triloquist is that it's a horror comedy with heavy emphasis on the comedy, unfortunately it's not funny in the slightest which is obviously a big problem.
Then there's the rubbish story which makes you feel like you didn't even watch a proper film, there is one of the worst twist endings I have ever seen that makes absolutely zero sense & in context with the rest of the film doesn't work as there are clear contradictions & plot holes.
To be fair to Triloquist the film moves along like a rocket & there are few dull moments but with such a bad story, such unfunny jokes & gags which miss by the proverbial mile & an extremely unlikable central character it's still an incredibly difficult film to either like or enjoy.Basically a bad taste road film as we see Angelina, Norbert & Dummy murder their way across America stealing whatever car they fancy along the way there's not even that much gore in it.
I also have to mention the soundtrack which I found extremely annoying & some of the songs used gave me a headache.Although Triloquist is reasonably well made it has no style & looks both dull & bland.
The acting isn't great although Paydin LaPachin is a real looker but not enough of a looker to make Triloquist worth watching.Triloquist, or Dummy if you live here in the UK, is crap by any name & I think it's as simple & straight forward as that really.
Possibly the worst movie all time.
Okay, to start things of, I've seen some pretty unbearable movies in my time; EG: Disaster Movie, Troll 4, Epic Movie etc.
The idea of the movie is pretty juvenile, a ventriloquist mother dies leaving her children in a foster home with the dummies, and yep you guessed it, the dummy is actually alive!From here on the movie takes very lame twists and turns, it wasn't even fun to predict who would die or what would happen next because it was so predictable.The movie was also very poorly written and badly acted, every second word the main female protagonist said was a curse word and the male character didn't was mute or something.Anyway this movie really blew me away, how bad it was of course, blew me away.1/10.
seriously, this is the worst movie i have ever seen.
she acts like a 13 year-old trying to "go wild" but failing miserably and just looking ridiculous.) this movie was campy to the max, and although it was a good laugh, it was just because it was UNBELIEVABLY, ridiculously, stupid.
(spoiler) the random incest with the autistic brother, was, um, unnecessary, also.i can't even imagine how a person could actually make this movie.
The plot is based off of an Old 1950's show created by Rod Serling "The Twilight Zone" (IMO)-- Ventriloquist dummy is alive -- this does have a little more ridiculous, stupid, and down right very quickly forgotten atrocities.
--Some one taking on police force.An abductee, running through the woods trying to escape a crazy shot-gun toting, crazed maniac, then all of a sudden wow -- there's a saloon -- what luck!!!!!!Give me chuckie any day -- and I didn't like that movie either -- But it was hands down a 10 over this one.Waste of time -- I gave it a 2!!!.
From the writer/director of Leprechaun, we're brought another pint-sized horror.
After Norbert, the son of a dead ventriloquist, is locked up in an asylum for attacking a young child, his sister, Angelina, and their Dummy break him out and hit the road towards Vegas to put Norbert and Dummy where they belong: onstage.Where to begin.
well, I've certainly never seen a film like this.
Other than nervous laughs from my "Oh, it really can't be this bad" thoughts, this film was not funny at all.
The acting was dreadful, except by the mute who did a good job of, um, not talking and looking creepy.
The puppet effects were ridiculously bad, and the dummy looked like it had been melted and stuck down a garbage disposal at some point.
Dummy didn't have any of the charm, wit, or brutality of Mark Jones's other creation Leprechaun. |
tt0093199 | Hol volt, hol nem volt | Andris is a child living in Budapest. He is conceived when his mother Maria is attracted to a mysterious stranger during a performance of "The Magic Flute". The stranger disappears after the conception, and as a result Andris does not know his father. The law states that a boy should have his father's name, even if the father is unknown, to avoid the taint of illegitimacy. When Maria tries to register Andris with the child custody department, Andris is given the name of a fictitious father. She enters on Andris' birth certificate the name of the bureaucrat she is dealing with, Antal Orban.
Maria dies when she is hit on the head by a falling brick, an accident resulting from being in the wrong place at the wrong time, leaving Andris suddenly motherless. He then goes off in search of his nonexistent father. Along the way he meets and is helped by The Girl, the young nurse who delivered him, and who is alone like Andris. Meanwhile, the kindly Orban becomes tired of the tyrannical bureaucracy, and decides to destroy the files of children he has helped to legitimize by giving them fictitious fathers. He then sets out to find Andris. Andris and The Girl finally meet Orban, and they form their own family.
They meet scouts being trained as instruments of the state, and the scouts pursue Andris, Orban and The Girl. The three of them climb onto the back of a stone eagle, which takes off in flight. | flashback | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0053922 | Horse Hare | In 1886 during the Indian wars, Bugs Bunny is hired by the USA Cavalry as a Sergeant. Sergeant Bugs is told to watch an American army base in Utah's desert as the cavalry battles an Indian army. Bugs patrols the fort, but an Indian army led by Yosemite Sam want to take it. Sam orders an attack on the fort and they fire arrows at it. Sam tries to stop the men from approaching, but they are crushed against the door. Sam calls for Bugs to surrender but Bugs shoots Sam. Bugs uses tally-marks to keep track of how many Indians he has killed or scared off singing "Ten Little Indians."
An Indian tries to fire arrows at the fort, Bugs replaces the arrow with a stick of triggered dynamite causing Sam to decide to kill Bugs himself. Sam tries to fire his pistol but it remains stuck yet fires a bullet whenever Bugs is holding it toward Sam. Sam orders his toughest biggest but stupid Indian thug, Geronimo, to break into the Fort's gate. Geronimo tries to use a giant tree tube as a battering ram but when he hits the gate he ends up squashing Sam. Sam tries to arrow himself into the Fort. When he flies down towards the fort, he tries to shoot Bugs but Bugs simply puts a wooden board in front of Sam's landing so that Sam ends up sliding out of the fort.
When the chief misses his shots, Sam decides to shoot it himself. When he fires his shot, Bugs, hiding behind rocks, fires a bullet by slingshot into the chief's head and the chief scolds Sam. When Sam fires, Bugs does the same thing and the chief tells Sam he will be dead meat if he does it again. Sam is suspicious that someone else is firing at them and to prove it; he fakes a shot, looks behind him and sees Bugs launch another bullet into chief's head. When Sam screams at Bugs, this provokes the chief into punching his boss, believing Sam shot him on purpose.
Later at an Indian party Sam sees Bugs spying on them. Sam orders an attack but the cavalry comes to the rescue and Sam tries to call for his Indians to stop as the cavalry charges. While Bugs hides underground to avoid being killed, Sam and his horse are unable to call off the attacks and end up in the middle between the two forces. Bugs looks up from his hole and sees nothing but feathers.
Sam and his horse, both of whom have been trampled from the cavalry, confront Bugs as Sam says "I hate you!" (with the same "cramped" voice that he used in Knighty Knight Bugs) while his horse tells him "And I hate you!". Bugs remarks "And me? I love everybody!" | psychedelic | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0044765 | The Jazz Singer | Cantor Rabinowitz wants his son to carry on the generations-old family tradition and become a cantor at the synagogue in the Jewish ghetto of Manhattan's Lower East Side. But down at the beer garden, thirteen-year-old Jakie Rabinowitz is performing so-called jazz tunes. Moisha Yudelson spots the boy and tells Jakie's father, who drags him home. Jakie clings to his mother, Sara, as his father declares, "I'll teach him better than to debase the voice God gave him!" Jakie threatens: "If you whip me again, I'll run away — and never come back!" After the whipping, Jakie kisses his mother goodbye and, true to his word, runs away. At the Yom Kippur service, Rabinowitz mournfully tells a fellow celebrant, "My son was to stand at my side and sing tonight – but now I have no son." As the sacred Kol Nidre is sung, Jakie sneaks back home to retrieve a picture of his loving mother.
About 10 years later, Jakie has changed his name to the more assimilated Jack Robin. Jack is called up from his table at a cabaret to perform on stage.
Jack wows the crowd with his energized rendition. Afterward, he is introduced to the beautiful Mary Dale, a musical theater dancer. "There are lots of jazz singers, but you have a tear in your voice," she says, offering to help with his budding career. With her help, Jack eventually gets his big break: a leading part in the new musical April Follies.
Back at the family home Jack left long ago, the elder Rabinowitz instructs a young student in the traditional cantorial art. Jack appears and tries to explain his point of view, and his love of modern music, but the appalled cantor banishes him: "I never want to see you again — you jazz singer!" As he leaves, Jack makes a prediction: "I came home with a heart full of love, but you don't want to understand. Some day you'll understand, the same as Mama does."
Two weeks after Jack's expulsion from the family home and 24 hours before opening night of April Follies on Broadway, Jack's father falls gravely ill. Jack is asked to choose between the show and duty to his family and faith: in order to sing the Kol Nidre for Yom Kippur in his father's place, he will have to miss the big premiere.
That evening, the eve of Yom Kippur, Yudleson tells the Jewish elders, "For the first time, we have no Cantor on the Day of Atonement." Lying in his bed, weak and gaunt, Cantor Rabinowitz tells Sara that he cannot perform on the most sacred of holy days: "My son came to me in my dreams—he sang Kol Nidre so beautifully. If he would only sing like that tonight—surely he would be forgiven."
As Jack prepares for a dress rehearsal by applying blackface makeup, he and Mary discuss his career aspirations and the family pressures they agree he must resist. Sara and Yudleson come to Jack's dressing room to plea for him to come to his father and sing in his stead. Jack is torn. He delivers his blackface performance ("Mother of Mine, I Still Have You"), and Sara sees her son onstage for the first time. She has a tearful revelation: "Here he belongs. If God wanted him in His house, He would have kept him there. He's not my boy anymore—he belongs to the whole world now."
Afterward, Jack returns to the Rabinowitz home. He kneels at his father's bedside and the two converse fondly: "My son—I love you." Sara suggests that it may help heal his father if Jack takes his place at the Yom Kippur service. Mary arrives with the producer, who warns Jack that he'll never work on Broadway again if he fails to appear on opening night. Jack can't decide. Mary challenges him: "Were you lying when you said your career came before everything?" Jack is unsure if he even can replace his father: "I haven't sung Kol Nidre since I was a little boy." His mother tells him, "Do what is in your heart, Jakie—if you sing and God is not in your voice — your father will know." The producer cajoles Jack: "You're a jazz singer at heart!"
At the theater, the opening night audience is told that there will be no performance. Jack sings the Kol Nidre in his father's place. His father listens from his deathbed to the nearby ceremony and speaks his last, forgiving words: "Mama, we have our son again." The spirit of Jack's father is shown at his side in the synagogue. Mary has come to listen. She sees how Jack has reconciled the division in his soul: "a jazz singer—singing to his God."
"The season passes—and time heals—the show goes on." Jack, as "The Jazz Singer," is now appearing at the Winter Garden theater, apparently as the featured performer opening for a show called Back Room. In the front row of the packed theater, his mother sits alongside Yudleson. Jack, in blackface, performs the song "My Mammy" for her and for the world. | melodrama | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1241329 | The River Why | The River Why is an adaptation of the 1983 Sierra Club novel by David James Duncan. The coming-of-age tale centers on a young man named Augustine "Gus" Orviston (Zach Gilford) and his quest for an elusive rainbow trout, which is a metaphor for the man's internal search for self-knowledge. Amber Heard plays his love interest, a tomboy fly-fisher named Eddy. It starts out with Gus, a discontented city-dweller, fresh out of school. Living with his father, a man who literally has a bible on fly-fishing and his mother, a just as avid non-fly fisherman, Gus and his rather quiet little brother, deal with a lot of heated debates from his parents. They also constantly hear the story of how both parents fishing for the same prized Rainbow Trout led to them falling in love. After a day in the city where Gus catches a glimpse of the tom-boy Eddy at a fishing demonstration, he ends the night storming out and burning the prized family trout after a heated argument with his parents. Feeling it is time for a change, Gus drives out to the best fishing grounds he can find and obtains an old shack to stay in. He wakes up the next morning with one goal: fish all day and every day. This works out quite well for Gus as he also manages to get extra food from the sociable neighbors and their band of children who trade him fresh produce for the occasional fishing lesson. Everything is working well for Gus until he comes across a dead fisherman upriver. Unsure of what to do, Gus loads him into his boat and drags him and a water-filled boat back to land.
Although the exhausted Gus is fine physically, he is in an emotional turmoil. Although he is living an idyllic lifestyle and has complete freedom, he feels empty and confused. Although Gus, like the majority of humans had faced and known about death before, this was his first awakening to it. Gus is unsure of what to do until he meets a philosophic man, Titus, who talks to him about other goals and philosophies in life. Although Gus is still having a relatively hard time, he manages to start to rebuild himself emotionally. One day, while walking along the river-bank, he sees Eddy skinny-dipping and fishing. Amazed at the sight, but wanting to be decent, Gus quickly puts down his things and runs the other way. He whistles to signify he is coming, giving Eddy the chance to cover up. He and Eddy manage to lead a very awkward conversation with Gus not knowing what to say, and Eddy seeing his things and leaving. Gus keeps her fish and fishing pole until she can get it back and walks home pleasantly surprised. The next day, he helps a rather terrible fisherman and newspaper editor catch his fish. This man is so impressed that he writes an intriguing article about mysterious fisherman, Augustine (Gus) Orviston. Gus also has him include his personal information so Eddy can come get her stuff. Gus is starting to get a lot of fame and fortune from people coming to visit and get fishing advice from this "amazing Augustine." Gus is doing better keeping busy, but he is still having a hard time making sense of everything.
Then, Eddy comes back. Gus lets her stay at his house, but this quickly leads to them discovering their feelings for each other. Although this is a rather innocent relationship, it is also believable to have in "real life." This culminates to Eddy hooking a salmon to Gus's disbelief, but telling him that it is his job to tire the salmon out and catch it. Gus spends all night catching this fish, and showing an amazing level of passion while he does so. But, when Gus catches the fish, he decides to let it go. He then finds Eddy and they consummate their relationship. And although he displays a truly inspiring level of passion for fishing, he shows even more care and devotion to Eddy, which she returns wholeheartedly. A few days later, Eddy wanders off while Gus is fixing the house. Gus follows her soon after and finds her fishing with his family. The story culminates with Gus forgiving his parents and finding what he was searching for all along; happiness and purpose. | philosophical | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0355857 | Onmyoji | At the construction of a new capital of Japan, Heian, a ceremony is performed to prevent the attacks of the vengeful spirit of Prince Sawara, who had been wrongfully accused of committing treason and put to death. An official announces the construction of a holy barrier that will trap Prince Sawara's spirit and prevent it from haunting the capital. 150 years later, the Onmyoji are responsible for controlling the supernatural phenomena within the city. Court onmyoji Abe no Seimei is a talented onmyoji with skills that surpass the head court onmyoji Doson, who schemes to overthrow the emperor and claim the throne for himself. Seimei meets and takes a liking into Minamoto no Hiromasa, a court swordsman who has little understanding but is mesmerized by the onmyojis and their work. The current emperor is anxious for an heir. One of his wives gives birth to a prince, resulting in his other wife, Lady Ayako, losing his favor. Doson takes advantage of this situation and curses the newborn prince with a demon and casts a spell to turn Lady Ayako into a demon. Seimei combats these spells with the help of the immortal Lady Aone, who was Prince Sawara's lover. Doson summons Sawara and absorbs his spirit to conquer the capital. During his invasion of the capital, Doson kills Hiromasa. Aone offers to sacrifice her immortality and revive Hiromasa by exchanging their lives. She does so because Hiromasa and Seimei are foretold in the stars to be the protectors of the city. Later, Aone's spirit quells Sawara's angered spirit, and Seimei subsequently defeats Doson with an act of wit. | paranormal | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0071269 | California Split | A friendship develops between Bill Denny (George Segal) and Charlie Waters (Elliott Gould) over their mutual love of gambling. Charlie is a wisecracking joker and experienced gambler constantly looking for the next score. Initially, Bill is not as committed a gambler (he works at a magazine during the day), but he is well on his way. The two bond when they are wrongfully accused of colluding at a casino's poker table by an irate fellow player.
As the two men hang out more, Bill becomes more addicted to the gambling lifestyle. He goes into debt to Sparkie (Joseph Walsh), his bookie. Bill hocks possessions to fund a trip to Reno, where he and Charlie pool their money to stake Bill in a poker game (where one of the players is former world champion Amarillo Slim, portraying himself). Bill wins $18,000 and becomes convinced he is on a hot streak. He plays blackjack, then roulette and finally craps, winning more and more money.
But something happens at the craps table. When he finally stops, Bill is drained, almost apathetic. After they split their winnings ($82,000), he tells Charlie he is quitting and going home. Charlie does not understand it, but sees that his friend means what he says, so they go their separate ways. | cult | train | wikipedia | Its stars -- Elliot Gould and George Segal -- were at the top of their form, free and comfortable working in Altman's off-the-cuff, low-key style.
Altman makes the camera disappear in a movie about gambling that still feels fresh 35 years later.
It's surprising how little known California Split is but even in a career filled with great movies such as Robert Altman's it deserves more recognition.
I'll say the success rests on a combination of three things: the infectious chemistry between the two leads Elliot Gould (in a hilarious role) and George Seagal; the fully realized world Altman creates for his characters; and that overall the movie is capable of both belly-laughs and profound sadness but it is always subtle, never says anything more than it has to, leaving just enough for the viewer to participate.
This is not the first time Altman succeeds in doing so but California Split is still a very good indication of the craftsman at the top of his talent.The gambling world here is not the glitzy and glossy Las Vegas of Ocean's 11 or Four of a Kind - not it is for gambling movies what The Long Goodbye was for neo-noir.
George Segal (always good) and Elliott Gould (sometimes good) make a great team of "losers" who just can't resist their addiction.
Put the Godard of the early sixties in a polyester shirt, lay him down among the rummies and compulsive cases of the American gambling subculture, and fill him with equal parts beer and caffeine, and you have some idea of this thoroughly amazing, free-and-easy comedy, which has a scary undertow: the scene where George Segal tries to persuade co-addict Elliott Gould of the hollowness of the big win might be the most scarily desolate in any Altman picture..
As usual, the greatness in Altman comes in the unexpected nuances: the perfect Las Vegas lounge act, with Elliott Gould putting in his repartee like joining a musical theatre number onstage.
George Segal "getting down to the oldies" may date the film, along with his sweaters, but this is an enjoyable and surprising movie that exposes the hollowness and joylessness of compulsion without getting all holy about it.
The younger working girl's search for feeling with her endless succession of tricks is a more easily noticeable parallel to what emerges as the film's core: George Segal's character finding his capacity for change.
Meaning it stood out the most for me and it still feels so fresh after all this time, like most of Altman's films anyway.Even if you don't care for this director's films, watch it just for the marvelous chemistry between George Segal and Elliott Gould, two outstanding actors, and for those who want to see how real improvisation is done, watch closely how Elliott Gould does it in this movie, I guarantee you've never seen anything like it before or since.
It's also the last screen appearance of the enchanting Barbara Ruick (whose best known performance was as Carrie in the movie version of Carousel--she sings the song about "Mr. Snow"--she was married to film composer John Williams)--she plays the delightful barmaid in the Reno gambling joint, and Altman dedicates the film to her.
Altman takes the genre of the gambling movie, in which there usually can be only a happy ending or a sad one, and completely explodes it.
California Split provides a couple of stellar performances through Robert Altman's direction.
George Segal, who is an actor I'm not too familiar with (I never watched the TV show 'Just Shoot Me' or his other 70s movies), but here is very believable as the down-on-his-luck Bill Denny, a sometimes magazine writer who can be spotted at the track or in a poker room more often than in his office.
By the end, however, there's something about the gambler's life that is left on a bittersweet note.The two lead males are contrasted against actresses Ann Prentiss and Gwen Welles, who are not really elaborated on much as characters aside from being possible hustlers or prostitutes of some sort.
Such scenes though are meant for simple character lift, albeit not totally satisfying when compared to other scenes.But to see an Altman film, any Altman film, is to see a piece of what Altman at the 2006 Oscars called "one very long body of work." In viewing California Split, I'm reminded as well of how substance, in a matter of speaking, trumps style.
He's a great director of actors and of setting, if nothing else.For the most part, California Split is splendid at telling more about the nature of the mind-set, of the attitude and near existentialism of gambling than any specific story; there aren't any real contrivances holding these characters to the necessities of the script.
Altman handles this mood and these characters like a pro, with the end result being one of the most fascinating, unconventional and entertaining films made about the small, maligned world of gamblers..
George Segal and Elliott Gould play chronic gamblers who meet by chance in a gaming room and embark upon a friendship founded entirely on each man's desire to seek out the next sure thing.
They head to Reno, where Segal falls into an amazing streak of luck and wins hundreds of thousands of dollars.....and then the movie just sort of ends, not because the story itself reaches any sort of natural conclusion, but more because Altman runs out of things to say about it.Like many of Altman's films, "California Split" isn't as interested in telling a story as it is in establishing a tone, and that it does wonderfully.
He plays up the comic elements in the film too broadly, whereas Gould feels more at home with Altman's sarcastic, off-the-cuff sense of humour.
Several moments in the film -- mention of a failed marriage, his reaction to someone calling him a "faggot," an aborted attempt at lovemaking with a ditzy hooker -- suggest that Segal's character has homosexual tendencies that he's trying to suppress, or at the very least that his shaky sense of his own manhood suggests to HIM that he has homosexual tendencies.This isn't really fleshed out in the movie, but then nothing else is either.
"California Split" feels like a warm up to Altman's masterpiece, "Nashville," released a year later, but it doesn't have that movie's sense of scope or amazing cast of characters, so it feels underdeveloped and lightweight.Still, it kept me interested for 105 minutes, and it is a fascinating look into the chronic gambler's mind, if nothing else.Grade: B.
When I first saw Elliot Gould in The Long Goodbye I thought "This guy can't seriously be considered a great actor." However, after seeing him in M*A*SH, California Split, and again in The Long Goodbye, I realized that the lazy, slob-like attitude is what makes him such a great actor...he is a reflection of US.
George Segal and the amazing Elliot Gould perfectly portray the ups and downs, the manic lifestyle that masks the unhappiness of the degenerate gambler.
The opening titles shots (which are in widescreen) and show Gould softly babbling to himself and watching a gambling instructional video are incredible - and it would be amazing to see the whole movie in proper aspect ratio.
I just saw this film for the first time a few months ago on late night cable.Being an Altman fan(Macabe and Ms.Miller is one of my favorite films)I found myself staying up to late and loving this movie.It stars George Segal and Elliot Gould.What happened to these guys?These are amazing performances and proof that these two were among the best actors of their generation.It's sad that today they are only visible,it seems,on ocasional sitcom stints.They play off each other so well you do'nt want the film to end.You really want to keep up with these characters.Needless to say I reccomended this film to friends only to find out that it is not available on vhs or dvd!Also the version I saw on tv was obviosly a bad pan and scan job.This is a shame for all movie lovers and Altman fans,which I assume are one and the same.I guess I'll lose more sleep trying to catch this one again so I can tape this inferior version.As I write this I am unsure of the distributer of this film but if you're reading this it can be easily obtained on this site.Please attempt to contact them and beg for a release of this great movie,I'll do the same..
Anyway, this minor criticism aside, this is a great, funny movie with possibly the most naturalistic-feeling acting and dialogue ever achieved; and personally I find it better than M.A.S.H. in terms of humour and character depth.
Their names are Bill and Charlie, and they're played by Elliott Gould and George Segal with candid realism and unadulterated fussy weariness.
And since Joseph Walsh's screenplay is amusing and Segal and Gould are genuinely engrossing, we have a good time.However then there are scenes that assume darker implications, like at one point, at the craggy fringe of sleep, inebriated, conquer, Bill and Charlie stick hopelessly to a bar and rather gravely bet with one another on the names of the Seven Dwarfs.
As California Split rambles along we find that Altman has not made a farce about gambling.
This movie begins with a gambler by the name of "Charlie Waters" (Elliott Gould) going into a casino to play some poker.
At the same table is a man by the name of "William Denny" (George Segal) who he comes to realize loves gambling as much as he does.
Nonetheless, CS held my interest as two compulsive gamblers, Segal and Gould, stumble through a life of poker, craps, racetracks, and the Seven Dwarfs.
Trouble is they're obviously going nowhere, though I'd like to have Segal's undemanding job that allows so much free time.Altman keeps things moving, along with a steady supply of close-ups and fluid camera.
THE CINCINNATI KID (1965) notwithstanding, my own lack of interest for (and knowledge about) the game of poker - though, as it turns out, it deals with a number of other activities (boxing, basketball, casinos, horse races) where gambling is rife - and my mistaken impression that it was a minor film has kept me away from this one several times on Italian TV but when Sony opted to put it out-of-print, I decided to give it a try regardless.Well, while it was as easy-going, rambling and plot less as I had been anticipating, it was also surprisingly compelling and very enjoyable.
George Segal and Elliott Gould are perfectly cast as the two gamblers forever searching for that elusive winning streak.
Segal is the more cautious of the two who, despite run-ins with bullying bookmakers and muggers, invariably finds himself sucked into another bet by his optimistic partner but, by the end of it, even if his luck does turn around, he is a hollow man yearning to return home to his uncomplicated lifestyle as a columnist for a magazine.I can certainly understand why Elliott Gould took it upon himself to personally ask Sony what was holding up the release of this film on DVD as he is simply terrific and so charismatic in the film as the fast-talking schemer, who thinks nothing of leaving his partner and girlfriend at a moment's notice and relocate to Mexico for a week just because he had had a dream of him winning it big over there and they weren't in it!
Likewise, the director allows his actors the freedom to improvise and open up their characters leading to some memorable routines: betting that they can remember the names of all of Snow White's seven dwarfs (and its hilarious punchline), the ebullient dance Segal bursts into after his first meeting with Gould, etc.The film also offers notable roles to Altman regular Gwen Welles (as Segal's sensitive girlfriend), screenwriter Joseph Walsh (as Segal's flustered bookmaker), Ed Walsh (as a bad loser who beats both of the leads up after a game, though Gould eventually manages to get back at him) and Bert Remsen (as a transvestite who gets booked by Segal and Gould posing as members of the Vice Squad); it was also Jeff Goldblum's film debut (as Segal's boss!).
Besides, its vivid milieu is effectively created through the use of real-life gamblers and addicts.An unfortunate result of the film's DVD release, however, was the loss of some three minutes of footage (condoned by Altman himself) because some of the music rights could not be cleared; though considerable changes - listed on "DVD Beaver" - appear to have been made, since I had never watched the film before I wasn't affected by them!.
First off, I should probably say that I am commenting on this film simply as a general movie viewer, and not someone that is particularly knowledgeable about Altman's work.
George Segal's character could have used a little bit of setup, as it was a big difficult to determine his interest in the whole gambling scene.
"California Split" portrays compulsive gamblers Bill Denny (George Segal) and Charlie Walters (Elliott Gould).
Needless to say, it occasionally gets them in trouble, to the point where they have to go in for a final showdown.Robert Altman actually used to have a gambling problem, so I'm assuming that he based this movie on what he experienced during those years.
One of the funniest scenes includes a cross-dresser named Helen.Elliott Gould came across as someone who really enjoys winning when he gambles.
One other character I liked was the woman Charlie met on the bus on the way to the horse track.This was probably a worthwhile movie..
Elliot Gould and George Segal both give great performances.
If Robert Altman had cut that scene out "California Split", it would be my favorite gambler movie.
This has some of the very best work of both Gould and Segal's careers, reminding you of how good both could be in the right situation.
Not a lot happens in the film -- this is very much a character study - not a plot driven movie -- but I was left very moved and a more than a bit shaken by the ending, even if there are a couple of overly cute, or self-referential moments along the way.
Bill Denny (George Segal) and Charlie Waters (Elliott Gould) are accused of colluding to cheat a poker game.
The guys go to Reno for a big poker game.It's got director Robert Altman's style of overlapping dialog and long meandering takes.
Segal and Gould have a good sense of the gambler's mind.
"California Split" has bored me some two or three times I tried to watch it and the most common feeling I had watching it is that was "Oh it's another movie directed by Robert Altman where dialogs appear out of the blue, nothing makes no sense and there wasn't enough humor to that".
And it was funny.Frequently, stories involving gamblers and people addicted on bets tend to show the dark aspect of losing money, don't control your anxieties, always coming back to casinos, horse races and that kind of thing.
In Altman's films this overused scenario is substituted for an comedy where two gamblers discovers what they call a "winning streak" and they start to get involved in all kinds of bets, playing cards, blackjack, horses, dice, boxing, all you can imagine.
Very good acted by both actors who really seems to be knowing exactly what they're doing, playing cards, knowing the schemes of bets and all; and of course many real gamblers acted in the movie.
Robert Altman is a master of exploring particular scenes and undercurrents of the American lifestyle and he does so with great flair and dramatic weight in California Split, starring George Segal and Elliot Gould as two gamblers who create a kind of lucky vibe together and use it to take on Reno in hopes of cashing in big time.That exposition makes it sound like a typical gambling film but this is so much more.
The movie is the story of Elliot Gould and George Seagal two compulsive gamblers who meet by chance and form a friendship.
How long does it take a sweet-pea to pee?" - Charlie Waters "California Split" is a surprisingly straightforward film by director Robert Altman.
The plot: Elliott Gould and George Segal play a pair gamblers who meet up one night at a poker game.
Segal and Gould are both gambling addicts, but respond to their addictions in completely different ways.
And not only does the addict's primary relationship with the addictive object mirror the isolation or "split" caused by capitalism's emphasis on individualism and commodity consumption, but it is in capitalism's interest to engender addictive dependency in its subjects to maintain itself and produce the illusion that there is no alternative.As such, the film ends with both Segal and Gould winning a bundle of cash at a high stakes poker game.
George Segal and Elliott Gould are both superb in Robert Altman's engrossing portrait of two compulsive gamblers.
Bored divorced sadsack Bill Denny (splendidly played by George Segal) and brash, free-spirited wild card Charlie Waters (the equally outstanding Elliott Gould) are a couple of compulsive gamblers cursed with bad luck.
A penetrating two character study of a couple of degenerate gamblers weaving their way through life in southern California --- Elliott Gould is one (he's content with his lot) and George Segal is the other, much more angst ridden.
It's directed by Robert Altman, working from a script by Joseph Walsh although the film has a heavy improvisational feel to it.
The hip Gould-Segal chemistry is undeniable, and Altman's loose, improvisational style leads to some choice moments, but it wears out its welcome; the film is rambling and unfocused, and the incessant overlapping talk begins, after a while, to sound like cacophonous background noise.
And what exactly is Altman's ultimate point here, that for a compulsive gambler even winning leaves you feeling empty? |
tt0416712 | Elaan | Elaan is a declaration of war against the reign of terror unleashed by the ganglords. The story revolves around an upright and principled Police Officer, A.C.P. Ramakant Chaudhary whose eldest son Vikas is killed in a pre-planned accident. But the A.C.P. is unable to nab the culprits for want of valid evidence. Consequently, the A.C.P., his wife Revati and younger son Vishal are griefstricken over the loss of young Vikas. While the atmosphere in the city is already vitiated by the atrocities of ganglords Baba Khan and Manna Shetty who enjoy the support of some unscrupulous police personnel, the A.C.P. vows to make the ruthless gangsters bite the dust, without taking the law in his own hands. On the other hand, Vishal an angry young man, cannot stand this injustice since the police had failed to arrest his brother's killers, and he silently resents his A.C.P father's inaction in dealing with the culprits. The ideologies of the father and son clash – which lead to a conflict between a dutiful father and a reckless son. The only one who understands the agony of Vishal is Mohini, the daughter of head constable Devkinandan Sharma. The day comes when Vishal confronts Baba Khan and Manna Shetty which leads to tension and gory situation for the A.C.P., as the ganglords threaten to eliminate the A.C.P. as well as his wife Revati and son Vishal. | good versus evil, murder | train | wikipedia | I especially loved Rahul Khanna's acting in this one.
I also loved the special friendship that the five heroes developed as they plotted the ultimate demise of Baba, an evil man who needed his just desserts.
I especially enjoyed the location scenes in Europe; the road action scene was spectacular!
Give it a try for yourself, even if it is just to see Rahul Khanna at work, because this guy can certainly act!.
I finally saw this movie recently only for Arjun Rampal.
I wasn't expecting this to be a great caper movie like many Hollywood movies, so I wasn't really disappointed.For the most part, I thought the cast did a really good job with their performance even though they didn't have much to work with.
The nice thing about the movie was the treatment with nice locales.Apart from that I was very impressed with Arjun Rampal and John Abraham.
Wish the movie had more scenes with just these two together.I heard Arjun Rampal was to play Rahul's character while Bobby Deol was to play Arjun's character.
Since Bobby couldn't do the movie Arjun opted out for the character he plays and I have to say that that character suits him far better than Rahul's.This movie is worth one or two viewing only for Arjun and John.
a sleek, almost Hollywood-style, good vs evil movie.
Fortunately, I haven't seen any of the other movies that many reviewers state have had bits copied from them in Elaan.
The multiple location approach made for great scenery (although I had to laugh when they gave the impression that Venice and the Swiss Alps are around the corner from each other) and gave a bit of a 007 air to the story.What drew me to the movie was the cast.
Rahul Khanna holds his own as does Arjun Rampal, so hopefully this will lead to more films for both of them.
Amisha Patel and Lara Dutta are good enough.
John Abraham is good at being angry, fighting, and looking sexy in songs, but other than that, he's not believable.
It's really Mithun Chakraborthy who is the star of this film.
He nailed his role as the bad guy by showing that fear can be generated without shouting at people all the time.
One more time Sholay (1975) has been revisited and that too by Vikram Bhatt whose every movie is plagiarize of a Hollywood pictures and even this time also there are so many scenes which are lifted from different Hollywood products.
Even Sholay was a mixture of 2 to 3 Hollywood movies i.e. The Seven Samurai, The magnificent 7, Once upon in a west.This time the Thakur role is played by Rahul Khanna, Jai and Veeru roles are played by Arjun Rampal and John Abraham and Gabbar role went to the Legendary Actor Mithun Chakraborty who has made a comeback in A grade movies with Elaan and will win the nomination in the best villain category.
He has given a remarkable performance after Gudiyareleased in 98.Rahul Khanna has debuted in the commercial cinema with this movie and has done a great job.
John Abraham has gone overboard in few sequences and also in his introductory action scene (which is a lift from First Blood 3 a.k.a. Rambo 3.
Arjun Rampal is functional and has given a conventional performance.
Amisha Patel has done a good job after Humraaz.She was looking gorgeous in this movie and got more footage than the Lara Dutta and why not she is the girlfriend of the captain of he ship, I mean the director of the film, Vikram Bhatt.
And even Arjuns first action scene is a lift from Hard Target.
The way they trap Mithun makes you wonder if he really all that powerful (as it has been shown in the beginning of the film that his phone call can sound your death knell) and he does nothing except sitting silently in a room.
Elaan has few scenes lifted from Loha released in 87 and China Gate released in 98 which were also inspired by the movies The Seven Samurai, The magnificent 7, Once upon in a west.
Scenes like when Shatrughan Sinha promises his son (young jugal hansraj) in the movie Loha that he will take him for holidays but the mission comes in between and he leave for mission and break his promise and also when Naseeruddin Shah wants to adopt a girl in the movie China Gate and he dies and after that Om Puri does the service.
In Elaan too, Arjun make promise to his child but breaks it because of the mission and when he dies in the end Rahul adopts his child.Cinemography is of first rate.
Appealing background score.As predicted, it will do a good business in interiors and its good news for Mithun Chakraborty fans that they will get to see a good movie with a good performance by the Legend.
Elaan was a fantastic, action-packed film.
And it is filled with the coolest star cast - Amisha Patel, John Abraham, Arjun Rampul, etc.
Don't listen to any bad reviews you might read about it - movie critics are always unreasonably tough and harsh when it comes to rating films.
Elaan is a blockbuster smash hit - one of India's No.1 all-time action movie.
I have to say that no doubt Elaan has to be one of India's No.1 all-time action movie.
Mithun makes a superb villain, it was great to see him back after such a long time.
I can't even make up my mind to choose who is the star of the movie.I loved all of the phone conversations between, Rahul Khanna and Mithun, especially when Rahul Khanna made his Elaan to Mithun.
In some scenes John Abraham is absolutely hilarious and in other scenes he is the main action stunt-man.
What can you say about Arjun Rampal, you could just say that, without him, the mission wouldn't have even got off to a start.
The scene, where all 5 of the heroes are trapped in Mithun's house, would have to be one of the best scenes, in the movie.
Although me, personally, I thought that he was insane to jump out like that and take on Mithun's men, while the others were in the house.
Critics also have said that it was ridiculous, the way Mithun lets them go away, when he had an easy chance to kill the heroes.
The fact is that they didn't just walk away, Arjun Rampal did all of the hard work and fought off most of Mithun's men.
Like for example In Sholay, why didn't Gabar Singh just kill Thakur, when he had the easiest chance to kill him (Sanjeev Kumar a.k.a Thakur was tied up) There have been so many movies where similar situations have occurred and the critics haven't said anything then, so what's the point of criticising a superb movie like Elaan, now.I don't know what the critics, are talking about.
Lara Dutta was glamorous in the movie.
She loves John Abraham and wants to stand by him, no matter what.
How many other movies are there where women do the same for the person that they love and the movies have been hits.I admit that Amisha Patel might have been forced into the movie, but there are certain major scenes, which couldn't have been done without her.
E.g. when they try to track Mithun's location via mobile phone and satellite and at the end when the french police turn up, it's all because of Amisha Patel.Overall I would have to say that I have seen Elaan for the fifth time inside a week.
Sometimes I think that they are watching one movie and writing reviews about another.
There are other great movies that have been publicly ruined, because of negative reviews.
I can't wait for the DVD release of the movie.I hope that this review will help other people, who are interested in watching this movie.
One of the best Indian action films !!.
I just saw this movie on weekend and loved every bit of it !!
i don't know whether its going to be a hit commercially but it was fun action packed ride.
very few Indian films match upto the technical quality shown in this film, it is heavily inspired by classics like shaan and sholay but the subject of catching a terrorist is treated differently and effectively, critics said the film lacks in content but it was never meant to be a dramatic fare.
after "dhoom" this is the best Indian action film.
performances were good and good to see mithun back on the big screen after a long time.
if u like action movies you will love this one.8 out of 10..
I mean when i saw all fives heroes, and i one villain in this movie who is Mithun, i absolutely loved this movie.
I give Amisha Patel a 7/10, she looked beautiful n loved the way she portrayed as a reporter.
I will give Lara Dutta a 8/10 cause she knows what to do in this film and looks like she's going to be the next Lara Croft, so then i give her a 7.5/10.
For John, he really was very funny for pretty much playing a comedian, she should go on with the look that he has in this film n also do action films more often, so then i give him a 8/10.
For Arjun, he had a good performance in this movie because he mostly did everything, and also knows how and what to do in this mission, so then i give him also a 9/10.
This was Rahul Khanna's first action n that i thought that he did pretty good in this Gil so that i give him a 9/10.
Most of all, in this film, this film belongs to Mithun because he had a great performance of being a terror in this movie, and also had a great comeback too, so for Mithun i give him a 10/10.
People this movie is kind of like the old Hindi film movie "sholay", so ya i know for sure that everyone will see this movie.
Sleek action thriller despite lack of story.
Mithun "Dada" makes a great comeback as the antagonist in this action-packed thriller.
The beauty of Indian cinema is that even in a hardcore action film, you'll find a soul and emotions.
However, there is not much of a story in this movie.
Nonetheless, the well-executed action scenes and character development fill that void.
Good-looking, Good Fun. I too thought Elaan was interesting, although the musical songs didn't particularly stand out.
The cast were all good-looking -- Arjun Rampal, John Abraham, Lara Dutta, Amisha Patel, and even Rahul Khanna were all nice to look at.
As far as the action scenes, some of the stuff was interesting in a "Sword of Gideon" type of way, but it was all over-the-top in a way that's typical of all Indian movies.
I think that a lot of Indian critics typically base their praise or criticism of any movie based on how politically correct it is.
At the start, it was a little slow to pick up but once all five main characters have been established, then the true action begins.
But I will go further in the next paragraphs because I loved this film so much.
The brother then takes the task upon himself to seek revenge for his father's death, in the process he meets a plucky reporter played by Amisha Patel, who instantly is smitten with him but to whom he does not return her affections.
He reluctantly allows her to tang along on the journey to Switzerland which along the way he also recruits Arjun Rampal's character, a former police officer who is also a widower with a little daughter at home.
Rampal's characters leads the assembling team to John Abraham's character, who is a career criminal and former henchman for Baba Sikander (the underworld lord).
Currently doing time behind bars, they help him escape from prison and he leads them to Lara Dutta's character, whom he tells them is Baba's the underworld lord girlfriend.
The truth about Lara Dutta's character is soon revealed and the team wonder if they can ever trust Abraham again.
One scene that really stuck out to me was the one in which the director capture's Arjun's powerful rage when he attacks Baba Sikander's underworld henchmen following the death of his wife.
especially John Abraham's umbrella stunts.
:) And Lara Dutta captures sexy like you've never seen before!
2.] The character Arjun is a former police inspector who lost both his job and wife yet he can still afford to live in a swanky hill top retreat-like home?
That said, how many films can you find so many problems with and yet still love it?
Maybe it was the double-dose of eye-candy they gave use by casting John Abraham and Arjun Rampal, I dunno but whatever they did, I liked it.
:) I also liked and picked up on the love triangle that many people may miss or may have missed watching the film.
Amisha Patel's character is in love with Karan Shah, but every time she made a move, KS would rebuff her.
I feel the the love triangle is the reason for the Arjun shocker twist!
A Tactical Hit. While, to an extent, I do believe from reading the comments of other reviewers that the movie lacked a good storyline, and the characters are somewhat unbelievable, I liked this movie for amazing acting, despite the character flaws; I liked it because the tactics used in the movie are amazingly realistic and for the most part, practical.
Vikram Bhatt's 'Elaan' which came way back in 2005, is still in my mind because of Mithun Chakraborty.
but even as a film 'Elaan' is underrated.
The film has its share of flaws, but come on 'Elaan' didn't promise to be a milestone of a watch.
A very well-directed film, with a stellar performance by Mithunda.
Vikram Bhatt has directed the film very well.
Performances by the other actor are also good: Rahul Khanna plays his part well.
Arjun Rampal is very good, and yes his exit gives a lump in your throat.
Chunkey Pandey is passable.Minuses of the film: Mithunda should have been there throughout.on the whole 'Elaan' is a entertaining watch...
more than anything else, watch it for legendary actor Mithunda's powerful performance..
Can't understand why the film makers chose this movie for Mithun's comeback and then give him nothing to do.
The action sequences are good.
John Abraham as the 'Tapori' should know that he is not Amir Khan in Rangeela - please stick to what you are capable of doing - showing off your torso and bashing people.
Not much can be said about Arjun Rampal's performance and Rahul Khanna should stick to cross-over films - he has no commercial cinema presence at all.
Girls (Amisha and Lara) does anyone tell you'll the story before you accept the film or do you just go for the shoot??.
I hate to downplay a movie specially when the Filmamakers spend enormous amount of money on a foreign location but when they come up with a jalopy action film-it is well deserved.
The two actors who cannot emote are Lara Dutta and Arjun Rampal and the two who can are Amisha Patel and John Abraham-and the one who really did some acting was Rahul Khanna.
As far as John Abraham-a good actor under state of confusion.Mithun Chakraborty--fits the bill as a Hindi Villain, since he is tall,dark,has long sideburns (or freshly painted)), and his voice comes across as strong and mean for ransom demands on Board room speaker phones!.
I can't fathom a director in the caliber of Vikram Bhatt (Raaz) directing this "junk Bond" film.
The movie has nothing to offer in the way of entertainment or action-a disappointment coming from Vikram Bhatt..
Vikram Bhatt continued his duds with ELAAN The film tried to copy SHOLAY but failed terriblyThe film starts off well with Rahul Khanna episode then he singles out Arjun things are okay John's escape from jail is a piece of cake and the film slowly becomes a routine B grade film only polished The script is a joke Also because Amisha was Vikram's gf those days he gave her an extra edge for no reasonThe film fails to keep you engrossed and the last few reels are the worst nightmaresDirection is bad Music is badRahul Khanna is decent in his part Arjun is good as a cop John tries too hard, overdoes in shouting scenes and otherwise too he doesn't suit a tapori type role Lara is okay while Amisha irritates Mithun is okay but fails to recreate the terror of Gabbar.
Elaan-Waste of Time.
This was a bad movie, it was my time wasted but it was also producers money wasted.
Movie has no story, some scenes are just simply stupid, it feels like this movie was completed in a hurry.
Every time a car crash in the movie it was big fire ball, how come.
They said in the promos it was a Hollywood style movie yet the action scenes were horribly shot, the sound was horrible, music was below mediocrity.
Mithun was good, but disappointing because he just sat there and talked on the phone, he should've bagged out some of his old karate chops.
Rahul kHanna could act nice and controlled performance.
Arjun Rampal was OK, he was there in the movie but he was pushed all the way to the side by the story.
John didn't fit the character, his tapori dialogue delivery was bad, and comic timing was awful, and he did overact most of the time.
And advice to action filmmakers chill with the wire action sequences beats the whole purpose of watching a good movie when guys start flying for no reason whatsoever out of no where. |
tt0971204 | Long Pigs | Two desperate and young filmmakers stumble upon the ultimate subject, a 33-year-old cannibalistic serial killer named Anthony McAllister, who has agreed to let them document every aspect of his horrifically violent life-style. Initially terrified, the filmmakers get to know Anthony as a person. They even begin to identify with his ecological and philosophical justifications for his cannibalistic lifestyle.
It's only when they investigate further that the filmmakers begin to doubt Anthony's accounts of his past. Tensions noticeably rise as the filmmakers continue to confront Anthony on his conflicting stories and ever-changing philosophies. During an awkward interview, the filmmakers interview Merle, the father of a young girl who was abducted and never found. This abduction was Anthony's first child victim. Merle welcomes them into his home and gives them a heart-felt experience that even Anthony is touched by.
As the documentary reaches its conclusion, Anthony begins to become uncomfortably aware of the how much of his life he has revealed to these filmmakers. In a final interview with Anthony, a deadly confrontation erupts and all that remains is a broken camera and this footage. This film challenges the audience to view a horrific side of humanity and delivers a social commentary that leaves the audience thinking about the world they live in and the power and effect of all media. | violence | train | wikipedia | If Nothing Else, A Phenomenal Display of Practical Effects.
Two young directors film the hunt and butchering of a prostitute by a local cannibal serial killer.
For example, the cannibal (Anthony Alviano) seems younger and nerdier than expected, which took away some of the realism.
A fine actor, he easily could have passed for a real cop.The radio DJ (Roger King) was the strongest and best-written role.
His words were well-scripted and well-spoken, and the way his scenes book-cased the film really worked well.
perhaps almost great.I appreciate the argument made that "how can it be wrong if it tastes so good?" This is reasonable.
God or nature has made edible things palatable -- we learn what to eat by whether or not our taste buds enjoy it.
If man was created tasting good, something would seem to be supposed to eat it.
(There are moral questions here, of course, but at the very least, why do we not eat the flesh of those who have died?) More than anything else, I have to call attention to the very good use of effects on the corpse...
The body contained skin, flesh, meat, guts, bones...
I do not know how this was accomplished, but it may be the greatest corpse effect in movie-making history.
I believe this honor belongs to Chris Bridges, who has been involved in the field for over a decade on a number of notable projects.I would endorse this film.
It is an interesting faux documentary, and with the work of Chris Bridges, it may have you doing a double-take.
Odd Canadian film has two obviously first time documentary filmmakers following around a cannibalistic serial killer as he first stalks and kills his victims, then prepares them in stews and barbecues for consumption.The way this is all show in nonchalantly and in such an off-hand manner adds to the dramatic effect as he literally hangs his prizes upside down, decapitates them and hacks them apart piece by piece, extracting "the best parts" for consumption along the way.
The practical effects are absolutely amazing I must say.
There is one incredible scene where they show him preparing an entire body in a very fast forward sequence that must have been a gruelling long shot.The performances are all pretty credible here, and the movie is well shot.
The winter Canadian scenery is nice to look at with one scene in particular showing New Years at the Toronto City Hall.Fun fare for fans of the genre..
A quick glance at Anthony McAlistar and you would think that he is your average every day kind of guy.
Anthony is your everybody kind of guy.Oh wait.
Anthony is a cannibal serial killer.The film Long Pigs sets out to explore the everyday life of Anthony in a faux-documentary type style.
A cameraman and a journalist will follow Anthony through various kills and dismemberments as the feature star of his own documentary.Anthony (Anthony Alviano) couldn't be more convincing or terrifying in his simple and realistic approach as the murderer-next-door.
And when he begins to chow down on random strangers, the documentary style as presented by directors Chris Power and Nathan Hynes is a perfect complement to explore the ferocious homicidal maniac living inside the man.Currently on DVD and touring the festival circuits across North America, Long Pigs is an above average independent film with some of the most realistic make-up and effects that you will see in a film with the budget of a Michael Bay craft table.The effects are balanced with intelligent dialogue and attentive detail to the production.
Anthony's speeches about his cannibalism not being sexual – "It's culinary" - and his description of having to tie off the human anus to prevent contamination were brilliantly orchestrated with accompanying horror style visuals that make Long Pigs more fascinating than revolting.If the notion that a serial killer is the 'quiet type that lives next door', then Long Pigs' Anthony embodies the idea to a tee.
He plays hockey, he visits his ailing mother and even eats with strangers as if it were an everyday event (while a body lies in his car trunk no less).Watching Anthony carefully slaughter and store a human body like a seasoned butcher was as real as any effect you will see in a big budgeted film of the same genre.
Special FX make-up by Chris Bridges and Tony Labatt are the highlight of the film filled with fascinating winks back to the gullible audience.Not trying to overpopulate the film with countless characters and subplots, Power and Hynes keep the film headed in a straight forward motion towards an ending that was unexpected yet not overly forced.
We get cuts from interviews of a police detective, a behavioral analyst and scenes of a radio personality giving their take on the carnage left in Anthony's wake, but the movie centers and focuses on Anthony without a barrage of interference.Long Pig is a 'Culinary term for the human corpse' and after experiencing a glimpse into the life of a madman, I am disappointed in myself when I report that I would buy the cookbook Anthony longs to scribe.Long Pigs is available on DVD and should be searched out.
It is a charming and absorbing feature that has put its production team on my 'To Watch' List.www.killerreviews.com.
The movie got some attention worldwide due the limited release of the DVD with a package of jerky.
Of course I had seen the trailer and immediately two films came into my mind, August Underground and C'est Arrivé Près De Chéz Vous (better known overseas as Man Bites Dog).
After watching it I would rather compare it more to Man Bites Dog. August is more about brutality with a small storyline.
Here we have the same story as Man Bites Dog. A director and his crew agrees to follow a killer.
Like making some stew from human parts.
I won't go as far as other reviewers by asking who's worser, the killer or the crew.
The difference between MBD and Long Pigs is the fact that Long Pigs goes more into the mind of the killer.
It's all filmed docu style.
See how he rips the flesh from one victim in an accelerated scene.
Top Five Faux Found Footage Horror Movies.
I'm so sick of found footage horror I could scream, but I saw Long Pigs last night and it was fantastic.
I'd say it has to be in the top five best films of the genre.
The practical effects were outstanding.
Definitely watch the Special Features on how they made the bodies.
I have to say I saw the ending coming, but I was not disappointed by that.
The score was probably the weakest thing about the movie.
The acting got better and better as the movie carried on.
Cinematography is always my complaint with these kinds of movies.
I hate found-footage horror, but I loved this..
The serial killer next door....
When the trailer for "Long Pigs" first hit the scene people were already dismissing the movie as being another flick trying to cash in on movies like "Blair Witch Project" or "Paranormal Activity".
Basic assumptions from the trailer are understandable, it is a faux-documentary after all, but really there is more to the movie than that.
If I had to compare it to anything there is only one movie that comes to mind and that is "Man Bites Dog".Yes, this movie could have gone the cheap and easy way and been nothing more than another faux-snuff movie to appeal to the gore fans and make a quick headline of being a shock title.
But "Long Pigs" clearly wanted to be more than that and is more than that; it wants to shock the viewers with realism instead of gore gags.
The movie is about two would-be filmmakers following around a cannibalistic serial killer while including interviews of investigators and psychiatrists.
Play the interviews against the actions of our killer, Anthony McAlistar to demonstrate that what we believe a killer is, may not actually be true.This is what makes "Long Pigs" stand out; it doesn't go for the cheap thrill-ride of being a shock flick.
It wants to get under your skin by portraying what a killer could be and is.
It isn't necessarily the eccentric schizo writing things on the wall with their own feces; it's the person next door.
Or in this case, the guy next door.
"Long Pigs" gets to you with this idea of it being the common man and then shakes you up as you watch this Anthony McAlistar character act nonchalant about what he is doing.
While not exactly blowing your mind with psycho-killer philosophy the things he does and the things he says kind of brings cannibalism into a different light.
Maybe because the actor portraying Anthony is able to sell this cold and frightening killer so well, it makes what he says that much more thought provoking.
By questioning how we as a society look at our food and treat what we believe to be inferior creatures.
Would it be or is it so wrong that if a person is stronger than another to be able to kill them and eat them if we choose to?
Naturally, our upbringing and understanding of laws and morality tells us this is wrong, but to watch a person who doesn't see it the same way keeps you glued to the movie.Because the movie chooses to focus on the character Anthony it doesn't dwell on the killings and butchering of the people often.
There are several people killed but it is done in a much more realistic manner in that Anthony uses what will get the job done, most of which was a pistol with a silencer.
For the butchering, you only get to watch him prepare two people throughout the entire movie.
While disappointing to those who want gore it goes back to the movie getting to the viewer simply by the character and not so much his actions.
You watch and get to listen to him treat these people as nothing but meat to be served for food while having the charisma of a cooking show host."Long Pigs" works so well because it doesn't dwell on the violence but on the people.
While it is able to show Anthony as this cold blooded killer is able to do some truly unthinkable acts without batting an eyelash at it.
It also points a finger at the "filmmakers" of the movie, like how "Cannibal Holocaust" asked us who are the real savages.
"Long Pigs" asks us who is the psychopath, Anthony or these two men who are looking to profit and gain notoriety by exploiting the killer and the victims.
In one of movie's more effective moments, we find out Anthony at one point killed and ate a child (a young girl) to see if "the meat" can be different merely by age.
Once the filmmakers learn about this they go and interview the young girl's father and shows the callous and cold hearted nature of these two.
It goes to show this is what is done and what lengths people will go to for a story in the world of media.Going back to what I said earlier, if I had to compare "Long Pigs" to any movie it would have to be"Man Bites Dog".
The two movies are so much alike I would say "Long Pigs" is the low-budget equivalent of "Man Bites Dog".
The movie effectively shows the twisted world and views of a killer who truly believes that there isn't anything wrong with what he is doing.
The movie also takes a look at the type of people that we believe are serial killers and the contradictions that come with those ideas of who and what these people are.
As well as looking at the roles these killers play in our society, how we as a race view the natural order of where the strong survive and the weak are killed.
"Long Pigs" is definitely a must see for those who are looking to get more out of their horror movies.
A truly great indie horror flick that flew way under the radar.
Think Man Bites Dog + Behind the Mask + Street Thief, but with a charismatic cannibal as your murderous main character, and some gloriously morbid practical FX.
Track this one down, it deserves a bigger fanbase.It's the rare indie genre film that transcends its low budget with a balance of character work, witty humor, gore, and being engaging start to finish.
Without spoiling much, an amateur film crew follows around a serial killer and connoisseur of human delights, Anthony McAlistar, documenting his murderous day-to-day routine, and eventually find themselves lending a hand in the ritual.One thing that makes the film so enjoyable is the main character, played by Anthony Alviano.
His performance as serial killer / human flesh connoisseur Anthony McAlistar elevates a micro-budget faux doc to an entertaining indie gem worthy of repeat viewings.
He's calm, charismatic, menacing, and kinda likable (for a guy who kills and eats people).Another asset worth mentioning are the practical FX.
In one scene, after dispatching a prostitute with a club, we watch McAlistar completely dismember the body like an animal in a slaughterhouse.
It's brutal, unforgettable, and won't disappoint gorehounds.In a more "lighthearted" moment, the film crew documents McAlistar as he gleefully prepares a pot of human stew in his kitchen.
As he slurps a spoonful for a taste-test, he waxes poetic about the decadence of eating human meat.
Brilliant stuff.Long Pigs is screaming to be rediscovered.
Easily one of my favorite indie horror / found footage / faux doc flicks, I hope to see it garner a sizable cult following someday.
A horror-film without the horror..
Even though I'm not a big fan of mockumentaries, ( I prefer pure fiction or pure documentary, the mix is often neither fish nor fowl ), I had somewhat high hopes for this.
I understand the reasoning behind the film; to give us a matter-of-factly view into the motives and actions of your next-door cannibal, contrast his unspeakable deeds and grotesque philosophical musings with his more mundane everyday-activities, and out of these contrasts horror shall grow.
And often this recipe works very well, perhaps because this is so close to reality, many serial killers are often unassuming and tedious in their sheepish guise, the type nobody would suspect to be a killer.
The film that comes closest to Long Pigs is of course Man Bites Dog, but in that film everything works and the end-product is a diamond.In Long Pigs on the other hand this approach doesn't work at all, and what you are left with is a boring man's life spiced up with a couple of scenes of slaughter for good measure.
You know something is wrong when two thirds of the film is a yawn-fest of smalltalk, and one third is spent on the actual deeds.
And even the sections of slaughter doesn't really convey any sense of menace and horror, fair enough the special effects are great ( hence the three stars ), but I could just as well have enjoyed an episode of Hell's Kitchen, at least there you get a certain sense of dread.
Here, on the other hand, it is non- existing, and that, in a horror-film is a mortal sin.
If you want a brilliant mockumentary, watch Man Bites Dog, if you want a proper cookery-class, watch Cannibal Holocaust or Cannibal.
What film crew is going to follow around a dude while he kills and eats women?
It's amateurish and dumb.The PlotA documentary by two desperate young filmmakers who stumble upon the ultimate subject, a 33 year old cannibalistic serial killer named Anthony McAllister, who has agreed to let them document every aspect of his horrifically violent life-style.
Initially terrified, the filmmakers get to know Anthony as a person.
It's only when they investigate further that the filmmakers begin to doubt Anthony's accounts of his past.
Tensions noticeably rise as the filmmakers continue to confront Anthony on his conflicting stories and ever-changing philosophies.
During an awkward interview, the filmmakers interview Merle, the father of a young girl who was abducted and never found.
This abduction was Anthony's first child victim.
Merle welcomes them into his home and gives them a heart-felt experience that even Anthony is touched by..
Convincing cannibal movie, with brilliant acting and special effects..
I'm not usually a fan of "found-footage" films, but there's exceptions.
I had found this movie randomly, and as i saw that it was marked as both "Horror" and "Documentary", i immediately picked it up.
- Without researching the validity of the movie.
Only about 30 minutes into the movie, when the hockey practice begins, i started feeling so uncomfortable that i had to investigate further.
Luckily for me, this movie isn't really "authentic", but it is very convincing and realistic.
The acting is done so undramatic, that it becomes VERY convincing, especially Anthony Alviano deserves credit for that, and the enthusiasm portrayed around the scenes on the farm, made me almost sympathetic about the cannibal-man that he portrays, and how much passion he has for the food he eats.
I liked the ending too, but the Simon-part wasn't necessary at all for the movie to function.
Overall, a very impressing movie.Best Intentions.
EVERY CANNIBAL WANTS TO BE A DIRECTOR.
Two documentary makers somehow discover a cannibalistic serial killer and decide to make a documentary rather than turn him in.
They follow Anthony (Anthony Alviano) as he non-nonchalantly kills and eats people.
Anthony breaks the mold for a psycho-path.
The film was rather amusing in a dark kind of way.
The ending clues you in that the whole film is a metaphor for how the media feeds off the misery of people, just like a cannibalistic serial killer.The film includes a talk radio, Howard Stern sounding guy, someone who feeds off of misery (Roger King).Guide: F-bomb. |
tt0432236 | Kidnapped | The central character and narrator is 17-year-old David Balfour. (Balfour is Stevenson's mother's maiden name.) His parents have recently died, and he is out to make his way in the world. He is given a letter by the minister of Essendean, Mr. Campbell, to be delivered to the House of Shaws in Cramond, where David's uncle, Ebenezer Balfour, lives. On his journey, David asks many people where the House of Shaws is, and all of them speak of it darkly as a place of fear and evil.
David arrives at the ominous House of Shaws and is confronted by his paranoid Uncle Ebenezer, who is armed with a blunderbuss. His uncle is also miserly, living on "parritch" and small ale, and the House of Shaws itself is partially unfinished and somewhat ruinous. David is allowed to stay and soon discovers evidence that his father may have been older than his uncle, thus making David the rightful heir to the estate. Ebenezer asks David to get a chest from the top of a tower in the house but refuses to provide a lamp or candle. David is forced to scale the stairs in the dark and realises that not only is the tower unfinished in some places, but the steps simply end abruptly and fall into an abyss. David concludes that his uncle intended for him to have an "accident" so as not to have to give over his nephew's inheritance.
David confronts his uncle, who promises to tell David the whole story of his father the next morning. A ship's cabin boy, Ransome, arrives the next day and tells Ebenezer that Captain Hoseason of the brig Covenant needs to meet him to discuss business. Ebenezer takes David to a pier on the Firth of Forth, where Hoseason awaits, and David makes the mistake of leaving his uncle alone with the captain while he visits the shore with Ransome. Hoseason later offers to take them on board the brig briefly, and David complies, only to see his uncle returning to shore alone in a skiff. David is then immediately struck senseless.
David awakens, bound hand and foot, in the hold of the ship. He becomes weak and sick, and one of the Covenant's officers, Mr. Riach, convinces Hoseason to move David up to the forecastle. Mr. Shuan, a mate on the ship, finally takes his routine abuse of Ransome too far and murders the unfortunate youth. David is repulsed at the crew's behaviour and learns that the captain plans to sell him into slavery in the Carolinas.
David becomes the slain cabin boy's replacement, and the ship encounters contrary winds which drive her back toward Scotland. Fog-bound near the Hebrides, they strike a small boat. All of the small boat's crew are killed except one man, Alan Breck Stewart, who is brought on board and offers Hoseason a large sum of money to drop him off on the mainland. David later overhears the crew plotting to kill Alan and take all his money. David and Alan barricade themselves in the round house, where Alan kills the murderous Shuan, and David wounds Hoseason. Five of the crew members are killed outright, and the rest refuse to continue fighting.
Alan is a Jacobite who supports the claim of the House of Stuart to the throne of Scotland. He is initially suspicious of the pro-Whig David, who is also loyal to King George II. Still, the young man has given a good account of himself in the fighting and impresses the veteran soldier.
Hoseason has no choice but to give Alan and David passage back to the mainland. David tells his tale to Alan, who in turn states that his birthplace, Appin, is under the tyrannical administration of Colin Roy of Glenure, the King's factor and a Campbell. Alan vows that should he find the "Red Fox" he will kill him.
The Covenant tries to negotiate a difficult channel without a proper chart or pilot, and is soon driven aground on the notorious Torran Rocks. David and Alan are separated in the confusion, with David being washed ashore on the isle of Erraid, near Mull, while Alan and the surviving crew row to safety on that same island. David spends a few days alone in the wild before getting his bearings.
David learns that his new friend has survived, and David has two encounters with beggarly guides: one who attempts to stab him with a knife, and another who is blind but an excellent shot with a pistol. David soon reaches Torosay, where he is ferried across the river, receives further instructions from Alan's friend Neil Roy McRob, and later meets a catechist who takes the lad to the mainland.
As he continues his journey, David encounters none other than the Red Fox (Colin Roy) himself, who is accompanied by a lawyer, a servant, and a sheriff's officer. When David stops the Campbell man to ask him for directions, a hidden sniper kills the King's hated agent.
David is denounced as a conspirator and flees for his life, but by chance reunites with Alan. The youth believes Alan is the assassin, but Alan denies responsibility.
The pair flee from redcoat search parties until they reach James (Stewart) of the Glens, whose family has heard of the murder, is burying their hidden store of weapons, and is burning papers that could incriminate them. James tells the travellers he will have no choice but to "paper" them (distribute printed descriptions of the two with a reward listed), but provides them with weapons and food for their journey south, and David with a change of clothes (which the printed description will not match).
Alan and David then begin their flight through the heather, hiding from government soldiers by day. As the trek drains David's strength, his health rapidly deteriorates; by the time they are set upon by wild Highlanders who are sentries for Cluny Macpherson, an outlawed chief in hiding, the lad is barely conscious.
Alan convinces Cluny to give them shelter. The Highland chieftain is offended when David covenantly refuses to play cards but defers to the respected Alan's opinion of the lad. David is tended by a Highland doctor and soon recovers, though in the meantime Alan loses all of their money at cards with Cluny, only for Cluny to give it back when David practically begs for it.
When David and Alan resume their flight in cold and rainy weather, David becomes ill again and nurses a childish anger against Alan over the affront of having to beg for their money. Alan patiently tries to help the sulking David for several days, but he finally gives in to his own pride and begins taunting him. David forces a showdown with swords by insulting Alan's courage and loyalty, but Alan cannot bring himself to fight him. David, now sick in the extreme, at last feels contrition and realizes a plea for help can do what an apology will not: mend the rift between them. Alan carries David on his back down the burn to reach the nearest house, fortuitously that of a Maclaren, Duncan Dhu, who is both an ally of the Stewarts and a skilled piper.
David is bedridden and given a doctor's care, while Alan hides nearby, visiting after dark. During David's nearly month-long recuperation, he is visited by many curious but loyal neighbours in the region and by a foe of Alan's, Robin Oig, the son of Rob Roy MacGregor and a wanted outlaw. Alan and Robin nearly fight a duel, but Duncan persuades them to leave the contest to bagpipes. Both play brilliantly, but Alan admits Robin is the better piper, so the quarrel is resolved. Alan and David prepare to leave the Highlands and return to David's country.
In one of the most humorous passages in the book, Alan convinces an innkeeper's daughter from Limekilns (unnamed in Kidnapped but called "Alison Hastie" in its sequel) that David is a dying young Jacobite nobleman, despite David's objections, and she ferries them across the Firth of Forth. There, they meet a lawyer of David's uncle's, Mr. Rankeillor, who agrees to help David receive his inheritance. Rankeillor explains that David's father and uncle had once quarrelled over a woman, David's mother, and the older Balfour had married her, informally giving the estate to his brother while living as an impoverished schoolteacher with his wife. This agreement had lapsed with his death.
David and the lawyer hide in bushes outside Ebenezer's house while Alan speaks to him, claiming to be a man who found David nearly dead after the wreck of the Covenant and says he is representing folk holding him captive in the Hebrides. He asks David's uncle whether Alan should kill David or keep him. The uncle flatly denies Alan's statement that David had been kidnapped but eventually admits that he paid Hoseason "twenty pound" to take David to "Caroliny". David and Rankeillor then emerge from their hiding places, and speak with Ebenezer in the kitchen, eventually agreeing that David will be provided two-thirds of the estate's income for as long as his uncle lives.
The novel ends with David and Alan's parting ways; Alan returns to France, and David goes to a bank to settle his money. | historical fiction | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0056952 | The Cool World | In 1945, World War II veteran Frank Harris returns to his mother in Las Vegas. Riding a motorcycle that he won in Italy, Frank and his mother are struck by a drunk couple. Frank survives, but his mother dies. As an ambulance takes her away, Frank is transported to Cool World, an animated city of weird landscapes and random cartoon violence. He was inadvertently teleported by Dr. Vincent Whiskers, a doctor who created a "spike" that was supposed to take him to the real world, but brought Frank to Cool World instead. Whiskers finds Frank useful enough to run things in the Cool World while he is gone to the real world.
Forty seven years later, Jack Deebs, a cartoonist, is detained after murdering a man he found in bed with his wife. He creates the highly acclaimed comic book series Cool World, which features the femme fatale Holli Would. On the night before his release, Holli summons Jack into the Cool World, and he sees Holli dance in the local dance club. After he sees her dance, Jack is teleported back to the real world. It turns out that Holli wants to enter the real world, but is forbidden to do so by Frank, who is now a detective for the Cool World Police Department.
After he is released, Jack is transported to the Cool World once again and meets Holli and her goons Slash, Mash, Bash, and Bob. They have been encouraging his misled beliefs that he himself created the Cool World. In reality, Holli has simply been bringing him there, and Jack created his comic book series on what he's seen there, which he initially believed were his own dreams. Meanwhile, Frank is about to go on a date with his longtime girlfriend Lonette when his partner Nails the Spider tells him about Jack's presence. Holli and the Goons take Jack to the local Slash Club where Mash uses his motives persuade the bouncer Chico to let Jack into the club. While in the club, Jack is then confronted by Frank who puts him against the wall as Jack claims he has no knowledge of "drawing" Frank. While confiscating his fountain pen and stating that he is with the Cool World Police Department, Frank informs Jack that his fountain pen is a dangerous weapon in the Cool World. Frank then tells Jack the truth: Cool World has existed long before he created the comic series and forewarns him that "noids", real humans from the real world, are not allowed to have sex with "doodles", the cartoon inhabitants of the Cool World. He further advises Jack not to get involved with Holli before Jack returns to the real world.
Holli brings Jack back into the Cool World, where he is taken to Holli's apartment. Holli and Jack have sex, transforming Holli into a real human. While Frank attempts to mend his relationship with Lonette, he temporarily leaves detective duties to Nails. Nails receives a call from an informant named Sparks, who tells him that Jack and Holli have had sex and are leaving for the real world. Nails decides that he can do this on his own and goes off to stop Holli. Nails attempts to stop her from leaving the Cool World, but Holli uses Jack's fountain pen to suck Nails in. Jack and Holli return to the real world, where Holli sings "Let's Make Love" at a nightclub with Frank Sinatra, Jr.. Frank discovers that Nails is gone and decides to venture into the real world to pursue Jack and Holli. Meanwhile, Jack and Holli have started to flicker between real and doodle states. While contemplating their situation, Holli tells Jack about the "Spike of Power", an artifact placed on the top of the Union Plaza Hotel by a doodle who crossed into the real world. When Jack displays skepticism about Holli and the idea, Holli abandons him to search for the spike on her own.
Frank meets up with Jack later on, explaining that the flickering both Jack and Holli have been experiencing is the disappearance of both worlds. They decide to team up and stop Holli from removing the spike. They get Jennifer, the daughter of Jack's neighbor to drive them to the casino. On the way, Frank explains that it was Doc Whiskers who crossed worlds and put the spike on the top of the hotel and if it were removed, it could potentially destroy both the real world and the Cool World.
Holli is escorted out of the casino for not spending any money, all the while asking about Vegas Vinnie, which is the alias of Doc Whiskers. When she spots the Doc, she tells him that she could not find him. When she starts to flicker between real human and doodle state again, she begins to become suspicious and starts to see through Doc's disguise and shakes him out of it, revealing his identity. Doc tries to convince Holli not to get the Spike of Power, but Holli becomes enraged and threatens Doc Whiskers with the fountain pen. When Frank, Jack, and Jennifer get to the destination, Frank pursues Holli on the casino, while Jack and Jennifer put Doc Whiskers back together after being popped by Holli's pen. Frank chases after Holli throughout the hotel, while she's still flickering from real to doodle state. While in doodle form, Holli pushes Frank off the building to his death.
Holli finds and takes the Spike of Power, transforming her, Jack, and everyone in Vegas into doodles and opening a gateway between the two worlds, releasing numerous monstrous doodles. When Jack is transformed into a superhero doodle called Super Jack, he gets a hold of the spike. Holli tries to seduce it away from Super Jack. Instead, he returns the Spike of Power to its place trapping him, Holli, and the rest of the doodles in Cool World.
Meanwhile, Nails escapes from Holli's pen as he and Doc Whiskers return Frank's body to Cool World. Lonette discovers that Holli was a doodle when she killed Frank. She explains when a noid is killed by a doodle, he is reborn in Cool World as a doodle. Frank is then revived as a doodle, allowing him to pursue his relationship with Lonette. Meanwhile, Super Jack and Holli are last seen together in the panels of a comic book. Super Jack is planning out how they will live, much to Holli's dismay. | violence, blaxploitation | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0042895 | Rio Grande | Lt. Col. Kirby Yorke (John Wayne) is posted on the Texas frontier to defend settlers against attacks by marauding Apaches. Col. Yorke is under considerable stress between the Apaches using Mexico as a sanctuary from pursuit and by a serious shortage of troops of his command. The action of the movie is set in the summer of 1879 ("fifteen years after the Shenandoah").
Tension is added when Yorke's son (whom he hasn't seen in fifteen years), Trooper Jeff Yorke (Claude Jarman Jr.), is one of 18 recruits sent to the regiment. He had flunked out of West Point but immediately enlisted as a private in the Army. Not wanting to give any impression that he is showing favoritism towards his son, Col. Yorke ends up being harsher dealing with Jeff than the others. By his willingness to undergo any test and trial, Jeff is befriended by a pair of older recruits, Travis Tyree (Ben Johnson) (who is on the run from the law) and Daniel "Sandy" Boone (Harry Carey, Jr.), who take him under their wings.
With the arrival of Yorke's estranged wife, Kathleen (Maureen O'Hara), who has come to take the under-age Yorke home with her, further tension is added. During the war, Yorke had been forced by circumstances to burn Bridesdale, his wife's plantation home in the Shenandoah valley. Sgt. Quincannon (Victor McLaglen), who put the torch to Bridesdale, is still with Yorke and provides a constant reminder to Kathleen of the episode. In a showdown with his mother, Jeff refuses her attempt by reminding her that not only the commander's signature is required to discharge him, but his own as well, and he chooses to stay in the Army. The tension brought about in the struggle over their son's future (and possibly the attentions shown to her by Yorke's junior officers) rekindles the romance the couple once felt for each other.
Yorke is visited by his former Civil War commander, Philip Sheridan (J. Carrol Naish), now commanding general of his department. Sheridan has decided to order Yorke to cross the Rio Grande into Mexico in pursuit of the Apaches, an action with serious political implications since it violates the sovereignty of another nation.
If Yorke fails in his mission to destroy the Apache threat he faces the threat of court-martial. Sheridan, in a quiet act of acknowledgment of what he is asking Yorke to risk, promises that the members of the court will be men "who rode down the Shenandoah" with them during the Civil War. Yorke accepts the mission.
Yorke leads his men toward Mexico, only to learn that a wagonload of children from his fort, who were being taken to Ft. Bliss for safety, has been captured by the Apaches. After permitting three troopers—Tyree, Boone and Jeff—to infiltrate the church in the Mexican village where the Indians have taken the children, Yorke leads his cavalry in a full-scale attack, rescuing all of the children unharmed, though he himself is wounded. He is taken back to the fort by his victorious troops, where Kathleen meets him and holds his hand as he is carried on a travois into the post. After Yorke recovers, Tyree, Boone, Jeff and two others receive medals. At the ceremony, Tyree is given furlough to continue his run from the law, stealing Sheridan's horse for the purpose. As the troops pass in review, the movie closes. | cult | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0116714 | Johns | It's Christmas Eve and John (David Arquette) is asleep in a Los Angeles park. He awakens as someone is stealing his shoes, in which he keeps his money. He chases the thief but can't catch him. John is angered not only because those are his "lucky" sneakers but because he's trying to accumulate enough money for an overnight stay in a fancy hotel to celebrate his birthday, which is also Christmas. Each time John puts any money together, either by turning a trick, robbing the house of one of his regular "dates" or stealing from potential clients, it's taken from him either by robbery or in payback for a drug deal where he burned the dealer.
Meanwhile, Donner (Lukas Haas), a fellow hustler who's new to the streets and has fallen for John, tries to convince John to go with him to Branson, Missouri. Donner has a relative who runs a theme park there who can get them jobs. John is initially resistant to the idea but, after some particularly bad experiences, agrees to go.
John and Donner have enough money for two bus tickets to Branson but John takes one last "date" to earn money for expenses. After their sexual encounter at a motel, however, John's "date" turns violent, beating John unmercifully.
Donner goes in search of John and finds him at the motel. Donner drags John's lifeless body from the bathroom to the bed and tearfully confesses that he's the one who stole John's sneakers and money in a desperate attempt to persuade John to leave town with him. | violence, murder, romantic | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0351997 | X-Men: Next Dimension | Narrated by Patrick Stewart (reprising his role as Professor Charles Xavier from the X-Men films), the game's plot is built around the Prime Sentinels retrieving the head of Bastion, and Bastion's subsequent attempt to wipe out mutant-kind. The game opens with the Prime Sentinels freeing Bastion from S.H.I.E.L.D. imprisonment, and then disguising themselves and selling the defense plans of Professor Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters to the Brotherhood—the training grounds and home of the X-Men. The game then moves forward to Forge fighting off Mystique and Nightcrawler in a city ravaged by a Prime Sentinel invasion. The graves of Anthony Stark, Warren Worthington III, Peter Parker, and Benjamin Grimm can be seen in the background. This is revealed to be a Danger Room simulation, and the X-Men begin training their adaptivity by fighting opponents who have a tactical advantage.
During this training session, Juggernaut, and the Brotherhood of Mutants (consisting of Mystique, Toad, and Sabretooth) make their assault on the mansion. Xavier is curious as to the nature of their attack, worrying that it seems "too focused, almost like a distraction," and sends Forge to investigate the grounds. He discovers that the attack was a distraction, and that the grounds are now being patrolled by Prime Sentinels.
After attempting to fight off the Sentinels, Forge is abducted and the Brotherhood retreats. Restrained in the company of Bastion, the seemingly human Sentinel tells Forge he intends to use the man's mutant gift to bring about the extinction of mutants. He steals various weapon designs from Forge's mind, including a powerful weapon capable of stripping a mutant of their powers. In an attempt to throw the X-Men off his scent, He sends the Brotherhood to different locations across the world. The X-Men split up and engage each member in a bid to find Forge and stop the Prime Sentinel. After their defeat, the Brotherhood retreats to find Magneto in the Savage Land, only to find that Magneto has been hunted down by the Sentinels as well and is no longer in control of his fortress. The X-Men, having followed the Brotherhood, also arrive and Magneto charges the Brotherhood to fight them off long enough to convince them to join forces.
With the X-Men and the Brotherhood forming a temporary alliance, the team fights their way through a legion of Sentinels, though not without losses of their own. In the end, Magneto, Wolverine, Juggernaut and Phoenix invade the tower for the final battle with Bastion. Bastion uses Magneto's trans-mat system to transport Juggernaut away from the tower, then escapes to Asteroid M, but he is followed by a piggybacking Wolverine. Wolverine, whose healing factor was disabled by the Sentinels earlier, manages to defeat Bastion. Magneto and Phoenix arrive to help Wolverine, and Magneto prevents a weakened Bastion from escaping again. The two battle, and Magneto is defeated.
When Bastion returns to the central room, he finds Phoenix, who challenges and finally defeats him. The Prime Sentinels are disbanded, and the X-Men and the Brotherhood agree to a temporary cease-fire while the wounded are restored to health. Forge is freed and reverses the effects of his weapon, restoring everything to normal. With Bastion returned to S.H.I.E.L.D., the X-Men are free to continue training to fight for a better future.
Upon reaching the ending level of Asteroid M, the player has the chance to fight Bastion as three characters: Wolverine, then Magneto, and finally Phoenix. Whether Wolverine defeats Bastion or is defeated himself, the game proceeds to Magneto's fight with Bastion. If Magneto defeats Bastion, the finale video is simply accelerated and Phoenix does not fight Bastion. If Magneto is defeated, Bastion and Phoenix comprise the final fight of the game.
Alternate endings:
As Phoenix prepares to finish Bastion, Cyclops appears to help Phoenix. However, while they are both distracted, Bastion kills Cyclops by blasting him and leaves his lifeless body floating in space. Distraught over her husband's death, Phoenix transforms into Dark Phoenix and unleashes her fury on Bastion. Professor X detects Dark Phoenix's presence and is knocked over when Dark Phoenix destroys Asteroid M, also killing Wolverine and Magneto in the process. As Dark Phoenix flies through space, she destroys the Moon, and then turns to (presumably) destroy the Earth as well.
Juggernaut is revealed to be alive and well, but is trapped on Mars. As he is tossing a rock, it lands on his head, to which he replies "This sucks!". | good versus evil | train | wikipedia | This Game is so...........COOL!. this game is one of the best x-men games of all times. Even tough there are some characters that are rubbish, but there are some characters that rock! like for example...Rogue-Good-she is super strong and when you play her you don't realise that it knocks out at a lot of your enemy's energy. Also she has a special move to restore her energy a little bit and suck out the energy from the enemy. Rogue is one of the examples of the best characters like: Wolerine, Beast, Gambit, Dark Phonix and of course Rogue.Forge-Bad-I hate Forge, that worst character i know. His moves are not made to make a combo unless your in a 'air seek'. In Story mode he is the first person to play and the most difficult to play. When i was fighting Nightcrawler, i died first time doing it. (i thought that when you on any mode, it has to start easy, then harder and harder as you go on through the game) Forge is one of the examples of the worst characters like: Sentiel A (to slow).But there are 'ok' characters like: Storm, Phonix, Mystique, Lady Deathstike, Havok, Cyclops, Betsy and Magento.It's a 7/10 with me and I'm only just a teenager!. X-Men Next Dimension criteria. X-Men Next Dimension is the best head to head battle game I have ever played. I think Gambit, Wolverine, or Cyclops are the best fighters.The Sentinels are hard to defeat, but you will defeat them sooner or later (about 80 rounds later). Forge is the hardest to use because his moves are mostly based on his plasma cannon.If you can, try putting Wolverine against Sabertooth and see how that battle turns out. Wolverine or Sabertooth will probably crash through a door, a wall, or a window.Gambit has his own unique fighting style because he uses his energy powered stick. It is most painful to watch when he jams it through his opponent's heart.Great game with a great story. I give this game a 90% |
tt3072546 | Santa Diabla | Santa Diabla is the story of Santa Martínez (Gaby Espino), a woman who seeks revenge for the murder of her husband Willy Delgado (Lincoln Palomeque). Santa's revenge includes marrying Humberto Cano (Carlos Ponce), a powerful attorney in Marrero. Humberto hired Willy Delgado to give piano lessons to Humberto's niece Daniela Milan (Ana Osorio) at the Cano family's home, until Bárbara Cano (Wanda D'Isidoro), Daniela's mother and Humberto's sister, accused Willy of harassment and attempted rape of her daughter. Blaming the Canos for the unjust death of her husband, Santa intends to destroy the Cano family, but as she tries to complete her mission, she meets and falls in love with Santiago Cano (Aarón Díaz), Humberto and Bárbara's brother. Although Humberto portrays the evil brother throughout much of the story, toward the end it is uncovered that he was doing things to help hide the fact that Santiago Cano was really the evil brother. Santiago's mental disease (dissociative identity disorder) causes him to kill people at will and he exhibits strong psychopathy. He wishes to make Santa his wife by force and the truth finally comes out when people find out it is Santiago who is behind the many murders in Marrero County. Santiago had planned to make his way into Santa's life when he and Willy crossed paths in prison and he found a picture of Santa. Flashbacks recall that everything Santiago ever did was calculating and caniving. In the end Santa chooses Humberto despite the fact that people think he is evil (she knows he has been the good guy the entire time). Humberto is killed by Santiago and Santa never tells him that she becomes pregnant with his child. Barbara Cano and her mother live as prisoners in the family mansion for the rest of their days since Barbara cannot go anywhere since her face becomes scarred by Alicia "La Diabla" Cano, the daughter given up by the Canos several years earlier. Alicia goes to prison for killing Barbara's husband, George, and it is unclear if Willy is willing to wait for Alicia (although he really loves her). Santiago is placed in a mental asylum and it is left unclear if he escapes. | revenge, suspenseful | train | wikipedia | awful story.
when this story started it was entertaining, kept my attention for a little while, then it turned into a "culebron".
The story makes no sense, nobody works in this story.
i still don't know how Santa Diabla eats.
don't understand her motives for so much rage.
this Telenovela has turn out to be a complete disaster.
i will not be wasting my time with this Telenovela the only interesting thing is Carlos Ponce (humberto)then the rest can go away.As it can be truth that you don't know what is going to happen, when things happens then you feel you are watching a whole bunch of bad actors in an action movie.
Santa throwing a lot of punches like a mad woman.
this is horrible i can't wait until this awful things is over.please people make soap-opera that make sense..
All has gone downhill.
As stated by other reviewers, the plot in the beginning was intriguing and started off well because of its potential.
However, everything has gone downhill, which is a disgrace to viewers who have invested themselves for so long.
What the writer seems to be promoting is that it is OK to be evil and kill.
Sure we must forgive, but some sins really do not have forgiveness.
How can you kill your own father and be promoted as the good guy?
The total switch in plot towards the end has always caused much of the acting to lack passion and connection.
This novela is pure tragedy in my opinion.
No one in the family seems to be in the right mental state of mind.
While some people like the suspense that this story brings, who truly looks forward to seeing all kinds of evil prevail?.
Santa Diabla Story Development Massacre.
I have to say that what started as a well written telenovela (Santa Diabla) with an intriguing plot and story line, has become one of the worst novela's I have ever seen.
Did the writers get hit in the head?
Did they draw a blank and just try to stretch out the novela and just came up with the utterly most ridiculous story development script that make absolutely no sense and are ridiculous.It's a travesty that viewers are engaged in the beginning with good writing and good story line, however, this novela spiraled downhill.
It's a shame.
It's all over the place.
None of the characters or the stories are consistent, tie well into each other, makes sense.
IT IS FAR FROM CONSISTENT.
So many inconsistencies.
It's horrible.
Really horrible.I will not watch another novela by the same writers since it is obvious that it turns into a huge disappointment.
How can producers and director's allow such garbage to be written as we have been painfully subjected to these past two and a half months.
Truthfully, it's anti-climatic with no desire to even watch the last episodes.As a writer, I can say that writing has to be consistent, intriguing, a compelling story line, one that engages the readers/viewers, not one where the majority of viewers are so disgusted over how the script and plot has taken a dive off a cliff.Sad, very sad.
I would have hoped, like a good and well written book or story line, that the past 6 months I have been watching Santa Diabla had not turned out to be such a waste of time.
Guess it was..
Ending is so confusing.
As much as this novella needed to end, the ending had more questions than answers...does this mean they plan on a sequel?
I mean, watching this was like reading the 'Flowers In The Attic' series by V.C. Andrews.
Was that the writer's intent?
I have never been so disappointed with a Spanish novella the way I was with this one.
I look forward to the happy endings or at least something that makes sense.
I thought Dona Barbara was bad...at least there was some consistency...this one takes the award for the most confusing plot and worst endings.
I feel they should make this right by clarifying all in a sequel maybe showing 15 years having passed....
Great Story; But Too Many Plot-holes.
Santa Diabla is a very entertaining telenovela.
Its concept and themes are very intriguing, exciting, and full of suspense.
However, there is a great number of plot-holes and inconsistencies.
Santa Diabla is not the typical telenovela with a defined beginning, middle, and end.
One of the best things about Santa Diabla is that the viewers never really know what is going to happen.
That is what makes this telenovela so exciting and so intriguing.
The suspense is always there, but sometimes it is killed with really dumb and inconsistent solutions to the characters' problems/struggles.
The way the story has been developed has been full of plot-holes, especially when introducing new characters, or bringing others from the death (i.e. Willy).
The connection made between characters are very odd and weird and inconsistent with the telenovela's story.
While it is still a very entertaining and exciting telenovela, Santa Diabla lacks in character and story development.
Throughout the episodes there are many inconsistencies that do not satisfy the solutions to the characters' problems.
Although weak in development, it is still an enjoyable telenovela. |
tt0287537 | Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega | A story about a troubled young businessman, Prakash (Saif Ali Khan). He is married to Sapna (Sonali Bendre), who is the daughter of famous rich businessman, Rajiv Chopra (Dalip Tahil). Rajiv Chopra totally hates Prakash, and troubles him all the time. Prakash, who is fed up of being troubled by Chopra, then makes a plan to get Sapna kidnapped to make Rajiv Chopra feel the way he does. He hires two broke strugglers, Rahul (Fardeen Khan) and Harry (Aftab Shivdasani) who are to be fake kidnappers and kidnap Sapna.
The plan rides successfully, and Chopra believes every bit of it. Rahul and Harry demand Rs.1 crores as the ransom money, and the fooled Chopra agrees to pay. As the ransom money has been paid, Rahul and Harry set Sapna free and leave her in a forest, which is also part of Prakash's plan. Prakash arrives at the forest to pick up Sapna, however he realizes that she has been kidnapped again but this time by real kidnappers. This crime caper soon turns into one hilarious joy ride! | comedy, murder | train | wikipedia | What is this?. Love Ke Liye Kuch Be Karega While I was roaming around at the video store, I happened to find this in the new releases section. I first took a look at the cast list and was quite impressed with the star list. With names like Sonali Bendre, Aftab, Fardeen Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Twinkle Khanna, and Dilip Tahil, I was amazed to see a multistarrer of such proportions. What really excited me, however, was the director. E. Niwas who had directed the flawless Shool a year and half ago was also directing this film. I immediately rented this one out with high expectations. And, to say the least, I'm not really disappointed, though it could've been better. Story: Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega sums up the entire story line. Starting out with hilarious narration by Paresh Rawal, we learn the problems of the main protaginists and their stories. Sapna (Sonali Bendre) is a really bad artist, but Prakash (Saif Ali Khan) has fallen in love with her for the money. They wed and Prakash gets everything he wants, except respect from his baoji (Dilip Tahil), Rajiv Kapoor, a wealthy industrialist. He plans a new website, but is unable to get funding from Rajiv. Meanwhile, Rahul (Fardeen Khan) is already in love with Anjali (Twinkle Khanna), but is unable to hold onto a steady job, and thus is unable to pay the rent for his apartment, owned by Anjali's Tamil-speaking father. Rahul lives with Harry (Aftab), a lazy man who wants to become rich without working. And so begins the story. Somehow, fate conspires and brings Rahul and Harry to Prakash, where Prakash devises a plan to get money. It involves kidnapping Sapna, and holding her ransom to get money from Rajiv. Each have their own uses for the money. Prakash to start a new business and earn respect. Rahul to get a job (one which requires a bribe) and to pay off the landlord. Harry to travel the world and pay off Aslam Bhai (Johnny Lever), the local chor, who wants to become an actor some day.The story is quite interesting and compelling, but inside all the pretty wrappings, it comes down to a "man wants to marry woman, but father disagrees" story. Still, the story is pretty interesting and makes the movie fun to watch, with a bunch of twists thrown in for good measure. Rating: 7/10Acting: LKLKBK comes out quite well in this department. With a multistarrer cast, one would expect it to excell, however. Twinkle Khanna is given almost nothing to do, other than look pretty. Sonali Bendre is ok, but all she does is whine and cry (and look pretty). Saif surprised me. I usually dislike his acting, but his comic timing in this movie was great. He was especially memorable in the scene where he tries to fake sadness and anguish. Fardeen Khan is pretty good, playing the part of a man in need of a job convincingly. Aftab, however, is the big surprise of the movie. After seeing him in Kasoor, I couldn't expect a good comic performance from him. How wrong I was. Aftab is extremely funny in this movie, with a more subtle humor than one would expect in a typical film. And Aftab along with Fardeen make an extremely funny team throughout the movie. Johnny Lever is also funny in his parts, especially his acting scenes and his meetings with Aaj Kapoor. Dilip is, of course, great as the objectional father, and is funny at times. Rating: 9/10Direction/Technical editing The direction is excellent, with scenes flowing extremely well. E. Niwas has proved his excellence as a solo director, ready to take on the previous greats of Bollywood. However, the editing is a little weak. Some of Johnny Lever's scenes are a tad longer than required, and other scenes are a tad short. Rating: 9/10Songs: If LKLKBK has a weak point, this is it. The songs, composed by Vishal Bhardwaj are boring, and most are worth skipping. The picturization for a few songs are good, but nothing new. The only song worth watching is Aslam Bhai, both for its picturization, and its fun lyrics. Rating: 5/10Favorite Scenes This movie has several great scenes, but three really stick out as the most hilarious: The Sonali kidnapping scene, the Saif crying scene, and the Aslam Bhai "acting mechanics" scene. Also, for some reason, the scenes where the landlord keeps switching between Hindi and Tamil (between Fardeen and his family) is fun to watch. Rating: 10/10DVD review This is where the film (not necessarily the movie) truly faultors. The DVD is pure BS. Sure, it has the standard Hindi movie features of song and chapter menus and subtitles, along with an extremely fun-loving "Making of..." feature, but Video Sound needs to learn how to make DVDs that people will enjoy. You see, the problem is that when you start the DVD up, you have to sit through ads. 10 minutes of ads! And, to make it worse, they're all the same. Half are ads for Tum Bin, and the other half for Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ka. They're not even midly entertaining to watch once, and watching them everytime you start the movie is absolutely rediculous. They're impossible to skip over, even after trying all possible tricks to get p a s s e d it. Thus, I can only recommend this DVD for a rent, and nothing close to a purchase (unless you have that much patience). Rating: 2/10Overall: This is a great movie to watch a few times. It's extremely funny with more intelligent humor than your average movie (similar to Hera Pheri in that aspect). Not a movie to be missed, but I would recommend leaving this in the store due to the horrendous DVD. Rating of movie (not an average): 8.3 Rating of movie with DVD (not an average): 7.1. Funny and ahead at it's times. In 2001, Bollywood mostly had comedies which were slapstick and overacting, This film however had a subtle type of comedy meant for multiplex audiences something which could work today. The film did reasonably well perhaps but could be better in today's times. The film had a not so appealing cast for that time too The film is a remake of Money(1993) Telugu film. It starts off quite slowly but picks up well, the introduction by Paresh Rawal(who played the lead in the original too) is well handled, Characters are well fleshed out mostly though the girls get hardly much to do. Johny's comedy track is superb, though his track does lengthen too much in the second half. The film also gets lengthy at times but yet it's a funny film to watchDirection E Niwas after SHOOl is superb Music is okay, Aslam Bhai being the best song rest are okay though too many songs at timesAmongst actors The show belongs to Johny Lever, he plays Aslam Bhai superbly, thankfully no overacting, sadly which he does mostly Aftab Shivdasani in his first comic act perhaps is good in his role His scenes with Johny are good Fardeen Khan is decent, those days he was quite raw in emotions Saif Ali Khan is superb in comedy, especially in the mirror scene His next film was DIL CHAHTA HAI which changed it all Sonali Bendre and Twinkle Khanna get less scope and are okay Dalip Tahil,Sharat Saxena are good rest are okay Snehal Dabii as Aaj Kapoor is hilarious though. Sucks..ripped off Fargo. the movie sucks and is unoriginal... copied off Fargospoilers in the movie Fargo, the wife dies and everything falls apart in the Indian version, everything ends up swellthe basic premise of a man who needs money marrying a woman with a rich father and hiring kidnappers to "kidnap" his wife is the same...when will Bollywood realize that it cannot copy American movies and get away with it?? This movie is worth skipping and definitely not worth watching. There are better Indian movies such as Baazigar and Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke. |
tt0965375 | Breaking Point | Harry Morgan (John Garfield), is a sport-fishing boat captain whose business is on the skids and whose family is feeling the economic pinch. He begins to work with a shady lawyer, Duncan (Wallace Ford), who persuades him to run illegal immigrants into California. Harry also begins a flirtation with Leona Charles (Patricia Neal). When his plan with Duncan goes wrong, Harry comes even more under the influence of the lawyer, who blackmails him into helping the escape of a gang of crooks, who pull a racetrack heist, by using his fishing boat to get away from authorities. Harry convinces himself that his illegal activities will financially help his family. His wife, Lucy (Phyllis Thaxter), suspects Harry is breaking the law and urges him to stop for the sake of the family. Harry refuses and walks out.
As Harry waits for Duncan and the crooks on his boat, Harry's partner, Wesley Park (Juano Hernandez), arrives. Not wanting Wesley around when the crooks arrive, Harry tries to send him on an errand. The crooks arrive before Wesley leaves, and kill him. Harry is horrified, but is forced at gunpoint to transport the crooks out to open sea without drawing the attention of the Coast Guard. Harry also learns that Duncan was killed during the escape from the heist. Wesley's body is dumped overboard along with Harry's only firearm. Harry uses a ploy to access a gun and kills all the crooks in a dramatic shoot out.
Harry, however, is critically wounded. Authorities find his boat the next day and tow it to port. Lucy rushes to Harry's side and tries to convince Harry to allow his arm to be amputated to save his life. Harry reaffirms his love for Lucy and is taken to the hospital. In the final scene, Wesley's son, who was briefly introduced earlier in the film, stands alone on the dock looking around for his father. | murder | train | wikipedia | Thrilled crime-drama, but not "enough" worth..
Breaking Point (showed as Order of Redemption in my cable-TV) was the crime drama movie which could make everyone go to the deepest of darkness.
The movie blasted viewers with violence, drugs, and especially, women's abusive which more than a half of women in the world could disgust this film.
The plot is good in the side of drama, how the protagonist fight with his cruel past and the "bad bad" drug.
I have to credit Tom Berenger for his performance in drama scenes.
Rather than showing himself the "war-hero" as in his many films, Berenger was very good in expressing Steven Luisi a very poor character.
Although, in the other part, I think he was just "an old man" with nothing special.
But the things that I was very surprise is the acting of Busta Rhymes.
I had to praise him for his outstanding role which could made him advances to "Hall of Shame" (Shame just means antagonists).
Every time he was shown on the screen, he could make "Al Bowen" to be the "over-the-top" nasty mobster.
I believe that, as long as his character exists, everyone will want to "break him into pieces".
For other casts, Sticky Fingaz could made me pity with his fate.
He was pretty good with the climax scene.
Armand Assante is also well-done for his arrogant dubious "Marty Berlin".
However, I think the film crew cannot come out right with the mix of violence and drama sides which is the drawbacks of Breaking Point.
They boost too much violence only to sell bad guys' role.
Another thing is that the last scene is too silly and needless.
As overall, this movie is OK for shaking your heart and make you wondering "how the world is so bad", but it doesn't make me pleased as the worth- watching movie..
I don't know why this is rated so low.
True it's closer to 7 than 8, but come on, how amazing a movie did people expect from Berenger and Busta?
7 out of 10 is a huge accomplishment for them, so I say 8.That said, they actually may have given their best performances ever in this film.
Somehow Assante was at the lower end of the performance calibre.
He does alright I guess, but it's Armand Assante, decent is his minimum.
Sticky Fingaz is pretty decent too.I can't stress enough the amazing job old Tom Berenger comes up with, I assume good direction helped, but you really feel for his character, just as on the flip side, Busta Rhymes does a bang up job getting you to hate his character, I wanted to end him seconds into his appearance, and more every second thereafter.The story and direction etc are all decent, certainly above average compared to what one would expect.It's only fair to note that towards the end of the movie, the quality declines a bit, I guess they spent too much time making the rest of it as good as they could, and they had to rush.
Whatever, I was pleasantly surprised, I enjoyed the movie for the most part, you probably will too..
Interesting but Confusing.
I couldn't resist the thought of Busta Rhymes, Armand Assante, and Tom Berenger all acting in the same movie, so I just had to rent it.I found the plot of the film pretty confusing, so pardon me if I describe something incorrectly.
Berenger plays a cocaine-addicted attorney who has a beef with the D.A., played by Assante.
Busta Rhymes, meanwhile, is a tough-guy gangster who has a thug (Sticky Fingaz) that seems to be working to stop him.
If I could get more specific, I would.Like I said, the plot was confusing.
I didn't understand how the two stories came together, but I was interested nonetheless.
The plot was compelling, and the characters made it worth watching.The acting was remarkably good.
Berenger does a really great job, I cared about his character and found him the most interesting of the group.
Busta turns in a very good performance as a total scumbag.
He was definitely hateable.
Sticky Fingaz and Armand Assante round out the main cast, with equally memorable roles.Ultimately "Breaking Point" was a bit confusing but compelling.
You'll like it if you don't go in expecting too much..
Busta Is Brutal.
Overwritten and Overwrought City Crime Movie that tries to be way too much.
Rapper Busta Rhymes Steals the Show and is a Monster on Screen from the Brutal Beginning.
His Gang is Reprehensible and Responsible for the Movie's Needlessly Thick Story, Characters, and Plot.
They Deserved Better because their Vile Existence is Placed in this Otherwise Sappy Screenplay.Tom Berenger is Miscast as a Shrinking Lawyer that Carries a Depressing and Despair of a Past throughout the Movie that Weighs the Thing Down and is the Film's Biggest Misstep.
The Courtroom Scenes and Political Corruption are also Weak and that is Deadly Considering the Movie Decides to make that its Central Conceit.Worth a View for some Very Disturbing Gang Related Behavior and a Fittingly Down-Beat Tone, but it All is Overdone and Smothered by its Lesser Failures and the Heavy-Handed, almost TV-Drama Pedestrianism..
This film was far better than I expected.
I rented it from Red Box on the way home just to have something on while I was doing something else, but the intensity of the scenes kept grabbing my attention until I relented, and sat down to watch it.
Busta was a straight-up monster in this film and demanded my attention and props.
Even in his comedic rap lyrics he has always given off an angry vibe; this was the perfect vehicle to express that rage.
He was genuinely scary and I haven't thought that of a character in a long time.
Berenger held his own in the role of a washed up semi-x-junkie lawyer, but because the character wasn't that interesting the actor didn't have much to work with; other notable (supporting) performances where Richard Allen as "Sticky Fingaz" and Frankie Faison as Judge Green..
Nope, pretty bad..
Flickers of sophistication.
Otherwise, too long, too sentimental, too unselfconsciously overplayed.
Berenger almost pulls off the sympathetic broken man character, but without enough cheap action to prop him up, he pretty much melts into the part.
The premise is stock standard enough that a brainless monkey should be able to make a movie around it, but the script is so unbelievable, and oddly structured (moments of grainy flashback flicker sporadically through the plot, gradually advancing an all too obvious and predictable back story), with characters introduced in tossed-off, sitcom-ish scenes, never to reappear again, that its hard to get through more than a scene or two without groaning.
Still, there are flares of inspiration - or rather, imitation with skill.
But they are transitory moments - literally.
As my first English teacher said when she was looking for something nice to say about one of my essays: "Good transitions!".
A good thriller underrated, and by whom?.
Giving this film a 4.8 out of 362 spectators: is this some kind of bad joke?This is a good gripping thriller with good acting especially by Busta Rhymes who is really frightening in his scenes.
Well done.I am not a rap fan, don't know nothing about rap, etc...
Deserves a 7 minimum of minima.Well done.Giving this film a 4.8 out of 362 spectators: is this some kind of bad joke?This is a good gripping thriller with good acting especially by Busta Rhymes who is really frightening in his scenes.
Well done.I am nota rap fan, don't know nothing about rap, etc...
don't like it too much, maybe I don't understand it, I don't know these people, so my appreciation is straightforward.
don't like it too much, maybe I don't understand it, I don't know these people, so my appreciation is straightforward.
Deserves a 7 minimum of minima.Well done..
very very good film, i'll tell you why.
Just watched Breaking Point, and i have to say its a great movie.
It really grabs your attention from the start, making the viewer feel involved in the storyline.
I love a film that makes you hang on the actor/s every word when trying to grasp the situation.
Also, i was impressed with the acting of both rappers Busta rhymes and Sticky Fingaz.
Busta was actually a very good villain in this picture.
All the actors proved very sincere and honest.Another plus is the way the story is interconnected between characters, which never leaves a boring dull moment.
Which is why i am disappointed that this film was given such a low rating.
I even made this account just now to write my review on it :)Oh and not to forget...the composer and music soundtrack should really get a lot of the credit.
If your a Scorsese buff like me who appreciates the right sound for the right visual.
This is definitely worth the time to watch.
Conclusion:No cheesy comedy included (thank you Mr. director) Musetta Vander was beautiful, Craig muMs Grant (who was Poet in the prison drama Oz) was a nice added touch and Armand Assante had a somewhat "Al Pacino" quality in his performance.That's All Folks!!!
If your into crime thrillers that involve some law enforcement mixed with psychological game play; this is definitely a treat.
Better than expected.
Better than expected.
Better than expected.
Even Busta Rhymes actually fits the bill.
It's not just a rapper in costume, he actually has something to do.
Mr. Fingaz (from Onyx fame, if anybody remembers) is not as good, but holds his own.
Of course you also get "real" actors in it.
One of them being Berenger.
And while he is bloated (weight wise), he still has some charisma left to hold and star in a movie.Don't get me wrong this isn't great by far, but it is really entertaining with some nice action scenes and a story that might be trying too hard, but still has some punches left.
Armand Assante is almost theatrical (especially towards the end), but he works too.
If you like these sort of movies, you might be enticed to watch it.
In no way great but quite OK..
There's nothing new about "Breaking Point" and, in the end, it's pretty predictable.
But I'm a huge fan of both Tom Berenger and Armand Assante, two very decent actors who haven't gotten a decent film role in ages.
Straight to DVD is what we mostly get from these guys (though I believe this film had a short theatrical run a month prior to it's DVD release) and they vary considerably in quality.
But I was somewhat excited about "Breaking Point", despite starring Busta Rhymes.As a drama piece; you get somewhat involved into the plight of disgraced attorney Steven Luisi's (Berenger) attempt to defend an innocent man accused of murdering his girlfriend and baby.
Throw into the mix a very nasty killer (Rhymes) and a dubious district attorney (Assante) and you get a fairly shallow but reasonably action packed drama piece about redemption in the face of much corruption and back stabbings.The problem here is the script relies too much on clichés.
This could easily be a double episode in an above average TV legal show and in particular the bad dialog hurts the film.
That said, the inevitable twist here (though fairly predictable) is reasonable enough and doesn't come completely out of left field.As for performances; Berenger has perfected his brooding skills and overall he gives a very good performance here.
His character is somewhat underwritten and given a very clichéd back story.
Some potentially good sequences, such as him attending a meeting discussing his drug addiction or a further flesh-out of his relationship with Musetta Vander, would have given us better insight into his character but never appear.
Assante is given fairly little to do but he's always a forceful presence and manages to squeeze in a solid performance.
As for Rhymes; well, he's a lot more tolerable here than in "Halloween: Resurrection", that's for sure.
In fact; he's quite OK."Breaking Point" won't stay long in your memory but it's a decent enough way to spend and hour and a half.
Berenger once again proves he's worthy of good roles and Assante should be given the benefit of the doubt as well..
Really not impressed.
I was not impressed with this movie.
If a movie doesn't catch my attention in the first 30 minutes I won't watch the rest.
It started out violent and I had no idea what the plot even was.
All I saw was violence, murder, and drug abuse but no real substance.
I didn't finish it.
Even the people I was watching it with didn't get the point of the movie either.
I was expecting something great out of it though the actors in the film were not names which with I was familiar.
Fighting for truth and justice are good causes, but I only saw that in the plot synopsis.
I guess it takes a while into the movie to finally get the idea that is what is going on..
The Ratings are Accurate for a Reason.
I read the reviews here before renting at Redbox.
Berenger hasn't always disappointed and I thought it might be worth a shot.
I was wrong.
I should have believed the ratings and reviews here.
The only reason I didn't rate it "awful" is that the camera was on tripod and didn't jerk around.
The cinematographer was able to frame some pretty scenery of New York.
Other than that, I don't have a lot to offer in the way of kinds words.No story, no hook to keep you involved, a mish-mash of fade-backs that are so subtle they are confusing.
To say it is clichéd would be to say it is the difference between chicken salad and chicken scratch.I don't know how it ended.
I could only stand 30 minutes of it before I decided my life was draining away watching it.Stay with the Hit Movies and Top 20 at Redbox.
The rest of them are bombs waiting to go off in your DVD player..
You may reach your breaking point watching this "film".
I'm not a big fan of the extent to which flashbacks are used in films nowadays.
They have their place, but they are often overdone.
Here, the flashbacks are so frequent that they're practically tripping over each other.
I had difficulty figuring out what role some of the actors were playing (for example, Armand Assante was the D.A....ah, okay...glad somebody cleared that up).
The director's -- Jeff Celentano -- first film project was called "dickwad"; somehow that seems appropriate.Another problem in this film is that there is no character to like and root for.
Busta Rhymes is an apparent psychopathic baby killer.
Tom Berenger is an addicted lawyer.
Only that we hate baby killers even more than we hate guys addicted to cocaine gives one any pretense to root for one of the characters.
Maybe we could root a little for the character played by Sticky Fingaz.The opening segment, where a prostitute's baby is thrown out of an upstairs apartment window is excessively brutal.
Really, couldn't we do a little better than that?
There was a time when I really enjoyed Tom Berenger as an actor.
He hasn't aged well (age 60 when this film was shot, and it shows).
Frankly, too old for the role of an attorney as portrayed in this film.Busta Rhymes as an actor?
No thank you.
Stick with your strength -- rap music -- at which you are very good.Armand Assante has not aged well, either.
He was 59 when this was filmed, and frankly there were points at which I found him difficult to understand.Sticky Fingaz shows promise as an actor.In terms of the plot...again...very confusing at points.
Perhaps the last 15-20 minutes (minus the very end) were pretty good.The one thing I thought was quite good about this film -- although it's hardly a reason one attends a movie -- the photography was gritty in a very good way.I'm sorry I wasted 97 minutes watching this. |
tt0483437 | Still Life | Still Life is set in Fengjie, a city upstream of the massive Three Gorges Dam. Now marked for flooding, the city undergoes a process of self-deconstruction. Into this dying town comes Han Sanming, a coal-miner from the province of Shanxi who has returned in search of a wife who ran away sixteen years ago. Upon arriving, he asks a local motorcyclist to drive him to his former address on "Granite Street." The driver takes him to the river bank, revealing that his entire neighborhood has been flooded since the building of the dam. After a failed attempt to obtain his wife's information from the local municipal office, Han Sanming settles into a local hotel. Sanming's next stop is a rickety boat owned by his wife's elder brother. The brother informs Sanming that his wife and daughter (the real reason for his return) work downriver in Yichang but that if he remains in the city, they will eventually return there.
Sanming then befriends a local teen, Brother Mark, who helps him get a job with his demolition crew. Together, the two spend their days tearing down buildings.
The film then cuts to a second story with the arrival of Shen Hong, a nurse. Shen Hong's husband, Guo Bin had left their home in Shanxi two years earlier and had made only token attempts to keep in contact. She eventually enlists the help of one of her husband's friends, Wang Dongming, who lets her stay at his home as the two seek Guo Bin. Shen Hong discovers that Guo Bin had become a fairly successful businessman in Fengjie. Dongming refuses to answer whether Guo Bin has another girl on the side, though Shen Hong later finds out her husband is indeed having an affair with his wealthy investor. When Guo Bin and Shen Hong at last meet, she simply walks away. As her husband pursues her, she tells him that she has fallen in love with someone else and wishes to divorce. When he asks with whom and when she had fallen in love, she responds, "Does it really matter?"
The film then cuts back to Sanming for the final third. He has been working at demolishing buildings for some time when Brother Mark is fatally injured in a collapse of a wall (or perhaps he was murdered during a "job" contracted out by Guo Bin to gather a gang of youths to intimidate the inhabitants of a rival piece of real estate). Soon afterwards, his brother-in-law calls informing him that his wife, Missy Ma has returned. Sanming and Missy then meet. Sanming asks why she left him, to which she answers, "I was young, what did I know?" She tells him that their daughter works further south, and that she works for a boat-owner essentially as an indentured servant due to her brothers debt. Sanming attempts to take his ex-wife with him, but is informed that he will have to pay 30,000 RMB to cover the debt. He promises to do so, and makes the decision to head back to Shanxi to work in the mines. His new friends and coworkers announce that they will be following, but Sanming reminds them of the intensely dangerous nature of the work. The film ends as Sanming prepares to depart. | murder | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0398375 | Rumor Has It... | In 1997, Sarah Huttinger, an obituary and wedding announcement writer for The New York Times, travels to Pasadena, California, for her sister Annie's wedding, accompanied by her fiancé Jeff Daly. At a pre-wedding party, Sarah learns from her grandmother Katharine that her mother Jocelyn ran off to Cabo San Lucas to spend time with her prep school classmate Beau Burroughs the week before her wedding to Sarah's father Earl. Jeff points out Sarah's parents were married just short of nine months before her birth, leading her to wonder if Beau might really be her biological father. Sarah also discovers her grandmother might have been the inspiration for Mrs. Robinson, an infamous character in the novel The Graduate.
After the wedding, determined to find out more about Beau and her mother's past, Sarah decides to fly to San Francisco, where Beau, now a highly successful and very wealthy Silicon Valley Internet wizard, is addressing a seminar. She meets him; and he admits to the affair but assures Sarah he couldn't be her father because he suffered blunt testicular trauma while playing in a high school soccer game and, as a result, is sterile. The two go out for drinks, and the following morning Sarah wakes up in Beau's bed in his Half Moon Bay home.
Although guilt-stricken by her behavior, Sarah allows Beau to convince her to be his date at a charity ball, where she meets Beau's son Blake. Beau explains his wife wanted a biological child and was artificially inseminated to become pregnant. Mollified, Sarah kisses Beau and is caught by Jeff, who has returned to California to find her. Following an ensuing argument, Jeff leaves her. Dejected, Sarah returns to visit Katharine, who flies into a rage when she learns Beau has slept with her granddaughter. The two learn Annie suffered an anxiety attack while flying to her honeymoon and wants to talk to Sarah. Sarah tells her sister about the relationship three generations of Richelieu women have had with Beau. She reassures Annie she truly is in love with her husband, Scott, and in doing so realizes she's ready to marry Jeff.
It is also revealed that Earl was the one who accidentally caused Beau's testicular trauma. This makes Beau somewhat nervous to be around Earl, though Katherine is quite pleased by the revelation. Earl reveals to Sarah he always knew about Jocelyn and Beau's affair. Despite Beau being a fling for her, Jocelyn returned to Earl because she loved him and he was someone with whom she could build a life. On the night she returned, Sarah was conceived. This explained the date difference between her birthday and her parents' wedding.
Determined to win Jeff back, Sarah returns to New York City and tells her fiancé about her feelings. They reconcile on the condition, if they ever have a daughter, she would not be allowed anywhere near Beau. The film ends with Sarah and Jeff's wedding. | romantic, humor, cute, boring | train | wikipedia | Jennifer Aniston plays Sarah Huttinger, a journalist about to get married to her boyfriend (Mark Ruffalo) when she's called back to Pasadena for her sister's wedding.
There, she meets millionaire playboy Beau Burroughs (Kevin Costner) who had relations with both her mother and grandmother, an incident that might have influenced the '60s movie "The Graduate." "Rumor Has It" is a lackluster film from Jennifer Aniston that fails to take advantage of its interesting premise.
The idea was fun, to meet the real characters that inspired "The Graduate" and, in fact, the best moment is the confrontation between Mrs. Robinson (Shirley MacLaine) and Benjamin (Kevin Costner) There is a lavish party and some spectacular travelogues of Northern California but Jennifer Aniston, my dear, take a sabbatical.
The movie derails every now and then and the whole 'romantic' angle between Costner's Beau and Aniston's Sarah feels icky and looks unconvincing.
The truth about "Rumor" - it stinks.How could a film with such an enticing premise and talented cast go so horribly awry?When I first heard the idea for "Rumor Has It...," I thought what an interesting concept: A newly-engaged young woman, Sarah Huttinger (Jennifer Aniston), comes to Pasadena, Calif., for her sister Annie's (Mena Suvari) wedding and realizes her family was the inspiration for Charles Webb's novel, "The Graduate," which Mike Nichols turned into a landmark film in 1967.In addition to Aniston and Suvari, you toss in Shirley MacLaine (as the potential Mrs. Robinson), Mark Ruffalo, Richard Jenkins, Kathy Bates and, of course, Kevin Costner (as Benjamin Braddock all grown up).So why does "Rumor Has It..." stink?Because it just isn't funny.
Sarah goes off without her fiancé in search of her mother's past, but finds a past of her own, of a sort.Lots of twists and turns in the film have the characters racing up and down the coast of California in search of the past, the future, and the truth, which ends up being both expected and unexpected in this complicated but easily-followed plot.There aren't major effects and major surprises here.
I'd rather they re-release truly original, inspired films like the ones they mar than throw them in a blender and see what hodge-podge comes out.Jennifer Aniston deserves a nod for flailing discreetly in the wimpy script and for acting like she even wanted to stand near Kevin Cosner, who has all the sexual magnetism of a dry flounder.The movie-- if it does anything-- does one thing, it proves Shirley McClain's got it and she can fake it even when given a bad script.
It's pretty creative to have that story and characters intertwined with the narrative of this movie.In this Jennifer Aniston vehicle (is it always that the wives of more famous husbands get meatier roles when they break up?), she plays an obituary writer (another fashionable job since Jude Law became one in Closer) Sarah Huttinger, who's the fiancée of Jeff Daly (Mark Ruffalo).
However, she's commitment phobic and is getting cold feet each time Jeff brings up marriage, and it doesn't help that they're attending her sister's (Mena Suvari), therefore meeting her dad (Richard Jenkins) and other relatives she can't get along with.But rumor after rumor, and having realize that her deceased mother had gone for a fling before her own marriage, Sarah begins an investigative hunt into those (un)faithful days, and with probing for more information from her grandma Katharine (Shirley MacLaine), she discovers Beau Burroughs (Kevin Costner), the man whom Dustin Hoffman's Ben was modeled after.
All eyes though will be on Jennifer Aniston, as her character has certain takes on relationships that cut a little close to her real life split and how she moved on.It's a movie which you think the trailers had revealed all, but trust me, it delivered a lot more than what the trailers suggested.
But I loved this one, it was new and fresh; a different kind of romantic comedy told differently.Jennifer also has been in many other "Non Rachel" movies such as "The Good Girl "Rockstar" "Derailed", and "The Object of my affection.
I liked Kevin Cosnter personally, he was great and perfect for the role.I laughed so hard during this film, and saw it 3 times in threatres.
I like the twists and turns in the movie and I have always enjoyed Kevin Costner and Jennifer Aniston.
Jennifer Aniston looks ugly, Kevin Costner is mediocre in this movie (for an actor of his caliber), and the only saving grace of the movie could have been Shirley Mclaine but she too has overacted and played an exaggerated version of the character that she could have been.
RUMOUR HAS IT is the sort of romantic comedy where everything goes wrong, right from the opening scene in which you can sense the no-chemistry between Aniston and Ruffalo it's a painful experience watching.
The few laughs that are implied come form some gritty lines from Katherine (veteran Shirley MacLaine), playing the grandmother of Sarah (Jennifer Aniston), who was the model for 'Mrs. Robinson' in the book THE GRADUATE.
How she discovers the reality of the rumor is the point (or lack thereof) of the movie.With Aniston, MacLaine, Ruffalo, Costner and Jenkins in the cast the film has to have some good points - and it does.
RUMOR HAS IT (2005) * Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Costner, Shirley MacLaine, Mark Ruffalo, Richard Jenkins, Mena Suvari , Christopher McDonald.
Disappointingly mirthless comedy about a young woman (Aniston in arguably one of her worst performances) who is determined to find out if her family was the inspiration to THE GRADUATE and if in fact her real father is the roguish Costner who had a fling with her late mother and her prickly grandmother (MacLaine making a cottage industry as battle-axes with a heart of gold pickled in alcohol).
so i'm watching Rumor Has It today thinking "Jen Aniston doesn't seem much younger than Kevin Costner." and i look up their age difference.
After being extremely overdosed by this season's share of romantic comedies, which included let-downs like Elizabthtown, cute but useless cinematic efforts such as Prime and In Her Shoes, and fun kitsch in the shape of Just Like Heaven, I didn't really know what to expect walking into Rumor Has It. On the outside, it had all the ingredients it required to make it a big comedic stomp to end 2005 properly: legendary director Rob Reiner was at the helm, after giving the world one of film's biggest rom-coms in the shape of When Harry Met Sally; Friends star Jennifer Aniston was at the lead; supporting rolls included proved talents in the likes of Shirlie MacLaine (Academy Award winner for Terms of Endearment), Kevin Kostner (Academy Award winner for Dances with Wolves) and even the oh so cute Mena Suvari (American Beauty).
Alas, I found myself just remotely connected with the characters, hardly laughed throughout the film, and walked away thinking just how this could have been a much, much better movie, if executed properly.Rumor Has It deals with the family dynasty of the true people that allegedly stood behind the characters of 1967's The Graduate.
The character study is weak and unconvincing, the general atmosphere is cute but somewhat overshadowed by the confusing twisting of the plot; and the songs, which in the original are strong and effective, turn out to be utterly forgettable and disappointing.I really tried to like this film, and I have to admit I caught myself smiling here and there, but all in all this project had so much more potential in it, with all the wonderful talents involved, yet the result is just....
None of the characters show any real redeemable qualities and even Shirley Mc, who is so often great, just manages to be despicable here.I really would like to recommend something good about this movie, but I just can't.
However I mainly enjoyed it for a few classy lines and performances - not from Costner or Aniston - they were good, but it was Mark Ruffalo and Shirley MacLaines characters and their acting that really made the movie for me.All the hype on the message boards about incest was not as dramatic as some make it out to be - though some moments make you cringe.Also as an avid Adam Sandler fan, the best laugh for me was when Christopher McDonald walked into the shot - Shooter McGavin from Happy Gilmore "Just stay out of my way or you'll pay, listen to what I say" All in all this was a light-hearted comedy that the blokes will be able to handle when they get dragged along by their 'Friends'-loving girlfriend..
Mark Ruffalo rang true as the boyfriend, he's very good, we liked him.The highlight that gave the movie a mammoth boost was the few minutes of KATHY BATES - why didn't she have a key role?
I can not believe that a lucid person can like this flick, unless a fan of Jennifer Aniston, or Kevin Costner, or Shirley MacLaine, or Mark Ruffalo.
The plot is one of the most silly and ridiculous I have ever seen in a movie: Sarah Huttinger heard a rumor that her grandmother might have been the real "Mrs. Robinson" that inspired the successful movie "The Graduate".
Sarah Huttinger (Jennifer Aniston) discovers that her family are the 'Robinsons' from the movie and that her grandmother, Katharine Richelieu (Shirley MacLaine) in 'Mrs. Robinson'.
That could happen, sure.The only thing good about this film was Aniston and Shirley Maclaine.
Jennifer Aniston played her granddaughter....what a cutie, about the cutest girl in Hollywood, and has a terrific and toned figure to boot.(What guy would prefer Anna Nicole Smith-type women when Jennifer is so much more appealing, to me at least, and has a brain to go along with it.) And Jennifer is so naturally talented in comedy as to almost make this film work, along with great work from the always terrific Maclaine.Anyway, this was a pretty dumb story about how Aniston finds out if Costner's character is her real father, as he slept with her mother a week before her mom's wedding and Jen's character was born about 8+ months later.
The idea of a film based on the long extant rumor that The Graduate was conceived around true events in the life of a real family was a great one.
Further, that her mother may have slept with the man upon whom Benjamin Braddock was based (here called Beau Burroughs and played by Kevin Costner) at just around the time she got pregnant with Sarah.
Aniston does okay; Ruffalo gives a solid performance; and MacLaine steals the entire movie in her maybe 12 minutes of screen time.
Cute though Jennifer Aniston is in the lead role, which involves her discovery that her mother and grandmother were -- or might have been -- co-participants in The Graduate, I still don't think that she can lead a film.
Plot In A Paragraph: Sarah Huttinger (Jennifer Aniston) learns that her family was the inspiration for the book and film The Graduate.Rumour Has It is not a good movie, it's a watchable one, but it's not good.
I'm not sure how a movie directed by Rob Reiner, starring, Jennifer Aniston, KC, an up and coming Mark Ruffalo, Shirley MacLain, Mean Suvari, Kathy Bates Missed the mark, but it just doesn't work for me.
"Eumoe Has It," from 2005, stars Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Costner, Shirley MacLaine, Mark Ruffalo, and Mira Suvari.The story concerns a young woman, Sarah Huttimger (Aniston) from Pasadena and her fiancé Jeff (Ruffalo) who travels from New York to Pasadena for Sarah's sister Anne's wedding.
Shirley MacLain overacts (but then again, her script isn't much to work with), Kevin Costner is his usual bland self (I guess his good looks (?) is what keeps him getting movies.
Jennifer Aniston did a great job but her grandmother Shirly MacLaine took the Emmy.Kevin Costner's participation in this movie was unusual.
RUMOR HAS IT, with Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Costner, Shirley MacLaine, Mark Ruffalo, Richard Jenkins, Mena Suvari and Christopher McDonald.Excited by the previews and the overall premise of the film, I found the entire movie "lacking".
A lot of the promotion for "Rumor Has It" has centered around the first fifteen minutes or so of the film--that is, the point where Jennifer Aniston's character gets an inkling whether her family is the basis for the Robinsons in "The Graduate," and then how she pursues this possibility with her grandmother, the man who would be Ben Braddock and others.
This is a good promotion strategy, because ultimately when you take away the "Graduate" references, there's not much of value in "Rumor Has It." THe film is uninspired and bears a remarkable resemblance to just about every other romantic comedy out there.THe film starts and she's bored with her life--she used her journalism degree to get a job writing the obituaries and marriage announcements at the New York Times; she's got a fiancé who it's unclear from the first moment of the movie whether she wants to actually marry.
Starting from an existent rumor in the city of Pasadena, the very intelligent screenwriter Ted Griffin ("Matchstick Men", "Ocean's eleven") created a screenplay that goes back to "The Graduate" with Dustin Hoffman, the book that lead to it and the facts that lead to the book.It seems (now I'm talking about the film, which takes a lot of twists and makes us confuse fiction with reality; the film's reality) that a man named Beau Burroughs (a 50-year old, looking good and very talented Kevin Costner) was 'that' graduate ("I never actually graduated, but it looked better than "The Dropout", he says) and slept with the grandmother and mother of Sarah, the picture's main character.Sarah is played by Jennifer Aniston, in what's her third comedy in a row this year, after "Bruce Almighty" and "Along Came Polly".
It is a fun movie, Jennifer Aniston is great, Kevin is great, Shirley McClain is funny.
Also a very funny character and I think Costner did a great job, he's excellent in this movie!
It had its funny moments, and Maclaine was great to watch, however i thought Costner was wasted, aniston was aniston (not that good) and Ruffalo was impressive.
My favorite Rob Reiner-directed movie is A Few Good Men, and next is Stand By Me. I have seen both films numerous times.
The premise of this film is that the novel The Graduate was based on Sarah Huttinger (Jennifer Aniston)'s family.
Jennifer Aniston's performance was certainly amazing and I feel that no other than Shirley MacLaine and Richard Jenkins could have filled the given characters; Richard certainly knows how to make you laugh.
Jennifer Aniston carries this film with ease, supported by several others, most notably Kevin Costner and Shirley MacLaine.
This comedy starring Jennifer Aniston, Shirley MacLaine, Mark Ruffalo, and Kevin Costner.
A bride who ran away with this young graduate three days before her wedding and the guy had also slept with her mother, the original Mrs Robinson.Sarah (Jennifer Aniston) is engaged to be married to Jeff (Mark Ruffalo) who attends her sister's wedding, hears about this rumour and she realises that life might had imitated art.
Sarah wonders if Burroughs could be her real father and that she also slept with her grandmother (Shirley Maclaine.)Sarah heads of to find Beau Burroughs who is a dot com millionaire and it looks like she could be the third generation in her family to fall for his charms.As romantic comedy it fails on both counts.
There were moments in this film I watched in utter embarrassment that this drivel was being passed on to me as entertainment from a director of the calibre of Rob Reiner.There is no chemistry of a spark of romance between Sarah and Jeff, you can see it when they attempt to have sex in an aeroplane bathroom (which is kind of difficult at the time when this movie was made with increased aeroplane security in the USA, believe me I tried it in that era!)Sarah's father (Richard Jenkins) makes jokes about Pasadena and has silly games like holding one's breath while driving through a tunnel.
Sarah Huttinger (Jennifer Aniston) is coming home with her boyfriend Jeff Daly (Mark Ruffalo) for her sister Annie (Mena Suvari)'s wedding.
When she finally meets him, she does something that may be in the family character.I love the idea, but I don't like the Jennifer Aniston and Mark Ruffalo couple.
As though the actors has to be reminded about the purpose of the film at the start of each scene.Only redeeming features were Shirley McLaine trying to act like Anne Bancroft, and James Taylor as Jennifer Anniston's father (ok it wasn't James T but a good lookalike).
RUMOR HAS IT is a delicious and richly entertaining romantic comedy which stars Jennifer Aniston as Sarah Huttinger, an obituary writer who travels to her hometown of Pasadena with her fiancée for her little sister's wedding and stumbles upon some facts about her deceased mother that lead her to believe that mom was the inspiration for the Elaine Robinson character in THE GRADUATE and that grandma is the real Mrs. Robinson.
I think it is more of a drama than a comedy.This movie is a little sad because of the fact that Aniston's character was cheating on Ruffalo's character, which wasn't very good.
In a romantic movie, the characters are supposed to have good chemistry in order to draw the viewers into the story, but Jennifer Aniston has zero chemistry with both Kevin Costner and Mark Ruffalo.
Even though the scene where Jennifer Aniston's character sleeps with Kevin Costner's character was creepy, it didn't really take away from the movie.
I rented the movie because I LIKE Jennifer Aniston AND Kevin Costner, but the two of them together, has been proved to be an unsuccessful thing.
Most of the actors work well together; Kevin Costner, Shirley MacLaine, and Jennifer Anniston fulfill their roles nicely.If you like romantic comedies that engage the "who am I" and "what do I want out of life" questions (read: "The Family Guy"), then you will enjoy this one.. |
tt0076240 | Jubilee | Queen Elizabeth I (Jenny Runacre) is transported forward in time by the occultist John Dee (Richard O'Brien) by the aid of the spirit guide Ariel (a character from William Shakespeare's The Tempest) whom he commands. Elizabeth arrives in the shattered Britain of the 1970s. Queen Elizabeth II is dead, killed in an arbitrary mugging, and Elizabeth I moves through the social and physical decay of the city observing the sporadic activities of a group of aimless nihilists, including Amyl Nitrite (Jordan), Bod (Runacre in a dual role), Chaos (Hermine Demoriane), Crabs (Nell Campbell), and Mad (Toyah Willcox).
Numerous punk icons appear in the film including Jordan (a Malcolm McLaren protégé), Toyah Willcox, Nell Campbell, Adam Ant, Hermine Demoriane and Wayne County. It features performances by Wayne County and Adam and the Ants. There are also cameo appearances by the Slits and Siouxsie and the Banshees. The film was scored by Brian Eno. The uncredited piece of music used in the 'Jordan's Dance' scene was written by Ludwig Minkus in 1884 for Act I of the revived ballet Giselle.
Beginning with a scene where John Dee summons the spirit Ariel for Queen Elizabeth I, the action moves to an anarchic present day, where law and order has broken down and punk gangs roam the streets, committing acts of murder and larceny. In one squat, Amyl Nitrate is instructing a group of young women —in so doing valourising the violent criminal activity of Myra Hindley—before she reminisces about her time as a ballet dancer and introduces the audience to Mad, Crabs, Chaos, Sphinx and Angel (two incestuous bisexual brothers) and Bod, a sex-hating anarchist. Bod has just strangled and killed Elizabeth II and stolen her crown.
From there the group move on to a café, where Crabs picks up a young musician named the Kid, Mad tears up some postcards and Bod attacks a waitress with a bottle of ketchup. Bod contacts impresario Borgia Ginz. On meeting Ginz, however, she is surprised to find Amyl performing a pastiche of "Rule Britannia". Sphinx and Angel establish a relationship with Viv, a young former artist, whom they take to meet Max, an ex-soldier. In exchange for sexual favours, Crabs takes the Kid to see Ginz, who auditions him and his band signs them up under the name "Scum." Sphinx and Angel try to talk the Kid out of this but he just laughs at their lecturing. Ginz is branching out into property management and has purchased 'abandoned' properties like Westminster Cathedral and Buckingham Palace, which are transformed into musical venues.
Meanwhile, Mad, Bod and Crabs asphyxiate Happy Days, one of Crabs' one-night stands, with red plastic sheeting and break into the flat of androgynous rock star Lounge Lizard whom Bod throttles to death. A fight breaks out at a disco session in St. Paul's Crypt between Kid and a policeman. After the gang all watch Kid's TV debut together, Viv and the three males all pay a visit to Max's bingo hall, where Violent police activity causes the death of Sphinx, Angel, and the Kid and two revenge attacks on the police officers responsible. One of them is castrated to death by Mad and Amyl; the other, who has just started an affair with Crabs, is blown up on his doorstep with a petrol bomb by Bod. Finally, Ginz takes the four women off to Dorset and signs a recording contract with them. Interspersed with these displays of contemporary anarchic violence, Dee, Ariel and Elizabeth try to interpret the signs of anarchic modernity around them, before they undertake a pastoral and nostalgic return to the sixteenth century at the film's end. | cult, comedy, psychedelic, murder, violence | train | wikipedia | With this film, Jarman mixes his own social and political ideologies with the ideas at the forefront of punk; taking both the sense of liberation and the dangerous sense of apathy and aggression presented in both the style and the attitude of that particular era, and applying it to a story that involves elements of history, theology and science fiction.With the juxtaposition of ideas, Jarman presents us with the alarming vision of England in decline; seeing the present by way of the past, and further depicting a dystopian future very much reminiscent of our own.
The story is given a further ironic twist by presenting the image of Queen Elisabeth I as she journeys to the future of late 70's Britain on the eve of the Silver Jubilee, and finds a world in which punk terrorists have taken over the streets, rampaging through shopping centres, looting houses and generally giving a grubby two-fingered salute to anyone courageous enough to represents the mindless masses or the ultra chic bourgeoisie.
Certainly, with these factors in mind, Jubilee is not an easy film to appreciate on any level, with the brutality of the imagery and the shocking vulgarity of the world as it is presented being incredibly bleak and incredibly prescient; whilst the visualisation of the film is brash, jarring, clearly exploitative and generally rough around the edges.The film wallows in sordidness for the first half-hour, as we watch characters wandering through a sadistic wasteland engaging in sex, violence and murder.
However, this limited description might lead certain audiences to expect a gritty action film that presents violence as entertainment and coolly ironic characters akin to Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange (1971) and Walter Hill's The Warriors (1979), in which street violence and dystopia are presented as chin-scratching entertainment.
Obviously Jarman wasn't a punk and wasn't even of the generation, but he clearly saw something within the scene, again, be it in the liberating freedom that punk could offer, or in the apathy and aggression that came as a direct result of the political climate of the time.In fact, the film seems purposely stylised to conform to the fashion of the punk rock-status quo in an almost ironic manner that stresses the director's cynical, satirical intent.
The cast for example reads like the veritable who's who of seventies cult, with characters Lindsay Kemp, Jenny Runacre, Little Nell, Wayne Country, Richard O'Brien, Jordan, Toyah and Adam Ant all popping up to deliver disarming performances; part pantomime/part existential theatre.
The second half of the film wanders slightly; there are examinations on sexuality, a prolonged attack on the music industry and brutal violence between the punks and police which causes both sides to question the immoral decadence being flaunted in the name of rebellion.
There are also musical numbers, political manifestos, agitprop, and screaming polemic as well as an extraordinarily vivid sequences shot on fuzzy 8mm film, featuring Jordan dressed as a ballerina dancing in a junkyard.It's one of the most grimly beautiful and evocative images that Jarman ever created; that sense of true tranquil beauty against a vicious, decaying urban wasteland.
Jubilee, being a Derek Jarman film, obviously sets out to shock.
The regal Bod (Jenny Runacre, very good in this in both roles) doubles as Queen Elizabeth, wandering with her soothsayer John Dee (Richard O'Brien) and emotionless angel Arial, through a Britain tottering on the brink of revolution as the Silver Jubilee hits.
In some ways the film or even punk itself was a protest against the obliteration or rewriting of history (note Jordan's old-fashioned twinset and pearls).
Derek Jarman examines the punk aesthetic, with a framing device that Queen Elizabeth I has asked her court magician to show her England's future.
The documentary included on the Criterion disc, Jubilee: A Time Less Golden, convinced me that the film wasn't only impressive on a primal level.
I'm going to be honest right from the start: I've only seen two films from the late Derek Jarman, this and The Last of England (1987).
Jubilee tells the disjointed story of Queen Elizabeth I, who bored by her own existence has her court astrologer and an angel invent a time travel devise that will allow her to travel forward to twentieth century Britain.
Once again Jarman revels in pointing out the failings in modern British culture, from the violent punk scene that the main characters are part of, to the harsh severity of the music industry and corporate big business.
Jubilee is a film that so obviously wanted to be hip it hurts, looking back it seems Jarman took everything that was just about to explode into the public conscious and structured a highly self-indulgent story around it.
So we are shown one of the most miss-representative looks at punk one could ever imagine, and a cast that reads like the who's-who of seventies underground celebrities (Richard O Brien rubs shoulders with the likes of a chubby Toyah Wilcox and a pre-fame Adam Ant).
Jubilee is yet another product of art-house cinema gone wrong and film-making in it's most brash and unsubtle form..
Tripe of the worst kind boring, inane, idiotic tripe.My Grade: FDVD Extras: "Jubilee: A time less Golden" Documentary; Jordan's Dance (a super-8 short); theatrical trailer; shooting script; costume sketches; Continuity stills; "a new wave movie" (a collection of odds & ends).
It's certainly put me off seeing anything else that Derek Jarman has had a hand in.I repeat, the apocalyptic concept sounds great, but if it appeals, go and see something better, like Alan Clarke's Stars of the Roller State Disco, or even Logan's Run....
JUBILEE was the first film to come from the true British punk rock scene, and has a fascinating cast, but unfortunately this is one of the most boring, pretentious, and ultimately pointless movies I've ever seen.
If you want to see Jarmans world watch "The Alternative Miss World" which is much more entertaining, though not one of his films obviously ...
Judging by the credits, Jubilee was a creation of faith, hope and goodwill and the cast give it their sometimes amateur all, with entertaining debut appearances from the likes of Jordan, Toyah Wilcox and Adam Ant and proper thesps like Little Nell and Jenny Runacre doing their best with the film-school script and direction.As feature-film entertainment, Jubilee's a non-starter.
Pants!.I watched this film in college as part of a Media & Culture lesson, and I felt that this was a complete waste of time.
It was at a small art theater and it was part of the bill with the Who's "Quadrophenia." I had only a vague idea about Jarman and his movies, so I decided to stay and watch "Jubilee." It was -- and still is -- quite an experience.
I think that it is certainly worth a look, particularly if one is willing to be open-minded and see something quite different than the usual predictable, tepid movie fare that makes the merely bland seem exciting.
I have seen all of Derek Jarman's movies and this one is by far his best.This is the first British punk film and probably the best one that has ever been done.It was very difficult to describe this movie as it has many strange images from beginning to end.It is one of the most amazing movies.If you know Derek Jarman's style of directing then you will know he doesn't follow other director's ways of directing.This movie has a fantastic score from Adam and the Ants and many others.If you don't like nudity,sex,drugs and violence then do not watch this movie.This movie is very underrated.Watching this movie is a very rare experience that will come very few times in your life.I would recommend this movie to all punk fans rating: 10/10.
Not to mention a very young Adam Ant who signs his talent away for Thatcher-Tarian like luxury (How Ironic) "Jubilee" is one amazing, angry, poetic in your face film with great punk rock music and strong imagery.
This film has been described as a "punk-music documentary," which is most certainly is not, as clearly explained in the "Making of" featurette contained on the DVD.
It is an art house film written by Jarman to take the p*** out of the Queen, who was then very pompously celebrating her 25th jubilee.
Apart from Adam Ant, no major punk-music acts have any significant role in the film..
These scenes include girls boxing(badly), punks killing policemen, punks trying to pull the doors off a car (and failing), random murders, a bingo hall being shot up, some of the worst sex scenes since The Room and lots of bizarre poetical ramblings while someone dressed as a Queen tries to look interesting.
The main reason people may have an interest in this movie is the fact it has a few faces from the punk scene like Adam Ant and a harder to recognise Toyah Wilcox.
The only part of the movie which has anything like a plot comes towards the the end when the punks seek retribution on the police for a wrong doing.
One of those films that promises so much with a great cast but sadly ruined by Derek Jarman and his ability to turn a good story into a dull attempt to shock with his usual boring overtones.Great performances from Toyah and Adam Ant but I watched this feeling that say an Alex Cox could have turned this into a bit of a cult masterpiece rather than remembering much about the finished article on show..
Queen Elizabeth I (Jenny Runacre), guided by John Dee (Richard O'Brien) and spirit guide Ariel (David Brandon), travels forward in time to the eve of the Silver Jubilee to witness Britain in a state of moral and physical decay.
One particular group, consisting of, amongst others, Amyl Nitrate (Jordan), Mad (Toyah Willcox), Bod (Runacre in a dual role), Crabs (Nell Campbell) and Chaos (Hermine Demoriane), tend to spend their time smashing cars, having sex, participating in the odd murder, and generally giving the two-finger salute to anything resembling conformity.
Crabs picks up a young punk named Kid (Adam Ant), who has aspirations to be a rock star, and finds himself being swept up by the system.Derek Jarman certainly wasn't a punk - he was at least one generation too late and his art was generally more focused on themes of homosexuality and homoerotica - but Jubilee seems to aspire to be a film that defines punk.
As well as the many punk acts that appears in the film (Siouxsie and the Banshees, Wayne County and The Stilts all appear as well as the aforementioned Jordan, Wilcox and Adam Ant), Jubilee adopts a punk aesthetic.
It also has a great cast of actors and musicians that are still remembered in cult circles from old Britain, including Ian Charleson, Karl Johnson, Claire Davenport and Lindsay Kemp, for those, like me, who enjoy looking back in time at Britain, which is ironically the opposite to what Queen Elizabeth I does in Jubilee.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com.
If you can see ball gowns and bovver boots picking their way over rubble beside the Thames set to a classical music score, you're probably watching a Derek Jarman picture.England's first punk film was mostly shot around Butlers Wharf and Shad Thames in Southwark, south-east London; in the late 1970s a hive of mouldering warehouses and docks - ideal for the director's vision of a run-down capital besieged by murderous punks.
Of course, corporate highjacking is what this movie's all about, which is why in many ways, it's still a disturbingly relevant film.
Except of course, the Soviet-protected area of the UK shown at the end of the film.I'm not one to be bothered by sex, incest, murder, and violence on screen, but I did find this movie to be a bit much at times.
The mere fact that it got such mixed reviews from the supposedly supportive (??) Punk scene back then, is prove that it did hit home: people thought and discussed about what they saw, and didn't merely sat down and watched this picture.JUBILEE is a landmark, and in hindsight it is easy to see that Jarman was on the dot here.
A strange film, but one that is defintely a must see.Queen Elizabeth I travels through time to late-1970s England, and finds it to be a depressing place, where no-one seems to have a purpose for anything they do.Stars from the time, including Siouxsie Sioux, Adam Ant and Toyah Willcox (now a VH1 UK presenter), mix with Rocky Horror's Richard O'Brien and unknown actors to paint a disturbing (if a little arthouse-ish) portrait of Britain in the punk era.Adam Ant and Brian Eno (ex of Roxy Music) contribute to the score, giving it an authentic sound..
This movie had a shoestring budget, the acting wasn't very good, and the plot didn't make much sense; nevertheless, I liked it.The plot: At the request of Queen Elizabeth I, John Dee, her magician, summons an angel to show the Queen what life if like in the future.
The world economy has completely collapsed, roving street gangs (and the police) randomly kill or terrorize people, and Top of the Pops is played constantly on Television.The story centers around a gang of female punks (an Historian, a Pyromaniac, a Nymphomaniac, their leader, and their au pair), who more or less aimlessly travel through London killing people.Like I've said, the plot is not very substantial, but the characters are very vivid and seem very real.
The acting and dialog in the final scene, when she talks with Dee as Queen Elizabeth I and set to Brian Eno's music, is really nice.
An utterly bizarre film to be sure, Jubilee is an anarchic take on history and science fiction that tells, simultaneously, of Queen Elizabeth I's reign and a dystopian England in 1977 where gangs of women roam the countryside.Punk-SciFi would reach its apogee with Repo Man, but here's where it more or less starts: With Adam Ant and a host of nameless actors gallivanting about London in outrageous garb.
I felt that it was trying to show what would happen if women end up taking over the world (especially having Elizabeth I (a powerful queen) go forward in time that was 'futuristic' when the movie was made right after the women's rights movement of the 60s).
However, the last fifth (the last 20 minutes) and they isn't even good enough to bear watching this awful film.The premise was an interesting one (Queen of England goes ahead in time to see futuristic times) but Jarman completely failed at making a movie worth anyones time.
The no future of the punk rock era, a place where Queen Elizabeth II was killed in a mugging and a gang of punk rock survivors, including Amyl Nitrate (Jordan, the model who was of the creators of W10 London punk look), Bod (Runacre in a second role), Chaos (French singer, writer and tightrope walker Hermine Demoriane), Mad (singer Toyah Willcox) and Crabs (Little Nell from Rocky Horror, who even gets in the line "Don't dream it, be it.").
There's also Borgia Ginz, who shares a house with Hitler, runs the world and has transformed Buckingham Palace into a recording studio and Westminster Cathedral into a disco where Jesus performs.Beyond the nihilism and lack of hope in this film, there's also plenty of punk rock stars, like Adam Ant and Wayne County along for the ride and gamely performing songs, as well as blink and you miss it moments for Siouxie and the Banshees and the Slits.
And hey - the music is by Ol' Sourpuss himself, Brian Eno.Director Derek Jarman may have based this movie in punk rock, but he was against the scene's fascism fetish, as well as its love of stupidity and violence.
The only part i liked was the fact that adam ant was in the movie.
Derek Jarman is not a film director one can easily digest.
His films were made with the intention to shock, to produce some form of catharsis -- positive or negative -- but something so strong that there would be no other way to regard his work as moving, or deeply unsettling.JUBILEE is his second feature film coming on the heels of SEBASTIANE and tells the story of Queen Elizabeth I, who summons John Dee and has him reveal unto her the England of the future -- to see how far her influence has reached.
Several of them have aspirations to transcend their present, dire situation and make it in the pop world -- bringing forth their own punk sensibilities to it -- while moments of extreme violence, mainly against men, ensues, until one of their own is murdered and they take action against those in power.JUBILEE is pure Jarman.
Not an easy film to come into nor to watch for its entire duration because despite having done films of stronger cinematic value, it seems to me that this one is left hanging in its own time of release (1977) when Punk as a movement was screaming its way into the media and trying to assert itself.
Queen Elizabeth asks her court alchemist to show her a vision of England in the future, and the alchemist summons a angle/spirit guide(played by Adam Ant) who transports her to London 400 years into the future where it is a post apacalyptic wasteland.
Religious groups are not going to like the raw attention to sex and violence which society does its best to bottle-up and deny exists (funnily enough we have retrograded these days into political correctness).Media and institutions are more sophisticated at managing us these these days, and the youth of today has different issues - but the message of the film is a relevant today (maybe even more so) at it was in 1978.Watch with an open mind !.
I recommend that anyone who is an Adam Ant fan rent or get this movie from the library and watch it. |
tt0099800 | House Party | In their high-school cafeteria, Peter, also known as "Play" (Christopher "Play" Martin) announces to his friends Christopher aka "Kid" (Reid) and Bilal (Martin Lawrence) that he will be having a party at his house that night, as his parents are on vacation. The reluctant Bilal is to be the DJ. Kid is then involved in an altercation with school bully Stab (Paul Anthony) and his two brothers Pee-Wee and Zilla (Bowlegged Lou and B-Fine). When Kid comes home, he tries to convince his father, "Pop" (Robin Harris) to let him go to the party. Pop relents at first, but when a note from school informs him of the fight, he grounds him. Rather than miss the party of the year, Kid sneaks out while Pop is sleeping in front of Dolemite - but the door closing behind Kid awakens Pop. On his way to the party Kid runs into Stab and his brothers, jumps over a fence, and is shot at by the homeowner. The punks are also shot at and Kid ducks into a nearby Alpha Delta Sigma reunion to escape them. Crashing the reunion, Kid has the DJ (George Clinton) scratch and mix a few of his old doo wop records so that he can liven the party with a rap, until Stab and the others arrive. Trying to escape from Stab, Kid accidentally knocks down an older man. Kid and the bullies are caught by the neighborhood police, who humiliate the four teenagers before letting them go.
The party is in full swing when Kid finally arrives. Kid and Play soon get into a dance contest with attractive girls Sydney (Campbell) and Sharane (Johnson), then have a quick freestyle battle. Stab and his friends attempt to break up the party, but are arrested a second time by the policemen, who take delight in the prospect of beating them up. Kid's father eventually makes his way to the party, demanding to know where Kid is (upstairs helping Sharane get her coat) and, not finding him, Pop vows to wait for him at home. Play stops the party because his bathroom toilet was broken by party members. Although Kid and Sydney have eyes for each other, Sharane decides to flirt with Kid openly, much to Sydney's disgust. The three soon leave the party, but when Kid tries to make advances on Sharane, she rebuffs him. Kid then walks Sydney back home, and after some argument the pair finally calm down and talk quietly.
Sydney allows Kid to sneak into her house, and the two are about to have sex in Sydney's room when she stops him, wanting to know if she is simply his second choice. Kid admits that Sydney was his first choice all along, but they do not do anything when they see that the only condom Kid has is too old to be used. When Sydney's parents come home - now revealed as one of the couples at the high-school reunion, including the man Kid ran into - Sydney hastily helps Kid sneak out of the house. He manages to get out of yet another scrape with Stab and his brothers, and they all end up in a jail cell. The men tell Kid what they're in jail for and Kid entertains the rest of the men in the cell by rapping, distracting them long enough for Play, Sharane, Bilal, and Sydney to arrive with enough cash to bail him out. Later, the five friends say their goodnights. Kid and Sydney share a long passionate kiss goodnight. After Play and Bilal drops him off, Kid sneaks in the house and gets undressed. As he is about to get into bed, he looks up to find Pop holding a belt, as the credits roll, we can hear Pop whacking Kid (Kid yelping with each hit) during the credits.
At the very beginning of the movie, kids are seen dancing inside of a house with the noise being so loud that it literally blows the roof off of the house. During the credit roll, the same roof flies and lands on top of the policemen in a parking lot. | cult, romantic | train | wikipedia | But also one of the most copied haircuts in recent history.Play(Christopher Martin) is having this banging HOUSE PARTY with buddy Bilal(Martin Lawrence) DJing.
But their best friend Kid(Christopher Reid) can't go because he's Pops(Robin Harris in a terrific performance) grounded him.
So he sneaks out to join the party, but face neighborhood bullies(Full Force) and the fact that two girls(Tisha Campbell & A.J. Johnson) like him and wants him to choose between them.The dance scenes are amazing and the songs are still hype.
House Party was an unexpected low budget hit upon release in 1990, something about the bright colours and an 'urban movie' without a single drive by tapped directly into the consciousness of a teen market wanting desperately to embrace hip-hop culture without getting a gold tooth.Kid 'n' Play host their own mega (to them) party.
Where a good time will most certainly be had by all.And they basically do.In a lurid blur of motion and colour these attractive teens set about enjoying themselves in the most PG 13 ways imaginable.For a 15 year old this was like opening a window to another world: the outlandish gravity defying haircuts that I envied but would never dare attempt.
The stoopid (in a good way) rhymes and dumb (in a hopelessly dated now) phrases spouted by these fly guys and home girls were new and dangerously addictive, if terribly out of place in the small town I grew up.Shennanigans were plentiful, but amounted to little more than messin' playfully with the man in blue, freaking the establishment and clearly exposing the gaping generation gap by juxtaposing these carefully manicured teens against the pompous and staid older types.Characters are broad and never less than frenetic and loud, dialogue makes little sense but sure sounds fresh and exciting.And boy are these kids budding model citizens.Overindulgence of alcohol is frowned upon, but with a supportive message of limitation rather than abhorrence.
But this 90 minutes is always likable and elicits warm memories of my teens (not that I acted like this, but I watched a lot of movies where characters did)..
The kid'n'play dance was the thing back in the late 80s early 90s.
I was in the 10th grade when this movie was released and I had a lot of fun during that time with not too much fighting at parties.
The bullies played by the R&B group Full Force made the movie more funny with its slapstick humor and the memorable Robin Harris with his witty punchlines.
Oddly serving as the thesis film for director Reginald Hudlin while a student at Harvard, 'House Party' is one of my favorite teen comedies.
However, this is one all-black teen comedy which did things with just the right amount of spunk, and the characters were not so obnoxious and not so stereotypical that you couldn't enjoy their (mis)adventures.Old school rappers, Kid and Play, are two high school friends.
Play is hosting a house party when his folks go out of town and his number one mate, Kid, plans on making an appearance.
Like Les Anderson hoping his parents won't find out that he flunked his driver exam in 'License to Drive,' Kid prays that his father won't find out about his getting in trouble at school because he desperately wants to go that party.But, more importantly, there is a great mix of subplots interacting which make this movie quite entertaining, especially the idiotic white cops that seem to appear at the most inconvenient moments (and not appear at the convenient ones) to harass the neighborhood and Kid's father (stand-up comedian, Robin Harris) making his way to the house party to bring his son home.
And, though several House Party sequels would follow, the first two are really the only ones worth watching..
House Party is sort of like a urban take on Risky Business in the sense that boy has party when parents go out of town for the weekend but the comparison end there.
Kid and Play make one of the first hip hop films of the nineties which had a plot.
Many young black comedic actors got their start in this film like Martin Lawerence and AJ Johnson.
I saw this movie when I was like 6 years old and still am in love with this movie its great and very funny.It stars rappers Kid 'N' Play who were very famous back in the late 80's and 90's.This story is actually about Kid he lives with his Father who he calls "Pops".One Day Kid asks can he go to his friends Play's house for a party(since Play's parents is gone out of town but Pops doesn't know that).He let's him go until he gets a letter from school that Kid was involved in a fight so he reconsiders and grounds him.Kid then decides to sneak out the house since the party was going to be big and his friends were going to be there.But what he doesn't know is what dangers he's going to find when he gets back home.This Movie is rated R but this is more like a Teenager movie since the setting of the movie finds all the charcacters in this story in High School.It's a excellent movie and great storyline and very Hilarious.This Movie gets 5 out of 5 stars..
Released in 99% white Australia at the height of the warehouse dance party wave, this hilarious all black hip hop indie rang true to us neon shirted whities who could have our own moment of 'rock around the clock style new wave dance madness' by actually dancing in the aisles of the cinema.
I think that night we went to the movies and saw Kid'n'Play's HOUSE PARTY and appropriately went to an all night dance party in a warehouse nearby with 5000 others who secretly knew it was on (yes 5000 others) and like in HOUSE PARTY, you had to know it was on in there....
HOUSE PARTY like that night is a moment in time, part of the hilarious reckless nights we have all had in the late 80s (see the great tiny1982 indie Oz pic GOING DOWN for proof) ...
I know there were sequels but by then the time had gone and the dance parties were full of bad drugs and bonehead behavior.
I saw a bit of this other Kid and Play film called Class Act and it wasn't half as good because all the jokes were predictable.
Play is having a party with his parents out of town joined by his friends Kid and Bilal (Martin Lawrence).
1990's hip hop teen comedy House Party was an indie success and left footprints forever in the evolution of hip hop.
Being that he was grounded, it was preventing him from going to the "party of the year" being held by his friend Play.
House Party is the ultimate hip hop film that offer laughs even almost 20 years into its existence.
House Party would go on to create a career for a unknown comedian named Martin Lawrence, spawn 2 sequels, a Kid N Play cartoon and its one liners are forever remembered by hip hop enthusiasts worldwide.
House Party is definitely one of the greatest comedies I've seen and one of my favorite films of all time.House Party - ***1/2 out of ****.
Kid, of the now-defunct rap duo "Kid-N-Play", is the protagonist in this fun movie about African-American teens trying to throw a party in face of many obstacles.I saw this movie at the theater wholly expecting a dumb teen flick, but I was surprised at how fresh and entertaining it really is.
A cult film in the making, "House Party" showcases the questionable hairdos, fashions, and rap music of the early '90's.
Along with the good performances from the leads, this film also features up-and-comers Tisha Campbell, comedian Martin Lawrence, and dearly departed Robin Harris, the genius behind the HILARIOUS "Bebe's Kids.".
There's no depiction of drug use, there's only a single instance of teenage drinking which was admonished by other teens, the house party is just full of salacious teenagers who are too busy with their dancing and mating rituals (everyone is too exhausted in between song numbers for them to explore the lustier side of teenage life).
Full blown escapism that is straight-forward and spot on.Peter "Play" Martin decides to take advantage of his parent's absence and host a party for his friends at his home and they have enlisted Bilal (pre-superstardom Martin Lawrence, hysterical as always) to DJ using those bulky turntables and gigantic speakers.
But unfortunately for Chris "Kid" Harris who got in trouble at the school cafeteria, his father received a note from the school principal detailing the incident which automatically grounded him, but Kid still manages to sneak out determined not to miss the party of the year.
I had the chance of watching this as a kid during the '90s and I thought it was just a "funny ha-ha" decent comedy.
Kid n Play decide to make a movie: House Party!
They sit around and party in a house, but they do a good job doing it.
I remember when I was in second grade and saw the preview in the theater when I was eight years old but I was too young to watch this flick but I can now rent it since I'm over 18.It was sad to see legendary comedic Robin Harris die after the release of this movie because he had a great sense of humor and was hilarious in this picture.I think all but the fourth movie were great.The fourth one didn't have Kid'n'Play at all and only had the stupid group IMX formerly known as Immature in it who appeared in House Party 3.
I loved the characters, especially KID, and POPs. Pops made me laugh every time he spoke.
Rated R for Language and Some Sexuality House Party is a teen comedy film starring early 90's rappers "Kid N Play" and the rap group "Full Force".Now outside of these movies I've never heard of these rappers and I am pretty big on early 90's rap music.But they should have been bigger.They rap in this film and there raps are pretty funny and catchy.Anyway I saw this film when I was 10 or 11 and I enjoyed it then.Now Im 15 and I re-watched it today and it is even funnier now.Probably because I am now a teenager and I can relate to the characters.The film is about a teen who gets into a fight at school after a bully insults his dead mother.Because of this, his father will not let him go to the party Play is throwing.He really wants to go, so he sneaks out of the house and gets to the party trying to avoid the bullies that he fought earlier.The plot's pretty simple but the film is very funny and has catchy rap songs.If you want to watch a fun comedy film, watch House Party.I haven't seen House Party 2 or 3 but I will fairly soon..
The thing that really stood out about the film was the performance of comedian Robin Harris as Kid's father.
Case in point: Robin Harris tour de force performance as Kid's father.
This is a movie about black teens dancing all night long to ol' skool, upsetting an old fart of a neighbor, the police, and Kid's(the main character)dad.
While I must say that it was enjoyable to go back to this type of cinema, you know, the parents are away so the kids will play scenario, but I didn't think this was the best this genre had to offer.
Director Reginald Hudlin created this film for his thesis at Harvard as well as a benchmark for DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Price, so how did he finally end up with Kid & Play?
While I did think that Kid did a decent job with his character, which couldn't have been too far from himself, Play offered nothing new to the film.
Martin Lawrence continued to be the most annoying character in the film, while the love interests were clichéd from the start.
It wasn't the best film, but House Party did provide for an hour and a half of dusty memories.The characters were both a high point and the low point of the film.
House Party is a classic example of great starting characters that eventually dwindle away before the film officially ends.
I thought that Kid did a decent job of being a humorous element, while Play coupled with Martin Lawrence's character were just overly annoying.
The film is worth watching for Kid, his expression in his eyes and face is immaculate, but for the rest, I have watched commercials with better character development.What about this story?
High schoolers trying to go out on a school night to the dance party of the century get caught up in a web of trouble only to discover that what they think is important to them isn't necessarily true.
While some will argue that love is the central focus of this film, I saw his desire to be a better performer to the ultimate moment for our character.
I liked seeing Kid evolve throughout the film.
I have no doubt in my eyes that the sequels that were spun do not carry the overall excitement that was conveyed in this first film, but for now, House Party was a light, enjoyable film that christened a new range of actors into the Hollywood circuit.
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.
While most people think House Party is primarily about two friends trying to throw the dopest party in school-which they achieve-it is secretly a story about an overworked father named Pops (Robin Harris) trying to raise a teenage son, on his own.
However, what would a movie about teenagers be without them making rebellious decisions, and luckily, Kid takes everyone on a fun journey through a black suburb to make it to his friend Play's party.
These were not the stereotypical black kids from a troubled area; they were smart, good kids who only wanted to party and get laid.After getting into a fight at school, and to keep him safe, Pop puts Kid on punishment.
Kid sneaks out any way to attend Play's party and finds himself pursued by the same bullies who attacked him in school-a stooge-like trio played side-splittingly by R&B group Full Force.
Along the way, Kid 'n Play find time for love, or sex if you are Play.
Kid 'n Play became bigger stars on the screen than they ever were as rappers, and that is a good thing.
Moreover, if that was not enough to get you interested, there's a young Martin Lawrence who shows you an earlier taste of his comedic genius and near the midpoint of the film, is without a doubt, one of the best dance battles in movie history.
House Party is a rousing good time for all and a movie that deserves to be considered as one of the best comedy and teen movies...period..
The Party is Definitely More than Meets the Eye. House Party predates the iconic and memorable start of the Friday franchise five years and is also one of the many, hilarious African American Comedies out there.
Though it undoubtedly wont surpass the humor brought by Ice Cube and Chris Tucker in the 1995 Comedy, it will most likely bring cute one liners and have an essence of the feeling while being it's own thing.Kid 'n Play and DJ Jazzy Jeff/The Fresh Prince were icons and the rap duos way back in the 80's 90's.
We even get the memorable and respectable rap battle between Kid n' Play which is the film's ultimate turn for the best.
It's definitely the most energetic point in the film and without the had the most thought put into it.Kid n' Play play are themselves with a simple plot amongst them.
Kid wants to go to a party held by Play, but after a run in with the school bully, his father Pops (played by the late Robin Harris, whom died nine days after the release of the film) prevents him from going and makes him remain in the house all night.
Kid sneaks out and heads to Play's party in hopes of having his way with the girl, or girls, of his dreams.
The one thing in the way of his dreams is the school bully and his two goons trying to make Kid sorry for his "accidental" run in in the lunch room.It's a simple story, but to my surprise, the movie is not all about the house party as the title, cover, and storyline would suggest.
Instead when the movie picks up we learn Kid's wild side and the antics never stop when they start.Another thing very cool about this film are the colors.
Also with the classic hip-hop tracks constantly played in the movie, it's almost feels like one 100 minute musical/music video, since most videos back in the 90's had a cheesy, colorful set with energetic music and a track with sensible lyrics.
With the all star African American cast, enjoyable songs, vibrant colors, and a retro feeling to top it off, it's the ultimate party movie, and Kid n' Play are the icing on the cake.Starring: Christopher "Kid" Reid, Christopher "Play" Martin, Full Force, Martin Lawrence, A.J. Johnson, Tisha Campbell,, and Daryl "Chill" Mitchell..
I saw this film last night it was so funny.
A teenager named Kid has been invited to a house party but when a bully gives him a hard time at School he gets sent to the principal's office.
And soon the song Always and Forever is played at the house party by disc jockey Bilal.
Later Kid's father shows up at the party looking for him. |
tt0064541 | Kes | Fifteen-year-old Billy Casper has little hope in life. He is picked on, both at home by his physically and verbally abusive older half-brother, Jud, and at school, by his schoolmates and by abusive teachers. Although he insists that his earlier petty criminal behavior is behind him, he occasionally steals eggs and milk from milk floats. He has difficulty paying attention in school and is often provoked into tussles with classmates. Billy's father has left the family some time ago, and his mother refers to him at one point, while somberly speaking to her friends about her children and their chances in life, as a "hopeless case."
One day, Billy takes a kestrel from a nest on a farm. His interest in learning falconry prompts him to steal a book on the subject from a secondhand book shop, as he is underage and needs – but lies about the reasons he cannot obtain – adult authorization for a borrower's card from the public library. As the relationship between Billy and "Kes", the kestrel, improves during the training, so does Billy's outlook and horizons. For the first time in the film, Billy receives praise, from his English teacher after delivering an impromptu talk about training Kes.
Jud leaves money and instructions for Billy to place a bet on two horses, but, after consulting a bettor who tells him the horses are unlikely to win, Billy spends the money on fish and chips and intends to purchase meat for his bird (instead the butcher gives him scrap meat free of charge). However, the horses do win. Outraged at losing a payout of more than £10, Jud takes revenge by killing Billy's kestrel. Grief-stricken, Billy retrieves the bird's broken body from the waste bin and, after showing it to Jud and his mother, buries the bird on the hillside overlooking the field where he'd flown. | violence | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0933357 | The Danish Poet | The film follows Kaspar Jørgensen, a Danish poet in the 1940s who is seeking inspiration. At the suggestion of his psychiatrist, Dr. Mørk, he travels to Norway to meet the famous author Sigrid Undset. However, after arriving in Norway, he meets Ingeborg, a farmer's daughter, and they fall in love. He proposes to her, but discovers that she is already engaged, at her father's wish. She promises not to cut her hair until they are reunited, and Kaspar returns to Denmark.
Later, Ingeborg's husband dies in an accident, and Ingeborg sends a letter to Kaspar. However, it is accidentally dropped by the postman, and never arrives. When Sigrid Undset dies, both Kaspar and Ingeborg travel to the funeral; they are reunited, and later marry and live in Copenhagen. As Kaspar tells Ingeborg that he loves her long hair, she does not cut it, but when Kaspar trips over it and breaks his thumb, she sends for her hairdresser from Norway. On the way, the hairdresser meets a young man on the train, who was also travelling to Copenhagen to meet Kaspar, his favourite poet. The two fall in love, and are revealed to be the narrator's parents. | romantic | train | wikipedia | Charming.
I understand that this won the Oscar for the category it falls under when it came out.
I haven't seen any of the competition, so I can't compare, but it certainly is great.
It's a fairy tale in a modern setting, and not everyone will care for the world view arguably presented herein.
This is sweet, without being so hideously overflowing with pure, concentrated saccharine, to the point of viewers risking getting diabetes from watching.
It's got a sense of humor, which can be claimed to move towards the ever-so-slightly dark once or twice, and is otherwise almost invariably entirely inoffensive, as the short ought to be, on the whole.
Jokes and gags aren't childish, gross or similar, although some of them may perhaps mainly be funny to us Scandinavians, and may not get as big a laugh for those not familiar with the relationships between the countries and their people.
The story-telling device of narration is used fine, if nothing new is done with it.
The performance is good.
The animation is simple, with occasional exaggeration.
It doesn't look or feel "sloppy" or downright bad.
The plot is nice, and the ending, along with plenty else in this, is cute.
I recommend this to all who feel they might enjoy it, and encourage not only Danes, Norwegians and Swedes to give it a chance.
Reminds us to appreciate all the little things around us that we no longer notice.
This short film is about a series of coincidences and accidents that led to the birth of the woman who wrote the story."The Danish Poet" is surprisingly heartwarming.
The animation is simple with lots of soft colours and black borders on all items.
It almost looks like a cartoon for infants.
I find this particularly charming, as it enables us to regress to our childhood to appreciate all the little things around us that we no longer notice.
The story itself is heartwarming and engaging.
It made me smile from the heart, which is not something many films can do."The Danish Poet" is a beautiful film.
Watch it if you have a chance..
This got much better with repeated viewings, so I've just re-reviewed the film.
This is a sweet story about a long chain of seemingly random events that eventually led to the birth of the person who wrote the story (though it was read by Liv Ullman).
Not surprisingly, there are some touches that seem very Scandinavian--such as the introduction, the way that death is talked about as well as the veneration of the story "Kristin Lavransdatter" (the movie version was coincidentally directed by Liv Ullman and I have reviewed it--but this isn't the place to get into that).The first time I saw this film, I was underwhelmed and gave it only a mildly favorable review despite it being an Oscar winner.
However, I saw it again a few weeks later and was surprised how much more I enjoyed the film the second time.
I really think most of the reason I wasn't impressed at first is because at least visually speaking, it's not as pretty a film as the rest of the other nominees.
THE LITTLE MATCHGIRL was one of the prettier Disney films I have seen using traditional animation, LIFTED is as good a product as you'll see from Pixar, NO TIME FOR NUTS was another excellent CG film packaged with the ICE AGE films and Maestro, though made by a small studio, was nearly as pretty as more commercial CG films.
In contrast, THE DANISH POET looked very old fashioned--much like a "Madeline" cartoon.The second time I saw it, though, I noticed more of the cute little artistic touches--like all the cows falling down the ramps and other odd embellishments.
However, what really stood out most the second time was the really sweet nature of the film and how it caused an emotional reaction in me at the end.
Charming and sweet--this is something the other films lacked.
I still think LIFTED might have been the most enjoyable and best made of the shorts, but THE DANISH POET was a real labor of love and had a lot of depth to it..
A beautiful piece that deserved it's Oscar....
I watched the Academy Awards and saw this win, and of course, hadn't heard of it.
I stuffed the memory of it in the back of my head and when I finally remembered, finally looked it up online, I was blown away by how wonderful it is.The Danish Poet is a great story, that I've often considered to be true, in that maybe the little things in our lives do shape our path.
It's full of these wondrous little moments that make you sigh, make you laugh, make you say "awww..." It's quite probably the best film I've seen this year, and given that it's 15 minutes long, that's saying something....
And the Danes complained that they didn't win an Oscar...
I know Susanne Bier and Søren Pilmark were also nominated for an Oscar in 2007 and didn't win, but this movie won instead, making it a good substitute, since the story is about a Dane.The story is about a Danish poet, Kasper Jørgensen, who lives in Copenhagen, but one day runs out of creativity and goes to Norway on holiday to search for inspiration.
There he finds a girl whom he falls in love with, but alas, she is engaged to be married against her will with a local farmer who is the son of her fathers best friend.
Instead she vows to never cut her hair until she can be with Kasper again, a promise that she keeps (making her hair look like Marge's from "The Simpsons").
And the story continues from that point..I'm not gonna spoil anything else, but it's all about chance and coincidences.Now, the animation itself isn't that great, although it is very different from how "normal" cartoons looks like, reminds me of the Alfons Åberg-cartoons (or Alfie Atkins as he's called in English).I haven't seen the competition, so I can't say if it was worthy of winning, but it was certainly a very good short movie, with a classical love-story in a new environment.
There were many funny details, like the people on the ferry between Denmark and Norway only being drunk (Swedes?) or backpackers, and that the postal office never can be trusted (just like in real life)..
thank God for E-mails!.
How different are we?.
Torill Kove's Oscar-winning short "The Danish Poet" is a look at how we as humans come to be who we are.
Another thing that I derived from it is the question of how different we really are from each other.
Much like how the characters aren't sure which Scandinavian country certain people are from, we often aren't sure about our background.
Some people will claim to have only one type of ancestry, but one can't know for certain.
The truth is, we're all probably mixed.Other than that, it's an interesting cartoon.
The animation isn't the most innovative, but it has a good plot, and that's what matters.
In focusing on how her parents met, the storyteller reminds us that we all had to come from somewhere..
Unforgettable.
This is one of the best animated shorts I have ever seen.Sure, there is no CGI, no wow effects, and none of the commonalities of modern animation.
In fact this is a 2D animation, that will remind some people of the images of Vicky the Viking series of the 1970s.However, this short has something that most modern animation films do not have, and that is what makes it unforgettable to me.
The secret of The Danish Poet is that tells an amazing story, which happens to be based on real events.
This is a story that speaks of serendipity, synchronicity, and the inter-relatedness of the world.
A story that shows a world in which even the bad stuff that happens to us can take us to amazing places and be meaningful.
A story that shows that every twist and turn in life is a creative process.
The Danish Poet is, in the end, a story about love minus the cheese, told in a simple, funny and magical way.The short is beautifully narrated, it has a point, it tells a complete story, it makes you feel and think.
Fantastic..
Life Is More Than 'Chance'.
This is an animated story about "chance" and "coincidence" ruling our lives, something the author apparently believes because it's stated by narrator in the first few sentences of the film that "we are all just seeds floating up there in the space waiting for someone to get us." With an atheistic outlook like that, it's no wonder this won an Oscar for "best animated short." Had the opposite belief been put into film, it wouldn't have stood a chance to be nominated.
Anyway, Torill Kove, a Norwegian animator/filmmaker and current resident of Canada, gives us this "cute" story in which a series of circumstances all make for a happy ending.
The illustrations are half the fun of watching this 15-minute award-winning short.
They artwork is clean and colorful and a treat for the eyes.Liv Ullman does a nice job of narrating the film but I would have rather had a variety of voices.
Having a female voice all the male characters sounded out of place.I wouldn't be surprised if Miss Kove did this story tongue-in-cheek, knowing that actually everything happens for a reason, not that all of life is sheer chance.
No one is dumb enough to believe that, which is why this is a good fairy tale..
Surprised about its success.
"The Danish Poet" is an animated short film that runs for 15 minutes and was made roughly 10 years ago.
it won an Academy Award in the Animated Short Film category and was, so far, the biggest success for writer and director Torill Kove.
Funnily enough, the movie was nominated for best short film at the Norvegian Film Awards (Amandas), but lost there.
Kove is pretty successful with the Academy.
Apart from her win here, she has two more nominations, one of these very recently.Still, I did not manage to appreciate this short film.
It has a touch of everything: drama, comedy, romance, history, but I personally felt that it did not really deliver in any of these areas.
In my personal case, it also did not help that I was not fond of the animation style at all.
The narrator here is Liv Ullmann.
This was one of her last projects, she is not too prolific anymore these days being way into her 70s.
Ullmann is probably Norway's most known actress of all time, but don't worry: Her narration is in English (maybe because the NFB produced this) and the characters do not have any audible dialog.
The only people I could maybe recommend this too would be Norwegians (or Danes) because of some of the historic references, but even these did not impress me.
I am genuinely surprised and disappointed that this managed to beat the wonderfully moving "Little Matchgirl" back 10 years ago.
Not recommended..
Engaging, sweet and thoroughly charming short..
I've seen three of the five shorts nominated for the Oscar and this short is the best of the three I've seen.
I'm not at all surprised that it was the winner.
Since it would be difficult to discuss this short without going into at least a few details, let this serve as a spoiler warning: The basic idea behind this short regards the importance of random chance in all our lives.
Narrated (very effectively) by Liv Ullman, with no other vocal work save hers, the story unfolds gradually and softly, with little touches of humor here and there.
There are quite a few playful nudges at Danes and Norwegians throughout.The story centers on a Danish poet and his hit-and-miss relationship with a Norwegian farmer's daughter.
The relationship has a good many twists and turns, with a logic chain made up of all sorts of random events which change the course of various lives.
Barking dogs, inattentive mail carriers, slippery boards, a funeral and hairstyles all take their turn at changing things, all leading to the marvelous conclusion.This short is available (on DVD) from the National Film Board of Canada and is well worth watching.
Highly recommended..
A sweet short.
This is a very cute, very touching, and very loving little animated short.
The best thing about it is its simplicity...
it reminds me more of those PBS style animations or the Madeleine cartoons from when I was a kid.
The storybook colors really aid in the warm, heartfelt feelings this movie gives off.The basic premise is that lonely people, through their need for connections, eventually set off chains of events that leads to "happily ever after" not only for themselves, but for other entities around them.
It's romantic, but allows itself the opportunity to be silly and childish at times to help keep it from being sentimental or boring.I also like the small run-on gags that go throughout the short, such as the drunks on the cruise and the slipping cow.
As a very minimalistic animation, every little thing, even in the background, has its own time and noteworthiness.--PolarisDiB.
Film short about the coincidences in life that make all the differences..
Barely 14 minutes, this is a lovely, animated film short.
On the surface it is about a Danish poet who travels to meet someone who inspired him.
However, it is really about how small coincidences in our lives determine so many things of significance.As the poet travels, and arrives near his destination, he is on foot and it is raining.
He seeks shelter at the nearest farm house.
There he is smitten by the farmer's daughter.
She is in turn smitten by him.
Unfortunate for the poet, she is already promised to another, the neighboring farmer.Their lives go on, other seemingly random things happen, and eventually they are brought back together.
And, as the narrator says, she herself would not been born had it not been for the circumstances that unfolded, in the order they unfolded.
The randomness of life, and how we react to each situation, that ultimately defines all of us.I saw this on DVD that is a collection of film shorts nominated for the 2006 Academy Awards. |
tt0049501 | Michel Strogoff | Michael Strogoff, a 30-year-old native of Omsk, is a courier for Tsar Alexander II of Russia. The Tartar Khan (prince), Feofar Khan, incites a rebellion and separates the Russian Far East from the mainland, severing telegraph lines. Rebels encircle Irkutsk, where the local governor, a brother of the Tsar, is making a last stand. Strogoff is sent to Irkutsk to warn the governor about the traitor Ivan Ogareff, a former colonel, who was once demoted and exiled and now seeks revenge against the imperial family. He intends to destroy Irkutsk by setting fire to the huge oil storage tanks on the banks of the Angara River.
On his way to Irkutsk, Strogoff meets Nadia Fedor, daughter of an exiled political prisoner, Basil Fedor, who has been granted permission to join her father at his exile in Irkutsk, the English war correspondent Harry Blount of the Daily Telegraph and Alcide Jolivet, a Frenchman reporting for his 'cousin Madeleine'. Blount and Jolivet tend to follow the same route as Michael, separating and meeting again all the way through Siberia. He is supposed to travel under a false identity, posing as the pacific merchant Nicolas Korpanoff but he is discovered by the Tartars when he meets his mother in their home city of Omsk.
Michael, his mother and Nadia are eventually captured by the Tartar forces, along with thousands of other Russians, during the storming of a city in the Ob basin. The tartars do not know Strogoff by sight, but Ogareff is aware of the courier's mission and when he is told that Strogoff's mother spotted her son in the crowd and called his name, but received no reply, he understands that Strogoff is among the captured and devises a scheme to force the mother to indicate him. Strogoff is indeed caught and handed over to the Tartars, and Ogareff alleges that Michael is a spy, hoping to have him put to death in some cruel way. After opening the Koran at random, Feofar decides that Michael will be blinded as punishment in the Tartar fashion, with a gleaming hot blade. For several chapters the reader is led to believe that Michael was indeed blinded, but it transpires in fact that he was saved from this fate (his tears at his mother evaporated and saved his corneas) and was only pretending.
Eventually, Michael and Nadia escape, and travel to Irkutsk with a friendly peasant. They are delayed by fire and the frozen river. However, they eventually reach Irkutsk, and warn the Tsar's brother in time of Ivan Ogareff. Nadia's father, who has been appointed commander of a suicide battalion, and later pardoned, joins them and Michael and Nadia are married. | revenge | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0088286 | Top Secret! | Nick Rivers, a highly successful United States rock star ("Skeet Surfing"), travels to East Germany to perform at a cultural festival, which secretly serves the East German government as a diversion for an illegal military operation with the intent of reuniting Germany under their rule. At a dinner, Nick encounters Hillary Flammond, a member of the local resistance movement, attempting to avoid the authorities. He pretends to be her date to get to know her, and performs an impromptu song and dance ("Tutti Frutti") mistakenly thinking that he was asked to do so, to the delight of Hillary and the crowd but to the annoyance of General Streck, the mastermind of the "reunification" plot.
Nick later sees Hillary at a ballet, where she is trying to meet with a resistance contact, but is met by the police instead. Nick saves her and they try to escape, but Nick turns himself in so that Hillary can get away. He is taken to a prison where he is questioned and tortured, but he knows nothing and does not break. In an escape attempt, he ends up in the secret lab of Dr. Paul Flammond, a brilliant scientist developing the "Polaris naval mine", a device that can destroy the entire NATO submarine fleet as part of the government's plot; the Germans force him to work by threatening to kill his daughter Hillary. Nick is recaptured and scheduled for execution.
The East Germans decide that Nick must perform to avoid an international incident, and he does so to the rapturous joy of the local girls ("How Silly Can You Get"/"Spend This Night with Me"). He is rescued by Hillary at the end of his performance, after which they spend the night in the loft of a Swedish bookstore. Nick plays for her ("Are You Lonesome Tonight?") and they make love. The next morning, they are moved to the "Potato Farm" where they meet members of the French Resistance, led by Nigel "The Torch", who was a lover of Hillary from when they were stranded on an island as youths. Nick is upset by Hillary's residual love for Nigel, but accepts that they must work together for the cause. After fighting off an attack by the Germans, who were tipped off by the secret traitor, they move to a pizza restaurant, where Nick proves that he's not the traitor by performing for the locals ("Straighten Out the Rug").
The resistance group stages a rescue of Dr. Flammond, where Nigel and Du Quois, a resistance leader, dress up in a fake cow outfit to disable the prison's defenses. While the other members successfully infiltrate the prison, Nigel reveals himself as the traitor. Dr. Flammond is rescued, but Nigel makes off with Hillary, and Nick is forced to rescue her in an underwater bar room fight. With their flight about to leave, Hillary chooses to go with Nick and her father to America. | plot twist, comedy, entertaining | train | wikipedia | In the dinner scene at the "Hotel Gay Schluffen", Nick Rivers (played by Val Kilmer, and this may be the best thing he's ever done), American rock star, is told that he needs a jacket to eat in the dining room, but the restaurant will provide one.
It's funny, but the amazing thing is that I've seen this movie many times over a period of something like 20 years, and I'd never noticed that before.I believe that this is one of the marks of a great spoof, that you can watch it many times and still pick up jokes you've never noticed before.
The men were comedic geniuses when they were together.Val Kilmer was hilarious as Nick Rivers, and the movie has a strong supporting cast, including Lucy Gutteridge as Nick's love interest Hillary (I wonder how Ms. Clinton would feel if she knew her name means "She whose bosoms defy gravity"?), Christopher Villiers as Nigel, her ex-boyfriend (they spent some time stranded on a deserted island together), and Jeremy Kemp as the evil General Streck.
But that's not the point, the point is the comedy, and I could go on and on about the many hilarious jokes but I'm not going to; let me just say without ruining anything that the funniest scenes in the movie involve a cow.It's usually overlooked, curiously enough, when talking about the great comedies, but there's no doubt about it, "Top Secret!" IS one of the great comedies of our time..
Featuring a young Val Kilmer, I think Top Secret is the best of all spoof films (Spaceballs is a close second).
Also, Val Kilmer does a great acting for his first movie!This movie may not be the best comedy ever made but it still is among the top of its genre and a great movie to watch even and specially if you're not in a good mood.If you found "Airplane!" funny then watching this one is highly recommended.
In his first leading role, Val Kilmer plays Nick Rivers, an Elvis like pop star sent to Germany on a good will tour as a fill in for Leonard Bernstein.
Lucy Gutteridge is his German lover.An often overlooked - maybe even misunderstood - film from the Zucker/Abrams/Zucker team (who gave us "Airplane!") the film takes pot shots at "The Man Who Knew Too Much", pintos, rock 'n roll, Nazis, and other various spy movies with more gags than you can shake a stick at.
This movie is unbelievable funny and makes no sense.Why are there Nazis in East-Germany capturing Scientists and why do they want to let a Rock'n'Roll singer play his music!?
Following the popular success of "Airplane!" and its less acclaimed sequel, the ZAZ trio was back to what I believe to be the funniest comedy ever: "Top Secret!" a hilarious parody of the WWII spy films and the 50-60's rock-themed movies.
Speaking of rock'n'roll, one of the most defining songs of the film performed by Val Kilmer aka Nick Rivers is titled "How Silly Can you Get?" which sounds like a self-reflexive motto."Top Secret!" probably features the highest laughs-out-loud-per-minute ratio from any movie, as there is not one single moment where the action isn't punctuated by a gag, and that this very gag doesn't work.
You may say that this is the very principle of a comedy, what's more a spoof movie, but it seems like "Top Secret!" has been specially concocted for pure and genuine amusement, and while the much more respected "Airplane!" has its slower moments, especially during the flash-back parts, "Top Secret!" was hilarious from A like Abrahams to Z like Zucker brothers.There are two kinds of gags in "Top Secret!", the direct and the indirect one.
Anyway, whether it's an offensive national anthem, a singing horse, a little German, an over-hilarious moment when Nick is about to be executed and an old lady slowly approaches to pick up the phone, any attempt to list the audio-visual gags of the film is as ludicrous as trying to define which is the funniest.
The indirect gag is the elaborated one, already funny by itself but leading to a much more delightful punch-line.The first one involves a weird shot illustrating the road taken by Nick Rivers and his manager, the map looks more and more familiar until Pac-Man makes his appearance, the very gag that sets the tone of the film.
The gag works even more because we expect it, like when Nick is introduced to the French Resistance, what would you expect from a man named "Déjà Vu" apart from "Have we not met before?" It could have concluded here yet the French sounding names punch-line was with the black guy named 'Chocolate Mousse", which says a lot about an era where anything was acceptable in the name of pure comedy.I don't mean to be too analytical, but my regard for "Top Secret!" is due to one of the two funniest and creative gags from any film, starting with the Swedish bookstore sequence, a cinematic achievement that would have made Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin proud.
During that part, there is a gradual suspicion that we're not watching a normal scene, even for a spoof movie, there is something weird in the walking and the talking that gets funnier as it is more noticeable, the scene becomes hilarious when we get the point and yet it goes on and on, a book getting in the right place immediately, dust from ear to mouth, and finally Nick and Hillary 'sliding up' a pole.
The rest of the gags are as good as it gets, and features many fourth-wall breaking, like when Nick and Hillary feels that the romance "makes it's like a bad movie" and then they look at us, and many film references are made, notably one hilarious climax in a sub-aquatic Western bar, and a clever farewell a la "Wizard of Oz"."Top Secret!" is made in such a way, that we either enjoy a gag or wait for one to come, so there's no time break.
The plot is a parody to World Was II movies with the French resistance and it is impossible not laughing along the adventures of Nick Rivers in the East Germany.
This time with "Top Secret!", which is a very underrated movie that, in my humble opinion, is just as good as "Airplane!" (which of course is considered their best work).
In between their most successful films Airplane, Naked Gun and Hot Shots the ZAZ team modestly spoofed the espionage and conspiracy theory thrillers in Top Secret!
The film involves American teen idol Nick Rivers (Val Kilmer in his first big screen role) attending a culture festival in Nazified East Germany.
Top Secret isn't Abraham's and the Zucker brother's best work, but it's still great entertainment and the quality balances somewhere between 'The Kentucky Fried Movie' and 'Airplane'..
It's just not in the class of the best Abrahams and Zucker's, especially the fore- mentioned Airplane, hence my four stars.Sent off to cold-war East Germany and playing rock'n'roll to an audience not yet immersed in such, at a concert that aims to unite west and east Berlin, Nick Rivers (Kilmer) encounters an array of mishaps, from the outset.
There's Omar Sharif as you've never seen, or ever thought you'd see him and a turn from Peter Cushing, too.Venturing into a parody of WWII films, including The Great Escape, it ends up with a herd of cows wearing wellington boots...What happens between is fast and funny and whilst Top Secret isn't the funniest thing you'll see, it's good and worthy of including in the 'ones to see'..
Fast-moving and fun loose, it's one of those films where you're waiting to see what the next gag will be.Everyone plays their roles with a straight poker face, particularly VAL KILMER in the lead as Nick Rivers, a rip-off of Elvis Presley.
TOP SECRET
Directors
Jim Abrahams
David and Jerry Zucker
Cast Inc
Val Kilmer
Peter Cushing
I was booked for a couple of days to play a straight faced German and a very good actor (Warren Clarke) was to be my boss.
I don't know if this was Val Kilmer's first leading role but he certainly went to the top in his later films..The scene I'm in goes something like this.
For casting , Val Kilmer really knows how to make people laugh by just looking at his face , though , his acting in serious scenes were great (if there's one serious scene).The jokes were again , unmatched till today , everything can make you laugh in this film , from names to looking at how they walk ...
"Top Secret!" is a comedy that parodies spy films from the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker team that created "Airplane!" (1980) and later the "Naked Gun" films.
I just saw this movie for the first time in the original English version, and it's silly, but VERY entertaining fun.Indeed, from "There's Sauerkraut in my Lederhosen" to the moving train station to Dèja Vu ("Haven't we met before?") to Rivers placing his head into a gas oven (an overt parody of the murder scene in "Torn Curtain", I think) to the Blue Lagoon spoof, this has to be counted as a classic.It may not reach the heights of some French film comedies (like "Oscar" or "The Great Blonde"), but it's a very well done parody in its own right.Some personal remarks: My appreciation for Val Kilmer has grown immensely after watching this film; this fellow is a gifted dancer and an achieved singer.
I don't think spoof movies are even funny; usually I actually get a bit embarrassed for watching them.Top Secret!, though, is hilarious!
It is not as good as 'Airplane!' or the first 'Naked Gun' but it comes close.Val Kilmer is Nick Rivers, an American rock n' roll singer, who comes to East-Germany.
In my opinion a great movie, a classic comedy film of all times,absolutely recommended.
I do, I loved 'Airplane' and I continue to hail it as the finest slap-stick comedy ever.Coming to, 'Top Secret!', This flick is amongst the stupidest films of its time, that manages a set of good laughs in the meantime.
They are perhaps, the least bothered writer-directors of all-time.'Top Secret!' tells the story of an American pop singer, played awesomely by Val Kilmer, who goes to East Germany to perform at a cultural festival.
Even when not laughing, you will always find yourself smiling - that's worth about everything in these grim times.Needs a second and a third look - never stops.(Side note: Val Kilmer's first film - and he does his own singing!).
The three absurdist comic savants, produced one other spoof after airplane but before "The Naked Gun" with "Top Secret!".An America...(read more) n pop star, is invited to sing in East Germany, but the evil "west" Germans???, are conspiring to use the concert to take over both sides of the country, and only Val Kilmer and his constant Elvis songs and imitations can save the day?
Well the Zaz guys were never big on plot, if you've seen the type of film they are spoofing you should be well aware of the conventions, which is maybe why this film is as little remembered as it's peers, it's attempting to spoof multiple "genres" at once.I've never really seen any of the old Elvis musicals, so a lot of the humor in the musical moments falls flat, and confuses, when your waiting for more spy and espionage gags.Not quite as good as their other more well known films, but good viewing for those interested in the mile a minute, absurdist visual gags and slapstick and vernacular jokes that only these guys could do, after Woody Allen and Mel Brooks the comic torch for the 80's passed through the hands of the trio Zaz, where it continued on past Kevin Smith and the Wayans to Judd Apatow and co, and beyond.Oh and it was funny too..
Nick then suddenly finds himself caught in this conflict and goes out of the way to help Hillary and the French Resistance free her father.Well, I simply adore this broad and terribly ridiculous skit-riddled spoof by the comedy team Jerry & David Zucker and Jim Abraham.
Spoof movies, which parody some existing film or genre, have a long history (several of the British "Carry On" series fall into this category), but they were particularly popular in the seventies and eighties, the period which saw some of Mel Brooks' finest work such as "Blazing Saddles" (which parodies the Western) and "High Anxiety" (the films of Alfred Hitchcock) as well as the likes of "Naked Gun" (cop thrillers), "Airplane!" (disaster movies) and "The Big Bus" (ditto)."Top Secret!" is another film of this type.
Jim Abrahams and David Zucker, the creators of Airplane!, bring more madcap humour to the big screen with Top Secret!, which stars Val Kilmer as rock and roll singer Nick Rivers, who becomes involved in a resistance plot to rescue a scientist being held captive in East Germany.Kilmer, in his debut, is surprisingly good, handling acting, comedy and singing duties with aplomb, proving without a doubt that he is a major star in the making; Kilmer is joined by a wonderful supporting cast which includes more established faces such as Peter Cushing, Omar Sharif, Ian McNiece and Michael Gough.Unfortunately, as talented as the cast are, the scattershot humour is far too random and wildly inconsistent to be a total success: for every laugh-out-loud moment (my favourites: a very silly dance routine, the novelty dog poop gag, the brilliantly executed Swedish book store scene, and the singing horse), there are dozens of others that will fail to tickle the funny bone..
There are funnier spoof movies today, but "Top Secret!" is still worth watching.If you are familiar with Abrahams and Zucker movies then you know what you are in for here; a movie full of really odd comedy spoofs and gags.The core essence of the story is about an American rock and roll singer named Nick who is on a promotional tour to East Germany during World War II.
Here he becomes entangled in a conflict between the Nazis and the French resistance.There was actually a fairly good ensemble of talents in the movie, including Omar Sharif, Val Kilmer and Jeremy Kemp."Top Secret!" does have some funny moments and does bring about a good laugh here and there.If you enjoy movies such as "Hot Shots", "Airplane!" and the like, then you will also like "Top Secret!"..
Val Kilmer plays a singer (making fun of Elvis) who is trying to help save the scientist.It is funny like all spoof movies and made by the Zucker/Abrahams/Zucker crew.
This is a comedy-spoof from Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker, featuring Val Kilmer in his film debut.
It is an outrageously funny parody of World War II spy movies in which American rock singer Nick Rivers (Kilmer) visits East Germany to perform, but ended up getting caught in the middle of a communist German plot aimed at forcing scientist Dr. Paul Flammond (Michael Gough) in making ultimate super-weapon, the Polaris Mine.
Rivers and Flammond's daughter Hillary (Lucy Gutteridge) join the French Resistance, whose members have the most clever and hilarious sounding names you've ever heard, to rescue the doctor and foil the plot.At only 90 minutes long, this movie is stuffed with non-stop laughs and outrageous gags one after the other, from the Resistance members doing the tap dance right in the middle of a gun fight, to the underwater fight in a saloon between Nick and the main villain.
From start to finish, this spoof that will send tears to your eyes and have you horse laughing from all the surprise gags, film and cultural parodies and funny dialog.With all the jokes and comedy in abundance, you wouldn't want to treat this movie seriously.
Kilmer did a great job in his first motion picture acting performance, as well as the host of other actors, providing us a thoroughly entertaining movie with comedy that just flows naturally, for a spoof, rather than force, slapstick nonsensical stuff.Overall, it's some of Abraham and the Zuckers' best work.
The movie team of David Zucker, Jim Abrahams and Jerry Zucker chose to film "Top Secret!" instead of making a sequel to their previous hit "Airplane!".
If you enjoy Airplane and the like, then you'll love this.Look out for the background gags - the duty free carrier when parachuting into Occupied France, Peter Cushing and the terrific 2 minute long scene - filmed backwards, the musical parody of "lonesome tonight", noughts and crosses with machine guns and pistols, the worlds biggest escape tunnel ...
Even if you don't see them initially, I assure you that they are there, especially if you speak either German or Yiddish or if you've seen more spy movies, film noir, Elvis musicals, war movies or westerns than is healthy.Val Kilmer plays Nick Rivers, an American singer on his way to East Germany to perform at the government's request.
I think that this is the best of the Abrahams/Zucker Airplane!-genre spoofs, probably because I prefer the genre of films being spoofed here, which are spy thrillers and Elvis movies.
Now, "Airplane!" started it all, and the "Naked Gun" movies had their moments, but the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker team really hit their stride with "Top Secret!" It rivals the great "Duck Soup" as one of the funniest, most off-the-wall comedies of all time."Top Secret!" takes no prisoners.
Where else can you see a dead-on satire on World War II spy thrillers, Elvis rock musicals, "The Blue Lagoon," "The Great Escape" and "The Wizard of Oz?" Val Kilmer even does a very credible young Elvis impression -- it's obvious he's having fun, and so we have fun, too.This is one of those movies that you need to watch a couple of times to get all the jokes.
In this movie the characters appear to be saying 'Look how silly and funny we are' It kills the humour for me.I'm off to watch the Naked Gun films for the hundredth time and get some real laughs.. |
tt0058401 | Night Must Fall | Mrs. Bramson (Dame May Whitty) is an irascible elderly woman who holds court in a small English village. She pretends to need a wheelchair, and impulsively threatens to fire her maid, Dora (Merle Tottenham), for allegedly stealing and breaking china. Meanwhile, the household learns that the police have searched a nearby river looking for the missing villager, Mrs. Shellbrook. Dora then introduces her Irish boyfriend, Danny (Robert Montgomery), who works for Mrs. Shellbrook. Perceiving that Mrs. Bramson is a hypochondriac who only affects her need for a wheelchair, Danny is charming toward her and says that she reminds him of his mother. He tells Mrs. Bramson that he loves Dora and would marry her if he had a better job. Mrs. Bramson obliges and he becomes her servant.
Mrs. Bramson's niece and companion, Olivia Grayne (Rosalind Russell), is suspicious of Danny, but Mrs. Bramson dismisses her concerns. When Mrs. Bramson's attorney, Justin Laurie (Alan Marshal), arrives to give his client money, he warns her not to keep so much cash in her possession; but she dismisses his concerns, as well. Meanwhile, Justin, who is in love with Olivia, asks her to marry him, but she refuses because their relationship lacks any true romance. Justin leaves feeling dejected, and Danny sees Mrs. Bramson putting the cash into her safe. Olivia's concerns are heightened when she catches Danny lying to Mrs. Bramson about a shawl that allegedly belonged to his mother, noticing that the price tag is still on the shawl. Still, Olivia cannot help being attracted to Danny.
Dora discovers Mrs. Shellbrook's decapitated body in the forest. Though Olivia accuses Danny of the murder, he denies it. Again, Mrs. Bramson dismisses her niece's concerns because she has grown very fond of Danny. The rest of the household does not feel comfortable being in the house while a killer is at large, but Mrs. Bramson feels safe enough to stay with Danny. Later that night, Mrs. Bramson hears noises and becomes frightened. When she screams for Danny, he comes in and calms her down by giving her something to drink and lulling her to sleep. Danny then suffocates her to death and empties the safe.
Olivia arrives unexpectedly and admits to Danny that she was attracted to him in the past, but no longer. He references his poor childhood and being looked down upon being a servant, and threatens to kill her, too, so that no one can incriminate him in Mrs. Bramson's murder. Olivia said she understands if he kills her, but she wanted him to know that she is no longer drawn to him. But just then the police arrive, called by Justin when he could not reach Olivia by phone, and arrest Danny. As he leaves, Danny says, "I'll hang in the end, but they'll get their money's worth at the trial." Finally, Justin and Olivia embrace. | murder | train | wikipedia | The great Albert Finney and his mysterious hat-box!.
To start with a little off-topic note: in 2003, Tim Burton made the film "Big Fish" which stars Ewan McGregor as a younger version of Albert Finney.
When you actually see "Night Must Fall", which was shot around the time when Finney was in his late 30's, it becomes obvious how good this casting choice was!
From multiple camera angles, McGregor really looks a lot like the young Finney and the facial expressions are almost exact.
"Night Must Fall" itself is a truly interesting and involving thriller and I wonder why on earth it's so underrated!
This is a remake of a 1930's thriller that stars Finney as a dangerous, yet very charismatic psychopath who systematically works his way up in a high-society family as a pageboy.
The film has a terrific opening sequence (the frightening image of Danny getting rid of his murder victim) and an extremely suspenseful finale!
Everything in between is a bit too talky and at times somewhat dull, but you keep watching since Finney's performance is so outstanding.
Reisz' directing is well-handled but it merely is Freddie Francis' imaginative photography that makes this film so dreamy and beautiful.
Francis unquestionably was Britain's best cinematographer of that time and he also directed a couple of entertaining horror films ("Trog", "The Creeping Flesh", "Tales that Witness Madness
").
A good-looking, charming and friendly fellow; some 20 years before the horror of Ted Bundy!.Albert Finney gives his most impressive and outstanding performance.
The opening scene in which Finney is walking in a swamp with a head-less, arm-less, leg-less torso is one of the most shocking and disturbing scenes in film history.
The remake of the 1937 film was slaughtered both by critics and audience at the time it premiered and there was mainly one reason for it:the crazed fans of Albert Finney were absolutely shocked,as he daringly chose the role of the psychotic ''killer with the angelic face'', following his all-time favorite roles of ''Saturday night and Sunday morning''and, particularly, ''Tom Jones''.As many historians mention, the ''MGM wives'' who were few of the first to see the film, turned violently against the gifted director, Karel Reisz, shouting ''what have you done to that beautiful boy?''!But this is not a serious reason to dismiss an, overall, very good film, which, however, has some serious flaws.The use of music is exaggerated and some times irritating and, only in the first part of the film, Finney doesn't quite know how to tackle with his disturbed character.
But the photography is great, Mona Washbourne gives a superb performance and Karel Reisz does a great job, not only updating the old text and bringing it within the ''realism'' of the British Free Cinema movement, but also with his masterful camera movements and his use of editing and abruptly cutting to different scenes, he creates an imposing psychological thriller, where what you don't see is more disturbing than what you do.
Being one of the greatest actors EVER, Finney soon finds a convincing attitude for his character and the last part of the film is absolutely brilliant as a whole.It should be re-examined and re-appreciated, that's why it has to come out on VHS and DVD a.s.a.p.!
Impressive performance by Albert Finney.
I love Albert Finney's performance as a psychopath who has the gift of perceiving the innermost needs of those he meets and then molding his own personality to take advantage of those needs.
To see Finney in TOM JONES (previous) or TWO FOR THE ROAD (following), although he is young, his face does have character and expression lines - he is human.
If you're an Albert Finney fan I definitely recommend viewing this movie and making your own judgment..
Night must fall is a riveting film with Albert Finney giving a fantastic performance.
He plays Danny, the boyfriend of a kitchen maid (Sheila Hancock) who works for a wealthy widow.
Albert Finney is wonderful to watch, combining charm and humour with menace and danger.
The supporting cast is also first-rate, there is a tense atmosphere throughout and it is a shame this film is so little-known - it is an excellent, suspenseful, engaging thriller..
Albert Finney is superb as Danny, well the entire cast is very strong.
I thought it was a lot like that other British twisted family oddity 'Girly' (US title) but with fewer sexual undertones.It's a shame Night Must Fall isn't more well known as it's a true gem of 60's British cinema..
Outstanding performance by Albert Finney.
There are many experimental aspects (music, camera angles, the performances) that reflect the time period in which it was filmed.
It came the year after Tom Jones and was co-produced by Finney, and as a result, was not the kind of film Finney fans were expecting.
I suspect that is why the film is not more well known.A couple of IMDb viewers were rather harsh concerning Finney's performance, but I have to disagree.
I was completely mesmerized and I highly recommend it.Probably not a good movie to watch on a dark stormy night by yourself.
At the same time, don't expect a typical horror film--I was thrown off by the very beginning and halfway through, I was questioning what I had seen--I think this was deliberate, and has a lot to do with Danny's character.
For those who feel Finney's performance was "over the top" remember in 1964 what the general perception was about a "crazy" or psychopathic person.
The public wasn't as educated about or aware of what mental illness looks like.Some historical context for this film for the reviewers who commented that Finney must really have wanted to make this film because he could do whatever he wanted after Tom Jones, and that he was trying to provide a showcase for himself.
First of all this movie was released in 1964, but it was filmed before Tom Jones was released.
This film was not, in fact, the first choice for Karel Reisz and Albert Finney, who wanted to collaborate again after working on Saturday Night and Sunday Morning.
They originally planned to make a film about Ned Kelley, and had spent a lot of time and effort trying to put that project together, even going so far as to scout locations in Australia.
However, the financial backing was from MGM, and at the last minute they pulled the financing from the Ned Kelley project and told Reisz and Finney they were doing a remake of Night Must Fall.Both Director and Actor have said they didn't feel it was going well while they were making it, and they weren't happy with how it turned out; however, Tony Richardson said the same about Tom Jones.
I personally find Finney's performance riveting, the story suspenseful, and, as other people have mentioned, the cinematography as atmospheric and effective as you would expect from Freddy Francis.
I'm very glad I watched this extremely well made British '60s film before reading other critical judgements; otherwise I might not have bothered with it.
I've seen a lot of British thrillers and films noirs from this period, and some of them are really terrible; not terrifying, dreadful.
Not many parts like this are currently being written for elderly or middle-aged female actors in British or U.S films, but back then they were pretty common.
A psychological thriller well acted by a young Albert Finney..
This remake of a 1937 Robert Montgomery movie is just as eerie as the original.
Albert Finney does a great job conveying a momma's boy character who turns even more pathological as the film progresses.
As true for many better British films, the supporting characters are well cast and perfectly matched to their respective parts..
Handsome, boyish Albert Finney is a schizophrenic axe murderer in "Night Must Fall," based on the Emlyn Williams play, and a remake of the 1937 film starring Robert Montgomery and Rosalind Russell.
This film is less a psychological drama than an actual thriller this time around, with accompanying loud, distracting music.
There is no repressed niece; there is instead, in the body of Susan Hampshire, a good-looking and fascinated daughter.
There was none of the loneliness or tension either.Albert Finney was at the top of his form, and had the actual story been closer to the original, he would have done an excellent job with that, too.
Susan Hampshire is very pretty and always good as a young actress on leave from London for reasons not explained, and Mona Washbourne is a typical semi-invalid old lady who in a strange way competes with her daughter for Finney's affections."Night Without Fall" seems to have been made on a low budget.
My only problem was that I was expecting to understand more about Finney's character by the end of the film (ie: what lead to his psychotic behaviour, what had gone wrong in his childhood...that kind of thing), but never got any deep insight at all.
This remake of the 1937 film of the same name has one big drawback: a broad performance by Albert Finney as the stereotypical Mad Welshman.
Turn the sound down and you'll enjoy a lovely looking film shot by Freddie Francis, who remains one of the great living cameramen (see his work for David Lynch in the magnificent "The Straight Story").
Everything about this film LOOKS great, and there's good acting by Mona Washbourne (as usual) but Finney doesn't know how to turn it off.
A pity, considering he was just coming off Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, where he played an equally outrageous character to perfection..
A critical failure at the time of its release and considered something of a let-down for its director and star, (it was certainly an odd choice of material), this 1964 film version of Emlyn Williams' play, (it was written in 1935 and filmed two years later with Robert Montgomery), is nowhere near as bad as people say.
It's the one about the young psychopath, (a terrific Albert Finney), who worms his way into the affections of elderly invalid Mona Washbourne, (superb), and her initially stand-offish daughter, (an excellent Susan Hampshire).
The problem is that in attempting to get to the psychological heart of the piece director Karl Reisz drains it of all suspense and Clive Exton's screenplay, (I haven't seen or read the original play), is a bit on the dull side.
Cannot remember much more than this - other than the general feeling of menace and fear that Finney managed to evoke with his performance as the psychotic killer who terrorises the women of the house..
Night must fall : A great albeit modest experiment in British horror cinema by Karel Reisz and Albert Finney..
Night must fall has the dubious distinction of being not only an underrated horror film but also one of those brilliant films which has found scarce admiration in the realm of British cinema.However,these glaring shortcomings would not make much difference for those film aficionados who would like to explore new facets of horror cinema with a difference.British actor Albert Finney and director Karel Reisz have made a great horror film which works primarily on Albert Finney's mannerisms.This is a film which holds our attention as its suspense elements are merged with our comic occurrences thereby creating a kind of happiness during distress atmosphere.The psychological depth of Karel Reisz's feminine characters is so immense that it reveals their weaknesses as well as their fascination for a person who would stop at nothing in order to harm them.This is something which helps us comprehend that all characters are part of a wide spectrum of a character study which would be beneficial for society as a whole..
The only reason Karel Reisz and Albert Finney decided to build on their great success of "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning" and Finney's international triumph in "Tom Jones" to attempt just that by remaking this Richard Thorpe/Emlyn Williams 1937 classic, besides the fact that it was a great part for a flamboyant young actor like Finney, is that they figured that in those pre-video days, no one would remember the original film.
Today's audiences however can compare the two films and I'd be surprised if more than a fraction of them would prefer the Reisz version over the Thorpe one.
Finney, who is a good actor, was popular enough to create his own company and tailor the film around his screen personality but not experienced enough to know that you can't get through that intricate play on just mugging, cute faces, a hand-held camera and modern editing techniques.
Besides overlong cutesy-pootsy scenes like Finney racing his scooter with Susan Hampshire's Austin Mini, the spectator has to contend with seeing his naked body, open shirts and suggested musculature at every possible occasion the script permits.
In order to make even more room for Finney's character and personality, Olivia's part has been rendered practically silent.
She of the Greta Garbo good looks spends the film pouting mysteriously and letting us guess whether she has a soul or not and whether she is infatuated with Finney's character or not and whether she suspects him or not.
The producers (Finney and Reisz) were apparently so worried that the film might be too talky that they removed every piece of inspired dialog (usually Olivia's) from the original and made the 101 minutes of running time feel infinitely longer than the original's 116 minutes in the process.
The obligatory modernization of the play also necessitated a good dollop of sex where the original happily did without it so that Dora's character is made ridiculous and given a conspicuously vulgar turn by Sheila Hancock.
The ordeals of the psychotic Albert Finney's ladies.
Albert Finney makes a virtuoso performance, and the film could have for a subtitle 'Anatomy of a psychopath', since that is what the film envisions and with excellence.
This film Albert Finney made just after his triumph in "Tom Jones" as something of an opposite.
Wealthy widow Mrs. Bramson (Mona Washbourne) lives in the English countryside with her daughter Olivia (Susan Hampshire) and has a maid/cook named Dora (Sheila Hancock).
Dora is pregnant from her boyfriend Danny (Albert Finney).
He charms Mrs. Bramson and starts playing mind games with Olivia and Dora...but he's slowly starting to unravel.Rightly forgotten thriller.
This was done right after "Tom Jones" became a monster hit so Finney was able to do whatever he pleased.
He probably picked this to prove to people that he could act and wasn't just the handsome ladies man he played in "Jones".
Now, Finney IS a great actor but he's pretty dreadful in this.
In one scene we see Danny pretty much terrorizing Olivia who he caught in his room.
The acting by Hampshire, Hancock and Washbourne is good; there's a nice music score and it's shot appropriately in moody black & white.
Still, this is a slow, dull thriller full of annoying characters.
Might be worth watching to see Finney showing how you should NOT play a maniac.
Otherwise, there is no dramatic need for Danny to have a Welsh accent and Robert Montgomery didn't bother in the 1937 version.The main difference between the film and the play is that the film reveals its hand in the first minute that Danny is a psycho killer.
In the play, its not clear until near the end and much of the dialogue are cat n'mouse exchanges between Danny and Olivia.The result of this is to create a somewhat boring film; you know who the killer is and thus spend an hour and a hour waiting for him to explode.
Weak, lethargic version with unconvincing Finney as Danny....
Emlyn Williams would never recognize what the British have done to his play about a psychotic killer, recycled from the 1937 film that starred ROBERT MONTGOMERY, ROSALIND RUSSELL and DAME MAY Witty.What is supposed to be a tense household situation that slowly builds to a horrific climax, is treated like a stylish drawing room drama with modern British sensibilities that takes time establishing any of the characters.
Only gradually does ALBERT FINNEY get under the skin of his character, the cheerfully casual Danny who charms the wheelchair-bound mistress of a secluded British household in the country.
The glimpse we do get of Finney's inner torment is almost laughable, accompanied by discordant chords of frantic music on the soundtrack.His flawed performance is the centerpiece of the melodrama and weakens the film, just as Robert Montgomery's did in the '37 version.
By comparison, this film opens things up a bit more and is less stagey than that earlier film in which Dame May Witty stole the show.MONA WASHBOURNE does nicely in the Dame May Witty role and the other players are competent enough, but the camera is almost always on Finney in his pivotal role.
If you've seen the 1937 version of this film, it's hard not to compare the two.
The sexual tension between the two is totally gone (Olivia and Dan have sex immediately) and the great, quietly erotic scenes between Rosalind Russell and Robert Montgomery in the original (similiar to the scenes between Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling) are missing.
The only suspense left comes from watching Finney as "the psycho" and wondering when he'll explode.This is why the ending falls flat.
To really enjoy this film, I would advise not seeing the original!.
Albert Finney's stunning performance is the reason to see Karel Reisz's tightly wound version of the Emlyn Williams play.
Finney plays a diabolic young man who insinuates himself into the household of wealthy widow Mona Washbourne.
Things are further complicated by the fact that Washbourne's nubile daughter Susan Hampshire is smitten with the loony Finney.
Reisz and Finney produced and there's a creepy music score by Ron Grainer.
The great Freddie Francis did the cinematography (his last for sixteen years, during which time he spent directing various horror films).
Sheila Hancock plays Finney's pregnant girlfriend. |
tt0227194 | One 2 Ka 4 | The story is about two friends and cops, Javed (Jackie Shroff) and Arun (Shahrukh Khan), who are both Special Task Force officers and partners.
Javed is a widower who is bringing up his 4 children with a lot of love and effort while Arun is his carefree, hotheaded, trigger happy albeit well-meaning subordinate and brother-like friend.
In a routine raid and bust operation, Javed and Arun lay their hands on the notorious drug lord, KKV (Nirmal Pandey) with the help of Inspector Sawant (Raj Zutshi). Later in court, KKV walks away using his powerful connections.
While on a subsequent drug raid, Javed is shot down by an unknown assailant - shortly after revealed to possibly be a rogue officer within the Special Forces department. According to the evidence, it's obvious that his killer's actually Sawant. Arun's devastated and realizes that Javed left his four kids behind in his care in his will.
The kids, though, all dislike him at first but then grow to like him a lot. Arun then meets a housekeeper Geeta (Juhi Chawla) who develops a close relationship with the kids on account of also having had a close almost brother sister like personal rapport with Javed when he was alive.
Meanwhile, Arun continues the case to hunt down the killer who took his best friends life along with Sawant. Things take a dramatic turn when Arun sees a girl resembling Geeta dancing in a nightclub with the prime suspect in Javed's murder. At first unable to come to terms with what he has stumbled on.. He loses his temper at the children and creates a furore.
A few days later, it is revealed Geeta was an undercover agent for the secret police, who testifies against Arun in court and makes the judge believe he is a drug dealer. Geeta gets him suspended. With no hope left, Arun uses his own skills to find Javed's murderer. Arun realizes that JD's corrupted. When Arun goes to JD's residence, JD was already murdered. KKV, Chief, & JD are partners in crime. KKV kills the Chief. The police destroys KKV's henchmen. KKV's about to reveal that Javed's killer's name, but Sawant shoots KKV & Sawant lies to Arun that KKV killed Javed. Arun, Geeta, & Javed's kids mistakenly believe that KKV killed Javed. KKV reveals that Sawant killed Javed. Sawant finally kills KKV. Sawant also killed JD. Sawant killed Javed, so he could take his post a Senior Task Force officer. Sawant shoots Arun, but Arun's still alive. Javed's children manages to pull a rope, so a hard object can fall onto Sawant's head & Arun manages to beat up Sawant in a funny way. Arun kills Sawant. The film ends with Arun and Geeta together looking after Javed's children. | prank | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1472195 | The Violent Kind | Cody, Q, and Elroy are second-generation bikers and drug dealers who plan to visit Cody's family at a remote cabin for his mother's birthday party; Shade, Q's girlfriend and Cody's cousin, joins them. When they arrive, they meet Cody's ex-girlfriend, Michelle, and her younger sister, Megan, who has a crush on Cody. After the party, Michelle and her husband take leave, which strands Megan at the cabin with Cody, Q, Elroy, and Shade. Though everyone else has left the party, Megan sees people outside the cabin and tries to get a ride from them. Having no luck locating the people she saw, she returns to the cabin and finds her sister bloody and near death. Michelle begs for help and collapses into unconsciousness before they can get any answers from her. At the same time, the cars and cell phones stop working. As the others attempt to figure out a plan, Elroy sexually assaults Michelle, but she surprises him by suddenly waking up and responding positively to him. As they begin to have sex, Michelle bites Elroy hard and tears away a piece of flesh from his neck. Elroy screams for help and tries to defend himself from Michelle as she tears into him. The others pull Michelle off Elroy, who is now heavily wounded, and, unsure what to do, they bind Michelle to the bed with tape.
Cody and Megan set off to find help, while Shade attempts to communicate with Michelle, whom she believes is possessed. During the conversation, Michelle loses control and attacks Shade. Shade barely escapes, and Q shoots through the door with a rifle. Michelle hides on the ceiling and attacks Q when he enters the room. Meanwhile, Cody and Megan discover that their closest neighbor is dead, and his wall is littered with missing persons reports that date back to the 1950s. They return to the cabin and discover the aftermath of Q's fight with Michelle: Michelle has disappeared, and Q wants to give up on finding her. Megan is outraged that Q would try to kill her sister, and Cody insists that they stay to help Elroy and find Michelle. Q and Cody come to blows, and Q leaves alone after failing to persuade Shade to accompany him. As Q walks down the road, he meets Michelle's dead husband, who is now alive again and talking about hearing strange, beautiful music. At the same time, Elroy, who is in the cabin, also mentions hearing music. Elroy and Michelle's husband both explode as their bodies are overcome in a blinding light.
Vernon, Jazz, and Murderball, psychopathic greasers, appear at the cabin, take everyone hostage, and torture them for information. Vernon sadistically toys with Cody, demanding to know where Michelle is and hinting that she is critically important to plans that involve a cataclysmic end to humanity. Vernon and Jazz leave the cabin momentarily to bring in Q's bound body, and Vernon proceeds to repeatedly stab Q with a switchblade. When Shade protests, Vernon orders Jazz to kill her. Outraged, Cody and Q overpower Vernon and shoot him with Q's rifle, but it has no effect. Murderball kills Q, and Vernon reveals that he knew Michelle's location the whole time; he just wanted to torture them for the fun of it. Vernon claims to have been hiding in a human body for the past 60 years and to be originally from a void beyond time and space that was the inspiration for human myths about heaven and hell. After he completes a ritual involving Michelle, Vernon releases Cody and Megan, saying that he likes them and pities their fate. As Cody and Megan flee to a nearby town, they see the people around them dropping dead, and the sky darkens ominously. | violence | train | wikipedia | The central characters in The Violent Kind sure don't conform to the 'ugly, burly, leather-clad, bandana-wearing thug with unkempt beard and long unwashed hair' biker stereotype: best friends Q and Cody (Cory Knauf), members of tough Northern Californian gang 'The Crew', look like aspiring Levi's models, sporting carefully tousled hair and designer stubble.Q's hard living, heavy drinking and brawling clearly hasn't prevented him from maintaining a strict fitness regime at the local gym, giving him a chiselled physique that has helped him bag a model-standard girlfriend in the form of brunette hottie Shade (Taylor Cole).
Most of the time, Q and his pals hang out in their nice suburban house, but when the guys like to party hearty, they do so at a cosy woodland retreat that belongs to Q's biker mum (not a bad property portfolio for a family with no visible means of support other than some petty drug-dealing).While this easy-on-the-eye cast is obviously going to give The Violent Kind broader appeal than a bunch of fat men with walrus whiskers and some fugly biker chicks, I really wish that The Butcher Brothers, the guys behind this indie horror, hadn't succumbed to such a trite Hollywood-ism—in my opinion, the superficiality of the pretty boy bikers and their gorgeous girls robs the film of any credibility.After lots of unconvincing guff that struggles but fails to prove to viewers just how ruthless and reckless Q and Cody can be despite their appearances (the guys get in a couple of scraps, Q has rough sex with Shade, and the guys attend a wild biker party), the film finally starts living up to the quotes on the box that claim it to be brutal, bloody and just a bit bonkers: Cody's slutty ex, Michelle (Tiffany Shepis), inexplicably becomes possessed, bringing her to the attention of some undead rockabillies from another dimension/outer space, who strip her naked for some kind of bizarre occult ritual—but only after a spot of torturing and killing.While none of this really makes much sense, at least its a damn sight more entertaining than all that faux bad boy biker crap.
The plot itself keeps you guessing at what's going to happen next, which I can't say for most horror movies.
I went into this thinking it was going to be your typical possession or slasher'ish type film and the beginning of the movie started to prove that I wasn't wrong.
With its opening scene of loud rough sex inside and a bunch of bikers kicking the crap out of two guys outside I settled in for what I thought would be a mindless horror film that was entertaining but without much depths.
I was wrong.I can't get too much into the plot as the movie packs a surprising punch near the end but the ride to the twist was definitely a fun one.
I can say that even though the movie started off as your typical horror film with its drunken party, slutty girls and drama when the party ends, that's when the fun begins.The film starts to get very strange when a gang of 50's era punks show up looking for one of the girls at the party.
The gang ends up having an odd sense of humour and uses it to amuse themselves with their hostages in a series of bizarre games and such.Overall great flick, delivers on the gore, acting, storyline all topped off with quite an amazing twist.
This movie would be great for most non-mainstream horror movie lovers.Zombiesteak.com - Discover a new world of horror films, designed just for you..
This is a film that could almost be broken into three differently toned parts along the lines of a format similar to "A.I." and "Martyrs." Likewise, the first half seems conventional enough, the second half more dangerous and the third is about as bleak as they come--by the time it finishes, how it began will be a distant memory."The Violent Kind" starts out as a cool and sleazy afternoon in Oakland, CA with a posse of three young biker buddies belonging to "The Crew" who are without a care or concern except living up their own impulsive behavior from rough sex, fights to drinking beer.
After almost everybody leaves, the real party just gets started, one where their livers aren't going to be the only things on the line.Cody's ex girlfriend returns a bloodied mess and asks for help.
She's brought inside and placed in a bed until the remaining people left over--three guys, two gals--can figure out why their vehicles won't work and their cell phones act glitchy to get help as they're in the middle of nowhere.
Soon enough things start to get really weird, as the woman on the bed turns Linda Blair-like possessed and with her bare hands mutilates one of the guys trying to get frisky and feel her up.Soon enough, the mysterious outsiders show up to the house to collect something they need.
Though it's like they stepped into another era or some kind of paranormal realm as there are unexplained flashes of light and these new strangers appear to be ripped out of a time warp from the '50s with their distinct attire, tunes and lingo.
They've got a dark and condescending sense humor that includes torturing their hostages while playing theme music on the record player and all the while laughing sardonically like they know a big secret their captives don't.
They put on a sadistic show and fit their eccentric parts like a glove, though it's a rather pointless game except to show what kind of people they're dealing with: the violent kind.The first phase is more fleshed out and some perspective is gained of the young gang with some internal conflicts, though it's a different type of knowing as being familiar with their disregard for restraint sets a new bar for comfortable living at the expense of others as well as themselves.
It would be like watching "Night of the Living Dead," except where the TV and word of mouth by others are missing, which would leave the focus in one area but not effectively set up for how it all pans out or ties in to a global matter.
Otherwise it feels exaggerated to stretch its importance."The Violent Kind" isn't going to be for everybody but it's definitely a different type of film which travels over a wide arc of genres and steps on any morals or taboos it can in the process.
I have to say after more and more mainstream crap Horror like Scream 4(Sorry Wes Craven, but Scream 3 and 4 were just monotonous and overbudgeted) and the flood of remakes, its very refreshing to see something new and semi-original come from the independent film industry.
Premise: The movie starts off telling the violent story of a notorious biker gang that is into drugs, violence, and crime getting together for a party.
The party quickly comes and goes then some real weird things start to happen after everyone leaves the party house.This movie definitely is a send up in the spirit of Evil Dead and the Exorcist thrown in with a few other genre Slasher flicks.
The movie definitely stands out as a smashmouth, grindhouse Independent, supernatural slasher with a very decent twist at the end that is like the icing on the cake.
I can already hear the argument that the film tries to be too much, but trust me, the movie handles everything, including the twist right down to the last minute.
I loved this movie and I highly recommend it to the REAL die-hard genre fans who can appreciate good REAL independent horror in the tradition of Evil Dead and The Exorcist.Bravo!.
Shockingly brutal movie about a group of people going after what they want.
After a party a girl named Michelle shows up bloody and dying, after being cared for strange things begin to happen.
Not much to this movie but sex, beating people up, and a lot of blood.
There are a lot of similar scenes to a variety of different movies in this, too many to name but you will recognize most of them when you watch.
This is not a movie for people who are against violence (but from the title it weeds most of them out), but it is actually a very entertaining movie that kept me interested the entire time.
This is not the kind of movie I usually like, but this was an exception.
But that's about the only good thing about this movie.
The beginning starts out kind of slow, and conversations seem to drag on just to take up time in the film.
After gathering together for a party, a group of bikers realize something's wrong with one of their members when they start behaving erratically, but that's only the start of their troubles when Satanic demons arrive at the party looking for one of their own.This was a really interesting effort that gets some really enjoyable moments about it.
Initially starting off as a biker film for the first half, complete with the trials and tribulations of the crew and their business dealings before getting to the party.
Once there, it turns into a rather fun and enjoyable enough possession film about one turning into a demonic creature which is where this one really gets fun in not only using the house as a fun stalking ground but also with the possession allowing for plenty of tense encounters with the constant yelling, graphic attacks and restraint attempts that are brought on against the possessed which makes for quite a fun time overall.
The biggest factor here with this one comes from the final half, where this one tends to get lowered slightly by the appearance of the villains as their retro-greaser look might not be as scary as it could've been since they look pretty laughable while the slang and taunts eventually grow thin since these scenes eventually add up to untold amounts of time doing nothing, which is only afterward in thinking about it so it's not so bad.
Still, it works well and is definitely fun enough.Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, Full Nudity and several sex scenes..
And due the acting it really works but it is still a weird movie.
It starts of with what you think another biker movie with a lot of roughness and nudity but after 22 minutes out of the blue someone gets possessed.
The story surrounding that possession is as I said a bit weird but once all is explained you surely will see the nudity and the red stuff and some gory parts.
Another original premise for this movie: A biker gang and their girlfriends are tormented when one of the girls becomes savagely possessed and a gang of "Rockabillies" from the fifties descends upon them to collect what is growing inside her.
I found the first hour of the movie, actually kind of boring.
The plot: A group of petty drug dealers head to their remote cabin for a birthday celebration, but the real party begins when one of them becomes possessed by something beyond time and space.The biggest problem is that this film has too much filler.
The first 30 minutes consists of tedious character development, but once you get past that, things start getting pretty interesting.
The setup seems to be going toward a stereotypical, derivative biker film, but it takes a series of progressively weirder left turns into possession film, home invasion, surreal torture porn, and finally a David Lynch-style ending that leaves you with plenty of questions and no answers.
If you like David Lynch, David Cronenberg, and Takashi Miike, you'll probably like this film, but mainstream horror fans who resent endings that make no sense will probably want to stay away from this messy film.There are definitely some interesting ideas, and the filmmakers tried to do something different and non-mainstream.
If you're patient, forgiving of low budget horror films, and like weird stories that make no sense, you should give The Violent Kind a try.
Things just happened, without any explanation, then the movie ended, leaving much to be finalized.
It did feel a little like a Coscarelli movie to me.The individual elements of the story were interesting enough, like the 50's angle, or the ending, or the motorcycle gang vibe, but I feel they were not put together right and it all fell short of what it could have been.
What started of as a low(er) budgeted Evil Dead, which I was fine with, soon morphed into something else which wasn't as appealing, the acting wasn't nearly strong enough to pull it off and I quickly got bored with the film.
Now I love a good horror b-movie as much, if not more so, than the next guy, but sadly this film was a bit of a hodgepodge mess, choosing to take a kitchen sink attitude (wherein the filmmakers throw stuff at you in the vain hope that something sticks) Alas nothing does.
It's part demonic possession movie, part home invasion psycho-torture porn.
The biker story doesn't really work because the cast looks like a bunch of skinny dopey surfer dudes.
One straightforward slasher flick and one supernatural/possession movie..
I got to see a cut of The Violent Kind at the San Francisco International Film Festival and it was amazing.
It takes about 5 left turns and where you end up is pretty far away from where you started.
One guy pulls Michelle off the biker and holds her down on the bed, then Michelle's sister Megan comes in and attempts to pull the guy off the monster Michelle.The events are confusing and the movie waits too long explain what is happening.Pluses: The bad guy had his own music as he whistled in an off key "Pop Goes the Weasel" although it wasn't used again.
Home invaders are from the "1950's."Negatives: Not a movie for those who take their films seriously.Sex, nudity, F-bomb.
And by best, I mean other people's best ideas.The only original thing about this film is the way it tries to fit together a story involving bikers, zombies, demons and 50's obsessed aliens.
This film is actually worthy of two different ratings - the 3 I gave it and the 8 I wanted to give it.The low rating is because the story basically made no sense.
The Violent Kind is one of those kinds of movies - throw in as many unrelated events as you possibly can into one film and hope the audience buys the ridiculousness.To be fair, those contrasting elements is why I wanted to give the movie an 8 rating.
Just watching the film you will be reminded of Tarantino, James Dean, Pulp Fiction, The Wild Bunch, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, Tarantino, The Exorcist, The Possession, Tarantino, Machine Girl, Carrie, Alien, The Silence of the Lambs, Tarantino, that episode of Twilight Zone where the space alien who looks human wears his white work cap over the third eye in his forehead, Tarantino, etc.The over-the-top acting in some parts was downright annoying, like Jim Carrey on steroids.
The fact that the phones have no signal is ultra-clichéd; maybe that's a routine element for horror these days, like a woman running through the woods who finally trips over a root or something.For a bunch of smart motorcycle/car mechanics, they sure look stupid not being able to figure out a car won't start because it's, gasp!, out of gas!
It sure shows, probably who The Violent Kind was intended for anyway.In the end, all the sudden twists and turns the movie makes from censored porn to biker drama to vampire-like horror to science fiction must have been made for kids with the attention span of fleas.
It's one thing to be the sort of crappy filmmakers who can't come up with enough story to fill up a feature length project so they just kill time with a bunch of pointless nonsense.
It's another thing to be the sort of crappy filmmakers who can't come up with enough story to fill up a feature length project so they just kill time with a bunch of pointless nonsense
and then have the balls to acknowledge to the audience that's exactly what they did.
I prefer that when filmmakers suck and they know they suck, they should at least have the humility to try and cover it up.And before I get into the actual movie, let me clear something up.
Fundamentally, though, The Violent Kind isn't a biker flick at all.
It's a low budget, sci-fi, end of the world horror film with just a hint of Lovecraft that uses bikers instead of teenagers as the victims de jour.
What's good here is Bret Roberts, who would have been great in an actual biker flick full of boobs, bullets and blood.
The Violent Kind looks cheap.
Horror movie characters are renowned for doing idiotic stuff, but decapitated turkeys aren't as stupid as the two people here who decide to beat the snot out of each other in the middle of a supernatural crisis.
This kind of bizarre is more in the "the people who made this don't know what the hell they're doing" way.
And to the extent there's any sort of subplot of personal conflict that plays out against the backdrop of the end of the world, it's manifested solely through the characters spouting expository sentences at each other.And if you want to know, The Violent Kind is about 3 bikers and 3 girls at a house in the woods who are set upon by aliens that are inhabiting the bodies of people who went missing in the 1950s.
Because the aliens have some time to waste before destroying humanity and decided that pretending to be a rockabilly tribute band at the end of a month long meth bender sounded like a great idea.So, to recap, The Violent Kind is being falsely marketed and it stinks. |
tt0113690 | Lord of Illusions | In the Mojave Desert in 1982, a man named Nix has gathered a cult in an isolated house, where he plans to sacrifice a young girl that he has kidnapped. Nix calls himself "The Puritan" and has the ability to use real magic. A group of former cult members, including Swann and Quaid, arrive to stop him. After the initial confrontation with the cultists, Nix's assistant, Butterfield, escapes, and Swann is attacked magically by Nix. The kidnapped girl shoots Nix through the heart with Swann's gun. Swann fastens an ironwork mask over Nix's head, who appears to die, and declares that they will bury Nix so deep that no one will ever find him.
Thirteen years later, New York City private detective Harry D'Amour is investigating a case in Los Angeles. D'Amour has a long-standing interest in the occult, and has some renown from his involvement with a recent exorcism. During the investigation, D'Amour discovers a fortune teller shop owned by Quaid, where he is relentlessly attacked by a man with unusual strength. D'Amour finds Quaid suffering from multiple stab wounds. As he dies, Quaid warns D'Amour that “The Puritan” is coming.
Swann, now a famous stage illusionist, lives in a Beverly Hills mansion with his wife, Dorothea. When informed that Nix's followers have murdered Quaid, Dorothea suggests they hire D'Amour to investigate the murder. D'Amour agrees, and she invites him to Swann's magic show. Swann performs a new death-defying illusion which goes wrong, and he is killed on stage.
D'Amour goes to The Magic Castle, where he hears Nix being described as a legend, and that Nix was believed to have taught Swann. After getting into the Repository, a special room in the Magic Castle that supposedly contains every magic secret known to man, he discovers that Swann's "illusions" involved real magic.
Later, at Swann's house, Dorothea reveals that she was the girl that Nix kidnapped, and that she married Swann because of a sense of obligation. Dorothea and D'Amour make love; afterwards, D'Amour is attacked by a man engulfed in fire. Suspecting a ruse, D'Amour opens Swann's coffin and finds that the body inside is fake. Valentin, Swann's assistant, explains that he helped Swann fake his death. D'Amour agrees to allow Valentin and Swann's ruse to continue. At the funeral, D'Amour follows a suspicious looking man who turns out to be Swann, who, in jealousy, attacks D'Amour with magic. D'Amour convinces the emotionally hurt Swann to help him put an end to Nix's cult.
Butterfield kidnaps Dorothea, using her as a hostage to force Valentin to recover Nix's body. After finding Nix's corpse, Butterfield stabs Valentin and takes the corpse back to the old house in the desert. There, his cultists have returned to witness Nix's resurrection and follow him once again. Butterfield removes the iron mask and Nix regains consciousness. Swann and D'Amour, acting on information given by the dying Valentin, arrive. Swann attacks Butterfield and tells D'Amour to rescue Dorothea. Nix, instructing his followers to prepare to receive his wisdom, opens a hole in the ground beneath him and Dorothea and turns the earth into quick sand that swallows the cultists, declaring that only Swann is worthy of receiving his knowledge.
D'Amour finds Nix and Dorothea, and as D'Amour steps onto the hardened quicksand, Nix opens his eyes, says "You are not Swann!. . . I know what you want!" (referencing the earlier liaison between D'Amour and Dorthea) Nix then drops her into the hole D'Amour rescues her as Swann enters the room. As they flee, D'Amour and Dorothea are attacked by Butterfield, whom D'Amour kills. Swann agrees to act as Nix's disciple, even answering "Yes" to Nix asserting that Swann would be killed by Nix after they destroyed the world. But when Swann admits to caring for Dorthea, Nix then attacks with magic and breaks some of Swann's bones and apparently kills him by destroying his brain. Dorothea finds D'Amour's gun and shoots Nix in his third eye after D'Amour points to the center of his forehead. Nix then begins to transform into a hideous creature. Swann turns out not to be dead and uses his last life energy and magic to help D'Amour deliver a final blow to Nix, who falls into the hole, which is shown to have no bottom. Dorothea holds Swann in her arms as he succumbs to his injuries. Dorothea and D'Amour escape the house and walk into the desert. | insanity, violence, cult, murder | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0090142 | Teen Wolf | Scott Howard is a seventeen-year-old high school student who is sick of being average. Living in a small town, his only claim to popularity is playing on the Beavers; his school's basketball team (which is very unsuccessful) and fawning after his crush Pamela Wells, who is dating his rival Mick. Mick plays for the Dragons, an opposing team who tends to bully Scott on the court. Completely oblivious to his best friend Boof's affections, he constantly rebuffs her advances due to their history together.
After a series of startling changes such as long hair suddenly sprouting, hands suddenly getting hairy, he decides to quit the team, but his coach changes his mind. Scoring a keg with his friend Stiles for a party, Scott and Boof end up alone in a closet and Scott gets rough when they begin making out, accidentally clawing Boof's back. When he returns home, he undergoes a strange transformation and discovers he is a werewolf. His father Harold confronts him and reveals he too is a werewolf, and that he'd hoped Scott wouldn't inherit the curse because "sometimes it skips a generation".
Scott reveals his secret to Stiles, who agrees to keep it a secret, but when Scott becomes stressed on the court at the next basketball game, he becomes the wolf and helps win their first game in three years. This has an unexpected result of fame and popularity as the high school is overwhelmed with "Wolf Fever", which quickly alienates Scott from Boof and from his teammates as he begins to hog the ball during games.
Stiles merchandises "Teen Wolf" paraphernalia and Pamela finally begins paying attention to Scott. After he gets a role as a 'werewolf cavalryman' in the school play alongside her, she comes onto him in the dressing room and the two have sex. Later, after a date set up to intentionally make Mick jealous, Pamela tells Scott that she's still seeing him and is not interested in Scott as a boyfriend, much to his disappointment. Harold tells Scott he is responsible for vice principal Rusty Thorne breathing down his neck, due to a scare he'd given him when he was in high school, and advises him to be himself and not the wolf.
With the upcoming spring dance, Boof agrees to go with Scott, but only if he goes as himself, not the Wolf. Scott goes by himself as the Wolf and has a great time. Boof, however, isn't impressed. She takes Scott out into the hallway and they kiss, which turns Scott back into himself. When they return to the dance, everyone pays attention to him, including Pamela. Mick gets upset and taunts Scott until the Wolf comes out and attacks him. His fans then turn on him and he runs out right into Thorne, who threatens to expel Scott from school. Harold appears and after sending Scott home, tells Thorne to back off. He then reminds Thorne of what he is capable of by leaning into him and growling, causing the Vice Principal to pee himself.
Scott renounces using the wolf all the time, quitting the play and the basketball team, who have come to expect it. During the championship game, Scott arrives and rallies his teammates to play without the wolf in order to win the game. Despite the odds, the team begins to play together and they make ground against the Dragons. During the final quarter, behind by one point, Scott is fouled by Mick at the buzzer. He makes both shots, winning the game and the championship to everyone's delight. Brushing past Pamela, Scott kisses Boof as his father comes down and hugs the two of them. Mick tells Pamela that they should leave, but she tells him to "drop dead" and storms off while everyone else celebrates the victory. | cult, comedy, romantic | train | wikipedia | Fox turns into a werewolf and becomes a popular star of his high school basketball team.
The whole school turns wolf crazy but Fox learns the right lesson in the end.
Fox finds he can transform into a werewolf with superhuman powers - his "problem" makes him the most popular guy in high school and creates a winning basketball team.
Forget that the wolf playing Fox on the court must be twice his size and four times the athlete, this movie is just a lot of fun to watch, helped considerably by Hampton as the understanding dad and Ursitti as the under-appreciated girl friend.
Not great but has a certain charm thanks mainly to a solid script and typical charm from Fox. Scott Howard is on a basketball team of no-hopers (himself included), is outside of the "cool pack" at highschool and can't seem to even get close to the girls he is interested in.
It is a basic story that mixes teen coming-of-age films with the sports cliché and throws in the werewolf legend to make it a bit different.
Nobody si brilliant but they are OK, with Fox leading the way well.Not a great film by any means, Teen Wolf does have a certain charm to it.
Come on people just let loose and enjoy a true feel good movie with the classic storybook ending that all humans want to see.
Fox turns his character, Scott Howard, into the epitome of hopeless nerd (though not looking like one), even though he's more of just a quiet kid who's not popular or anything like that, and that, for me, makes the movie often difficult to appreciate, despite the little goodies scattered throughout.Scott Howard has an identity crisis.
For a kid like Scott Howard, high schooler who's a fairly poor basketball player and super shy around the girls, this is bad news.
His self-esteem is shot altoghether, especially when his inner wolf makes an appearance in a big way...during a game on the basketball court.But, maybe being a teen wolf isn't so bad afterall because with the fur and fangs, Scott has also developed something of an alter ego, allowing him to do things he couldn't as just plain Scott Howard.
Scott Howard seems to have it all.But Boof (Susan Ursitti), Scott's closest friend and the girl who really likes Scott (more than his superficial infatuation with the popular girl Pamela Wells (Lori Griffin), encourages Scott to get rid of the wolf image.
The all time best part is when Scott Howard's dad says, "unless that was another werewolf doing a handstand on Stiles' Wolfmobile!" I personally didn't know that living organisms play better basketball as canines than as human beings.
All these features make him, king of Popularity overnight, where being a wolf has it's advantages, especially in needs to your wants, like very unattainable hottie, Pamela, who's stud boyfriend, who's starring daggers, isn't happy to say the least.
Plusses in this, are of course, Levine, as Fox's best mate, who brings a lot of color and vivacity to this feel good movie, it's throbbing music score, unnervingly fitting to Fox's music, where in it's starting, playing over the opening credits, for a more intense, higher classification wolf pic, but like I said, this is a great and perfect pic for everyone, minus kiddies I guess.
This movie is a underrated 80s comedy which doesn't get much credit but it should cause of Michael j fox as a wolf and I also think that the soundtrack is fantastic along with the other teen 80s soundtrack breakfast club,Ferris BUELLER'S day off etc I also think that this movie should be up there with the other great 80s movies and a status of cult classic..
Fox, another thing that still holds true today.The story in "Teen Wolf" is about Scott (played by Michael J.
And when he finds odd changes to his body and he turns into a werewolf he surely does become unique and special.This is a fun and enjoyable teenage romantic comedy that is suitable for the whole family.
Fox stars as Scott Howard, a high school student who's going through changes, one of which being that he happens to be a werewolf.
Even though we never got a good follow-up to Teen Wolf, the original is still a classic film that was a huge part of my childhood and to this day remains to be a really fun movie despite some plot holes and cheesy dialogue and whatnot.
I Wyatt Donnelly Consider myself as being one of the biggest Teenwolf fans in the world and if you have not seen it then shame on you it has a great cast and Michael J Fox is much better here than he is in Back to the future and Hollywood High it also contains the best soundtrack in the world with songs like win in the end and silhouette.
The burman studios have done a great job making Michael look just like a teenwolf and also his dad Herald Howard if Teenwolf has taught me anything it is to respect everyone and now i am a better person i will leave with a suitable quote from the movie "It didn't miss me dad it landed right on my face" Wyatt Donnelly.
Teen Wolf is not a perfect film by all means, some of the editing could have flowed better, the story while having some great nice and starting off with very few problems is basic and meanders a bit towards the end and the film could have been longer(just).
Michael J Fox plays average kid Scott Howard and all he wants is the love of Pamela and not to be so average.
This movie has a great scene when Scott turns into the werewolf and it has a lot of funny moments, especially from the character Styles.
Fox plays a teen with a werewolf heritage, but instead of turning into a wolf man at the sign of the full moon and terrorizing the countryside, he just spouts hair and wins basketball games.
The best movie Fox ever did was "Back to the Future," but after the success of that movie, he was tossed into this movie and several more trying to parlay his young good looks, but "Teen Wolf" just fails pitifully, yet still somehow garnishes as its own cult hit.
Maybe the plot of the movie is Swiss cheese, but Teen Wolf is a brutally funny and emotional realistic display of everyday working-class kids and the awkward situations of their adolescence.
Teen Wolf (1985) *** (out of 4) Scott Howard (Michael J.
Fox) is a slightly nerdy, unpopular kid who plays on a very bad basketball team but all of this changes overnight when he realizes that he has the power to become a werewolf.
After all, I loved horror movies and I loved the teen genre of films from this period so the idea of becoming popular and great due to becoming a werewolf was just fun to me.
I also thought Jerry Levine was fun as the cool Stiles and Mark Holton is always fun to watch.Yes, TEEN WOLF is a pretty bland movie and there's certainly nothing great about it but even after all these years I must admit that I still had a good time with it..
Now he's Scott Howard in this movie, "Teen Wolf".
He is no longer just one of the crowd but the star basketball player and all round school hotshot, however everything comes at a price and Scott has to learn a few valuable lessons about love, popularity, responsibilities and friendship along the way.
Michael J Fox uses his likeable charm to create a cute and sympathetic character and its a great credit to him that you actually care about Scott and his problems no matter how strange they may seem.
Fox next movie Teen Wolf,here in Brazil the title was change to "the Boy from the Future" no make sense but works and was a hit in the mid 80',the picture made for teenagers only...the plot is simple as the result too,about a boy who isn't popular in school and also in basketball too....but he felling that your body is changing to werewolf,late he discover that your father also is a werewolf,this scene saves the movie...the remain of this picture is a trash!!.
Let alone the fact this film is also kinda a sports movie as it's kinda about Basketball but with werewolves.I do like the effects and design of the wolf, it's a unique design because the wolf is non threatening and actually pleasant looking.
He's also sort of a business man as we see him making a business out of Scott's werewolf fame which I thought was kinda funny but also clever, why not.And of course Scott is great (played by one of my favorite actors Michael J Fox) I really love how he's a sympathetic optimistic underdog we all can relate and sympathize with.
Basically the whole Werewolf transformation is metaphor for the common bodily changes all teenagers go through which can be both a wonderful and scary thing.Most importantly I like how the film has a good theme about the importance of being and believing in yourself.The whole Werewolf transformation thing is also metaphor for the image Scott is hiding behind just to get the popularity and empowerment he craves.
However he learns that living life though an image is a shallow and lonely existence because Scott isn't being himself, and he of course begins to learn the flip side of the coin of his powers that it not just produces consequences but also he's starting to become what he doesn't want to be.And of course I really like how he comes through in the end, which just goes to show that all you really need to be to achieve good and great things is yourself.Teen Wolf is howling fun.Rating: 3 stars.
Fox unexpectedly changes from an average teenager into a suave werewolf; having already made the transformation from TV star to movie star a month earlier with Back To The Future, the young actor puts in an effortlessly charismatic turn that goes a long way to making this otherwise corny and predictable teen fantasy a reasonable amount of fun.Fox plays dweebish high-school basketball player Scott, such a loser that he can't even see that his extremely cute longtime friend Boof (Susan Ursitti) has the serious hots for him; instead, he pines after slutty head-cheerleader Pamela (Lorie Griffin), which brings him to blows with her boyfriend Mick, his rival on the basketball court.Scott's luck changes, however, when he discovers that he is a werewolf: as his alter ego, Teen Wolf, he is confident, talented and popular, scoring the hoops, scoring with the ladies, and scorching up the dance-floor.
But for Scott to be truly happy, he must be content with who he really is under the fur—and so when his basketball team makes the championship finals, Scott leads the way while Teen Wolf takes a back seat, much to the surprise of his loyal fans.Teen Wolf could definitely have benefited from a few more solid laughs, but with an engaging central performance from Fox, likable supporting characters, lots of 80s atmosphere, and a general good-natured approach, the film has a charm about it that is almost impossible not to like.
Fox in the title role as a teenager with the usual high school problems (trying to get accepted, in love with a shallow blond, yearning to be something more than average, has a childhood friend who loves him, but is drawn back because he is not mature enough to know looks aren't everything).
Probably one of the best interpretations by Michael J Fox. Hungry like the wolf, may want to look elsewhere.
Fox as a teen in Beacontown, Nebraska, who works at his Dad's shop in town (James Hampton), plays basketball for his lousy school team and enjoys a friendship with a neighborhood girl (Susan Ursitti) while desiring the popular blonde (Lorie Griffin).
Teen Wolf isn't your Oscar winner, it isn't that one movie that gets you sobbing every time, and it certainly isn't a movie that lets you down either, it's an overall fun film to watch with family and it definitely has its moments.As if homework weren't already hard enough, high school loser Scott Howard starts noticing some odd changes as he is transformed into a teenage werewolf.
However, Ursitti and Fox have great chemistry and she's likable enough to make the obvious plot mechanics less clunky.Like all ridiculous high school stories, "Teen Wolf" tries to play its deeply inane premise for drama in the last act.
The whole I don't need to be a wolf and I need to look to the slightly cute, but also kind of nerdy chick that is seen in like every teen movie during the 1980's as is the cast that is way out of the ages they are playing.
Fox gave as good a performance as he could for such a dumb premised character.Fans of bad 80s films will love this, and even people who like light hearted comedies will enjoy this...others will despise it.
Teen Wolf from 1985 is a silly movie, I must admit.But on some level, it's also entertaining.I saw it a few years ago and thought it was OK.Of course, it's Michael J.
Fox who saves a lot.Without him this movie would be worse I think.This movie did pretty good back in '85 because Mike was a huge star then.The same year he had just reached the big popularity with Back to the Future, where he played the time travelling teen Marty McFly.Today this great actor turns 45, so I congratulate him.He's had a great run.Michael doesn't think too much of this movie, and he's right; this certainly isn't the best stuff he has done.But if you want to take your brains out for a while and watch something silly, this is your movie..
Fox was the real star in "Family Ties" and the film got released in theatres after the phenomenal success of "Back to the Future" and therefore; Teen Wolf was a hit.
The main events of the film are based around the high school basketball games in which Fox's character usually sucks but naturally as a werewolf he's turned the game on its head.
Nonetheless - for a cheap, budget flick of questionable storyline - this film actually comes across well.I recently bought the DVD (with Teen Wolf Too on it also) to see if my rose coloured memories stood the test of time.
Nonetheless - for a cheap, budget flick of questionable storyline - this film actually comes across well.I recently bought the DVD (with Teen Wolf Too on it also) to see if my rose coloured memories stood the test of time.
The story deteriorates a tad from the school dance to it's inevitable ending - but it is still good enough for its time.Fox is brilliant in this - funny, natural and a star in the making.
The story deteriorates a tad from the school dance to it's inevitable ending - but it is still good enough for its time.Fox is brilliant in this - funny, natural and a star in the making.
But Scott's father warns him about turning into the wolf out of anger....Teen Wolf, also known as the Fox film released in 1985 where he didn't go back in time, is a guilty pleasure from start to finish.
On one hand you have the wolf doing all the cool stuff and becoming the popular pup, and on the other hand the film could be seen as a metaphor for puberty and coming to terms with big changes in your life (like finishing high School).All of the cast are good in their respective roles, but if you a looking for a Fox movie in the same vein as BTTF, you will be disappointed.Narrative is a bit choppy, and there really are no other plot points apart from the fact that there is a big basketball championship going on.
Teen Wolf is my favorite of Michael J Fox's movies.
Teen Wolf is a great movie that is very funny but also moves along the story well with good performances and memorable characters..
Becoming the star play for the Beavers team and learning to control of his other side Scott uses his persona as The Wolf to gain to popularity he had always longed for, and he finally gets the attention of Pamela, but he is neglecting best friend Lisa 'Boof' Marconi (Susan Ursitti) who has had feelings for him since they children.
Scott Howard (Fox) is a high school teen who plays basketball and works for his dad, Harold (Hampton) at the hardware store.
Teen Wolf starts as average high school teenager Scott Howard (Michael J.
Although very much of different time periods & eras Teen Wolf & I Was a Teenage Werewolf are more or less the same film.
At 90 odd minutes Teen Wolf moves along at a nice pace & the story although a bit predictable & cheesy at times is fun to sit down & watch, I don't know because while it's a comedy & I didn't really laugh or anything I did smile & you do sort of root for Scott.
If it's only a first time viewing or I'm sure it's probably not the way Teen Wolf has now been a part of American culture, anyway view this movie as much as you want.
Teen Wolf is a great self-esteem tool and a good feel good movie.
And take advice from Charles Barkley stay up and watch Teen Wolf it's a good movie.
Both this movie, 'Teen Wolf', and 'Back To The Future", came out in 1985, so must have been filmed back-to-back.
Here Fox is Scott Howard, in high school, and a member of the basketball team. |
tt0082466 | Gosti iz galaksije | Robert is a hotel doorman who is obsessed with science fiction. He plans to write an SF novel about three alien androids—Andra and children Targo and Ulu—who land on Earth coming from an advanced civilisation from the galaxy of Arkana. He is constantly disrupted by his girlfriend Biba and his neighbour Tino, a photographer. One of his colleagues at work tells him he should add a monster to his story, saying it is the only way to attract the readers' attention. Robert decides to partially follow his advice, adding the character of Mumu, a huge alien pet.
One night, Robert hears a woman's voice on a tape recorder, telling him to go to a nearby island. He borrows a boat from his friend Toni and arrives at the island, where he is surprised to find the aliens from his own story. After he returns home, he talks about the events with his psychiatrist. He adds that he discovered he has "tellurgia", an ability to make his thoughts come true; he learned about it when he was a baby wishing for milk, and his father grew breasts in order to feed him. Biba does not believe Robert, so he takes her to the island the following night. There they find again the three aliens. The aliens are in their spaceship, which resembles a blue glowing sphere. They observe a sleeping guard and remove his heart. Biba is frightened by the events, so they turn her into a cube. Once back home, she turns back into a human in a state of shock.
As the city finds out about the aliens, a group of scuba divers goes to the island armed with harpoons, but are attacked by Targo, who shoots laser rays from his eyes. This greatly increases the public interest in the aliens—tourists flock en masse to the island, arriving naked to convince the aliens they mean no harm. However, they find the island empty. Toni also stalks the aliens with a camera to no avail. Robert is fired from his job. Coming home, he finds the aliens nested there. He is fascinated by Andra, and touches her skin, but a jealous Biba bursts into the room, swearing at Andra. This provokes Mumu, who grows in size to more than 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) in height. Mumu breathes fire at guests in the house, killing several. In the end, Robert leaves Earth with the aliens. | absurd, psychedelic, dark, flashback | train | wikipedia | Yugoslavian Sci-Fi with the sense of humour. Cinematography of Ex-Yugoslavia was really big and strong but it hadn't many sci-fi movies, "Visitors from The Arkana Galaxy " or Gosti Iz Galaksije on Serbo-Croatian was only sci-fi movie produced in Ex-Yugoslavia. I was really curious to see this movie because it is made in a country in which i was born, and i was really delighted when i finally seen it. Yes effects are kind of trashy and look like they are from the 60's but somehow it gave movie special vibe. Story is also nice and very imaginative, the biggest plus for me in the movie is humour, Yugoslavian humour is something unique, it is twisted and dark but it is what i really like. Also i must say ladies in this movie just look perfect especially Czech actress Ksenia Prohaska, she plays one of the main characters alien-android Andra, i fell in love really. This movie is really a must for all lovers of weird and retro science fiction.My grade: 7/10.. too soft for a Sci-fi fan. Nice looking ladies, brief nudity, acceptable (extraterrestrial) kids with a robot nanny, a few special effects and a confusion of genres: A comedy with piles of dead bodies ? Sci-fi built on one person's imagination ? Still, there are some nice moments, e.g. the girls locked up in the kitchen with the "bleeding" monster. The prevailing impression is "soft". Take your grandchildren to view this movie.. Fun, sexy and sincere - low budget sci-fi with a pinch of gore!. If you're a fan of good-humored low-budget sci-fi that lives on its words and ideas floating upon a theatrical canvas, then I think this might be a movie you'll fall in love with. I surely did. It's all about the imagination! So, how far does it dare to tread? I love the way the monster was put into the picture! There is quite some gore at a certain point. It's definitely not suitable for children. But the way the violence comes undone does seem and work like a fairytale trick on the mind. Quite refreshing for its original blend of genres and emotional honesty! The direction is accurate and non-intrusive. The script: magical! The story and its main characters are the real stars here. All the actors are very competent and Zarko Potocnjak does his part with a trace of irony that perfectly befits his role.. Vintage SF trash at it's best. This is a movie that's very nostalgic for people from ex-Yougoslavia such as myself because of the way it was shot, locations, clothes, setting. It's a sci-fi comedy with a special vibe and twisted humor,trashy special effects that add to the experience with actors who still play in these lands till today. I would even say a classic of the era, a must watch especially if you are from the Balkans, watch it with friends! I think this is sort of an abandonware because both countries that co-produced this don't exist any more (Yugoslavia and Chekoslovakia) so you can find it on Youtube these days. A definitive must watch for sci-fi trash fans. |
tt0419277 | X-Men Legends | X-Men Legends is not set in any particular Marvel Comics universe. It is played from the perspective of a teenage girl named Alison Crestmere, a mutant with the ability to control volcanic activity. At the start of the game Alison is abducted by the Genetic Research and Security Organization (GRSO). As GRSO soldiers take her away, Mystique arrives with Blob and takes Alison from the soldiers. She is in turn rescued from Mystique and Blob by the X-Men Wolverine and Cyclops, who take her to the Xavier Institute to explore her powers. As Alison trains, the X-Men investigate an Alaskan research facility controlled by the Brotherhood of Mutants, then rescue Gambit from the Morlocks. They then try to stop the Brotherhood from rescuing Magneto from captivity aboard the U.S.S. Arbiter. Mystique is able to penetrate the defenses and free Magneto, and the ensuing damage caused by the Brotherhood leaves the X-Men to rescue several Arbiter crew members.
With Alison’s training complete, she takes the codename Magma and the X-Men travel to Russia to help Colossus prevent the Brotherhood from obtaining weapons-grade plutonium. After accomplishing this mission, they discover that Colossus’s sister, Illyana, is in a coma from a psychic hold placed on her by the Shadow King. Professor Xavier, Emma Frost, and Jean Grey enter the astral plane to save her. They succeed, but in the process Xavier is captured by the Shadow King. After Xavier’s capture the X-Men learn that General William Kincaid, a leader in the anti-mutant movement, is building mutant-hunting Sentinels. Magneto travels to his base on Asteroid M, where he reveals his plan to cover the Earth in darkness. Meanwhile, the X-Men free Xavier who defeats the Shadow King in a psychic battle. The X-Men travel to Asteroid M, where they discover that the asteroid is on a collision course with Earth. After defeating Magneto they search for the Gravitron, a device used to pilot the asteroid. They encounter General Kincaid, who pilots Master Mold, a prototype sentinel larger and more powerful than other sentinels. After defeating General Kincaid, the X-Men locate the Gravitron and Magma uses her powers to steer the asteroid back into space. The X-Men's victory on Asteroid M is watched by Apocalypse who makes his upcoming plot from his base.
In the game's epilogue, a television news anchor reports that Magneto is still at large and General Kincaid has been arrested for crimes against humanity. The game ends with the President of the United States thanking the X-Men for their service.
=== Characters ===
^a Only playable during sections of the Astral Plane missions. | violence | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0084899 | White Dog | Young actress Julie Sawyer (Kristy McNichol) accidentally runs over a stray White German Shepherd Dog one night. After the dog is treated by a vet, Julie takes him home while trying to find his owners. A rapist breaks into her house and tries to attack her, but the dog protects her so she decides to adopt him, against the wishes of her boyfriend (Jameson Parker). Unbeknown to her, the dog was trained by a white racist to attack, and kill, any and all black people on sight. It sneaks out of the house one night and kills a black truck driver in an attack. Later, when Julie takes the dog to work with her, it attacks a black actress on the set.
Realizing something is not right with the dog, Julie takes him to a dog trainer, Carruthers (Burl Ives), who tells her to kill the dog. Another dog trainer named Keys (Paul Winfield), who is black himself, undertakes re-educating the dog as a personal challenge. He dons protective gear and keeps the dog in a large enclosure, taking him out on a chain and exposing himself to the dog each day and making sure he is the only one to feed or care for the dog.
The dog manages to escape, and kills an elderly black man in a church, after which Keys manages to recover him, and opts not to turn the dog in to the authorities, but to continue the training, over Julie's protests. He warns her that the training has reached a critical point, where the dog might be cured or go insane. He believes that curing the dog will discourage white racists from training dogs like this, though there is no indication in the story that this is any kind of national problem. (The film is set well after the civil rights era, which was the setting of the original novel.)
After a lengthy time, it seems as if the dog is cured, in that he is now friendly towards Keys. Julie confronts the dog's original owner, who has come to claim him, and who presumably trained him to attack black people. She angrily tells him in front of his grandchildren, who only know the dog as a loving family pet, that the dog has been cured by a black man.
Just as Julie and Keys celebrate their victory, the dog, without warning, turns its attention to Carruthers and brutally attacks him. The dog had not previously shown any aggression towards him--no explanation for this is given, but implications go that the dog's programming has somehow been reversed, though that was never Keys's intention, or that Carruthers has a similarity to the dog's original owner whom the dog hates now. To save his employer's life, Keys is forced to shoot and kill the dog, and the film ends with the image of the dog's body lying in the center of the training enclosure. | tragedy, allegory, cult, murder, sentimental | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0049014 | The Black Tent | The film begins with a tank battle where blonde-haired Captain Holland (Anthony Steel) is sprawled unconscious beside his tank on the sand. When he comes to, he walks over the dunes until collapsing near a Bedouin encampment at an oasis. He is found by the sheik's daughter, Mabrouka (Anna Maria Sandri), who takes him to the camp which consists of several black tents.
The film skips forward to a point after the war when Captain Holland's brother, Colonel Sir Charles Holland (Donald Sinden), is guided into the desert by Ali (Donald Pleasence) in search of his brother. They were drawn by a promissory note that had been given by Captain Holland to the Bedouin for their help and eventually taken to the British embassy for payment. Sir Charles sets off to discover the fate of his brother and eventually reaches the Bedouin camp. He is entertained by the camp's chief, Sheik Salem ben Yussef (André Morrel) and sees a young blonde boy in the camp. Later, the Sheik becomes angry at Sir Charles's line of questioning about his brother, the boy, and note and asks them to leave. Before they leave, Mabrouka gives Ali a sock containing Captain Holland's diary which he gives Sir Charles. The film skips back in time to recount the story within the diary.
Captain Holland, having been tended by Mabrouka, recovers. He learns that Mabrouka is the sheik's daughter and is betrothed to Sheik Faris (Michael Craig) from another tribe. When a German reconnaissance vehicle arrives at the camp, Captain Holland hides in some Roman ruins. The senior German officer then finds Holland's service revolver in a tent.
Mabrouka and Captain Holland become romantically involved to the obvious annoyance of Sheik Faris. He colludes with the Germans who return to the ruins where Holland and Sheik Yussef kills them and Faris. The romance between Captain Holland and Mabrouka deepens and they marry.
Learning of the British victory at El Alamein, Captain Holland seeks to return to the British lines but finds that his wife is pregnant. A group led by the Sheik and Captain Holland travel toward the British lines but came across a column of retreating Italian vehicles. Captain Holland sustains a fatal injury rescuing the Sheik.
The film returns to the present day with the Sheik handing Sir Charles a letter with his brother's will bequeathing his estate to his son. Sir Charles discusses this with his nephew but the boy decides to remain with the tribe and burns the letter. | romantic | train | wikipedia | An interesting idea, though its execution is a bit slow and dull..
"The Black Tent" begins with a man in Britain being told that his brother, the heir to the family fortune, MIGHT still be alive in North Africa--over a decade after he was assumed to have died fighting in WWII.
However, when he tracks down the Bedoins who sheltered and healed him during the war, they deny having any other knowledge of him.
After he leaves, however, he finds his brother's diary--someone had stuck it in his belongings in order to let him know the truth.
Most of what follows is a flashback--flashbacks where you learn that the brother was like a son to the Chief and that he even eventually married the man's daughter!
But the story goes beyond that--he even organized the locals into a small guerrilla army which attacked Axis troops!
See the film.By far the best thing about this movie is the location shooting.
The amazing ruins at Sabratha, Libya serve as a backdrop as is the nearby desert.
However beautiful this is, however, the story itself isn't that captivating.
Now it isn't because the idea is bad--it's not.
But he execution seemed very plodding and flat.
The writing could have been better and the actors a bit more charismatic.
Still, a watchable adventure tale that is reasonably watchable..
Lawrence of Libya, or love among the ruins between Tobruk and El Alamein.
Brian Desmond Hurst made many great films but was not much of a director.
He often took care of immensely great and interesting stories with great action and fascinating intrigue and had a knack for getting outstanding music to them as well, but his films are annoyingly impersonal, as if he didn't care about the actors but just focused on getting it all done and the story told.
This is one of those films, typical of him, telling a great story, featuring characters of considerable interest, but coming out with only a very conventional and almost expressionless product.
He just couldn't dramatize.There are many other assets to this film, though, like the photography with the epic and extremely romantic environment, the most romantic scenes taking place in the ruins of an ancient amphitheatre, the most spectacular part of the film, and dwelling long on a very comprehensive Libyan wedding among the bedouins.
We don't have many films from Libya, this is from long before the days of Khadaffi and Isis and all that jazz, and what you are shown is a paradise among the bedouins in the shadow of the dramatic turnings of the second world war by Tobruk and El Alamein.What especially lifts this film is the splendid music by William Alwyn adding another dimension of colours to the already resplendently colourful film, enhancing especially the romantic scenes with that extra touch which the actors and dialogue are not able to provide.The script is by Bryan Forbes together with the author of the novel, Robin Maugham, and there is nothing wrong with the script, the saga being so humanly interesting as it is, but such a tale could have been made so much more of.
It's the stuff of Lawrence of Arabia, Rudolf Valentino's sheiks and even of Charlton Heston's Moses in the desert.Of course you come to think of Hurst's other films, like "Dangerous Moonlight" (with the Warsaw Concerto), "Simba" (of Mau-Mau in Kenya), the Malta Story with Alec Guinness, Hungry Hill and The Lion has Wings, and they all suffer from the same thing: great stories, but crippled by lack of flesh to the bones, as if the director thought the actors were of secondary importance to the epic.Nevertheless, it's definitely worth giving a chance, for its exotic settings, its great story (with a surprisingly apt end), its splendidly coloured desert environments, its romance among the ruins, and its very vivid music, the most alive part of the film..
Great scenery, terrible plot.
Even as a fan of Donald Sinden, this is only an OK offering.
The most enjoyable part has to be the amazing locations, set in Libya.
The original story was obviously a long novel that was a real struggle to compress into a script.
Well it's more multi-coloured than black..
But I'm just being facetious!
Brian Desmond Hurst directs, Anthony Steel and André Morell star, Bryan Forbes and Robin Maugham write, William Alwyn scores the music and Desmond Dickinson photographs in VistaVision Technicolor.It looks lovely, the Libya locations amazing, yet it's a dull and uneventful movie.
Story concerns Capt.
David Holland (Steel), who during WWII in the North African campaign gets injured and winds up being nursed by some Bedouin natives.
He promptly becomes part of the crowd, falls in love with the Sheik's daughter and instigates a repel the Nazis front with the natives.
But what happened next?
But what happened next?
Holland's brother, Col. Sir Charles (Donald Sinden), travels to Libya to find out.What he finds is obviously what we find out, that there's an inter racial romance at the heart of the story, some mistrust, loyalties born, a small scale battle and a double edged sword of a finale.
It's all very contrived and mismatched, while some of the acting comes dangerously close to being parody supreme.
Not good really and the tech guys deserve a better movie, and so do we.
Oh well, if nothing else it obviously inspired Lawrence of Arabia.
Hee hee hee.
The Mystery Is How They Could String It Out For Two Hours.
This film can be summed up as follows: sumptuous photography; turgid plot; wooden acting.The mystery is how they could string it out for two hours.
The story is that there isn't a story - it's just a travelogue across the Libyan desert.
Michael Craig, who was hot property in British cinema back then, is a blacked-up Arab sheik and has no lines that I can remember.
Blink and you miss him.
I just couldn't work out what Anthony Steele would see in the love interest.
Donald Sinden looks as though he has the mood of someone who has got out of bed the wrong side every morning of the shoot.The only thing that must have stopped this from bombing at the box office was the novelty for the cinema-going public in grey, smog-ridden 1950s Britain of seeing 'real', 'desert' sand in colour, something they could have done on the sea front at Clacton or Bournemouth..
Mildly entertaining, visually splendid, but it could have been much better..
"The Black Tent" was made several years before "Lawrence Of Arabia." Had it been made ten years later, it would have been accused of plagiarism.
Instead it can be said in some respects to anticipate "Lawrence of Arabia".After The Second World War, the heir to an extensive British country estate complete with enormous house and agricultural land travels to Libya to learn what happened to his brother.
With one Arab to guide him, he journeys by camel across the vast deserts to talk with a tribal chief - as also happened in "Lawrence".
After various delays, he is given his brother's diary and learns the truth.
During the war, his brother had become detached from his regiment and had been the sole Briton amongst Arabs - as was the case in "Lawrence Of Arabia" He had led Arab fighters in ambushes on enemy patrols - as also happened in "Lawrence Of Arabia".
The brother had married the daughter of the tribal chief, and eventually had been killed in action against German soldiers.
Again like "Lawrence Of Arabia" the cinematography - here in VistaVision and Technicolor - shows the vastness of the desert and makes it strangely beautiful.Unlike "Lawrence Of Arabia" "The Black Tent" had a journeyman director, and was made with little attention to detail or realism.
All the Arabs speak English fluently and with Received Pronunciation!
Even more ludicrously, the younger brother travels across the desert by camel wearing a suit and tie and city shoes!
He does not even break into a sweat!
More seriously, there is no tension in the movie.
The action sequences are unimaginatively staged, and scenes where suspense should be agonising - such as when Germans enter the Arab camp and discover the British soldier's gun or when German soldiers visit an ancient ruin and take photographs of themselves within a few yards of the fugitive British soldier - are entirely free of tension."The Black Tent" is mildly entertaining and is certainly visually splendid, but it could and should have been much better..
A competent if unspectacular war movie.
Comparisons have been made between this film and Lawrence of Arabia; a rather unfair comparison in my view.
Lawrence of Arabia is based on the actual life and exploits of T.
E. Lawrence, set in the First World War. This is a war film in the mould of Tobruk, set in WWII, where it does fall down is in the long drawn out romance scenes which are something of a distraction.
The script rather reflects the attitudes of the time, and you do have to suspend disbelief a few times, especially as Donald Sinden's character crosses the desert by camel dressed in city clothes, yet remains immaculate throughout.
The nomads all speak perfect English, they can even rustle up a German interpreter when needed, yet have remained entirely unaffected by the outside world.
There really isn't much plot to speak of, yet the cinematography lends the story some distinction.
Average and inoffensive..
An Arabian Nights interval during World War II.
A whole lot of good British actors who've seen and done better in their careers were wasted in this potboiler of a World War II movie with an Arabian Nights interval.
The Black Tent tells the story of Donald Sinden going into the desert to find what happened to his brother Anthony Steel who is missing in action.
What a time Steel had as Sinden learns when he's given the diary that Steel kept.
He was in a firefight with some of Rommel's troops and was the only survivor.
Steel manages to make his way to Sheik Andre Morrell's camp at an oasis near a Roman ruin and their has a little romantic interlude with his daughter Anna-Maria Sandri.
Some of Rommel's stragglers make their way to the sheik's camp, but they're dealt with.During all this time while Steel's having a little R&R the Axis take Tobruk, but then the Eighth Army beats them at El Alamein and puts them in full retreat.
When that happens Steel pulls a Lawrence Of Arabia and leads the sheik's men in an ambush on some of Rommel's troops.
Wouldn't want anyone to think he was on extended furlough would we?
Sadly Steel is killed, but Sinden discovers that he's got himself a juvenile nephew now.
He offers young Terence Sharkey a choice, come back to the United Kingdom for a life as a gentleman or stay in Grandpa's tent.
What do you think he chooses?I guess my review is in the form of this jocular synopsis of this very bad movie.
Even Donald Pleasance as Sinden's desert guide is wasted here.
Pleasance and all the rest of the cast just look downright embarrassed.
They summon up all the enthusiasm of someone awaiting a proctologist..
A bit turgid.
THE BLACK TENT is a British wartime drama told in flashback for the most part.
It's a slow-moving production that unfortunately focuses on romantic material for way too much of the running time, making what plays out quite the bore.
It's a pity, because there are elements of interest in the narrative here, and at times it does get quite moving.
The colour photography looks great; the supporting cast has many interesting faces including Andre Morell and Donald Pleasence, mostly playing Arab characters, bizarrely enough. |
tt0098987 | The Adventures of Ford Fairlane | Ford Fairlane (Andrew Dice Clay) is seen sitting on a beach smoking as the film opens. A flashback initiates, showing a roaring crowd at a concert given by fictional popular heavy metal band The Black Plague. Lead singer Bobby Black (Vince Neil) makes an eccentric entrance down a zip-line onto the stage and begins performing. Shortly into one of the band's songs, Bobby Black collapses on stage and dies.
After the lead singer of The Black Plague is murdered onstage, shock-jock Johnny Crunch (Gilbert Gottfried), an old friend who came west with Fairlane, hires Ford to track down a mysterious teenage groupie named Zuzu Petals, who may have a connection to Black's death.
Soon after hiring Fairlane, Crunch is electrocuted on the air. The world's hippest detective soon finds himself trading insults with ruthless record executive Julian Grendel (Wayne Newton), a clueless cop and former disco star (Ed O'Neill), a merciless hit man (Robert Englund) and countless ex-girlfriends out for his blood. Aiding and abetting Fairlane is loyal assistant Jazz (Lauren Holly) and a hip record producer (Morris Day) at the head of a bizarre lineup of suspects, victims, beautiful women and a koala as he finds himself hip-deep in the case of his life.
The Macguffin of the film is three data CDs which, when read simultaneously, detail the illegal dealings of Julian Grendel, who was getting rich bootlegging his record company's music and murdered Bobby Black when he found out Black had acquired the CDs with the incriminating evidence.
The first disc was with Colleen Sutton, the second with Zuzu Petals, and the third disc was hidden under the star for Art Mooney on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. | comedy, neo noir, murder, stupid, cult, violence, insanity, absurd, humor, satire, revenge, sadist | train | wikipedia | I should note that I'm SO not a fan of Andrew "Dice" Clay, I think his stand-up shows suck, big time.
But here, he's simply fantastic as Ford Fairlane, the Rock'n Roll Detective, who mostly gets paid in the form of gifts or memorabilia.Dice's jokes here work perfectly each time, one quotable line after another ("so many assholes, so few bullets", "you're a poet and didn't know it", "talking with Zuzu is like ************ with a cheese-grinder, slightly enjoyable but mostly painful" to name a few).
The film never takes itself seriously, yet somehow keeps it from ever going into slapstick territory.Supporting actors do well also, Presly is always a stunner, Wayne Newton gives his best ever performance as Fairlane's nemesis and Ed O'Neill is a riot as a former disco singer turned detective.
The Adventures of Ford Fairlane is definitely not for everyone, but it's not only for die hard Clay fans, since I sure as hell ain't one of them.
The Adventures of Ford Fairlane looks pretty much at the Diceman at his stand-up comedy best.
But though I find Andrew Dice Clay to be a good actor, many people might see this movie and think that he is just using this film as an excuse for people to see his stand-up act.
Andrew Dice Clay, now THERE was a man who was ahead of his time, If he came a decade or two later he would have been heralded as the acting equivalent of say, Eminem..
If you go to a movie which is a vehicle for Andrew Dice Clay who in my estimation is one of the greatest comic minds in history, (and he has the records to prove it, being the only comedian to sell out Madison Square Gardens 2 nights consecutively) how can his brand of humor be used as legitimate criticism in a movie which promotes his brand of comedy to the hilt?
Aside from these minor annoyances, the adventures of ford fairlane delivers all it promised, and should have become a franchise film, had 20th century fox maintained more artistic integrity in the face of controversy, not to mention business savvy as it was still making money when they pulled it despite al the undserved negative publicity.
It's OK to laugh sometimes.I love the dialog in the movie, as well as the one-liners made by Dice.
There's plenty of star quality in the movie with Priscilla Pressley, Ed O'Neil, Wayne Newton, Robert Englund, and Lauren Holly, so lets stop acting like the movie was filled with off the street actors.
When I saw this movie for the first time, I was just getting into Dice's comedy, so I guess my point of view was more biased.
First of all, I'm a firm believer that when a comedian stars in a movie, his job is to be a good actor first and then be funny.
I enjoyed him in certain supporting roles like the one he played in "One Night in McCool's," but he certainly isn't star material.It also kind of bothered me that all the women in the film were portrayed as either ditzes, villains or sex objects.
The Adventures of Ford Fairlane (1990) was a starring vehicle for Andrew "Dice" Clay.
Are you brave enough to watch Andrew "Dice" Clay try and carry as film?
If you are then go out and watch "The Adventures of Ford Fairlane".The director even shot the movie in widescreen, giving it the classy treatment.
The movie is nothing more than a novelty act for the Dice Man.For die hard Andrew "Dice" Clay fans.
Clay's routine transplanted to a detective "comedy" shows pretty much what made Clay what he is today; it's crude, anti-woman, sexist and extremely lunk-headed.Just like Clay.I'm not a fan of the Dice-Man, but even fans will notice that he's pretty diluted from his usual profane self.
How else could he be considered a "hero", even in sludge like this?And whoever told Gottfried, Presley, Day, Tone Loc, Sheila E and Vince Neil that this was a good career move deserves the same fate as Clay's career.In fact, there is only one good thing about this movie, which I'll tell you now so you won't have to seek out this movie to find it.It's when Gottfried is on an answering system, screeching as only he can, "Is this Chevy Nova, is this the car I want to talk to?"And if you don't find that funny, by all means, steer clear of this "Ford".No stars.
The first starring vehicle for raunchy, misogynistic comedian Andrew Dice Clay, a much-ballyhooed crime-comedy about a rock-'n-roll detective in Hollywood, based upon a character created by Rex Weiner.
After a popular heavy metal singer is murdered, Dice's Ford Fairlane combs the scuzzy music-biz to find the culprits, aided by teen wiseacre Maddie Corman, assistant Lauren Holly (who knows karate!) and a cute Qualla Bear.
It looks like a bunch of rich kids on crack got together with a video camera and thought they were being funny.they failed miserably.Nothing of interest in the whole movie.
It is too bad, but Andrew Clay is just a terrible bore.Hard to imagine anyone giving this film a good rating.
This is about as bad as comedies get.It is childish,immature,smutty and,let's be polite here,AWFUL!!!For god's sake this is RUBBISH!The only people who could possibly find this funny are people with the mentality of a dead hamster.If only it were Dice Clay who was dead instead of Lenny and Bill.And just WHAT is Robert Englund doing in this??.
This movie is one of my favorite from my high school area- we quoted a lot of it's phrases since.Of course I was watching it Hungarian dubbed at that time but I think that was for the better.
The voice act for Ford was done by one famous Hungarian rock musician (Feró Nagy) who was the same attitude and even more hoarse voice.I even liked the story and the gags - this movie has a re-watch value for me.
Acting is pretty good as well so if you like the mood and the hair of the 80's along some good music- watch this movie.One last thing: Respect to Jimi Hendrix :-).
This movie is filled with cliche plot twists, jokes and situations, the only bait on the hook being Andrew Dice Clay, who was quite a phenomenon at the time.
You know it's funny but the 'Razzies' are the 'crap awards' and they gave them to this movie because they didn't like Homo-Jokes I heard (Homosexual spoofing)not spooning, don't get excited, but in light of the fact that this was funny and Politically incorrect and the photography, camera work and beach scenes with the other scenery and lighting and camera lens filters were outstanding, no one took notice for some of the other kind of more hidden aspects of this, all because there was some Pro-Heterosexual humor in this picture.
if you laugh at richard pryor or eddie murphy's standup stuff you will LOVE this movie, if you don't you should still give it a shot.In this time and day Dice is outcast because of his humor in a politically correct world (does "banned for life" ring a bell?), he should have more relevance in comedy, I'm sick of the stupid scary movies coming out nowdays, sequel!!!!!!!!.
Rating: * * * 1/2The Diceman Andrew Clay stars as rock and roll detective to the music industry Ford Fairlane.
Andrew Dice Clay's starring vehicle may have tanked at the box office but it is still a really raunchy and fun way to spend two hours.
I funny movie if you like Andrew Dice Clay's humor..
Ford Fairlane will find Dice landing the role as the Rock and Roll detective.
And even if he's not- he's still funny.Finally, like another poster said, this movie- and this comedian is ahead of his time.
The Dice man is a comedian for folks who like the kind of humor that makes you say "that's just wrong!" but you laugh anyway.
I bet he's a Dice fan.Anyway, this movie is the kind of humor that makes you say "that's just wrong!" and then you laugh.
The movie wasn't a big hit here in Spain ( I think no one saw it, maybe because Andrew Dice Clay was a bit unknown here )but TV and Video have made it something as a cult movie.
Some people say that this movie is good in spite of Dice, but I say that he is what makes this film.
Okay, it's not a film masterpiece, but....Given the right attitude by viewers it's:Hilarious Entertaining A great way to spend a couple of hours.Give it a go, the lead (Clay) and his sidekick Jazz are just great to watch and listen to.
(nice baps, but what's she done since?) (looks) (oh)Having had this film ingrained in my memory for so many years, I could never see in a million how any woman could enjoy Ford's character traits, but I incredibly surprised to find that not only did my wife really enjoy the film, but really enjoyed ADC's performance.As for flopping, this film is the reason Renny Harlin got Die Hard 2 (check Trivia).
I don't want a sequel, I don't need Clay to be a huge star, but I think this movie should get the credit it deserves.
For some reason, I just feel like this movie was written off for being less than what it actually was: a goofy, high strung detective story with enough wink-wink to make it more enjoyable than Dice's usual antics.
Clay is unbelievably funny and cool, I mean at the end of the movie you will definitely try to repeat one of his lines!
Ford Fairlane (Andrew Dice Clay) is known as the Rock n' Roll Detective.
Andrew Dice Clay narrates as Ford Fairlan, rock and roll detective, as we're introduced to a dying breed of hair metal band that would appear in heavy rotation on Howard Stern who will be the murder victim in this common 90s neo-noir full of mid-30s greaser baby boomers, Gen X hookers, Hawaiian shirts, beaches, palm trees, muscle cars, venetian blinds, ceiling fans, smoking and Lauren Holly.
Standing in the rock and roll detective's way is Ed O'Neil, who plays a disgruntled detective accompanied with his own Yello soundtrack (who worked on the score) along with Wayne Newton who is convincing as an evil Walt Disney look-a-like record producer.
***SPOILERS*** Signature role for the "Ice Man" Andrew Dice Clay as Mr. Rock & Roll Detective Ford Fairlane the coolest cat on the Sunset Strip.
This had Grendel get as much as 95% of the profits of rock stars like Black by drastically lowering the take, ticket sales, that they took in their concerts as well as who many records they sold!***SPOILERS*** Andrew Dice Clay gets to strut his stuff as Mr. Rock & Roll Detective Ford Fairlane with his 1950's greaser look and off color sexual, mostly about women and gays, jokes but also show he's a sensitive and helpful guy with a heart of gold when he has to be.
"The Adventures of Ford Fairlane" was supposed to be raunchy stand-up comic Andrew Dice Clay's launch pad into movie stardom, but unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your feelings about "Dice") by the time it was released his fifteen minutes of fame was about up, and the film crashed and burned.
I will admit that I have never been a big "Dice-Man" fan, I've only ever been able to tolerate his stand-up routines in small doses, but oddly enough, I have always enjoyed this movie.
With his bubble-brained charge in tow, Fairlane spends the rest of the movie avoiding gunshots, explosions and a maniacal Australian hit man (played by Robert "Freddy Krueger" Englund of all people, with a horrible Aussie accent) before he stumbles upon a conspiracy that goes all the way to the top of the music industry.
"The Adventures of Ford Fairlane" may not be a great movie, but it is a fun one.
Some of Dice's one-liners are endlessly quotable ("Talking to Zuzu was like masturbating with a cheese grater - mildly entertaining but mostly painful." "So many a-holes, so few bullets!" "You're about ten seconds away from the most embarrassing moment of your life!"), and director Renny Harlin keeps the pace light and moving fast enough that you don't' have time to stop and think how ridiculous the whole thing is.
The whole movie looks like a film that clearly embodies the whole spirit and soul of the '80's.The tropical mellow melody from "Yello" is great and so is Vince Neil and Sheila E.
While I cannot claim to be a great fan of "The Dice Man",I can say that his stage presence and confidence makes this movie walk,talk,run and kick butt!Rock'n roll Private Investigator(he once was a musician)Ford Fairlane(Clay) can't seem to make the rent pay and gets a lot of deadbeat clients.
His rock star clients love him while everyone else loves to hate him.This movie was blackballed from the get-go simply because it starred Andrew Clay (and Ed O'Neill who at the time was also being attacked for his role as Al Bundy).
I saw this movie my senior year in high school the night it premiered and wasn't sorry then nor am I sorry now that I own it on DVD.If you can put aside the ignorance of the "Dice" haters, that can't seem to differentiate when a person is being him/herself or when they are acting, you'll enjoy this film.
Andrew Dice Clay gets to act like himself and make fun of the 'Dice Man' persona at the same time.
Sucking my d*&%!"Throw in running jokes like the fact that Ford NEVER gets paid in actual money(Just rock-star freebies of one kind or another, including a Koala bear from INXS, and bicycle shorts & hair extensions from Milli Vanilli.), plus the random women who slap/kiss Ford for leaving them high and dry after a night of fun, and you definitely have a movie at least worth your time...Besides ANY movie with a car like that is at least worth watching ONCE, isn't it?Just remember not to take things TOO seriously(You might get hurt!)..
One would think it would take more than marching women, gay rights activists and paraplegics to scare a monster Hollywood studio like 20th Century Fox."The Adventures of Ford Fairlane" is a great movie and Andrew Dice Clay fans are not the only ones who can enjoy it.
ford fairlane, staring andrew dice clay was released at the pinacle of the controversy caused by clay's raunchy comedy act.
newton delivers some very funny one liners such as "ford you're an island of reality in an ocean of diareah" give this movie a chance and you'll enjoy it.
With the terribly uninteresting story of Clay's Rock n' Roll Detective solving a crime we are never given any reason to care about at all the movie was always doomed to fail.
I suppose its possible that Harlin has a worse movie than the Adventures of Ford Fairlane because I haven't seen all of his work.
I shudder at the thought that something could be worse than this.The acting is atrocious, Andrew Dice Clay's leading man is utterly unlikable and Harlin is at his worst.
The Adventures of Ford Fairlane is one of my all-time favorite films, despite being poorly thought out, having almost no convincing plot twists and being an overall second-rate movie However, it has just about the best collection of one-liners and catch phrases I've ever seen, and, seriously, who hasn't seen this movie and wished to be Ford Fairlane, Rock 'n' Roll detective?!?!
Only man can solve this case and that's "The Rock and Roll Detective" Ford Fairlane !
The Adventures of Ford Fairlane is one of those movies that should have been a BIG HIT and what I want to know is where did it go wrong?
You you know that it wasn't.Andrew Dice Clay plays the over the top character Ford Fairlane, a music industry private detective that uses his various connections to get him into 'the hottest clubs, the hottest gigs' and wait for it 'the hottest chicks'.
However for Andrew Clay doing 'I ain't got you' as what has to be the movies musical highlight.
Absolutely the best movie ever, great one-liners ( so many a**holes, so few bullets ), great acting ( Andrew " Dice " Clay , need I say more ?
Considering the, um, quality of some of Andrew Dice Clay's work, this movie was surprisingly good.
It's a movie that I re-watch occasionally if I'm in need of a laugh.Lauren Holly was particularly good as the straight-man, to Clay's irreverent/slapstick character.
Adventures of Ford Fairlane is the greatest movie of all time.
My suggestion...don't believe the hype around Clay's stand up act and watch this guy as the comedy genius that he is in this movie.
This is a really cool action packed comedy starring the foul mouthed womanizing comedian Andrew Dice Clay at his best!!
He outsmarts a good number of villains in the movie played by guys like Wayne Newton and Robert Englund and goes out of his way to become the hottest heroic detective of the century.
If you love Andrew Dice Clay or great action comedies with hilarious quotes, go rent The Adventures Of Ford Fairlane immediately!!!
But even Ebert had to admit that Andrew Dice Clay has a future in movies.
But still, when you watch the movie, the Fairlane character is very compelling to watch, and very funny.
A decent supporting cast and Clay's best timing lead to a certainly vulgar, yet nevertheless quite funny movie.
After movies like There's something about Mary and American Pie, which have great overt humor, Ford Fairlane is no slacker.Give it a watch, you'll be surprised.... |
tt0053131 | The Nun's Story | Gabrielle "Gaby" Van Der Mal (Audrey Hepburn), whose father Hubert (Dean Jagger) is a famous surgeon in Belgium, enters a convent of nursing sisters in the late 1920s in the hopes of eventually becoming a missionary nursing sister in the Belgian Congo. After being given the name of Sister Luke and undergoing a postulancy and novitiate which foreshadow her future difficulties with the vow of obedience, she takes her first vows and is sent to a school of tropical medicine.
After passing high in her class but not without some spiritual conflict, after struggling with a request by Mother Superior to purposely fail her exam as a proof of her humility, she discovers to her disappointment that she has been assigned to go not to the Congo but instead to a mental hospital, where she assists with the most difficult and violent cases though resenting her tropical medicine knowledge going to waste there. One of these patients, a particularly violent schizophrenic (Colleen Dewhurst) who believes herself to be the Archangel Gabriel, tricks her into opening the cell door in violation of the rules and warnings given, and Sister Luke barely escapes from her to face the shame of her disobedience once again.
Nevertheless, she is eventually permitted to take her final vows and sent to her wished for post of the Congo. Once there she's disappointed to learn that she will not be nursing the natives, but instead will be the operating nurse for the segregated whites/European patient hospital. She develops a strained but professional relationship with the brilliant but atheistic surgeon there, Dr. Fortunati (Peter Finch). Eventually, the strains of her work and spiritual struggle cause her to succumb to tuberculosis. Fortunati, not wanting to lose the ideal nurse that Sister Luke is and sympathetic with her desire to stay in the Congo, engineers an amazing cure for the TB, a condition which otherwise always requires being sent to medical care (in Sister Luke's case back to convalesce in Europe).
Some time after Sister Luke's return to health and work, Fortunati is forced to nevertheless send her back to Belgium as the only nurse qualified to accompany a VIP who has become mentally unstable. She spends an outwardly quiet but inwardly restless period of time at the motherhouse in Brussels before the superior general finally gives her a new assignment. Because it is clear that there is going to be a war, she cannot go back to the Congo, but instead becomes a surgical nurse at a local hospital.
There Sister Luke's long struggle with obedience becomes impossible for her to sustain, as she is forced into repeated compromises to deal with the reality of the Nazi occupation, including the fact that they have killed her father. She asks for and with difficulty is granted a dispensation from her vows, and is last seen changing into lay garb and quietly leaving the convent by a back door. | insanity, murder | train | wikipedia | Perched high atop the list of the finest American movies of the 1950's, Fred Zinnemann's "The Nun's Story" is an intensely beautiful and powerful film about a woman who undergoes a crisis of faith and, through her struggle, learns the importance of finding one's true path in life.
Based on the novel by Kathryn Hulme, the film tells the story of Gabrielle van der Mal, a Belgian woman who enters the convent in the 1930's, spends a brief period working as a nurse in the Congo, then leaves the order after years of intense personal struggle with herself and with God. Among American films of its time, "The Nun's Story" stands virtually alone in its ability and willingness to dramatize a conflict taking place in the deepest recesses of a character's mind and soul.Audrey Hepburn - sans makeup and the kind of fashion-plate wardrobe that had already become the hallmark of her movie career - delivers one of her richest performances as the strong-willed and fiercely independent Sister Luke, whose very psyche is torn asunder by the battle between her own innate, personal pride and a sincere desire to live a life of obedience to the Church and its rules.
Rounding out the excellent cast are Dean Jagger as Gabrielle's loving and concerned father, Peggy Ashcroft and Mildred Dunnock as two older nuns who help guide Sister Luke along the way, and the incomparable Edith Evans, simply astounding as the Reverend Mother who sees unwavering devotion to God and the Church as the one and only goal of a serious nun.Among other things, "The Nun's Story" is that rare film dealing with religion and spirituality that doesn't contain a single hokey or sentimental moment, that knows the difference between religion and religiosity, that is respectful without being unduly reverential, and that acknowledges the complexity of the human heart in matters of devotion and faith.
In a perfect blending of form and content, the film is every bit as thoughtful, subtle and contemplative as its subject matter, its mood greatly enhanced by the rich and beautiful Franz Waxman score that underlines the seriousness of the work.In addition to all its other fine virtues, "The Nun's Story" features one of the greatest final scenes and closing shots in motion picture history, a masterpiece of precision and understatement that demonstrates the kind of taste Zinnemman always displayed as a director.
The movie is made up of small, beautifully observed moments that, when put together, provide a powerful glimpse into the heart and life of a fascinating, caring individual who wants to do great things in the world but who realizes that the path she has chosen is not the one that will ultimately lead her to her rightful destiny.On every level of film-making, this is truly one of the greats..
That is the dilemma we witness here in this film through the life of a well-meaning and sweet-as-can-be Belgian lady: "Gabrielle van der Mal" who is renamed "Sister Luke" after completing her training as a nun in the 1930s.
The melancholy tale from the Kathryn Hulme book dealing with a young missionary working as a nurse during WWII and based on the novel of the same name, that told the story of the real-life "Sister Luke," Marie-Louise Habets .
Finely starred by a luminous Audrey Hepburn as a dedicated nun who subsequently comes to question her vocation , as she is struggling to reconcile her free spirit and philanthropic wishes with the religious rigors ; Hepburn chalked up another hit in this long but always interesting flick based on Kathryn Hulme's novel , being rightly adapted by screenwriter Robert Anderson .
Behind the camera is Franz Planar, who did such trifles as "Holiday" and "Letter from an Unknown Woman" as well as two Audrey Hepburn movies "Roman Holiday" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's." If you have seen any of these (or all) you'll know how really perfectly they are filmed, with the camera in service to the story.The story, by the say, in "The Nun's Story" is very much the point, even beyond the moral.
An intense conflict between spirituality and humanity lies at the core of Fred Zinneman's excellent adaptation of Katherine Hulme's "The Nun's Story." Young Gabrielle enters the convent and, as Sister Luke, strives to attain the difficult qualities of sisterhood, but at the same time her talents and skills at medicine and research pull her in another direction.
Peter Finch and Dean Jagger are solid and effective as, respectively, Dr. Fortunati, who works with Sister Luke in the Congo, and as Gabrielle's disappointed father.While "The Nun's Story" is comparatively long, the fascinating detail of the young nun's years as a novice, medical student, asylum aide, missionary, and hospital nurse in Belgium and the Congo during the 1930's is engrossing and tastefully filmed by Fred Zinneman.
The image of water gradually sharpens the reflections of objects above...as soon as we get to know the leading character of NUN'S STORY, it is not hard to predict that it is all going to be an involving, mesmerizing viewing experience - yet, nothing for the vast majority of audience.In the eyes of her father, Dr Van Der Mal (Dean Jagger), our protagonist - young Gabrielle (Audrey Hepburn) is not really a strong willed girl obedient to the bells.
The film is worth viewing, apart from Ms Hepburn masterful achievement, for the sequence alone.The supporting cast include some solid performances from Peter Finch as choleric but caring Dr Fortunati, Dean Jagger as wonderful Dr Von Der Mal, Gabrielle's father (what a brilliant father that is who says: "I don't want to be proud of you; I want you to be happy!") and the sisters are uniquely memorable (you will never mix the characters due to their specific features underlined): Peggy Ashcroft as Mother Mathilde, Edith Evans as Mother Emmanuel, Rosalie Crutchley (note Acte from QUO VADIS) as Sister Eleanor.
The cast is led by Audrey Hepburn, in the lead role.Despite having been nominated for eight Oscars (Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Cinematography Color, Best Soundtrack and Best Editing), this film has been ignored by people over the last few decades, which makes it probably one of the most unknown movies in Hepburn's career.
Keep track of time is very important to understand the film, which passes through in the end of World War II, and also helps to understand one thing that the film doesn't say but any person will notice quickly: the way of life that the nuns of this film lead fell into disuse for decades ago, due to the massive modernization that the Catholic Church suffered.The script is excellent, though not (as some people think) a true story.
You will see the brilliance of Audrey Hepburn's performance as she portrays Sister Luke's struggle to live for herself and for God. This is a great movie!
The incomparable Audrey Hepburn brings great depth to the role of Sister Luke, as she strives to keep her convent vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in a world shattered by World War II.The film opens as Gabrielle Van der Mal, a headstrong girl, parts from her devoted father (a physician) to begin a new life in the convent, where she is renamed Sister Luke.
That doesn't take a bit from it's excellence and entertainment value.This is an utterly fascinating story of a young nun (Audrey Hepburn), and a non-believing doctor (Peter Finch).
The parade of other persons in and out of Sister Luke's life works very effectively, both in developing her character and in depicting what her chosen lifestyle is like.The story is completely serious, yet never overly heavy, and it treats the characters and their beliefs respectfully - quite a rarity in films that deal with subjects like religion, war, and relations between different cultures.
As someone who isn't religious, I'm constantly mystified by those around me who so narrowly define their world and their place in it in religious terms, and think there's only one way to emulate the ideals our culture labels as Christian and yet are really just a guide to being a decent human being, no matter what your religious beliefs.Peter Finch has a small but effective role as a doctor who is disdainful of the church and contributes to Hepburn's crisis of faith, and Beatrice Straight is also memorable as a reverend mother who has a broader view of what it means to be a nun than many of the others with whom Hepburn comes in contact."The Nun's Story" was nominated for eight Oscars, but unfortunately went up against the "Ben-Hur" behemoth and so won nothing.
In many ways The Nun's Story is the ultimate Audrey Hepburn film.With the possible exception of Roman Holiday, in no other movie was the classic image of Hepburn -- elegant, quiet, beautiful -- so clearly portrayed.
But religious belief and personal ideal, the war,contradictions of different cultural areas can't be mediated, leave the convent finally, continue looking for the way in life.People live in reality after all , turmoil because of the society of the rise of the religion, but has witnessed cruel reality under faith, Sister Luke has not suspected the religious doctrine , not there is not animosity God, but examine oneself, is not this great ?
After this film is seen, make you become quiet and ponder.Director Fred Zinnemann's narration ability reaches very high realm, this is his best work.The inner world of Sister Luke is complicated, set against.Gabrielle van Der Mal that Audrey Hepburn was acted was an immortal role, the deepest and most complicated role.The performance of Audrey Hepburn is incredible and incomparable,one of the greatest performances in the cinema.Other actors' performances are all great.An unparalleled work..
The grooves are well worn now, but it's still a favourite.The music was just one of the beautifully crafted elements that made "The Nun's Story" such an extraordinary experience.You don't have to be Catholic to feel the power of this film about Sister Luke (Audrey Hepburn), a nun just before WW2 who desires to help others in a troubled world despite inner struggles with her faith.
The film also has a tremendous sense of spirituality with fascinating sequences of convent and church ritual.Although the crisis of faith suffered by Audrey Hepburn's character forces her out of the order, the sense of people living life on a higher plane comes through with denial of self and service to others their driving motivation.Audrey Hepburn lives and breathes Sister Luke.
Peter Finch, another star with presence, nails his role as the challenging Doctor Fortunati.I always thought the story was true, but now know that although it is a work of fiction, it was based on the life a woman who did experience the things depicted in the film."The Nun's Story" has a number of scenes that leave a lump in the throat: Sister Luke on the train leaving the Congo, and that deafening silence as she walks away from the convent finally broken by a couple of notes of Waxman's inspired score and the tolling of a bell.The film came out decades before we became aware that some in the clergy had betrayed their positions of trust.
That being said, it is not just about the nuns and their order, it is a complex study about political issues in the Congo at that time, the effects of World War II, and a young woman in Brussels, Sister Luke who is raised by her esteemed surgeon father, but wants more and takes it upon herself to join a convent in service for the Congo.The photography when she first visits the convent are beautiful.
The Nun's Story is a wonderful film, and gets my vote as not only director Fred Zinnerman's best movie but one of Hepburn's best roles.
I wanted to become a missionary priest after seeing the film.In my opinion, Ms. Hepburn was robbed of the Academy Award in 1959 by Simone Signoret in "Room at the Top." Audrey's performance in "The Nun's Story," had Oscar written all over it.
Audrey Hepburn was simply outstanding in 1959's "The Nun Story," and should have received the best actress Oscar for it hands down.The first part of this outstanding film is devoted to what a woman must go through in the process of becoming a nun.Miss Hepburn enters the convent as Sister Luke and her calling is to aid others in the field of medicine.
It also follows the book extremely accurately - some incidents are removed to save time but little is altered, as is regrettably common when novels make it onto the big screen.Audrey Hepburn is wonderful, expressing a huge range of emotions with only a slight change of facial expression, Peter Finch highly convincing as the Surgeon in the Congo, and the supporting cast well-chosen.
The drama of the moment, the marvelous score by Franz Waxman, Audrey Hepburn's exquisite skills as an actress (this movie is I think her best dramatic performance) and Fred Zinnemann's direction, in my opinion, place this on the list of great cinematic moments.
The Nun's Story gives Audrey Hepburn a role to get her teeth into, as we watch Gabrielle du Val give up her family and her daydreams to become Sister Luke.
This is probably Hepburn's best role, giving her a varied set of circumstances and emotions as we watch the nun's journey through three countries and an inner struggle with the demands of her new life as a 'bride of Christ'.Peggy Ashcroft, Peter Finch, Colleen Dewhurst, and Edith Evans all have memorable roles in support, helping or hindering the sister as she makes her final decision on her future.
But this film has a lot to offer and each subsequent third is better than the last.Audrey Hepburn is Gabrielle van der Mal, a young Belgian woman who commits her life to Christ and becomes Sister Luke.
Directed by Fred Zinnemann, "The Nun's Story" is a beautifully realized film about a young woman who makes the difficult commitment to become a nun in 1930 Belgium.Hepburn is Gabrielle, whose father (Dean Jagger) is a well-known surgeon.
Instead they seem to have been replaced with delicate shots of trees against clouded skies – a Zinnemann trademark – as if to show Sister Luke's new state of mind; a concept of God as a natural force rather than an image to bow down to.The Nun's Story sees Audrey Hepburn in another of her many picture-carrying performances.
Hepburn is ably supported by Dean Jagger as her father, and Peter Finch as Doctor Fortunati, two strong but unobtrusive performers anchoring the different halves of the narrative.The Nun's Story is a monumental achievement because it allows us to understand a kind of life which most of us do not even have deep knowledge of, let alone consider subjecting ourselves to.
film directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Audrey Hepburn, Peter Finch, Edith Evans and Peggy Ashcroft.
Based upon the 1956 novel of the same title by Kathryn Hulme, the story tells of the life of Sister Luke (Hepburn), a young Belgian woman who decides to enter a convent and make the many sacrifices required by her choice.
The film was nominated for several Academy Awards including Best Actress in a Leading Role (Audrey Hepburn).Zinnemann's drama depicts the spiritual tug of war of a young nun, beautifully played by Audrey Hepburn, between adherence to vows of chastity and obedience and rebellion against those values for her self-fulfillment.
Much is made of Audrey Hepburn and Colleen Dewhurst's great performances, but it's a pleasure to see Patricia Collinge, Edith Evans, Peggy Ashcroft, Dean Jagger and Barbara O'Neill, among so many others.This film, above all others, gives one a true understanding of what it was like to enter a convent between the wars in Europe.I can't wait for it to finally come out on DVD..
THE NUN'S STORY is a truly perfect work but not one that is mentioned in the same breath as other classic films from great directors like Fred Zinneman and star Audrey Hepburn.
This is, without a doubt, the greatest "nun" movie of all time with an extra added bonus of the mesmerizing performance by Audrey Hepburn.I remember seeing this film as a young boy, coming home from school and watching the "Early Show" at 4:30 in the afternoon.
I still watch the VHS copy I have every once in a while because I do place "The Nun's Story" on top of my list of the greatest movies ever made.Audrey Hepburn as Sister Luke, a nun who has a difficult time with the vow of obedience, gives a tour-de-force performance that leaves the viewer breathless.
Her loving father remembers her: 'If you ever decide this is not right for you, there's no sense of failure coming back home.' The film's first part focuses on the making of a Catholic nun as it follows the young Belgian girl, from the time she takes leave of her dispirited father to enter the rigorous Roman Catholic order, until her appearance as an experienced nursing nun, hopeful of following the medical vocation of her famous surgeon father...The story then moves to the Congo where God selects his moment to offer the most perfect alliance with each individual soul...
Fine performance by Peter Finch as the English doctor Fortunati, with whom Sister Luke is physically drawn to and must struggle with her feelings not only because she cannot give into her feelings for him but because Fortunati is a unapologetic atheist, Peggy Ashcroft as the cold, matriarchal reverend mother, Dean Jagger as Gabrielle's doting father who supports her decision to be a nun and even go off to the Congo for work that could be dangerous.
Director Fred Zinneman and actress Audrey Hepburn conspire to make a very belabored movie about a young woman entering and leaving the religious life in The Nun's Story. |
tt0411004 | Life As We Know It | Holly Berenson (Katherine Heigl) is the owner of a small Atlanta bakery, and Eric Messer (Josh Duhamel), (often just known as "Messer") is a promising television technical sports director for the Atlanta Hawks. Their best friends Peter (Hayes MacArthur), an attorney, and Alison Novak (Christina Hendricks) set them up on a blind date that goes horribly wrong, and results in both hating each other. As the years go by, Peter and Alison get married, and have a baby girl named Sophie Christina, and select Holly and Eric as godparents of Sophie. They have become friends, but still tease and banter with each other.
Shortly after Sophie's first birthday, Peter and Alison are killed in a car crash. Holly and Messer learn that in their friends' wills, they were named Sophie's joint guardians. Holly and Messer must put their differences aside and move into Sophie's home to care for her. Living together proves to be a struggle. One night, Holly leaves Sophie with Messer while she covers an important catering job - the same night that he is given the opportunity to direct a big basketball game. Messer takes Sophie to the game, but she constantly distracts him with her crying. When they get home, Messer and Holly argue, but later they make up.
Holly meets Sam (Josh Lucas), Sophie's pediatrician, and finds herself attracted to him. They arrange a date, which is cut short when Messer calls to tell Sam that Sophie has a high fever. Sam and Holly go to the hospital, and Messer sees Holly kiss Sam.
As the two guardians continue to care for Sophie, they discover that raising a child is much more expensive than they had expected, and Holly can no longer afford to implement her plans to expand her business. Messer offers to invest in her company, and eventually Holly agrees. To cement the new relationship, they decide to go on a date. They end up having sex and begin to develop feelings for each other. Their Child Protective Services caseworker, who has previously advised them against getting involved, tells them they must make a firm commitment either to stay together, or break up. Anything in between would be bad for Sophie. Messer is offered a job in Phoenix, Arizona, and he seriously considers taking it up, as it has been his dream for several years, but doesn't discuss it with Holly. Holly is upset when she finds out and tells him to take the job, accusing him of looking for a way out of raising Sophie. Messer goes to Phoenix.
At Thanksgiving Messer returns to Atlanta, hoping to patch things up with Holly (who is hosting a big dinner for neighbors and friends), but finds her in a relationship with Sam. Messer and Holly argue, because Sam mentions Holly is planning to sell the house soon, since it is too expensive to keep up. Messer insists it was Peter and Alison's wish that Sophie be raised in their home, by them together. Holly consistently accuses Messer of deserting her and Sophie, while Messer points out how quickly she replaced him. Messer tells her he loves her, but leaves the dinner, planning to return to Phoenix. Once alone with Holly, Sam says that if he and his ex-wife had fought in the way that Messer and Holly did, they would still be together. He tells Holly it is obvious she needs to work out her feelings for Messer, and leaves.
The caseworker comes for the last appointment to determine whether Holly and Messer are fit parents for Sophie. Holly realizes that she can't take care of Sophie without Messer, and that she loves him. She and Sophie drive to the airport with the caseworker. Holly rushes to buy tickets for all three of them to gain access to the departure gate, but on arriving at the gate, finds that they have missed Messer's flight, which has departed. She returns to the house disappointed. To her surprise, she finds him sitting inside. He tells her he has realized that Peter and Alison chose them to be Sophie's guardians because, together, they are a family.
At Sophie's second birthday party, all the neighbors and friends in attendance. Holly has made an elaborate cupcake display for Sophie, as well as another cake with the number 1 on it. When Messer asks what the cake is for, she says, "It's for us, 'cause we made it a year." They kiss. The guests sing 'Happy Birthday' to Sophie. | pornographic | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0019745 | The Canary Murder Case | Charles Spotswoode's son Jimmy became involved with "the Canary", a conniving star showgirl. Fortunately, Jimmy has regained his senses and reconciled with Alyce LaFosse. However, the Canary is determined to force Jimmy to marry her so she can join the social elite, threatening to reveal that Jimmy was embezzling from his father. She turns down the elder Spotswoode's offer of money to leave Jimmy alone. She also telephones two men she has been blackmailing, Cleaver and Mannix, and demands one final generous gift from each of them by the next day. She also informs "creepy" admirer Dr. Lindquist. Her ex-husband Tony Sheel eavesdrops and wants half, but she refuses to give him anything, even after he hits her. Cleaver, Mannix and Lindquist are all shown lurking about her apartment building late that night.
Spotswoode visits her at her apartment around midnight, but cannot get her to change her mind. After he reaches the lobby of her building, he and another person hear screams from her place. They knock on the door, but she assures them that she is fine.
The next day, she is found strangled to death. The coroner places the time of death around midnight. District Attorney Markham investigates, aided by Philo Vance (a close friend of Charles Spotswoode) and Police Sergeant Heath. After all the prime suspects are questioned, Vance asks Markham to keep them waiting for a few hours. Markham agrees, as Vance has helped solve another case. Vance subtly maneuvers Cleaver, Mannix, Lindquist and the two Spotswoodes into playing poker to pass the time so he can observe their personality traits. Only one shows the daring, imagination and discipline required for the crime; that man bluffs Vance, betting everything with just a pair of deuces. The suspects are then released.
Sheel, who was hiding the closet and witnessed the murder, sends the killer several blackmail letters. For his trouble, he too is strangled. A pen found at the scene has Jimmy's name on it, so Heath arrests him for the murder. Jimmy then confesses to both murders, but Vance knows better.
He telephones Charles Spotswoode with the news and suggests they meet in an hour. Spotswoode speeds to the city from his country estate to confess, but his chauffeur makes a fatal mistake by trying to beat a train to a crossing, and Spotswoode is killed. Now Vance has to show how he murdered the Canary in order to free Jimmy. Fortunately, he is able to figure out that the Canary was dead before Spotswoode left her apartment that night. Spotswoode had made a recording (Vance speculates it was Spotswoode himself pretending to be the woman) to fool a stuttering witness into believing she was alive and well. The record is still in the apartment, so Jimmy is released. | murder | train | wikipedia | This film is today memorable only for those interested in the struggles the studios went through during the conversion to sound, and those interested in the fortunes of two of Hollywood's most fascinating characters, William Powell, and Louise Brooks.Powell is cast as Philo Vance and plays him in a straight, deadpan manner.
It's interesting because he has almost none of the charm and sophistication that he would bring just a few years later to the Nick Charles character that would become such a major hit.On the other hand, this is the film that sunk the Hollywood career of Louise Brooks.
But the film pretty much flopped at the time, mostly because it was carved up by the censors.Meanwhile, Paramount decided to do some reshoots to get some sound into "Canary", but could not lure Brooks back to Hollywood for love or money.
So Margaret Livingston was brought in and dubbed Brooks' voice, unfortunately using a Brooklyn accent that sounded nothing at all like Brooks.
She has a low, sexy voice, despite Paramount's contention that she "didn't record." It's now available on DVD as added material for Brooks' other German triumph, "Diary of a Lost Girl," directed by G.W.Pabst.)At any rate, Canary is slow moving and dull to the extreme.
After Brooks' character is knocked off, the film goes straight downhill and is almost impossible to watch.
William Powell stars as Philo Vance.
Louise Brooks is the "Canary." Of course this film is famous because Brooks refused to return from Europe to re-shoot scenes as a talkie.
To get even more even they hired Margaret Livingston to dub Brooks' voice in a high nasal New York accent.
Livingston also appears in a few long shots in a Louise Brooks hair cut.Slow but OK murder mystery.
The Canary Murder Case" was not William Powell's first talking film.
Also, even though Louise Brooks was prominently advertised as "The Canary", a showgirl determined to marry a rich young man just for the fun of ruining him, she doesn't get much screen time.
That is because The Canary Murder Case was originally shot as a silent film, but then it was decided to make it into a talking picture.
Louise Brooks detested talking pictures and refused to stay and reshoot her part.
Much of The Canary's speaking is done with her back to the camera, minimizing the problem.William Powell, who was quite wooden in his first talking performance in "Interference", does much better here.
Powell had a pretty good silent career after a long period of poverty doing stage work prior to 1920, and he was one of the few silent stars to successfully make the transition to talking films..
When Paramount decided to re-make their unreleased silent, "The Canary Murder Case" as a talkie, they faced two problems.
The first was that the title star, Louise Brooks, had accepted an offer to work in Germany and refused to return.
Not only did Miss Livingston dub the Canary's voice (in an atrocious Brooklyn accent yet!) but also substituted visually in back-to-the-camera long shots.So what we have is a movie in which all the Brooks close-ups (in fact all the shots which show her face), plus at least one short clip in a hotel corridor and maybe the long shot of the dancing chorus in the theater (and perhaps the location snip of the speeding car), were directed by Mal St Clair, whereas the rest of the action was directed by Frank Tuttle.
The rest of the players are competent enough, if a little too theatrical at times, though comedian Ned Sparks seems miscast as a ruthless thug and Jean Arthur's fans are in for a considerable shock not only by the paucity of her part but by the most unattractive way she is presented and photographed.All the same, the film comes across as more than a mere curiosity.
It not only bolsters the Brooks legend, but, if nothing else, it also presents a murder mystery that is not only reasonably intriguing but ingeniously solved.P.S. The actor who plays Sergeant Heath spells his name "Pallette", but IMDb's automatic spelling correcter refuses to acknowledge this..
In what turns out to be his second talking picture William Powell introduces to the screen the character of debonair detective Philo Vance.
Like his later Nick Charles, Powell as Vance likes to live the high life though he's not as big a drinker.
He gets called in by an old friend Charles Lane (not the acerbic character actor we all know from TV and films) but an older gentlemen who is concerned about the continuing involvement of his son James Hall with nightclub singer Louise Brooks known only as The Canary.
Hall is engaged to good girl Jean Arthur, but can't keep away from Brooks.She's got a whole gang of other men on the string as well and she also has an ex-husband so when Brooks turns up dead there are no lack of suspects for Powell to work through.
The police however with dumb as a brick Eugene Palette as Sergeant Heath seem to zero in on Hall.For those who like the vivacious Jean Arthur in the classic films she was yet to do you won't find her here.
Totally a surprise.William Powell's perfect diction and stage training make The Canary Murder Case hold up well even today.
Unlike so many of his contemporaries at this time, Powell seem to know instinctively how to play for the new talking picture camera.
Sound made his career.For those who enjoy nice detective stories with a closed ring of suspects, you can't go wrong with The Canary Murder Case..
Being a great Philo Vance fan, I had to purchase this film even though it is a pretty rough transfer to tape and is very stilted in style.
The obvious post-dubbing of Louise Brooks' voice is comical since it comes out as a nasal Bronx accent.
It is the last film that Brooks made before she went to Germany and her greatest triumphs(Pandora's Box, Diary of a Lost Girl); thus the voice dubbing.
The film started out as a silent and was converted to sound....by that time she was in Germany and refused to return to dub her own voice.
If you are a Philo Vance buff and can't work your way through this film, see "The Kennel Murder Case" instead..
I have read about this movie for years, and being a HUGE admirer of Louise Brooks, I could not wait to see this film.Although I have always been fascinated by early sound films, this is one is a textbook case of the problems encountered by the studios at the time.
Powell's Philo Vance bears no resemblance to the colorful character in the novels.
I give this film a "3" rating simply for Brooks' beauty..
One of the earliest private-eye talkies was "The Canary Murder Case," featuring William Powell as an American detective called Philo Vance ...
later described by Raymond Chandler as "probably the most asinine character in detective fiction." This type of "classic" murder mystery, transposed to an American location, must have seemed a natural for early talkie producers: few sets, all interiors, a lot of talk and little of that difficult action stuff which meant the camera might have to move around
Like filming a stage play, in fact.
Here was an opportunity to set up the static camera in its enclosed booth and let the actors get on with the job
Most of these films turned out to be the dullest ever made
It wasn't the fault of William Powell, who played Philo Vance with wit and elegance
It was the fault of a basic misconception in making private-detective movies
Powell played Vance four times...
"The Canary Murder Case" is a problematic film to watch.
Apparently after it was made, the studio decided to re-shoot a few scenes and dub others in order to make this silent film a talking picture.
But what made it tougher is that the temperamental Louise Brooks refused to return to re-shoot or re-dub so the studio had to make due with another lady's voice and re-shooting a few awkward scenes (such as having Ned Sparks' character talking to a screen and pretending she was behind it).
Now I am NOT saying it's a bad film but, like "Saratoga" (where the leading lady died in the middle of filming and they awkwardly had her stand-in do the missing scenes...with her back to the camera!), the ruse clearly shows.The 'Canary' in the title of this film is a nickname given to a horrible chorus girl, Margaret O'Dell (Brooks).
The first 20 minutes of the film is used to establish MANY times MANY different potential murderers and SOMEONE croaked the 'lady'...but who?!
Philo Vance (William Powell) and a dopey detective (Eugene Palette) investigate.When you watch this film, you need to cut it some slack.
Not a great mystery movie by the standards of later films but watchable nevertheless.By the way, if you DO watch this film (and it's currently posted on YouTube), look at one of the potential murderers--he looks JUST LIKE LENIN!!!
This is an interesting curiosity, as are so many films from the transition to sound.The "Canary" Murder Case was S.S.Van Dine's second in the Philo Vance series, and one of the best.
William Powell is rather nondescript as Vance, sort of like a watered down Nick Charles, without the wit and erudition that made the books so popular.(Vance is often described as "insufferable", which is puzzling when you consider that the books about him were tremendous best sellers, Apparently the American public didn't consider him insufferable.
William Powell's debut as Philo Vance.
1929's "The Canary Murder Case" was William Powell's second sound film, but his first in the role of S.
S. Van Dine's debonair detective 'Philo Vance,' who uses psychology to ferret out the culprits alongside District Attorney Markham (E.
Completed as a silent then reworked for sound, Louise Brooks still contributes the standout performance, despite never returning to dub her part, having already been spurned by Paramount's promised pay raise (their subsequent blacklist of the actress only confirmed her worst suspicions about Hollywood).
Golddigging showgirl 'The Canary' (Brooks) has her claws in several men (some of them married), but has selected wealthy young Jimmy Spottswoode (James Hall) to become her husband, despite the fact he is promised to Alice La Fosse (Jean Arthur), another showgirl.
There is no shortage of suspects after the Canary is found strangled 17 minutes in, but with another hour to go, the limitations of early talkies make it a real chore to watch.
Jean Arthur gets shortchanged as well, barely registering in what amounts to a cameo, despite billing more prominent than Brooks' (she would return for the next Philo Vance feature, "The Greene Murder Case").
William Powell's Philo Vance, is NOT the Vance I saw in "The Greene Murder Case" or "The Kennel Murder Case, which are a training ground for his Nick Charles character which we saw in "The Thin Man".
This Vance is very much like the Vance shown in "The Bishop Murder Case" with Basil Rathbone (Interesting isn't it that two of the most famous screen detectives (Powell and Rathbone (Sherlock Holmes)), got their gumshoe starts playing Vance?).
Spoilers ahead: He actually was able to deduce who was the killer of "The Canary" (Louise Brooks), by playing poker, and figuring out who had the type of personality needed to take the risk necessary to commit the murder.
My biggest problems with the film, were I knew who the killer was right from the start, and beyond Vance and the law enforcement officials, the most sympathetic characters were Alice LaFosse (Jean Arthur) the fiancé of one of the suspects Jimmy Spottswoode (James Hall), and the killer.
There is little doubt "The Canary" had it coming to her (Vance said so five minutes into the film).
The biggest asset to this film is without question Brooks (Even with only 15 minutes of screen time).
I am giving this film 7/10 stars (Mostly for Brooks)..
In "Paramount on Parade" William Powell essayed a spot on parody of Philo Vance, an intellectual man-about-town amateur detective, and when he was shot Inspector Heath (Eugene Palette) happily congratulated Fu Manchu.
S.S. Van Dine had written his first Vance book in 1926 - "The Benson Murder Case", and it was a huge success.
Philo Vance was independently wealthy and was always called into the cases by Heath when the police had given up - of course he always solved the crime!!
In 1929 Paramount acquired the film rights to the first three Van Dine books and the first to roll out was "The Canary Murder Case".
William Powell who had excelled in villainous roles was a brilliant choice for Vance.
He played up the suavity and intellectualism but eliminated the stuffiness and pretentiousness that was quickly turning a lot of readers off!!Louise Brooks in feathers was enough to make this movie memorable, even though you didn't hear her distinctive throbby voice.
She played "The Canary", a beautiful blackmailing showgirl who has set her sights on marrying into society and has her claws into Jimmy (James Hall) who in turn has patched things up with fellow show- girl Alice (for all Jean Arthur's top billing she has two small scenes).Definitely not as interesting as "The Greene Murder Case", once Brooks departed (she was the victim) after 15 minutes, there were no more ladies to brighten up proceedings.
The climax came with a poker game, staged by the insufferable Mr. Vance, in an effort to use psychology to flush out the murderer.
Until then chief suspect is young Jimmy but in a twist the murderer is killed and Philo Vance then takes centre stage to explain just how the murder had been done.
Most interesting character is good old Ned Sparks as, believe it or not, Louise's husband back from "up the river" and eager to get his hands on some of her ill gotten loot!!The film was caught in the middle of the talkie change over.
Initially filmed as a silent in 1928 it was extensively re-shot to make it a 1929 all talkie, which explains Louise Brook's reluctance to return for dialogue dubbing.
Philo Vance (William Powell) aids the police in running down the killer of the Canary (Louise Brooks, looking good but obviously dubbed) a show girl who was planning on blackmailing the son of a rich banker into marrying her.
This was always held out by people I've known to be the best of the Philo Vances, edging out the Kennel Murder Case.
I don't think anyone who's said that had seen the film in years because I don't know when the last time this was run on TV.
Actually its a slow (you could trim about 15 minutes out of this), dated (there is no music and many scenes were shot silent and sound added later) but still enjoyable little thriller.
Watching "The Canary Murder Case" is like watching (film) history being written: this is probably the first traditional talkie whodunit to appear on the screen.
I don't mind the thoroughly unrestored print, or the fact that some actors (thankfully, not William Powell as Philo Vance) take an eternity to finish their sentences; these things give the movie a certain vintage charm.
Jean Arthur, who is second-billed, has a very small role (she speaks with a cute Minnie Mouse-like voice).
Philo Vance (William Powell) is on the case of a showgirl named "The Canary" who was murdered in her locked apartment.
The suspect list includes a number of men The Canary was blackmailing and all were in the vicinity of her apartment the night she died.Unfortunately, the backstory behind the making of The Canary Murder Case is much more interesting than the movie.
Originally, The Canary Murder Case was to be a silent picture.
But at the last minute, the studio decided to turn it into a talkie.
But one of the film's stars, Louise Brooks, refused to participate.
The studio hired another woman who resembled Brooks, shot her from the back, and used her voice for some of the worst dubbing I've ever heard.
The result of all this effort, however, is a very uneven film that often feels cobbled together.Getting past the backstory, The Canary Murder Case is dull.
Watching William Powell in this early Philo Vance effort, it's hard to believe this is the same man who would go on to play the absurdly (and I mean that in a good way) animated Nick Charles.
One of the best lines in the movie: Louise Brooks, with her signature do and a voice that sounds like a yelping Chihuahua, calls up a newspaper editor and announces that she's going to marry the scion of a prominent family.
It's at this point, twenty minutes into the movie, that we discover that William Powell is Philo Vance, detective.
He and the police work together to solve the canary's murder.The police act as if mentally hobbled.
It's odd because the two of them have been together before and after the canary's murder.
Jean Arthur is a brunette Alice and has the same curiously appealing nasal voice that she would have ten years later, but not yet the acting chops.
Slow early talkie murder mystery with Powell at his best.
Well, this is the first of four Philo Vance detective stories and it plays like a photographed stage play, excruciatingly slow and turgid.
One has to "know" poker to understand Philo's technique of unmasking the murderer and the lengths the true murderer goes to to commit the crime are completely implausible, and impossible to achieve as explained here.All the actors speak and move in slow motion, as was the standard in early talkies, yet Powell is assured and urbane throughout, rightfully making him the star of the film.Louise Brooks had a further peg in her coffin as a Hollywood star by refusing to re-film her scenes, once the talkie version went into production. |
tt0060048 | 40 Guns to Apache Pass | In the Arizona Territory 1868,the Apaches, led by Cochise (Michael Keep), are on the warpath. Army Captain Bruce Coburn (Audie Murphy) is tasked with escorting homesteaders to Apache Wells where they can concentrate their defense against the Apache. But there is dissension in the ranks as some of the men under Coburn’s command feel they are being driven too hard. Coburn has to discipline corporal Bodine (Kenneth Tobey) for stealing rationed water. In an attack at Apache Wells, one of the homesteaders, Harry Malone (Kenneth MacDonald), is killed. His two sons, Mike (Michael Blodgett) and Doug (Michael Burns), then join the Army.
In order to defend themselves at Apache Wells, they need guns. Coburn is sent to bring in a consignment of repeating rifles that is on its way, or least prevent them getting into the hands of the Apache. En route, Coburn and his men are attacked. The inexperienced Malone brothers are left to guard the horses, but Mike disobeys orders and goes off to fight the Indians. He is last seen alive screaming for his brother's help, but Doug is a coward who lets his brother die.
The survivors of the patrol manage to rendezvous with the consignment of guns. On the way back to Apache Wells, Bodine and four other soldiers decide to take the guns and desert to Mexico, leaving Coburn and the wounded First Sergeant Walker (Robert Brubaker) tied up. In a moment of indecision, Doug throws his lot in with Bodine.
Coburn and Walker manage to make it back to Apache Wells. He wants to go back and retrieve the rifles, but the commander says he cannot spare any men and orders Coburn to stay. He disobeys and sets off after Bodine. Meanwhile, Bodine has decided to try to sell the rifles to Cochise. Under a flag of truce, Bodine meets Cochise and takes him to where the rifles were hidden. But Coburn, with the help of Doug, has killed the other deserters. Coburn welcomes Doug back, and the two of them take the rifles.
Cochise and Bodine pursue and catch up with Coburn. In a delaying tactic, Coburn distributes five repeating rifles in positions where he can fight off a number of Apache while he orders Doug to get the rifles back to Apache Wells. At Apache Wells, the soldiers are issued with the rifles, and Doug leads them to rescue Coburn, arriving just as he runs out of ammunition. The Apache are chased off and Bodine flees. In a final shootout, Coburn kills Bodine. Doug arrives on the scene and escorts Coburn to Apache Wells, where he is welcomed by the commander and Doug by his family. | violence | train | wikipedia | Audie Murphy's last starring western proves a disappointment.
40 GUNS TO APACHE PASS (1966) was the last starring western for war hero-turned-western star Audie Murphy, who had ended his fruitful 15-year association with Universal Pictures the previous year.
Released by Columbia Pictures, it turned out to be an unfitting send-off, undercut by an extremely low budget, a talky script, and an undistinguished no-name cast (aside from Murphy and screen vet Kenneth Tobey).The plot might have made a good western had it been accorded a bigger budget and a stronger cast.
A beleaguered Arizona cavalry division harassed by Cochise and his Apache warriors is expecting a shipment of repeating rifles, which could mean the difference between life and death for Apache Wells, an outpost housing the army and surviving settlers.
Murphy plays Captain Coburn, a no-nonsense type who romances a settler's daughter (Laraine Stephens) and agrees to take her two younger brothers (Michael Blodgett, Michael Burns) into the undermanned regiment after their father is killed in an attack.
A display of cowardice by the youngest brother (Burns) has dire consequences, resulting in a meandering subplot requiring his redemption.The production values here are far less polished than one would find in a typical TV western of the time, such as "Wagon Train" or "The Virginian." The no-name performers overact and are given reams of unnecessary dialogue in order to pad out the film's running time.
All this is especially disappointing given the participation of director William Witney, a one-time action specialist at Republic Pictures, who'd been directing for 30 years at this point.Things pick up, however, in the film's final third when Corporal Bodine (Kenneth Tobey), a vengeful ex-sergeant with a grudge against Murphy, decides he has other plans for the 40 rifles and convinces four of the remaining soldiers from the escort to accompany him.
Murphy, who'd been left for dead, has to get the rifles back while Burns, the cowardly brother, has to prove himself a man.
This section of the film was shot in more remote California locations which actually pass for Arizona and features a larger band of Apaches on the prowl as Murphy undertakes a holding action, guarding a pass alone with a stack of fully loaded repeating rifles.
Composer Richard LaSalle pumps things up with a rousing, if clichéd, scoreAudie Murphy only appeared in two more films, both little-seen.
First was the international thriller, TRUNK TO CAIRO (1966), directed by future Cannon Films mogul Menahem Golan, while his final film was the Budd Boetticher western, A TIME FOR DYING (1969), which Murphy produced and appeared in briefly as Jesse James..
40 Guns to Apache Pass is directed by William Witney and written by Willard and Mary Willingham.
It stars Audie Murphy and Kenneth Tobey.
Marquette photographs it in Pathe Color with location work coming at Lovejoy Buttes, Red Rock Canyon and North Ranch in California.The Apaches, led by Cochise (Michael Keep), are on the warpath and vowing to kill all whites they come across.
Captain Bruce Coburn (Murphy) is in charge of leading homesteaders out of harms way.
But there is unrest in the band of men under his charge and mutiny is afoot.This was the last but one film Murphy made before retiring, you feel that he hoped this would be a fitting swan song to his career.
Saddled with a weak script and surrounded by wooden supporting actors, Murphy alone can't make this lacklustre, cliché riddled, Western work.
It would be easy to blame director Witney, a man more than capable of stringing together an action based movie, but asking him to try and make this particular screenplay stretch to over an hour and half was asking for the impossible.3/10 for Murphy's manful efforts to carry such a low-budget, routine and forgettable piece..
Audie Murphy plays a tough, by-the-book Cavalry officer in Apache territory who's hard on his men.
This is one of those very routine minor movies that Murphy kept turning up in after the end of his Universal contract.
And the music is hit or miss, sometimes appropriate to what's being shown, and sometimes seriously off, sounding like merry go round music when major action is happening.If those things were corrected, then the rest of the film's flaws are lesser and could have been put up with.
The story is OK and has some thrilling bits in the last half.If you're an Audie Murphy fan, then you may want to watch this, but it's not as good as some of his earlier films.So sad, why didn't he change over to modern action films..
Audie Murphy is a Cavalry captain who must get "40 Guns to Apache Pass" so that White settlers can defend themselves against savage Apache Indians; he enlists a questionable group to assist in the mission.
The men include young Michael Burns and Michael Blodgett (as Mike and Doug Malone), and old Confederate-with-a-grudge Kenneth Tobey (as Bodine).
Laraine Stephens adds more blonde femininity to the cast, as the Malone boys' sister (Ellen).This is a tired and formulaic Western, with tired and formulaic being enhanced by comparison to more successful 1960s films in the genre.
This film's redeeming feature might have been the pairing of veteran Audie Murphy and newcomer Michael Burns - however, Mr. Burns never achieved Mr. Murphy's star status.Burns plays a "sissy" coward who, according to his sister, "can't stand the sight of blood." Watch for Burns' little glance at his own brow blood for a sign he's becoming brave!
Murphy is no sissy; he learned the thrill of fighting at age nine, and joined the Army when he was fifteen.
One of the film's more important scenes involves Burns showing cowardice as his brother is attacked by Apaches; the scene is unbelievably ludicrous, and perfectly illustrates the film's point - and pointlessness.
** 40 Guns to Apache Pass (1967) William Witney ~ Audie Murphy, Michael Burns, Kenneth Tobey.
Lame 40's style bad indians, good settlers movie....
1st watched 11/23/2006 - 2 out of 10(Dir-William Witney): Lame 40's style bad indians, good settlers movie made in the late 60's(believe it or not).
This movie definitely takes us back in time when westerns were one-sided and badly acted(these were not good times) and why this movie had to take us back there I don't know.
Portrayed as a harsh captain(played by Audie Murphy), his men dessert him in the desert as they are trying to bring 40 repeating rifles back to the settler's base to defend themselves against Cochese's Apache Indians who vow to not leave one white man alive in their Arizona Territory shortly after the civil war.
What the rest of the movie consists of is gun battles occurring after the Captain tries to regain the rifles on his own, goofy romance, estranged alliances and of course, the good guys coming out rosy in the end(at least as is portrayed in this movie).
There's hardly a western movie cliché that's left out.
I should say that I've enjoyed quite a few Audie Murphy movies, but when the movie is otherwise bad, he comes across very unconvincingly.
What is interesting and museum-worthy is the basic premise of the story, namely that the natives are the bad guys for trying to stop the European settlers taking over their land.
Times were of course achangin' : "Little Big Man", one of America's greatest movies,was made only 4 years later in 1970..
Murphy does all the right things but they are the same heroics and " it's okay I'm just shot in the chest so I ain't gonna flinch" routine as westerns had ten and twenty years before.
I laughed when the opening line was " there were only a few brave men stopping the whole Territory of Arizona being overrun".they meant of course a few brave settlers from the east.
Overall it's workmanlike effort but nothing really distinguished this film from any production line western from the 50's.
Audie Murphy did a great job in the lonely outpost fighting Apaches.
Laraine Stephens's sons getting in on the action is another great sub-plot that all fits in very well.
But it's doubtful that even the great Ford could have done anything with this lame western which has possibly one of the dullest screenplays ever written.Saddled with bad material, it's no wonder that AUDIE MURPHY finds himself floundering about in a role that's so poorly written, he never has a chance.
The only other respectable performance in the film is given by KENNETH TOBEY, usually Mr. Nice, here cast as the bad guy who wants to sell rifles to the Indians and ends up in a heap of trouble when Audie decides to single-handedly take care of the situation and put Tobey and his cronies out of business.
It takes more than an hour to get to this situation and by that time it's doubtful whether anyone was left watching.Filmed in muddy color with some interesting background scenery the only thing to dwell on during long stretches of dull dialog, it's no wonder Murphy's career was in decline by the time he did this film away from his home studio, Universal.
Terrible Movie Made Me Laugh During an Actual War. This joke of a movie -- with terrible acting, a thin plot and cheap production values -- at least gave me a laugh once when I badly needed one.
For some unaccountable reason, they sent us this movie about the cavalry to see when we were serving in the actual 1st Cavalry (Airmobile) in Vietnam.These guys couldn't shoot straight, except for the few times when a single shot felled multiple Indians, but they also could not be wounded, even when taking cover behind the flimsiest rail fence.So little thought went into this movie that it deserves to be ranked among the worst of all time.
Typical Western movie errors all over the place..
How unrealistic.It's a good thing they're making a movie and the horses get breaks along with the actors or they would keel over dead from all that running.
I can never understand why a movie producer or director will go to all the trouble and spend mucho dollars and end up with a film with so many obvious errors..
Anachronistic Audie Murphy Western.
Audie Murphy, the Most Decorated WWII Soldier, Including the Medal of Honor, had a Long and Successful Run in mostly Moderate Budgeted Westerns, and was a Household Name.
Always Quick to Point Out that being a Good Actor was an ongoing Fight He Never Won but Never Gave Up trying, managed 44 Films, some to Box Office Glory.
His Autobiographical Film, "To Hell and Back"(1955) Broke Box Office Records and Wasn't Topped for 20 Years.In this, His Last Major Role, was Characteristic of His Real Life and Screen Persona, but the Movie itself was Anachronistic.
The "Whites are the Good Guys", "Indians are the Savages", Cliché was No Longer Sell-Able and the Film Suffers from a Story-Line Best Suited in a more "Unenlightened" Time.Murph, looking as Young as Ever but showing Signs of Body Sprawl, Delivers a Dutiful Performance.
He is "Helped" by Kenneth Tobey giving a Good-Bad Guy Role and He makes the most of it and is the Film's only Interesting Element.
Audie looks more Hesitant, perhaps Sensing that His Time On the Screen had Passed.Rather than trying to Pursue other Ranging Roles Audie Murphy Retired from the Screen but Never Retired from the Hearts of Grateful Americans and Remained a Real Hero for the Rest of His Short Life.
Weaker than average Audie Murphy western.
Set in 1868 when the Apaches under Chief Cochise go on the warpath with the intention of driving out every white settler in southern Arizona; Captain Bruce Coburn must take a small group of soldiers deep into Apache territory to take delivery of a consignment of forty new repeating rifles being delivered from the east.
Things badly fairly quickly and several members of the squad are killed in an engagement with Cochise's braves; including one of the recruits who died because of his brother's cowardice.
After taking delivery of the rifles things get even worse when the belligerent Cpl. Bodine mutinies and persuades the rest of the men to join him; telling them they will get rich selling the rifles in Mexico.
he intends to sell them to the Apache!One of this film's key weaknesses is the narration that tells us things that are blindingly obvious and only seems to detract from the action and is delivered in a tone that adds nothing the film.
The acting is fairly mixed; Murphy puts in a solid performance as Coburn and Kenneth Tobey is great as Cpl. Bodine, creating a delightfully unpleasant character.
The desert locations look impressive but the 'fort' at Apache Wells looked nothing like a military outpost.
The main reason to watch this is to see Murphy's last starring role; apart from that it passes the time well enough on a rainy afternoon..
40 Guns To Apache Pass involves Captain Audie Murphy's commanding officer Byron Morrow sending him on two missions for the cavalry.
The second is as the title says to bring 40 repeating rifles to the army stockade at Apache Pass, the better to fend off an attack from Cochise with.It's sad that Audie Murphy who made such a good string for the most part of really competent B westerns even long after that genre had moved to television petered out that string with this film with an improbable almost laughable plot.
On that second mission he takes some of the prizes in the garrison, two green recruits in Michael Blodgett and Michael Burns and some of the worst disciplined including Kenneth Tobey, a corporal with a mean and larcenous streak in him that Murphy had to bludgeon into submission on the first mission.
Why he would take him again on a more dangerous assignment is beyond me.Given the idiocy in picking this particular patrol certain things that one with half a brain could have foreseen, do happen.Watching the film I believe Murphy was supposed to die, but the producers tacked on a ridiculous happy ending with Murphy going back to Laraine Stephens whose brothers were Blodgett and Burns.
It's really rather obvious.Best in the film and I'm sure he knew it was a turkey was Kenneth Tobey.
Audie looked good as the officer although he always looked young(but just remember what in did in WW2 23 years earlier).
In westerns it's often the supporting cast of heavies that make a film & Kenneth Tobey is great as the bad guy.
The indians looked like how i would expect apaches to look.
But always remember that while there's thousands of westerns that have been made not that many have the big three ACTION SCENERY & SUPPORTING CAST.
One of Audie Murphy's last movies is nothing to really brag about.
Harsh Captain Bruce Coburn(Murphy)leads a group of the Cavalry to accept a shipment of forty valuable rifles: and hopes to avoid Cochise(Michael Keep)and the Apaches.
Corporal Bodine(Kenneth Tobey)starts a mutiny against the much hated Cpt. Coburn and intends to sell the rifles to Cochise instead of going to Mexico to trade them.
In his next to last film Audie Murphy had almost outgrown his boyish good looks enough to pass for a reasonably convincing hard case.
His character Bruce Coburn is a no nonsense Cavalry Captain with orders to escort settlers out of Apache Indian Territory and later, to bring in a shipment of repeating rifles to the Army outpost at Apache Wells.
Corporal Bodine (Kenneth Tobey) was a former Confederate who still hates the Union enough to desert in the middle of the mission and drag along a handful of soldiers, including the younger Malone brother Doug (Michael Burns).
By this point, Doug had already witnessed older brother Mike (Michael Blodgett) attacked and dragged off by the Apaches, unwilling and unable to come to his aid by reason of cowardice.
Except for Murphy's own autobiographical film "To Hell and Back" and his 1959 Western "No Name on the Bullet", I found this to be one of the better ones starring the real life war hero.
Part of that reverts back to my opening comment regarding Murphy's 'look'; in virtually every other Western I've seen him in, he doesn't look the part whether he's playing a hero OR a villain.If I had to nit pick though, what didn't seem convincing to me was how handily Captain Coburn picked off all those charging Indians once he got his hands on the rifle cache.
A little like John Wayne winning all those war and Western battles all by himself.
But if you're an Audie Murphy fan, and by now I guess I'm in that camp, this is a decent send off in his last feature role..
I've read several other reviews and I must ask if those who call this a cheapie have ever watched a 'western' where 90% of the film takes place in a town or in a confined location where they talk each other to death.
The on-location photography and camera-work in '40 Guns...' was pretty impressive; not filmed as a quickie would be 2 miles from LA or on a backlot.
And as for the plot being well- worn and tired, how many films can they make where the guy's girl and best buddy fall in love?
How many action films can they make where the thief, spy, driver, detective, hit man 'comes out of retirement'......???
A Wonderful Bad Film.
Audie Murphy that most likable of unconvincing heroic actors.
A real life super hero, Murphy compares badly against Randolph Scott who towered above every cheap western he ever made with total conviction as a granite hard hero that you believe totally, that's the movies.In this late western before Murphy's untimely death he is again the all American hero saving the west in a plot about 40 missing guns. |
tt0115633 | Bastard Out of Carolina | The book opens with Bone relating the details of her birth. Bone's 15-year-old mother Anney gives birth to her after being seriously injured in a car accident. Anney, who is comatose during the delivery, is unable to lie about being married. Her mother and older sister Ruth attempt to give a false name and are caught in their deception. This results in Bone being declared a bastard (an illegitimate child; born out of wedlock). Anney, who "hated to be called trash", then spends the next two years unsuccessfully petitioning to get a new birth certificate issued without the word "bastard" stamped on it. This opens her up to the ridicule of the customers in the diner in which she works.
At age 17, Anney marries Lyle Parsons and gives birth to another daughter, Reese, in short order. Lyle is killed in a car accident, leaving Anney "all bitter grief and hunger". After remaining single for a few years she begins to date Glen Waddell, the son of a socially prominent dairy owner. Two years later, as a result of her becoming pregnant, they get married.
Anney gives birth to a stillborn boy and becomes unable to have more children. During labor, Glen masturbates while touching Bone in the car. The family's fortunes plummet, with Glen losing job after job due to his anger management problems. It is then that Glen, who had been loving and gentle with Bone, begins sexually molesting her. The abuse culminates in beatings and whippings that leave Bone nursing bruises and broken bones.
When Anney discovers the abuse, she leaves Glen, who promptly promises never to do it again. Anney takes him back and the abuse resumes. Anney leaves Glen again after her tough, hard-drinking brothers severely beat Glen upon discovering that he has beaten Bone once again. Bone then announces to her mother that she will never live in the same house with Glen again. Bone tells her mother that she loves her and will forgive her if she decides to go back to Glen, reiterating that she will not return to the house with Glen. Her mother then vows not to go back to Glen unless Bone comes with her.
When Glen discovers this, he attacks Bone at her Aunt Alma's house, breaking her arm and raping her on the kitchen floor. Anney walks in on him and fights him off. Glen follows the two out to the car, begging Anney to kill him rather than abandon him. To Bone's disgust and amazement, Anney ends up crying and throwing her arms around Glen.
Bone's aunt Raylene visits her at the hospital and takes custody of Bone, as Anney has disappeared. While Bone is recuperating at her aunt's house, Anney shows up with a new birth certificate for Bone, this time without the word "illegitimate" stamped on the bottom. She asks Bone's forgiveness and leaves without telling Bone where she is going. | violence | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0101325 | American Kickboxer | B.J. Quinn (John Barrett) is the current middleweight kickboxing champion of the world. His next opponent is Chad Hunter (Keith Vitali). Hunter proves to be quite the opponent with his impressive skills. In the second round, Quinn accidentally hits Chad with an elbow while going for a spinning back fist, causing the doctor to stop the fight. Quinn retains his title.
At a party celebrating a new sponsor to kickboxing, middleweight contender and cocky fighter Jacques Denard (Brad Morris) hits on Quinn's girlfriend Carol (Terry Norton). Quinn, seeing what Denard is doing, begins to confront him. As the two begin to push each other, party goer Ken (Gavin Hood) gets into the mix to split them up. However, Quinn punches Ken so hard that he crashes through a table and ends up dead. At the trial, despite Chad's testimony that Quinn would have needed a reason to kill Ken, Denard's testimony proves enough to get Quinn convicted for twelve months on manslaughter charges. In addition, Quinn is no longer allowed to compete in professional kickboxing.
A year has passed and Quinn has been freed from prison. Upon returning, he is shocked to learn that Denard, the man whose testimony has put him away due to pure hatred of him, has become the middleweight champion. Denard, in all his glory, proves to be a complete showboating type who resorts to using dirty tactics and has felt both the ire of kickboxing promoter Bob Wiser (Len Sparrowhawk) and the heckling of journalist Willard (Ted Le Plat), who had done the same to Quinn during his days as a champion.
Meanwhile, Quinn had learned that Chad Hunter had stood up for him during the trial and has befriended him. Chad is up for a title shot against Denard and asks Quinn to train him. Quinn agrees, but he starts to let his personal demons catch up to him. During a sparring session, Quinn gets too rough with Chad, who confronts him. Quinn knows that Denard has gotten under his skin for a long time and he begins to take his frustrations out on both Chad and Carol. Chad loses badly to Denard in their title fight and is sent to the hospital, where Quinn again trashes Chad. At another party, a drunken Quinn finally confronts Denard and beats him relentlessly using a chair, prompting Carol to leave him.
Depressed and alone, Quinn finds another place to live and slowly begins to realize the mistakes he has made. Chad, who has ultimately forgiven Quinn, asks Quinn to help out at his school. Defusing a situation between two students, Quinn again begins to value what he has and begins a road of redemption for himself through training. Carol returns and she and Quinn rekindle their relationship. Denard, upset from the beating at the party, decides to challenge Quinn to a fight. However, knowing that Quinn cannot fight as a professional, Denard makes the challenge for $100,000.
When Quinn gets wind of the challenge after seeing the headline on the newspaper Willard writes for, Carol tells Quinn she will help him through this. In addition, Chad has offered to become Quinn's trainer. During a sparring session, Chad and Quinn go at it again when Quinn starts to somewhat hold back. It is there where Quinn finally lets everything loose verbally, but about himself. He said everything he had has is gone. However, Chad finally offers some words of encouragement and Quinn realizes that he hasn't lost it all. With the help of Chad and former trainer Howard (Roger Yuan), who after Quinn's imprisonment became Denard's cornerman but grew tired of his antics; Quinn begins to put his heart into his training and prepares for the big fight.
The long-awaited fight finally happens. Once again, Denard's showboating and dirty tactics begin to take its toll on Quinn. When Quinn goes down during one of the later rounds, he gets up at a nine-count. Showing he isn't holding back anymore, he surprises Denard with his punches and kicks. When he lands a haymaker, Denard is sent flying to the corner with his legs rubbery. Quinn finally unleashes a flurry of kicks to Denard, and ends it with a tornado kick, sending Denard to the ground for the ten-count. As Chad, Howard, Carol, and others gather to congratulate B.J., Willard makes one more heckle at Denard before Denard's cornerman knocks him out cold with a punch. | cult, violence | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0105812 | White Men Can't Jump | Billy Hoyle is a former Iowa Hawkeyes basketball player who makes his living by hustling streetballers that assume he cannot play well because he is white. Billy never degrades his race when joining on pickup games; he simply allows his opponents to falsely believe they have a natural advantage over him. Such a player is Sidney Deane, a talented but arrogant player who is beaten twice by Billy, once in a half court team game and later in a one-on-one shootout for money.
Billy and his Hispanic girlfriend Gloria Clemente are on the run from outbid mobsters because of a gambling debt. A voracious reader, making note of obscure facts, Gloria's goal in life is to be a contestant on the television show Jeopardy! and make a fortune. Sidney wants to buy a house for his family outside the rough Baldwin Village, Census's District neighborhood of Los Angeles. He talks Billy into a partnership and they hustle other players. When they unexpectedly lose a game, it turns out that Sidney has double-crossed Billy by deliberately playing badly alongside him, making Billy lose $1,700 to a group of Sidney's friends.
Gloria is incensed at Billy for blowing his money again and is also suspicious of how it happened. They go to Sidney's apartment and appeal to his wife Rhonda for fairness, and the women agree to share the money provided Sidney and Billy team up for a major two-on-two outdoor tournament. While they bicker incessantly, Sidney and Billy win the grand prize of $5,000, largely due to Billy's ability to disrupt his opponents' concentration. Billy's most notable claim is that he is "in the zone", a state of mind in which nothing can distract him. Sidney is pleased with the outcome, yet he cannot help mocking Billy about his inability to slam dunk. "White men can't jump," he notes.
Billy insists that he can indeed dunk, and after Sidney clearly disagrees, Billy offers to bet his share of the $5,000 on his ability to dunk. Sidney gives him three chances. Billy fails, losing his share. When he tells Gloria, she leaves him. Sidney reveals that he has a friend who works as a security guard at the TV studio that produces Jeopardy! The friend, Robert, agrees to use his connections to get her on the show if Billy can sink a hook shot from beyond the half-court line, which he does. Gloria initially stumbles over sports questions (such as naming Babe Ruth as the all-time NBA rebound leader), but makes a comeback with a pet topic, "Foods That Begin With the Letter Q." She wins $14,100 on her first episode.
Billy sings Gloria a song he has composed and wins her back. As Billy's life comes together, this time it is Sidney who needs Billy's help; his home is burglarized and his winnings stolen, so he and Rhonda become desperate for money. Gloria expects Billy to get a steady job and settle down, but Sidney asks him to play basketball for money again and use his share of Gloria's take. Gloria warns that if Billy gambles with her money they are through. Billy feels he must honor the obligation he owes Sidney for getting Gloria on Jeopardy! in the first place. They play a final game against two hoops legends of the L.A. scene, "The King" and "Duck." In a very tight game, Sidney and Billy prevail, the winning points coming when Sidney lobs an "alley-oop" pass to Billy, who dunks it.
Returning home happy, Billy discovers Gloria has kept her word and left him for good. He is crushed. The mobsters who are after Billy track him down, and he pays off his debts. Billy asks Sidney to set him up with a real job. Billy says that Gloria has left him many times, but this time is final; Sidney remarks that they may be better off without each other. Billy launches into yet another basketball argument with Sidney, and they return to where they began—but, this time, as friends. | cult, comedy, entertaining, humor | train | wikipedia | Granted the field of movies about basketball isn't nearly as deep as say movies with plots concerning baseball or boxing, Hoosiers still generally beats out what little competition there is.However in my opinion the best movie to ever capture the game of hoops is the criminally underrated and underseen White Men Can't Jump, by director Ron Shelton.
If any one word can describe White Men Can't Jump, that word is "fun." The movie tackles serious issues like hustling, family, relationships, race, life in poverty, and gambling debts.
However if Robert Rossen's pool hall film The Hustler presented the dark side of the life, Ron Shelton's White Men Can't Jump shows the flip side of the coin.
The basketball scenes are very well handled by director Ron Shelton, with slow motion spins and beady drips of sweat glistening in the heat, and the chemistry between Woody Harrelson (Billy) and Wesley Snipes (Sidney) is first class, but really it's the power of Shelton's writing that makes this a most engaging picture (see also Bull Durham & the similarly undervalued Tin Cup).After following these two guys thru their very rocky relationship you get to a point where you feel that we are about to wander down formula road, but Shelton pulls a trick to make the final last quarter an excellent, none conformity piece of film, one that judging by the less than favourable rating on this particular site, has not been wholly appreciated.
Shame that, because other than Rosie Perez doing her best to annoy the viewers to death as Billy's suffering girlfriend Gloria Clemente, White Men Can't Jump is one of the better sports movies of the 90s.
A gritty comedy set in some tough LA neighborhoods about two basketball hustlers, one white (Woody Harrelson), the other black (Wesley Snipes).
Especially so are the cheap motels where Harrelson and girlfriend Rosie Perez have to live, and the inner city apartment where Snipes and his wife Tyra Ferrel call home, all of which adds up to a realistic slice of life at the time, which now seems to look quite a bit different.
Woody Harrelson is perfect as the n'er do well Billy and Wesley Snipes is perfect as the fast talking Sidney.
Wesley Snipes(From the "Blade" Series)and Woody Harrelson(Who was just in Semi-Pro)are two of the best actors ever and they are superb actors in this movie.
If you like Wesley Snipes or Woody Harrelson you will for sure love this movie.
My overall rating on White Men Can't Jump is...8/10See it as soon as you can, rent it from a local movie store or even buy it and you will love it..
Nonetheless, Woody Harrleson as the white guy who turns out to be as good if not better than any of the black basketball players, is interesting as is his main counterpart Wesley Snipes.Snipes had a lot of funny put-down lines, providing much of the humor.
The trash-talking on the courts is great to watch and no matter how many times I see it it still makes me laugh especially when Billy is trying to psyche out his opponents at the 'brotherhood' tournament.
Despite my dislike of it in real life, it is actually the boisterous, fast talking, foul mouthed basketball matches that make this film fun to watch.
Overall this is not a great film because of the weaknesses in actual plotting, however it is fun and energetic mainly because it never goes too long with some fast-talking basketball action.
Ron Shelton-directed and written comedy about two street hustlers who join forces--despite their separate race--to form a great basketball team.
Rated R for Strong Language and Sexuality.White Men Cant Jump is my favorite movie that is mostly about basketball.I liked The Basketball Diaries more but that wasn't all about basketball.I saw this film a couple of years ago on showcase action.I was laughing out loud throughout!
You are sure to laugh.However the film is not all comedy.There is a good mix of comedy and drama as well.The acting is very good especially from Wesley Snipes who was in films such as Demolition Man,Woody Harelson who was in Natural Born Killers and Rosie Perez who was in Do The Right Thing.White Men cant Jump is a hilarious basketball film and I recommend it..
(gotta say Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson surprised me with their basketball skills those 2 really are very good players in real life obviously) Wesley played the typical over-confident "brother" on the playground with his great street wise banter and was very humorous and at times genius but towards the end of this film it was Woody who became the "brother" giving out his own banter to his opponents and being very funny and turning the tables showing we're all the same in the end.The title in itself is a racial barricade which is broken down i imagine most white people to not bother now about this title which is of course a racism idea but it is taken in a joking form and is said in a way we can speak about and not just push it into a dark corner call it racism and never speak of it again.
The people of America did this very well (the African/American sub-section that is when they started calling each other the "n" word i won't say as i still don't feel comfortable as a white man saying this to them but they have broken down the barrier and spoke about such things brought it out into the open and allowed for us to integrate in my opinion and be less taboo about such subjects.This film has it all people and for me its an absolute 10/10 i've seen it now around 60/70times (no joke) and its still absolute shear excellence!
The black people not understanding why this only white person, a chump is so good at basketball, and on Wesley's discovery the fact he can make even more of a living from it is excellent.
If Woody was good enough for the Arsenio show then I was going to watch his movie.White Men Can't Jump is still a classic.
The banter back and forth between Billy (Woody Harrelson) and Sidney (Wesley Snipes), the gamesmanship, the hoops--it was excellent.
Even Alex Trebek makes it a great flick.I have found myself talking on the phone in very relevant conversations and only half understanding what I was discussing when White Men Can't Jump was on - enough said.The writer/director also made Blue Chips (great movie) and Tin Cup (pretty enjoyable,) if that says anything..
He's helped in great measure by both Snipes and Harrelson, who were not only good enough at the game to be practically Division III-quality players according to one of the former NBA pros who served as a technical adviser on the film, but were also good enough to handle the fast pace of the dialogue.
You take a solid story, cast great actors, with a really good supporting actors, and tell the story like its meant to be told.White men Can't Jump, is about how basketball, life and relationships.
On an L.A. beachside basketball court, loudmouth Sidney Deane (Wesley Snipes) gets schooled by goofy white boy Billy Hoyle (Woody Harrelson).
In White Men Can't Jump, Billy Hoyle uses other players' expectations of what a typical street-ball basketball player looks like to his advantage to hustle them.
White Men Can't Jump is a good movie with a well written storyline and a great comedic cast.Its not an outstanding comedy,but it has plenty of funny scenes and there is good chemistry between Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes.The movie is almost two hours long which I think is certainly too long for a comedy like this,the plot definitely felt tiring after a while.Wesley Snipes was a really good comedic actor in this,I liked him even more than Harrelson,which says a lot because I'm a huge fan of Woody Harrelson,Snipes was really funny and confident and he definitely should have starred in more comedies.White Men Can't Jump is a good movie that I would recommend to anyone looking for a good comedy if they got some time to kill.A con artist who hustles basketball games joins forces with a talented player to double their chances.Best Performance: Wesley Snipes.
This flick is about Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes (two of my favorite actors) who combine their talents to hustle playground basketball games in Los Angeles, Billy all the while trying to maintain the affection of his girlfriend Gloria (Rosie Perez), and pay back mobsters whom he owes money to.
Something about Harrelson's personality and acting makes him a perfect fit for this film.What was great about this movie were all of the twists in the already interesting plot.
You have Harrelson, a white schmuck hustling these street ballers for income, the last guy you would expect to get whooped by in a game of basketball, so when he teams up with Snipes, another seasoned hustler it makes for an already great movie.
But Ron Shelton's film, about a pair of basketball hustlers, buzzes with such energy and fizz that you really don't mind, and the cast led by Woody Harrelson (who plays a man frequently as stupid as he looks) and Wesley Snipes (a huckster with a day job) play off each other with aplomb.
Though "Hoosiers" is the all-time greatest basketball movie ever made, "White Men Can't Jump" is an easy second.
Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson have incredible chemistry in this movie as opponents, teammates, and friends.
why are movies like this allowed to be made and make White people be intimidated playing sports like basketball?
WHITE MEN CAN'T JUMP (1992) *** Woody Harrelson, Wesley Snipes, Rosie Perez.
Very amusing basketball comedy with Woody and Wesley teaming up again (they first co-starred in "Wildcats" with Goldie Hawn) as jive-talking hustling b'ball cons for big bucks and Perez as Woody's fast-talking, "Jeopardy!" obsessed girlfriend.
White Men Can't Jump (1992): If this movie, written and directed by sports-film guru Ron Shelton, consisted entirely of basketball scenes, it would rate a perfect 10.
The story of con men Billy (Woody Harrelson) and Sidney (Wesley Snipes) teaming up to hustle opponents on the court is only a small part of a convoluted script, which is merely a mess of unimportant subplots rather than one solid storyline.
the best scene to watch is when woody harrelson and wesley snipes first meet a lot of laughs.
Wesley Snipes as Sidney Dean is the hotshot, hotdog, street wise hoops hustler who sees some value in an undersized white guy who plays better than he looks, although he can't jump.
Snipes and Harrelson, by the way, can play a little, although it's mostly the camera work and the slow-mo that makes them look good.(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon!).
For the film's sake, that's good, as the jokes and quick-witted dialog remain relevant, but still....White Men finds Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes living hand-to-mouth as hustlers on the early 1990s LA street ball scene.
Knowing a good con when he sees it, Snipes's Sidney Dean quickly convinces Harrelson's character to team up so they can exploit the perennial myth that white men can't play basketball.
The relationship throws front-and-center each character's (mis)perceptions about the other's race, the permanent divide between men and women, and the crazy logic us dudes will often apply to justify taking a risk "just one more time."Great on-court scenes and sharp-tongued wordplay between Snipes and Harrelson keeps the movie on track.
Having been duped out of $7800, he takes to hustling the black neighbourhood players, getting them to bet big money that they'll win, on their naíve assumption that a white man can't be a good basketball player.
I thought that Sidney (Wesley Snipes) and Billy (Woody Harrelson) were very good at the game of basketball.
In conclusion, I highly recommend this movie to all you Wesley Snipes, Woody Harrelson, or Rosie Perez fans who have not seen it..
White Men Can't Jump is a story of two men named Billy (Woody Harrelson) and Sydney (Wesley Snipes) who both think they are the best players on the court and hustlers in basketball on the streets of Los Angeles, so then they join forces in a two-on-two basketball championship.
Snipes is a husband and father between jobs but making a lucrative career out of hustling pickup basketball games; Harrelson is a clever charlatan who couldn't manage money if his life depended on it; despite their mutual distrust and dislike of one another, the two reluctantly decide to join forces and work the courts of Los Angeles to their advantage by taking money from unsuspecting opponents, eventually developing a mutual respect along the way.
I guess the only thing that kept me attached to the film was Snipes and Harrelson's good acting and Rosie Perez who I found to be somewhat attractive , on the whole this film is one of those chill out summer movies which will just fly past your head .
Funny Funny Funny, Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes play a great game, of basketball and hustlin'.
The two men in question are Woody Harrleson's Billy Hoyle and Wesley Snipes' Sidney Deane; two fairly young and wholly fit males whom enjoy the sport of basketball so much so that it will come to act as the manly catalyst for each of their respective on-screen plights, just as engaging as a fighter pilot did for the leads in Top Gun and engaging in warfare did for the scantily-clad warriors of 300.
Don't expect a social commentary on the black 'n white boundaries and life in the ghetto or a senseless showcase of how entertaining great basketball is to look at, although Snipes and Harrelson surely deliver.
For every fans of basketball like me, this movie is the best I have ever seen about it.
You don't have to be a fan of basketball to enjoy this feel-good, humorous, dramatic, and lively story of two very good players, Wesley Snipes as Sidney and Woody Harrelson, and their women, Rosie Perez and Tyra Ferrell.What lingo on the courts!
Woody Harrelson, who is white, is not quite in the same acting league but manages to carry the part of Snipes' partner in the hustling game quite well.
most of the black guys in the movie feel that harrelsons character billy is a 'chump', and are quick to put him down.
This is mainly due to the genuinely funny script which cleverly makes use of white/black cultural comparisons while tastefully playing the two ethnic groups against each other, with enjoyable results.Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes give two fresh, lively performances as a couple of basketball hustlers who go from court to court taking on other hot shot players in high priced games of two on two.
White Men Can't Jump stars Wesley Snipes, Woody Harrelson, and the quite sexy Rosie Perez.
Filmed at the height of the hip-hop era, this movie is a basketball based comedy/drama that challenges some popular stereotypes.The story begins as a dorky white boy, Billy played by Harrelson, becomes part of a street basketball scene in LA.
As you can tell, I'm not a fan of Woody Harrelson, but especially when this film came out I was quite a fan of Wesley Snipes.
And Snipes is great here, and near the peak of his career.I'm also not a basketball fan, or of sports in general...another reason I know this is a really good movie.
Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson star in this sports comedy about streetball hustlers in White Men Can't Jump.Screenwriter and director Ron Shelton tells a story of two con artist who picks up basketball games.Rosie Perez co-stars.Caucasian Billy Hoyle and African-American Sidney Deane become partners in hustling street games for basketball by lulling their black players as victims with the notion that white men aren't good ballplayers.Both try to raise money for their needs.But later,Deane realizes his actions aren't morally right especially selling out on his own people.They try to renew their wrongful deeds and redeem themselves as the story progressed.The movie provides a lot to themes that deal with racial stereotypes like blacks superior talent in basketball and white being less athletic.Added to that,we also get to see Hispanics come into the picture with Rosie's character of Gloria being in an interracial relationship with a Caucasian in Billy and her ability as a Jeopardy contestant.Overall,it was just more of a sports movie as it tries to disprove misguided notions about racial stereotypes..
Basically former college basketball player Billy Hoyle (Woody Harrelson) makes a living hustling with street ballers who assume he can't well, because he is white, and his most recent play is with black arrogant but talented player Sidney Deane (Wesley Snipes) on Venice Beach.
He suggests a partnership to hustle other basketball players for money, but they lose their first game playing together, and Billy finds out that he was conned himself, and Gloria knows this.
Snipes gives a fun slick performance as the streetwise cool guy, Harrelson is equally great as the pro basketball playing white guy, and Perez also shines as the pro's sassy girlfriend, it is a film to enjoy for the basketball, the dialogue based jokes, and the small moments of serious stuff too, a most worthwhile sports comedy drama.
The story centres on a highly talented white basketball player (Woody Harrelson) who hustles a cocksure black guy (Wesley Snipes) on his own court.
All the characters are great, and the story is quite clever, plus Wesley Snipes is simply amazing in this!, and Woody is fantastic.
This is a great Basketball comedy that's very underrated, with fantastic chemistry between Snipes and Harrelson!
Woody Harrelson is fantastic here, he is very funny, likable, had fantastic chemistry with Wesley, and Rosie Perez and I loved his trash talking during the Basketball games!, he was awesome!. |
tt0088163 | Splitz | Hooter College student Chuck (Chuck McQuary) has decided academics aren’t going to get him anywhere in life, so he’s taken to managing a band his classmates have formed called The Splitz, which consists of lead singer Joan (Patti Lee), guitarist Gina (Robin Johnson) and drummer Susie (Barbara Bingham). The Splitz struggle to make a name for themselves and resort to playing in dive bars where the patrons are more interested in boozing and brawling than appreciating the music.
The day after a disastrous show, Chuck escorts Gina to her home, where he meets her former-mobster father, who becomes obsessed with the percentage of the band’s income that Chuck is claiming. Chuck also meets Gina’s cousin Vinnie, a sweet but oversexed meathead who can’t score a date, so Chuck encourages him to try hypnosis.
Meanwhile the evil Dean Hunta (Shirley Stoler) informs the heads of three sororities that they’ll have to compete in a trio of events to determine who’s going to lose their house to make way for a new sewage treatment plant. The dean favors Sigma Phi’s Lois Scagliani (Forbes Riley) and Delta Phi’s Fern Hymenstein (Tara King) and informs them that the Phi Betas have to lose. When asked if she has an axe to grind with the Phi Beta sorority, the Dean replies that it’s “just another act of random, senseless violence perpetrated against the underdogs.”
At the first competition, a soccer game, Gina is disgusted to see the way that Phi Beta’s Midge (Amelia David) and her peers are being trampled by their competitors, so she gets into the game herself and the other Splitz quickly follow suit. Although the Phi Betas lose the game, they gain an all-girl rock band, who immediately become part of their sorority.
Gina enlists Warwick (Tom McCleister), a Neanderthal classmate with a crush on Susie, to coach the Phi Betas. It still seems like they might lose the next competition, so the Splitz pay a visit to the Dean’s husband, who is a lecherous dentist. They lure him into women’s clothing and snap a series of photos of him, which they send to the Dean with instructions that she’s to let the Phi Betas make their own rules for the forthcoming tournaments.
At the wrestling match, the Phi Betas make the Sigma Phis don skimpy lingerie, and they win the game when one of the ladies’ bras pops off, leaving her dazed and easily pinned. The third and final competition is basketball, which the Phi Betas have deemed “strip-basketball.” Unfortunately, Fern Hymenstein traps Joan in the lockerroom just prior to the game, so it looks like the underdogs will lose, but Warwick bursts in and rescues her halfway through the game.
Although the Phi Betas were victorious in the final two competitions, Dean Hunta retaliates by expelling Chuck and the Splitz, so Chuck turns to Gina’s family for help. He gets Vinnie to use his newfound skills on the Dean and Gina’s uncles to book the band into the hottest club in town.
The Splitz are shocked to discover the entire school board is present at their big gig, and even more surprised that their opening act is a hypnotized Dean Hunta, who rips open her dress and sings a bawdy tune to the board members. Then the Splitz take the stage and are instantly a hit, so the manager offers them a contract to headline at the club for the next year. | revenge, flashback | train | wikipedia | Animal House gone Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. Sometimes you don't want to see Gone With The Wind. Sometimes you just want to see a good, old fashioned titty-flic. They don't make films like these anymore: films that fell somewhere between the drive-in, the grind house and late night cable. SPLITZ was one of the amazing topless-not-plot less popcorn movies that made it into regular rotation on HBO and Cinemax back in the glorious early 80s. Taking more than a cue from Animal House and then paying tribute to Russ Meyer's BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, SPLITZ hits the ground running with a soundtrack reminiscent of either VALLEY GIRL or NEW WAVE HOOKERS, and it's thoroughly enjoyable in that Bevis & Butthead kinda way. A perfect night with the guys film, custom made for a movie marathon. Just add beer, bong and a bag of chips and you'll be happily on your way. Look for a very early cameo by Comedy Central regular (and Big Lebowski bit player) Dom Irrera. Perfectly captures the era in which it was made.. From the maestro of mediocrity!. Domonic Paris strikes again! Not content with resting on the laurels of his earlier (and only) DRACULA'S LAST RITES, a vampire film seen by less than 50 people I imagine, Mr Paris gives the world what can only be described as a cornball, low porn sorority caper with nothing but a few braless (read as brainless if you wish) co-eds on show.If one is to accept that attempting to stave off the closure of a sorority house due to lack of interest, makes for a viable movie plotline, by all means watch this. You'll probably be just the 9th person (the other 8 have already voted)What's next for Paris? GONE WITH THE NIPPLE?. If you're looking for a dopy '80s comedy.... A trio of sororities go into competition to save their house from being torn down to make way for a new sewage treatment plant, so an aspiring girl band joins the underdogs to ensure they're not the loser.I'm really surprised this movie doesn't have a minor cult following. During the mid-'80s it was in heavy rotation on HBO and Cinemax, I think it also aired on USA Up All Night (if you're old enough that should tell you what sort of film it is), and it stood out on video shelves because the front cover (a cheerleader doing the splits) was cleverly printed sideways. Like all of the corny T&A movies from that era, it doesn't aspire to be anything more than what it is: mindless silliness. There are heavy comparisons to "Animal House," but personally I think it's got more of a "Rock N Roll High School" type of vibe.The story jumps all over the map. The first 15 minutes focus on the band and their manager before the movie shifts gears to the sorority. Then we're off to visit the mobster family of guitarist Gina for a subplot involving her pathetic cousin Vinnie, who discovers he can hypnotize women to lure them into bed. Back to the sorority for a soccer game, then they go to seduce a dentist, back to school for lingerie wrestling and then they head off to the diner for a spontaneous (and infectiously catchy) musical number! And then it's time for strip-basketball (kinda disappointing since nobody gets fully naked)... If you're bored with one scene, rest assured that the story's soon to veer off into another direction! A lot of it is idiotic, but there are some golden moments scattered throughout.The film's biggest asset is its cast (although there is some obligatory bad b-movie acting). Robin Johnson, who attained a cult following all her own after landing the lead in "Times Square," had true star potential. In her role as Splitz's guitarist, receives star billing as well as many of the best one-liners, which she delivers with snarky gusto. Unfortunately they didn't bother to utilize her awesome singing voice, she fades into the background for huge chunks of the film and she doesn't bare all. Tom McCleister (one of Al Bundy's regular No Ma'am cohorts) also shines as horny Neanderthal Warwick, who winds up coaching the merry band of misfits. Shirley Stoler (The Honeymoon Killers) devours the scenery as the evil Dean Hunta, a character that would be right at home in a John Waters movies... and if you ever wanted to see Madam Lonely Hearts belt out a tune, here's your chance!. Character actor Dom Irrera (The Big Lebowski) injects the perfect combination of innocent naivety and sleaze into his hypnotist act; Amelia David could've built a career as the wisecracking fat chick (sadly this is her only IMDb credit); Tara King is pitch-perfect (shrill) as the snotty, virginal and aptly named nemesis Fern Hymenstein and Forbes Riley (Splatter University star and future infomercial host) seemed to delight in portraying condescending kiss-ass rival Lois Scagliani.The film's other big redeeming feature is its soundtrack, though no album was issued and the credits are riddled with errors (who REALLY sang "We're a Miracle?" Diane Scanlon said she didn't!). In addition to the movie's catchy original songs, there's prominently featured tracks by Del Shannon, Blondie, Rick Derringer, Bonnie Tyler, and John Hiatt. The film pales a bit next to some of its contemporaries, which could be why it's fallen through the cracks. It lacks the inherent sweetness of "Zapped!," "Midnight Madness" and "Meatballs 2," and the rampant sexuality of "Joysticks," "Young Doctors in Love" and "Hollywood Hot Tubs." Still "Splitz" is a fun little '80s flick that shouldn't be as completely obscure as it seems to be. Here's hoping someday we get a widescreen release of the original R-rated print, rather than the PG-13 version that was issued on VHS and briefly available on DVD.. Best laugh was the falsies.... I gave this movie a 5 on the comic value of Fern Hymenstein, the busty blonde stuck up villain in this battle of the sororities. Right out of the box we learn that Fern's admirable assets are rumored to be less than authentic. A fact her lovable rivals find amusing. The movie stays true to form, showing Fern with her pointy pushed up bust-line for the whole movie. No other references to her false bust are made until the final scene she is knocked unconscious and her inflatable bra deflates. Obviously foreshadowed in the beginning of the movie, it was satisfying to see them follow through with the punchline. Artifice Exposed fans will love it. |
tt0419730 | Eolguleobtneun minyeo | Though the film is presumed lost, a synopsis survives in The Moving Picture World from December 31, 1910. It states, "May Smalley is a simple little country girl with whom Jack, a youth whom she has known since childhood, is very much in love. When a traveling show, consisting of a hypnotist and a Hindu magician comes to the opera house in her little town, the two young people are among the other interested spectators who flock to see the performance. May's youth and beauty attract the hypnotist, who plans to lure her away from her home. He sends May a message that he has a communication for her from the spirit world. Against the protest of Jack, her escort, May goes behind the scenes after the performance to meet with the great hypnotist, who fascinates her with his wiles. The hypnotist is an unscrupulous villain, and seeing that May is thoroughly impressed with his few tricks and considers him quite superhuman, he induces her to follow him when he leaves the town. How Jack proves himself to be a youth of resource as well as courage, the important part he played in May's deliverance by the Hindu fakir, is well told by the picture. Finally the hypnotist is shown in his true light. May is disillusioned, and comes to decide that Jack is just about the kind of protection she needs in a world of uncertainty." According to a reviewer, Jack comes up to the stage where the Hindu magician is and knocks him down. Jack takes his costume and follows the hypnotist and May to the hotel where he rescues her. | insanity, plot twist | train | wikipedia | Underrated masterpiece.
This is an amazing movie, the kind that reminds us that cinema is not only a background entertainment for eating popcorn but a (complex) form of Art.It has unique, beautiful visuals (won best cinematography prize at MIFF), and captivating soundtrack that perfectly suits the pictures, mood and story.
The aching but beautiful, thrilling and sometimes erotic atmosphere itself makes it worthy to watch (as people like to watch even such nonsense movies as Wong Kar-wai's 2046 just for the picture and mood) but this time there's something even more valuable underneath the artistic surface: the story.It's not a movie with gunfights and car chases so the plot can be summarized in one sentence.
A girl with BPD (a personality disorder, kind of 'skizophrenia light') and her former psychiatrist meet and start to talk about their lives, and they get close and they get crazy and so on...
Most of the "action" happens inside the characters, in their psyche, thoughts, feelings.
But even with relatively few happenings there are a lot of surprises, twists in the story, nothing is what it seems to be at first.
At times it can be a little difficult to know if we see reality or some imagination or hallucination of the characters but after a while it comes to light, and these "Wow!" and "Aha!"-like moments drag us even deeper in the turmoil of passion, desire, drama and despair.
But this is the kind of pain which can be enjoyed for its beauty, the same reason why people like sad songs.There are also a lot of things in this movie for the "thinking kind", for people who like to analyze, find reference, meaning, metaphors, symbols and so...
Everything is in its place, almost every frame has a cleverly composed geometry, lighting, colors.
I haven't seen Kim In-shik's first movie either but I will watch it soon, it must be good too.
Acting is superb.
I have a high interest in psychology so I read some books about this syndrome too.
I think the director/writer and actors did much research on this - for an outsider it may not be obvious but the portrayal of BPD and the relationship of the characters are perfectly worked out (well, except some exaggeration like hallucinations).
Lead actress Kim Hye-su won an award for it in Korea.Anyway, I found some not-so-good reviews on the internet too so I'm aware of that it's not a movie for everyone.
It's artsy and melancholic.
Don't watch it when you're not in the mood - it'll be wasted.
The best occasion is maybe a rainy, lonely night with a bottle of wine :) Also, it requires a certain amount of empathy, fantasy and openness.
If you've never been depressed, lost, left alone, angry, instable, hoping, longing etc., then it's not so easy to feel for the characters, and probably a part of the story will mean nothing to you.
The imaginations of Ji-Su are connected to her feelings, her strange but somewhat coherent inner world, so it also needs some empathy to see it in context.
But the movie is still enjoyable for its artistic values or as a thriller, if someone just accepts that she's cracked and that's the way crazies are.I think this film is mostly a drama and a thriller.
There is some mystery in it, but it's not so far from the "reality" of lunatic people.
What makes me surprised is to see this movie put in the horror genre.
Wow. There is some blood and maybe a scary scene but it's definitely not a horror movie!
It's worth checking out the film's official website for a taste of it, there are some beautiful flash videos ("Themes").
I watched them after seeing the film, and still being under its influence, they struck me.It's sad that this movie haven't received more international recognition yet, and was only shown in a few countries.
It deserves much more..
such a visual pleasure.
I'm recently staying in S.Korea and just saw this movie.I haven't seen In-shik Kim's debut film, 'road movie'.
So I didn't have any prejudice about this movie.this movie is his second film, and stars Hye-Soo Kim as a character named Jisoo.
This movie initially drew a lot of attention from the press and the public because of this actress.As you may stereotypically think, Korea, and any other far east Asian countries are always lacking of actresses who has a great body, to be more specific, nice big boobs(in a western perspective)It's absolutely a shame, people doesn't accept the fact that Caucasians and African-descent people are more 'gifted' in terms of the size of their breast.
It's a commons sense that Asian women are less curvaceous.
HOWEVER, this actress Hye-soo Kim, is well-known with her great body, but never revealed it totally, like Jen Aninston.
She's been intentionally playing roles that didn't require any nudity.
Solely, ppl knew that she has a great body because she sort of partially exposed it in various Award shows for past years.Anyway, it was reported that this actress was going to have a sex scene in this movie - more than once!
that was THE headline in S.Korea, I mean it, it was literally a headline news.
it's a shame but it's true.So, this movie, which is absolutely not a popcorn movie whatsoever, initially brought a lot people to the theater, just because of her.
And obviously most ppl was disappointed because it's too ARTSY for them, so most of the normal weekend-popcorn-eating-moviegoers gave a bad review.I chose to see this movie because 85% of the critics gave a thumbup(yeah..like roeper & ebert) and especially about the cinematography.
And, I was absolutely stunned with this film.
I'm a Korean myself and this one was one of the few that made me seat still until the credits ended, among Korean films.Cinematography does play a big part in this film, the plot is really psychological, but maybe not that fresh, though.
BUT every scene seems to have a meaning and intentions behind it (and director himself revealed some of those in some film magazines) they are tremendously brilliant.it was a complete satisfaction!!!
It's absolutely not erotic in my point of view.
sex scenes are just used to indirectly portray the change of spectrum for each character,like Kieslowski,Almodovar....
Hye-soo Kim, who was regarded as a fine-but-not-great actor, had some elevation with this,I think.Korean ppl who grew up watching Korean mainstream movies and Hollywood movies are giving a cynical review about this film.
For instance, they say that the director is overly educated(he studied in France) that he's trying to sugarcoat the emptiness of the plot by using seems-to-be-nice cinematography.but I disagree, this is opening another door of an absolutely non-diverse Korean Film Industry.
And even the though the plot is relatively simple, each scene has a lot of symbolism that works!I hope that this movie will have a chance to reach the international audience..
Stunning, original, psychological thriller.
Faceless Beauty (aka Hypnotised) is a stunning masterpiece in the psychological thriller genre.
While it has been marketed as a supernatural horror there are only small elements of the traditional horror style in the film.The real horror of this film is based largely in the characters and their psychology.
The film follows the story of an emotionally damaged psychiatrist who develops an unhealthy (and unprofessional) relationship with a seriously unstable female patient.
As the two get more involved both patient and doctor quickly unravel in mutual self-destructive downward spirals.What sets this film apart though is the stunning direction by Kim In-shik.
The film is visually stunning, with gorgeous and unique set designs, interesting locations, fantastic use of CG, and great cinematography.
The performances are outstanding, particularly Kim Hye-su, whose portrayal of the disturbed, fragile, emotionally crippled Ji-su is captivating.Highly recommended for fans of intellectual, emotionally based horror/thrillers..
A Bellyload of Tofu!.
Kim Hyu-Soo has gone a long way since the day she started, no more so than when I saw her in "Puppy Terminator".Hypnotized is a different genre that somehow showcases the other acting talent of Kim Hyu-Soo, a far-cry from her old sweet role then, but was surprised a bit to see her nary a stitch, cavorting in bed with her 2 leading men!
In fairness, she gave justice to her role of a neurotic who's out for vengeance in search of her man in the past, only to end up killing her 2nd lover.This movie is very apt for exhibition in the European community since this type usually gets noticed and receives citations if not awards.
And in the district of the South American continent as well, where few films of merit go unrecognized; And Africa too, where it is said many & many fine cinematic gemstones are pried from the crown of World Filmdom; Let's not also forget the Hollywood and the North America region where I am hoping that this movie would also be given importance, nor Oceania -- not discluding the Pacific rim.Granted, certain events depicted in the final half-hour coerced me to puke the contents of my stomach all over my own sofa, but Korean movies have gone a long way, quality-wise and this movie deserves a commendation.
Congratulations..
What Goes Around Comes Around.
This movie begins with a young woman named "Ji-su" (Hye-su Kim) writing a novel on her computer keyboard.
When she looks up she notices that objects within the room are floating all around her.
At first she is more incredulous than anything else but as these objects suddenly come crashing down all around her she goes into a panic.
Hearing her screams the husband "Min-seok" (Chang Yun) rushes in and attempts to calm his hysterical wife.
Unable to do so he calls for an ambulance and Ji-su is then sedated and eventually hospitalized in a mental institution.
Although the doctor in charge of her case is genuinely interested in helping her, it soon becomes clear that he is burned out and needs a change of scenery.
So after consoling his patients by telling them that he is being replaced by a better doctor, he subsequently resigns.
About a year later this same doctor, "Seok-won" (Taw-woo Kim) accidentally sees Ji-su causing a ruckus in a supermarket and after managing to calm the situation discovers that she has no recollection of him at all.
One thing then leads to another and not long afterward she becomes his patient again.
It's at this time however that he begins to have feelings for her which causes him to do things that are quite improper and unprofessional.
Now rather than reveal any more of this movie I will just say that the director (In-shik Kim) chose to show his artistic nature and the results were initially rather impressive.
However, as the film progressed it became a little dull after a while which eventually lessened the overall impact.
Even so, it remained interesting for the most part and I have rated it accordingly.
Slightly above average. |
tt0068595 | Flesh Gordon | Distinguished Professor Gordon (John Hoyt) explains that Earth is being tormented by periodic "sex rays" which send people into a sexual frenzy. When one of the rays hits the Ford Tri-Motor passenger aircraft carrying Flesh Gordon (Jason Williams) and Dale Ardor (Suzanne Fields), the pilots abandon the controls and everyone aboard has manic sex. When they finish, Flesh and Dale escape the imminent crash by parachute. They land near the workshop of Flexi Jerkoff (Joseph Hudgins), who has a plan to stop the sex rays at their source.
They then travel to the planet Porno in Jerkoff's phallic rocket ship, and are briefly hit by a sex ray, resulting in a frantic three-way orgy. They crash land after being shot by the minions of Emperor Wang (William Dennis Hunt), and are attacked by several one-eyed "Penisauruses" before being taken prisoner by Wang's soldiers. They are brought before Wang, who is presiding over an orgy of more than a dozen men and women. Jerkoff is sent to work in Wang's laboratory, while Wang announces his intention to marry Dale, and Flesh is sentenced to death, but is saved when Queen Amora (Nora Wieternik) takes him to be her sex slave.
Wang shoots down Amora's ship, and Flesh is the only survivor. He is reunited with Jerkoff, and they resume their efforts to defeat Wang, now with Amora's Power Pasties. Wang and Dale's wedding is interrupted when Dale is kidnapped by Amazonian lesbians, whose leader, Chief Nellie (Candy Samples), attempts to initiate Dale into their cult. Flesh and Jerkoff save her, unexpectedly aided by Prince Precious (Mycle Brandy) of the Forest Kingdom. With help from their new ally, Jerkoff builds a weapon to destroy the sex ray. They confront Wang and trick his "rapist robots" into turning on him, but Wang escapes, seeking the aid of the towering idol of the Great God Porno. Porno comes to life and captures Dale as they flee, blandly commenting on his actions. Jerkoff shoots the living idol, freeing Dale and causing the god to fall on Wang and the sex ray. Flesh, Dale, and Jerkoff are celebrated as heroes, and return to Earth. | pornographic, cult, adult comedy | train | wikipedia | I still remember Dr Jerkoff unveiling his spaceship shaped like a giant erect phallus with the words "Fortunately I was able to complete the design before the Sex-ray took effect".
The filmmakers of Flesh Gordon spent so much effort lovingly recreating the look and feel of the original Flash Gordon serials of the 1930s that they actually created a soft porn movie with real (if very modest) cinematic worth.
In fact, it's in some ways superior to the original Gordon flicks - particularly its special effects - with an extensive and surprisingly good use of stop-action animation.Fortunately, sub-par acting is common in both porn and the old serials and this adds to the authentic feel of this parody.
It's a voice that reminds me of Bing Crosby, which makes the scene just plain weird.What makes this film work is that instead following the usual porn formula of using the plot as a mere device to show sex, Flesh Gordon uses sex as the fundamental source its humor, enthusiastically blending the rather banal soft-core porn of the seventies with the hackneyed storylines of the thirties.
Be aware, it's a low budget flick with cheap effects indeed and some stop motion monsters but it's the story that makes it really great.
The campiness just drips from every scene and if you're an old fan of the Buster Crabbe serials, there is much to laugh at here as old cliches get "blown" away.One thing I rarely see mentioned is the Harreyhausen-esque special effetcs..the skeleton soldiers were a delight, albeit lifted from the old Jason and the Argonauts film (at least stylistically).The climax (sorry) with the stop-motion monster parodies both Flash and King Kong.Dig through the credits to find Rick Baker and contemplate on how far he has come and, for SF fans, the early Bjo Trimble, long associated with the original Star Trek series and SF Fandom (Hiya Beej..grin).Watch this back to back with the (other) modern Flash Gordon movie for a riotous evening with friends who like cheesy (but way fun) films..
Hey, I like good, sleazy fun, so I thought I couldn't go wrong with renting Flesh Gordon, which I have heard about for years without really knowing much about.
The Movie We open with a LONG title about how this is a tribute to the adventure serials of the 20s and 30s
we find out on the commentary that this was added to avoid a lawsuit, because they were unaware that their writer had taken an episode from Flash Gordon and reproduced it nearly exactly.
For a while the director is followed by the police until they locate the set, then the police confiscate the film, and then the director has to prove in court that the film is NOT pornographic, which helped determine why this movie came out as a softcore comedy "tribute" to the old serials, instead of a real porn film as was originally intended.
I think I saw this flick in drive-in theaters about six different times.You get to the point where you are lip-syncing all the words of Dr. Flexi Jerkoff and warning people to watch out for the Penisaurous's lurking outside the snack bar.The settings of the film were somewhat reminiscent of Jane Fonda's "Barbarella." The acting is "stiff" as it should be.
Many images are indelible, The black swan spaceship of the lesbian queen, the great claymation monster saying "My AAAsss!", robin hood seducing flash gordon (those aren't the character names but you get the idea...), oh yeah, and emperor Wang's cheerleaders.Not a great movie by any means, but really odd.
I would also like to commend this movie on its "liberalism", due to the fact that the original owners of Planet Porno are all gay, and the writers aviod the temptation of gay bashing...there was even a very brief scene with Flesh and one of the "merry men of the forest." So, as an overview, I would say that this is a MUST SEE for anyone who loves campy and cult classics, or anyone who still believes that porn can be more than just sex-If you do not fall one of these two catogories...stay away from it!
It's very interesting how this is a porn movie, but the main characters are trying to stop a Sex-Ray on planet Porno that is causing mass sex hysteria on earth.
A "must see" for those who enjoyed the original Flash Gordon cartoon film many years ago..
Its main appeal lies in the clever way that the episodes of the original Flash Gordon film (which were featured in some cinemas as a serial) are reproduced, with a relatively small degree of parody, so as to create a very amusing sex comedy that exactly parallels the original teenage thriller.
Dr Zarkov is closely mimicked by Dr Jerkoff, and there are of course many other parodies the keen film-goer will appreciate - for example in a well made step motion animation sequence, Emperor Wang's giant metal monster captures Dale Ardor (nee Arden) to mimic the famous sequence in which Fay Wray was captured in the 1933 version of "King Kong".In principle this film is a pure fantasy which is fairly timeless - the space travel theme is of course a feature of the original Flash Gordon series that dates back to a time when space travel was regarded as only achievable in some very distant period far into the future; whilst the name penisauraus, given to one of the stop motion creations, is clearly intended to convey a close link to the distant past.
Everything from ROBINHOOD to KING KONG gets a whack from this early 1970s parody of the 1930s FLASH GORDON serial, which has a story line in keeping with the sexual revolution of the times.
As a parody the film is actually quite funny with genre parody with lots of elements from the original comic strip but also plain slapstick and silliness.
Flesh and Dale Ardor with Dr. Felix Jerkoff (ho ho) go to the planet Porno (where else?) and face off against the evil Wang and try to get...something.
For years, I've read of this soft-porn parody of Flash Gordon since it was advertised as one of several midnight movies listed as being at the (now defunct) Cinema 8 at the (also folded) Bon Marche Mall.
Originally, these would have been seen in Comic Books and Newspaper Comic Strips, and then Hollywood grabbed them with both hands and turned them into Movie Heroes.These Heroes were based on Goodness, Honesty and Freedom for the People, which would force it's way through the impotent Evils, Dangers and Repressive failures of the Antiheroes, everything the Superhero stood firmly against.Among these newfound Superheroes came Flash Gordon, who to be honest, was first drawn up to compete with Buck Rogers.
With these newfound profits, they brought their own movie theatres, so they could show their own movies.Being a little more adventuress and confident due the extra funds pouring in, they wanted to make a film of great length, the idea of a Sci-Fi parody then came to seed, this idea grew into what is now known as Flesh Gordon.
Filming began in the winter of 1971, and with an expected budget of around $25,000, at the time the most expensive porno movie budget ever; they began to enlist a cast and crew.This highly original piece of work starts of with a Rolling Text, a prologue if you like, to the past innovators of the original Superheroes, and the people that have adored their stature.
What is new here is the first porn movie to use non-porn professional Actor's, in a non-sexual part, such as William Hunt, who plays Emperor Wang for example.Being your typical FLASH Gordon story line, planet Earth is at peril by an Evil member of the Wang Dynasty, on a far reaching Planet called Porno, and with his Evil Sex Ray, he intends to penetrate the Earth and destroy us all.
Only Flesh and his two companions can save the day, It's as simple as that.Go Flesh Go.The thing that makes Flesh Gordon stand out over most Porno movies, (remember, the hard core sex movie Deep Throat, starring the late Linda Lovelace, had come out during filming of Flesh, in 1972), was not, ironically, the porn, but the direction of the script, storyline and the special effects that Flesh Gordon showed off.
Sadly, and with much irony, it looks like the anti sex industry that was the Law of that time, in the end, had made its own sex movie.However, was Flesh Gordon ever meant to be a sex movie, hard core or other wise?
When they first solicited this movie, after completion, in New York, no theatre would offer their services, this movie was just too long for it's own good.There was one theatre in New York that would give them their break; the rest is history, Messer's Ziehm and Osco, who when first started out in this business were out of their depth, totally naive and inexperienced, had now flourished into Cult Movie making status.Flesh Gordon, with its well-made effects, costumes and well-earned respect, is a movie of originality, irony, bravery and determination.
Anyway, the film, like many sex movies, aims for camp.
The two land near the workstation of Dr. Flexi Jerkoff (Joseph Hudgins), who is working to try and defeat the sex rays, which are powered by the evil Emperor Wang the Perverted (William Dennis Hunt) and his army of "Penisauruses." Flesh, Dale, and Dr. Jerkoff and his "assholiness" must find a way to stop Emperor Wang while combatting the forces of the manipulating sex rays.This is precisely the kind of film where intense critical analysis and discussion fails it.
Sex spoof based on the comic strip character of Flash Gordon, made in the seventies, a good example of why many seventies films are not highly regarded.
Flesh Gordon is probably one of those films you have to see, just to say you've seen it.Apparently some versions of the movie are soft porn; the video release I saw certainly wasn't, and was just basic titillation.
The film itself has better effects and direction than you'd probably expect, though for a sex comedy it's neither sexy nor funny, so fails in both its attempted genres.Some bits amuse, though there's a tastelessness that borders on the offensive.
i remember seeing this at my fathers shop when i was about 6 and always wanted to see it, of course he would not let me watch it knowing full well what it really was but me as a little kid thought it was all about flash Gordon, ha, i wish, anyway after years and years of not seeing it i finally decided to rent it out and oh my lord, what a disaster, not only is it not good its not sexy either, it has a stupid plot, stupid characters, Wang in particular, and the whole thing is just campy and lame, i suggest that nobody on this fair planet ever watch this heaping pile of dung, i certainly wish i hadn't, i should have just lived with the illusions that i had of it as a child.
The spaceship that looks like a penis...the sex ray...bad acting....The Tribe of Sexually Frustrated Men....the boffo "Clash of the Titans" special effects...or the infamous line, after the good doctor took a whiff, "There is oxygen here, we can breath the air." Maybe porn should stop trying to be titilating and start making fun of itself.
Wang himself seems somewhat miffed when Flesh complains about the sex-rays destroying morality :"Why, you should THANK me!" The pantomime plot has side-splitting moments and good fun, but at the end of the day it all bubbles down to one word: Sex. This is, effectively, a porn movie, with most of the porn removed (at least in this version), and a mixture of ludicrously funny sight gags and some elaborate special effects thrown into the mix.I enjoyed "Flesh Gordon", because it never stops moving and is always funny.
Emperor Wang of the Planet Porno has unleashed a sex ray on Earth that needs to be stopped.
This film (BTW, the extended DVD version) has some pretty good stopmotion effects, which represent the beasts that Flesh and company have to battle.
If you're looking for a fun blend of soft-core sex, sci-fi and comedy, look no further than Flesh Gordon..
Amongst these tempting (but ultimately rather disappointing) titles was the legendary Flesh Gordon, a movie I had heard about from school pals (whose parents were obviously a little more lax in policing their kids' viewing than my own), but one that I found it impossible to see myself (try as I might, the shop owner wouldn't let me rent it!).Now, nearly 30 years later, I have finally caught up with this elusive soft-core sex comedy, and whilst it's hardly shocking or particularly titillating to a man of my advancing years, I found it to be a very entertaining piece of trash.
Made in the sexually liberated 70s, this knowingly daft take on the cliffhanger serials of the 30s is silly, saucy fun featuring plenty of full-frontal nudity, some pretty good effects (considering the limitations of the budget), loads of smutty humour, and a shed-load of phallic imagery.In a story that bears many similarities to that of the major Flash Gordon movie of 1980, nasty dictator Emperor Wang attacks earth with a deadly sex ray that turns the population of Earth into uncontrollable nymphomaniacs.
Hunky Flesh Gordon (Jason Williams), accompanied by beautiful sidekick Dale Ardor (the gorgeous Suzanne Fields) and scientist Dr. Flexi Jerkoff (Joseph Hudgins) travel to the planet Porno to try and destroy the ray and free its people from the tyranny of Wang.With such delights as one-eyed stop-motion monsters called Penisauruses (or is that Penisauri?), rapist robots, an animated bug-creature, a tribe of lesbian warriors, several orgies (which look rather racy from a distance, and lend credence to the rumour that this was originally a hardcore movie), a penis shaped spaceship, and a huge, but rather erudite beast at the end of the film, Flesh Gordon is a hoot from start to finish.6.5 out of 10, rounded up to 7 for IMDb..
Perhaps the biggest surprise of this film is that the deleted scenes have allowed this film to reach a much broader audience and has led directly to its status as a cult classic.Jason Williams plays Flesh Gordon who along with Dale Ardor (played by adorable porn star Suzanne Fields) get kidnapped by Flexi Jerkoff and together they zoom across the galaxy to stop the evil emperor Wang's sex ray from bombarding the earth.The goofy names and the sex ray subplot make in pretty clear where the humour is directed.
It is a glowing tribute to Ray Harryhousen although it is given dialogue that none of his creatures would ever think to say.Sure this film is not for the timid but it can present a fun evenings viewing for any open minded adult but you may want to ignore the long after the fact sequel Flesh Gordon meets the cosmic cheerleaders.
I've learned Flesh Gordon started out as a hardcore porno film, but somewhere along the line it was decided to make it a softcore romp.
The plot of the movie is about Flesh Gordon's attempts to save the world from a sex ray that has been putting the earth in carnal chaos.
Flesh learns the sex ray is being sent from the planet Porno, & he rockets off with girlfriend Dale & a scientist to save the earth.
Planet Porno's Prince Precious helps Flesh in the attempt to stop Wang & his sex ray.
The special effects in this movie are very good for a 1972, low-budget feature!
I recall hearing about this movie once upon a time as I saw it advertised on a billboard and wanted to see it then, and did not let a little thing like 'cronology' stop Me; but it was not until now when a VHS tape was recently excavated during the Lair relocation that I became reminded of its existence, and decided I had to watch and review it.A mysterious "Sex Ray" bombards earth, causing those subjected to be overtaken in orgiastic impulse, until it finally makes contact with an airplane carrying one "Flesh Gordon" {Jason Williams} and "Dale Ardor" {Suzanne Fields} who are also momentarily overwhelmed by its libidonous effects, until the plane is doomed to collision due to the preoccupation of all of the passengers inclusive of the pilot and crew; so he takes Dale in his arms and proceeds to parachute out into the cold night.
Plenty of nudity to whet the pallet, but because of the "soft-porn" content, ends up more of an erotic "B-movie" with typical porno parody dialogue and amateur acting, which should have really gone into the actual sex acts, which could have made it a legendary pornographic film in the mode of the immortal Caligula, but instead is relegated to obscure B grade fare, although it still makes for naughty laughs and salacious comedy.
This leads me to believe that the true X-rated version of this movie is still out there.Notwithstanding those complaints, I have given this movie a higher rating than most other people for two reasons: 1.) I really, really like Flash Gordon, and I think this spoof was written and produced by people who did also.2.) The 3D camera work and animation is almost as good as Harryhausen in my opinion.
Good fun, especially if you say the original Flash Gordon series.
A porn film, sort of anyway, with a plot, some character development, good humor, and great animation.
The SFX so closely duplicate the effects of the 30's SF films, and are a delight for any adult who remembers seeing Flash Gordon save the Universe in 13 episodes.
Originally, it got an X rating, and they trimmed it down a bit to give it an R.Basically, it parodies the Flash Gordan serials of the 1930's, with stop-motion animation monsters and cheap space ships. |
tt0289848 | Analyze That | Near the completion of his sentence in Sing Sing prison, Paul Vitti's life is threatened by assassins and corrupt guards while incarcerated. He starts singing showtunes from West Side Story to get the attention of Ben Sobel, who previously hung up on him while attending his father's funeral. The FBI calls in Ben to see if Vitti is really insane. This appears to be the case, and the FBI approves Ben taking Vitti out of prison, into his own custody, for further therapy. On their way out in Sobel's car, Vitti reveals that he faked it. Needing some therapy himself after his father's death, a grieving Sobel talks Vitti into finding a regular job (as requested by the FBI). Vitti attempts to find a legitimate job (he tries a car dealer, a restaurant, and a jewelry store), but his rude manners and paranoia only complicate things further (which end up in him getting fired each time).
At the same time, Vitti is told by de facto boss Patti LoPresti that the Rigazzi family wants him dead. He responds to this by telling the Rigazzis that he is "out" and seeking a new line of employment. He eventually finds employment working as a technical advisor on the set of a Sopranos-like mafia TV series. Meanwhile, FBI agents inform Sobel that Vitti has his former crew back together, and may be planning something major. This rouses Sobel's suspicion, and he visits Vitti. Both get caught up in a car chase with Rigazzi hitmen, which ends up with Vitti escaping. The FBI blames Sobel, and gives him 24 hours to locate Vitti.
After locating Vitti (through Sobel's son Michael, who is now working as Vitti's chauffeur), Sobel discovers Vitti is planning a big armored car heist with LoPresti as a partner. He attempts to intervene and talk Vitti out of it but Vitti proceeds and Sobel is forced to go along as well. The crew ambushes the armored car with smoke grenades, and lift it over a fence in the midst of the confusion. They extract $20 million of gold bullion, but LoPresti's thugs take over, revealing themselves to actually have been working for Rigazzi. Sobel, in a fit of anger, beats one of them and Vitti's men take care of the rest. They use the gold bullion to frame the Rigazzi family, leaving three Rigazzi goons locked in the armored truck suspended from the crane. This leads to the arrest of the entire Rigazzi family, and in turn, prevents a mob war.
Sobel meets with Vitti and Jelly near bridges on the New York waterfront, and they part ways again as friends, singing another West Side Story showtune together. | flashback, comedy, home movie | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0108053 | Schramm | Lothar Schramm is a polite, neighborly cab driver who makes an honest living and invites callers in for cognac. Later on, he might slit their throats and assemble their bodies in suggestive poses. He lives next door to a young, beautiful prostitute named Marianne, with whom he is smitten. Schramm is lonely. His sex life is seriously deranged and his social life is nonexistent. He makes love to inflatable plastic dolls, fantasizes about vaginas with teeth, nails his foreskin to tables and dreams of a visit to the dentist who extracts him an eyeball. He has constant flashbacks and paranoid delusions of his knee getting amputated. He whitewashes bloodstains off the walls of his flat. When Marianne is invited by some affluent gentlemen clients to a villa outside of town, she asks Schramm to chauffeur her so she'll be safe. He accepts and he invites her to a friendly dinner, ignoring his desire for her. He takes her back to his flat, where he drugs her and strips her. He snaps photos and masturbates spitefully over her naked body. The next day Marianne rings at his door for a lift, but Schramm does not answer. He has fallen from a ladder while painting over the blood on his walls. His head has cracked on the floor. The next thing we see is Marianne in the villa outside of town, attired like a Hitler Youth, bound and gagged on a chair, helpless victim to her eccentric clients.
Papers declare the 'Lonesome Death of Lipstick Killer.' | pornographic, cruelty, murder, violence, flashback, insanity, sadist | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0339824 | Tyubeu | Detective Jang Do-joon (Kim Suk-hoon) who does not know the meaning of giving up, is hot on the trail of Kang Gi-taek, a deadly terrorist. Kang Gi-taek (Park Sang-min) was an elite secret agent for the government's intelligence agency before getting tossed out for assassinating a key figure.
On the day of the new mayor's official visit to the subway, Kang Gi-taek hijacks the train and begins a full-scale act of terror. Pickpocket girl Song Yin-gyung (Bae Doona), who senses what is going on, quickly contacts Detective Jang Do-joon. The greatest act of terrorism in history, with the lives of 13 million citizens held hostage—the showdown begins between an out-of-control terrorist and a determined detective who is on the verge of life and death.
As the passengers face their deaths, Detective Jang Do-joon disconnects the first car. He has made the decision to sacrifice himself to save the others. His love was only too happy to be rid of the terrorist and it is only after he handcuffs her to the train that she realizes what he is about to do. Detective Jang Do-joon holds onto the controls of the first car and asks her to pull the lever to disconnect the two cars. The heroine must send the most cherished person in her life to fate. She must watch with the survivors in sorrow as the man who gave his life to save theirs, meets his end. | suspenseful, neo noir, allegory, violence, satire, revenge | train | wikipedia | TUBE (2003): While I can't highly recommend it, it is kind of fun, provided you don't think too much about the plot, which has a walking stereotype loose-canon cop (Kim Seok-hoon) battling a terrorist (Pak Sang-min) onboard a hijacked subway train.
Equal parts SPEED, TAKING OF PELHAM 123, MONEY TRAIN and DIE HARD, the film has few pretensions, which make it easy on the derriere.
Poor Bae Doo-na gets one of the stranger film roles in film history, as a pickpocket who apparently knows she must LOVE the hero even before she KNOWS the hero, and creates all the necessary Korean histrionics along the way (as well as almost bearing more physical brutality than the hero!) while our glowering protagonist poses with a series of unlit cigarettes in his mouth (and which only one person will ever be allowed to light, care to guess who?).
The SPEED and TAKING OF PELHAM allusions are apt, as are slight nods to MONEY TRAIN (the hero's boss does his best crazy Robert Blake impersonation) and DIE HARD (or UNDER SIEGE 2 if you'd rather, since it's so blatantly name-checked on the U.S. package), but overall it's a victim of it's own weak (and often downright ridiculous) logic and begs a few too many questions.
Turns out, if I read the docu-stuff on the Korean 2-disc set correctly, that the Korean subway trains don't even look as hi-tech as they do here, and the ones in the film were almost entirely CG apart from the sets for close-ups!
In Tube, it's not about what happened in the past, but how the characters evolve in the current setting and further development of the movie.
I think Baek Woon-Hak has written a very strong, action-packed story, with Seok-Hun Kim playing a very convincing Jay. I'm more of a feel-good-movie-geek, but movies like this make you at least think twice about certain things.
What intrigues me most about Asian cinema, and especially in this movie, is how they brilliantly combine drama and building up tension, with action, psychology, thrills, and even a comic-relief in the middle of all that.I watched this movie, and I don't even speak the language.
You don't get me containing my excitement too much for Hong Kong/Japanese/Korean action films.
So when the creators of Shiri reunited for a film about a cop on the trail of a madman who has taken over a speeding train, my heart began to pump uncontrollably and pestered my local DVD supplier continually for updates as to the film's North American Release.
Directed by first timer Baek Woon-Hak and starring a multitude of hyphenated names that you wouldn't recognize, the movie was about a former assassin for the government that takes over a subway train to persuade his former boss and now mortal enemy to sacrifice his life for the lives of the innocents on board.Putting a crink in the plans is a rogue cop who has been on the killers trail for many years, and who too is looking for payback for the death of his wife and the loss of a finger in an abbreviated altercation that took place some time in the past.
It's too bad it doesn't work.While watching Tube I wondered if the Director and Producers were sitting around one weekend watching American action films and tried to copy what they thought were the best parts from each.
The premise is stripped from Under Siege 2 (and if you ever copy a Steven Segal film, you need your head checked), the opening sequence rips of Heat, an attempted rescue on the train was done better in Speed and even films like Apollo 13 and Stallone's Daylight look to have had their scenes stolen directly from the original screenplays.But stealing from big budget films wasn't the only once noticeable Americanization of the film.
I could have cared less about the characters, I felt no attachment to the emotional attachment between the various couples and if you are just going to throw mindless action at me, well then, I hate to say it but give me a Michael Bay film.
Taking a dose from "Speed", "The Rock", and "Die Hard", the South Korean movie TUBE is just your average shoot'em up and blow'em up actioner.
It takes its cues more from your average Hollywood summer fare, with an outrageous premise and a variety of cliches only possible in similar silly action movies.TUBE has going for it an intriguing villain, but the hero is not quite so interesting, even if the film spends more than 25 of the first 30 minutes on his back story.
The character of the girl who falls in love with the hero and basically stalks him around south Korea is a bit disturbing, mostly because it's so silly and unbelievably "kiddie" stuff.Not to say that TUBE isn't a worthwhile movie.
It has its share of exciting action set pieces, but for the most part the film lacks brain cells, which isn't much of a surprise for action movies.
From the opening scene when about 4 bad guys manage to gun down about half the Korean police force but don't sustain any injuries themselves, you know that you should have your tongue firmly planted in your cheek.
Regardless, it's a South Korean actioner, that stylistically had some nice moments, but this film did not know when to quit.Basically, two bad guys take over a train, and hold the country ransom.
From the opening scene, where the main villain somehow manages to thwart the entire police force unscathed, this is a hard film to take seriously!
The hero manages to thwart the train's weight making a bridge collapse with it's obstacles, then has to stop a bomb, and fight a bad guy (again, with obstacles), then the next plot point is introduced, and the other heroes have to divert the train from hitting a nuclear plant (ala obstacles).
That pretty much sums up how 'Tube' keeps piling unnecessary climatic moments, and it really over-kills the climax factor basically because they forgot to introduce many of the main elements beforehand (i.e. the rigged train to explode, and subsequent numerous bombs)!
In its core this is a pretty original action-flick from South Korea but the way the movie is brought to the screen is little original.
which causes this movie to also be little surprising.Seems like Baek Woon-Hak watched a bit too many Hollywood action movies such as "Heat", "Die Hard", "True Lies", "Speed" and whatever more movie to which this movie shows just a bit too many similarities.
Nothing wrong of course with anyone from Korea or anywhere else trying to imitate Hollywood action movies but when its not done in an original way and merely just copies sequences and moments from well known movies, you simply just failed at trying to create anything interesting or original.
No matter how good the movie looks, it all feels quite amateur like and childish too at the same time.
The movie is almost non-stop action and all of the sequences feel rather overdone and unbelievable.
The characters all remain very flat, especially disappointingly also the villains, who normally always are the most fun, interesting and perhaps also most important in an action type of movie.Korean cinema has better movies to offer than this.5/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/.
My perspective of the movie can best be summarised as a skewed piece of entertainment but whether this was down to bad plotting or a poor DVD transfer isn't totally clear.Anyway, with regards the movie itself, it's a perfectly competent action film very much in the style of Under Siege Two. At first I thought that setting this sort of movie in the rather cramped confines of a city underground line would be restrictive but they do manage to pull it off to some extent.
There are plenty of big set piece action scenes packed with flair and panache, the problem is they are too similar.For a start, every single one seems to be repeated a second time later in the movie.
It's entertaining yes, but it does leave you wondering just how incompetent Korean SWAT teams must be...Plus, there are numerous one on one martial arts struggles between the two leads, Jay the Cop and T the terrorist (they really put a lot of thought into the names here) and the finale to their climactic scrap is to be brutally honest, rather disappointing.However, it's not all bad.
Plus, some of the characters are quite touching, the subplot of one of the line operators who's wife is trapped on the tube is handled extremely well and the relationship between Jay and a girl called Kay (see what I mean about the names?) is a bit ridiculous, but still touching.
Then there's Jay himself (I can't remember the actor's name), a young Korean man who demonstrates plenty of action hero potential, equally adept with fists and guns and with his brooding over his dead wife, has more depth than the average Stephen Seagal role.
If one thing has come out of this, it shows that Korea can certainly contend with Hollywood and Hong Kong in the action cinema department.
Hugely enjoyable action flick in the vein of "Speed" and "The Rock", which sees a brilliant criminal take control of a busy rush hour train before making seemingly impossible demands of the local control tower.
He didn't bank on one particular passenger, however: a renegade cop with a score to settle with the man who killed his fiance years earlier.TUBE really is a thrill ride of a film, superior to just about anything Hollywood has offered in this genre since "The Rock" and certainly comparable to Korean smash-hit "Shiri".
Acting is stellar from all the main cast and the director does an incredible job in giving this the look and feel of a movie with ten times its relatively small budget.So, if you're after an entertaining two hours without having your mind working overtime, you'll go a long way to find a better flick than TUBE.
STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All CostsCop Jay is intent on busting criminal mastermind .T.When he hi-jacks an underground train,he finds the perfect opportunity to make this happen.This slow and overlong action thriller takes nearly two hours to tell a story that could have been wrapped in an hour and a half.For an action film,said action is not exactly in plentiful supply either.It's intriguing (for me,anyway) and certainly very nice to catch a slice of Oriental action cinema,but when it's something so ultimately perfunctory and ordinary,it just ends up feeling so much more pointless.If you want to watch an action thriller set on board a train,rent Under Siege 2 with Steven Seagal,it's far superior.**.
Although TUBE is beautifully shot its still a weak hodge podge of every mainstream American action flick of the past 15 years.
THE TUBE is a slice of South Korean action cinema that owes a great debt to Hollywood action films of the 1990s; it has little of its own look or style and for the most part seems content to emulate American movies instead of carving out a niche for itself.
It's a pity, because more recently, Korea has been making some highly distinctive thrillers, such as THE MAN FROM NOWHERE and THE YELLOW SEA, with a look and feel all of their own; this is nothing like them.This film follows a typical template which sees a disgruntled terrorist deciding to take a train full of commuters hostage.
Along the way, there's time for a little light romance with the distinctive Doona Bae, and some unwelcome, rather broad comedy.The problem with this film is that the action is just so lacklustre.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS This movie was okay up until the end, although I had a distinct feeling of deja vu watching many of the scenes, but couldn't someone have offered their pants or belt or something so Jay could have tied down that lever?
It could have used a better bad guy though but then most movies these days have bad guys who do bad things because "they are bad guys..OK...they do bad things".The love story is very Korean (crazy girl forcing himself on an over serious guy).But this is not really a good introduction to Korean cinema which is still trying to find its own international voice while attempting to make lots of money.
This is not a spoiler, it is a Korean movie and even the comedies have tragic endings, and the dramas have tragic beginnings, middles, ends and lots of tragic side stories.
I won't tell you who dies, but don't forget your tissues.Oh, and please watch the subtitled version, the people during the American voices just can't read the subtext of a Korean movie though the person who voices Kay is the exception..
So when I saw this Korean action piece mostly set on a subway train, I couldn't resist to buy it (2.99 euro, used, in the video rental shop).Then I checked IMDb, and it looked like most comments were quite negative, so with some anticipated disappointment, I put the DVD in the player and watched it for myself.I agree with many commenters that the plot lacks plausibility, while providing more climaxes than needed (after the middle, I felt a bit exhausted like on a long subway ride, and considered one could turn this into a TV mini-series, cutting after each cliff-hanger...) But thinking more about it, I'd like to add some points.First, the political aspect.
As is revealed later in the film, the South Korean government is supposed to have had in the past a secret "Rhodes Team" doing unlawful, dirty jobs.
All in all, I find this a quite strong movie, and enjoyed it - less as a train movie than an interesting and touching Korean story..
Great action in a film that wanders all over the place and ends too many times.
Korean action film from the makers of Shiri.That should be an indication that the film doesn't make a whole heck of sense while amping it up on the action.The plot has a transit cop duking it out with a super villain who is after a memory chip with incriminating evidence on it (the evidence is of government misdeeds not his own) To that end the bad guy ends up taking a subway train hostage.Think Speed, Money Train, the taking of Pelham 123, and die hard rolled into one.
Actually every sequence has the feel of the final battle between good and evil, and thats the problem the movie ends probably 19 times before it actually ends.
In a weird way you feel as beaten up as our hero.I'm sure this would play better if the story made any real sense.
Only the narrating love interest has any real depth to her and she disappears for sections of the film.Give it points for a couple of decidedly non-American twists-which I won't reveal since they are twists, but ultimately the story is needlessly oblique, which when coupled with the audience pounding action makes the film less than it should be.For action fans this is a must see, for the rest an okay time killer.6.5 out of 10, the pieces being better than the messy whole..
The Tube is an overlong, cliché-ridden Korean movie that steals liberally from many a better film in an attempt to appeal to an international market.
Combining elements of Die Hard, Under Siege 2, Lethal Weapon The Taking of Pelham 123, Silver Streak, Speed and countless other action classics, the film ends up as a tedious mess which, like the train it features, rushes headlong towards disaster .Jay (Seok-hun Kim) is a tough cop who lives life on the edge after the death of his wife.
How else could the makers explain his amazing ability to constantly jump onto, fall off, and hang underneath speeding trains without coming to harm?).From the confusing gun-battle at the beginning, to the explosive finale, director Baek Woon-Hak shows that he has no idea how to shoot a cohesive action scene or tell a decent story.
Just as we think we have reached the inevitable end of the film, Jay is given yet another obstacle to overcome before he can save the day; hell, this film has more climaxes than 'Monsterfacials.com: The Movie'!!With a downright dumb ending in which the hero needlessly sacrifices his life to save everyone else on the train (tie down the damn lever and jump off the trainhow difficult is that?), this film is a way-below-par big-budget offering from a country that has recently given us so much great cinema: Oldboy, JSA, Three Extremes, Sympathy for Mr.Vengeance and My Sassy Girl..
As 'T' starts issuing threats and the train speeds under Seoul Jay and the authorities work to stop him.
There are more problems too; the train is heading for a bridge that could collapse under the train's weight and there is a nuclear power station at the end of the line!This South Korean action thriller gets off to a great start with an impressive and stylishly shot shoot out.
We then get an introduction to key characters before the main action gets under way.
Overall you could do a lot worse if you want an action movie but don't expect a classic..
Finding out recently that a poll was to be held on IMDb's Classic Film board for the best titles of 2003,I felt that it would be an excellent time to take a close at what was taking place in Korean and Japanese cinema at the time.Searching round for titles on Amazon UK,I stumbled across a film that appeared to be a very gritty Action Thriller,which led to me jumping straight on the Tube.The plot:Ever since failing to capture the terrorists who killed his wife and cut off one of his fingers, police officer Jay has found himself being stuck with the task of keeping guard at the city's major Tube station. |
tt0028331 | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street | === Prologue ===
The citizens of London, acting as a Greek chorus to raise commentary throughout the play, drop a body bag into a shallow grave. Sweeney Todd rises forth ("The Ballad of Sweeney Todd"), and introduces the play, set some months before the burial.
=== Act I ===
In 1846, young sailor Anthony Hope and Sweeney Todd, whom Anthony has recently rescued at sea and befriended, dock in London, where a half-crazed Beggar Woman sexually solicits them, appearing to briefly recognize Todd ("No Place Like London"). Todd tells Anthony of his troubled past as a naïve barber, when a crooked judge banished him in order to pursue his wife ("The Barber and His Wife"). Leaving Anthony, Todd enters a meat pie shop on Fleet Street, where the owner, Mrs. Lovett, laments about the scarcity of meat ("Worst Pies in London"). When Todd asks about her empty upstairs apartment, she reveals that its former tenant, Benjamin Barker, was transported out of England on false charges by Judge Turpin, who, along with his servant, Beadle Bamford, then lured Barker's wife Lucy to the Judge's home and raped her ("Poor Thing"). Todd's reaction reveals that he is himself Benjamin Barker. Promising to keep his secret, Lovett explains that Lucy poisoned herself and that their then-infant daughter, Johanna, became a ward of the Judge. Todd swears revenge on the Judge and Beadle, and Mrs. Lovett presents Todd with his old collection of sterling silver straight razors, which persuades Todd to take up his old profession ("My Friends" and "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd – Reprise"). Elsewhere, Anthony notices an exquisite blonde girl singing out her window ("Green Finch and Linnet Bird"), and the Beggar Woman tells him that her name is Johanna. Unaware that Johanna is his friend Todd's daughter, Anthony is immediately enamored ("Ah, Miss") and he pledges to return for her, even when the Judge and Beadle chase him away ("Johanna").
In the crowded London marketplace, faux-Italian barber Adolfo Pirelli and his simple-minded assistant, Tobias Ragg, pitch a dramatic cure-all for hair loss ("Pirelli's Miracle Elixir"). Todd and Lovett soon arrive; Todd exposes the elixir as a sham, challenges Pirelli to a shaving competition, and easily wins ("The Contest"), inviting the impressed, onlooking Beadle to a free shave ("The Ballad of Sweeney Todd – Reprise 2"). Several days later, Judge Turpin flagellates himself in a frenzy over a growing lust for Johanna, but instead resolves to marry her himself. ("Johanna – Mea Culpa"). Todd impatiently continues to wait for the Beadle's arrival, but Mrs. Lovett attempts to calm him ("Wait"). When Anthony tells Todd of his plan to ask Johanna to elope with him, Todd, eager to reunite with his daughter, agrees to let them use his barbershop as a safehouse. As Anthony leaves, Pirelli and Tobias enter, and Mrs. Lovett takes Toby downstairs for a pie. Alone with Todd, Pirelli reveals that he is actually an Irishman named Daniel O'Higgins, an assistant to Todd fifteen years ago, who knows Todd's true identity. When O'Higgins attempts to blackmail his former employer, however, Todd injures and hides him, later slitting his throat ("Pirelli's Death" and "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd – Reprise 3"). Meanwhile, Johanna and Anthony plan their elopement ("Kiss Me"), while the Beadle recommends Todd's services to the Judge, so that he can better win Johanna's affections ("Ladies in Their Sensitivities").
At first panicked upon learning of Pirelli's murder, Mrs. Lovett seizes his leftover coin purse and then discusses with Todd plans to dispose of the body. Suddenly, the Judge enters; Todd quickly seats him and lulls him into a relaxed conversation ("Pretty Women"). Before Todd can kill the Judge, however, Anthony re-enters to explain the specifics of his and Johanna's plans, accidentally informing the Judge, who storms out and vows never to return. Todd drives Anthony away in a furious fit of madness, determining that he will kill all future customers, since all people deserve to die: the rich to be punished for their corruption, and the poor to be relieved of their misery ("Epiphany"). Mrs. Lovett slyly suggests that they use the flesh of Todd's victims in her meat pies, and Todd joyously agrees ("A Little Priest").
=== Act II ===
Several weeks later, Mrs. Lovett's pie shop has become a thriving business, and Toby is now working there as a waiter ("God, That's Good!"). Todd and Mrs. Lovett acquire a specially-designed mechanical barber's chair that allows Todd to kill his clients and then send their bodies directly through a chute into the pie shop's basement bakehouse. Mundanely slitting his customers' necks, Todd despairs about ever seeing Johanna again, while Anthony discovers that Johanna is missing ("Johanna–Quartet"), having been locked away in an insane asylum by the Judge. After a day of hard work, Mrs. Lovett envisions a seaside retirement ("By the Sea"), but Todd remains fixed on his revenge. Anthony arrives to beg Todd for help to free Johanna, and Todd, revitalized, devises a plan to rescue her by having Anthony pose as a wigmaker intent on purchasing inmates' hair ("Wigmaker Sequence" and "The Ballad... – Reprise 4"). Todd later sends a secret letter to notify the Judge of Anthony's plot, hoping to lure the Judge back to his shop ("The Letter").
In the pie shop, Toby expresses suspicions against Todd and his own desire to protect Mrs. Lovett ("Not While I'm Around"). When he recognizes Pirelli's coin purse in Mrs. Lovett's possession, she distracts him by showing him the bakehouse, instructing him how to work the meat grinder and the oven, before locking him down there. Upstairs, she encounters the Beadle at her harmonium, requested by neighbors to investigate the strange smoke emitted by the pie shop's chimney. Mrs. Lovett stalls the Beadle until Todd returns to offer the Beadle his promised "free shave"; Mrs. Lovett loudly plays her harmonium to cover the Beadle's screams above, as Todd is killing him ("Parlor Songs"). In the basement, Toby discovers human remains in a pie, just as the Beadle's fresh corpse comes tumbling through the chute. Mrs. Lovett then informs Todd that Toby has discovered their secret, and they plan to kill him.
Anthony arrives at the asylum to rescue Johanna, but cannot bring himself to shoot Jonas Fogg, the deranged asylum owner who tries to stop them; Johanna does so herself, grabbing the pistol. Now, the asylum's inmates pour out into the streets, ecstatically proclaiming the end of the world, while Todd and Mrs. Lovett hunt for Toby, and the Beggar Woman fears what has become of the Beadle ("City on Fire/Searching"). Anthony and a disguised Johanna arrive to find Todd's shop empty. Anthony leaves to seek a coach after he and Johanna reaffirm their love ("Ah Miss – Reprise"). Left alone, Johanna hears the Beggar Woman enter and so she hides. The Beggar Woman seems to recognize the room, but, before she can make sense of it, the frantic Todd appears to greet the approaching Beggar Woman and lethally cuts her, sending her down the chute just a moment before the Judge bursts in ("Beggar Woman's Lullaby"). Todd assures the Judge that Johanna is repentant and the Judge asks for a quick splash of cologne. Once he has the Judge in his chair, Todd soothes but then suddenly mocks him. The Judge recognizes him as "Benjamin Barker!" just before Todd slashes his throat and sends him hurtling down the chute ("The Judge's Return"). The disguised Johanna finally stands, horrified, from her hiding place, surprising Todd. Todd next decides to kill her too, before Mrs. Lovett shrieks from the bakehouse below, providing a distraction for Johanna to escape. Downstairs, Mrs. Lovett is struggling with the dying Judge, who claws at her. She then attempts to drag the Beggar Woman's body into the oven, but Todd arrives and sees the lifeless face clearly for the first time: the Beggar Woman is his wife Lucy. Todd is in shock as Lovett confesses that she did not tell him the full story of Lucy because she loves him herself. Todd then feigns forgiveness, dancing manically with Lovett until pushing her into the raging fires of the oven. Full of despair, Todd embraces the dead Lucy. Toby, with his hair now white from shock and babbling nursery rhymes to himself, picks up Todd's fallen razor, and cuts Todd's throat. As Anthony, Johanna, and some constables break into the bakehouse, Todd falls dead and Toby drops the razor, heedless of the others, while absentmindedly turning the meat grinder ("Final Scene").
=== Epilogue ===
The citizens, soon joined by the ghosts of Todd, Mrs. Lovett, and the others, recite "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd." The company exits, with Todd and Mrs. Lovett being the last, with Todd exiting with an abrupt slam of a door. | murder, melodrama | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0809504 | The Accidental Husband | Patrick Sullivan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is looking forward to a life with Sophia (Justina Machado), until she calls into the show by famed love expert and radio host Dr. Emma Lloyd (Uma Thurman). Emma questions Sophia’s concept of romantic love and advises her to break their engagement, which she swiftly does.
Patrick is so upset that when he hears that Emma is about to be married herself, he allows his young neighbour, Ajay, to hack into public records and create a fake marriage certificate between himself and Emma. Upon going to the public records office to get a marriage license, Emma and her perfect-gentleman fiancé, Richard (Colin Firth), are told she is already married.
Emma sets out to find Patrick and give him annulment papers to sign so that she can marry Richard. Emma finds Patrick in a bar, and their initial meeting ends with her getting drunk. The following day, Patrick comes to Emma's workplace to give her the annulment papers as she is leaving for a wedding cake tasting. Patrick accompanies her to the tasting, where Frau Greta Bollenbecker (Isabella Rossellini) assumes he is Emma's fiancé, Richard. Greta later comes to Emma's book launch because her husband, Herr Karl Bollenbecker, (Keir Dullea) is planning to liquidate Richard's publishing house. Greta meets Emma during the banquet and tells her of the same. Patrick still has the annulment papers, so he comes to the book launch. Matters get worse when Richard sees Greta and Karl with Emma and Patrick, who is posing as Richard, but Richard agrees to go along with it when he learns that Greta thinks Patrick will charm Karl so much that Karl will decide to continue business with "Richard".
Patrick invites them all to Ajay's Upanayana ceremony. Emma and the other guests have a good time there, and she sees a whole new side of Patrick, who had been repulsive to her so far. There is a slight spark of attraction, but Emma flees the scene before anything can happen.
Patrick decides to throw out everything related to Emma or Sophia, but instead reads Emma's book, "Real Love". He comes to confront her about the book because he thinks it only points out all the bad things in a relationship. Patrick and Emma continue their argument in an elevator. Suddenly Patrick flaunts his NYS Fire Department badge and asks the other occupants to leave the elevator. He then locks the elevator and proceeds to kiss Emma. Security staff see them through a CCTV in the elevator and ask them to leave.
Emma finally has the signed and notarized annulment papers, but she considers calling off her wedding. She goes to Patrick’s lodgings and they make love that night. The following morning, Emma finds all the papers related to her and Sophia in the trash. Patrick then confesses that he had initially wanted to teach her a lesson about love but then fell for her. Emma then goes back to the honorable Richard, who still loves her and says that she wants to marry him.
One day before her wedding, Patrick calls her at the radio station and tells her that he loves her. She does not answer him. The next day on her wedding day, she confides in her father, Wilder (Sam Shepard) and asks for his advice. He tells her that the decision is hers. Richard comes to see Emma in the bridal chamber. Richard had also heard the radio show the night before and tells her that he wants her to be happy, and they amicably break up.
Emma sets off the church's fire sprinklers in an attempt to get Patrick to the church. Meanwhile, the fire department where Patrick works is called to the church to put out the fire. When Patrick arrives there, Emma and Patrick get married and leave in the fire truck. The final scene shifts to a year later where it is shown that Emma is pregnant and that she and Patrick are still very much in love. The movie ends with a Tamil song "Swasame" from the movie Thenali in the background. | revenge | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1380833 | Hansel and Gretel | Hansel and Gretel are the young children of a poor woodcutter. When a great famine settles over the land, the woodcutter's second, abusive wife decides to take the children into the woods and leave them there to fend for themselves, so that she and her husband do not starve to death, because the kids eat too much. The woodcutter opposes the plan but finally, and reluctantly, submits to his wife's scheme. They were unaware that in the children's bedroom, Hansel and Gretel have overheard them. After the parents have gone to bed, Hansel sneaks out of the house and gathers as many white pebbles as he can, then returns to his room, reassuring Gretel that God will not forsake them.
The next day, the family walk deep into the woods and Hansel lays a trail of white pebbles. After their parents abandon them, the children wait for the moon to rise and then they followed the pebbles back home. They return home safely, much to their stepmother's rage. Once again provisions become scarce and the stepmother angrily orders her husband to take the children further into the woods and leave them there to die. Hansel and Gretel attempt to gather more pebbles, but find the doors locked and find it impossible to escape.
The following morning, the family treks into the woods. Hansel takes a slice of bread and leaves a trail of bread crumbs for them to follow home. However, after they are once again abandoned, they find that the birds have eaten the crumbs and they are lost in the woods. After days of wandering, they follow a beautiful white bird to a clearing in the woods, and discover a large cottage built of gingerbread, cakes, candy and with window panes of clear sugar. Hungry and tired, the children begin to eat the rooftop of the house, when the door opens and a "very old woman" emerges and lures the children inside, with the promise of soft beds and delicious food and a hot bath. They do this without knowing the fact that their hostess is a bloodthirsty Hag who waylays children to cook and eat them.
The next morning, the hag cleans the cage in the garden out from her previous captive. Then she throws Hansel into the cage and forces Gretel into becoming her slave. The hag feeds Hansel regularly to fatten him up, after three weeks Hansel gets nice and fat. On the final night she mutters to her self that he will be good to eat. The next day the witch prepares the oven for Hansel, but decides she is hungry enough to eat Gretel, too. She coaxes Gretel to the open oven and prods her to lean over in front of it to see if the fire is hot enough. Gretel, sensing the hag's intent, pretends she does not understand what she means. Infuriated, the hag demonstrates, and Gretel instantly shoves the hag into the oven, slams and bolts the door shut, leaving "The ungodly creature to be burned to ashes", screaming in pain until she dies. Gretel frees Hansel from the cage and the pair discover a vase full of treasure and precious stones. Putting the jewels into their clothing, the children set off for home. A duck ferries them across an expanse of water and at home they find only their father; his wife died from an unknown cause. Their father had spent all his days lamenting the loss of his children, and is delighted to see them safe and sound. With the hag's wealth, they all live happily ever after. | fantasy | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0074878 | A Matter of Time | The film opens at a mid-1950s press conference, where scenes are shown for an upcoming film starring Nina (Liza Minnelli), a popular screen celebrity. While on her way to the conference, Nina looks at herself in an ornate mirror, which triggers a flashback to her arrival in Rome, when she was 19 years old. Her cousin, Valentina (Tina Aumont), has arranged for her to work as a chambermaid in a dilapidated hotel.
In the course of her duties, Nina meets an ailing, eccentric Senora Contessa Sanziani (Ingrid Bergman), who was once the toast of Europe. The Contessa receives a visit from her husband, Count Sanziani (Charles Boyer), from whom she has been estranged for 40 years. Old quarrels are revived and Sanziani leaves the hotel, sadly telling the manager that he does not wish to be informed if anything should happen to his wife.
After having a discussion with Nina, the Contessa decides to take her under her wing and turn her into a lovely and sophisticated woman. Nina is troubled by a birthmark on her forehead, but the Contessa assures her that someday important men will be eager to press their lips to it. One evening, the Contessa summons Nina to her room and shows her a scarlet sari an Indian ambassador had once given her.
She insists that Nina undress and places the sari on her. The Contessa then cuts Nina's long, dark hair and puts makeup on her and transforms the maid into a beautiful woman. Nina tells the Contessa she wishes she could be just like her, but the Contessa says that is a silly desire. While listening to the Contessa's stories, Nina imagines herself living out the Contessa's existence, triggering a series of fantasy sequences, all set in elaborate settings such as casinos and Venetian palazzos.
On a rare day off from work, Nina explores Rome and begins to sense the wonderful possibilities that may lie in store for her. That evening, while she is performing a task for the Contessa, the latter suffers a mental breakdown. The manager of the hotel, angered by the Contessa's wailing, insists that she must leave the hotel within a few days.
The next morning, Nina seeks help from Mario (Spiros Andros), a frustrated screenwriter who lives in the hotel. She has brought with her some of the Contessa's old stock certificates, hoping that Mario will be able to determine their worth. Mario tells her the certificates are worthless and that he feels no pity for the Contessa. Nina reacts angrily and leaves his room.
Later on, Nina goes to a bank and finds that Mario was very nearly right. Most of the certificates are, indeed, worthless, but one, from the Bank of Congo, is worth a enough to pay the Contessa's hotel bill for several weeks – ₤150,000 (about $240 in 1954, the year the film takes place).
She uses part of this money to help pay the Contessa's hotel expenses. That same day, Nina goes to a restaurant to pick up the Contessa's dinner. A screen director, Antonio Vicari (Gabriele Ferzetti), sees Nina in the restaurant and asks Mario, who is writing a screenplay for him, to introduce him to the young woman. The introduction is made, and arrangements are made for Nina to have a screen test.
Before she leaves for the studio, she finds that the Contessa has abruptly checked out of the hotel to find an old flame, Gabriele d'Orazio (Orso Maria Guerrini). The Contessa is no longer thinking clearly; she hurries into the street and is hit by a car. She is taken, unconscious, to a Catholic charity hospital.
Meanwhile, Nina has difficulties with her screen test, until Mario gets her to talk about the Contessa. Her subsequent show of passion impresses Vicari, who decides he wants Nina to star in his next picture.
Nina hurries off the set, and after a search, she and Mario locate the hospital where the Contessa is under the care of Sister Pia (Isabella Rossellini, her real-life daughter, in her first film role). Nina is taken to the Contessa's bedside, but the old woman has just died. Deeply saddened, Nina takes the Contessa's ornate mirror as a remembrance and leaves the hospital.
The film jumps forward to the present time. Nina has become a motion picture star. She arrives at the press conference. As she steps out of her limousine, a girl hurries up and says she wants to be just like Nina when she grows up. | melodrama, flashback | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0108410 | Twenty Bucks | An armored truck brings money to load an ATM. A woman withdraws $20 but the bill slips away. A homeless woman, Angeline (Linda Hunt), grabs the bill and reads the serial number, proclaiming that it is her destiny to win the lottery with those numbers. As she holds the bill, a boy grabs the bill from her and uses it at a bakery. The baker sells an expensive pair of figurines for a wedding cake to Jack Holiday (George Morfogen) and gives him the bill as change. At the rehearsal dinner for the upcoming wedding of Sam Mastrewski (Brendan Fraser) to Anna Holiday (Sam Jenkins), Jack reminisces about exchanging his foreign money for American currency when he first came to America, and he presents Sam with the $20 bill as a wedding present. Sam is taken aback by the perceived cheapness of his father-in-law-to-be, but is quickly "kidnapped" for his bachelor party, where he uses the bill to pay the stripper (Melora Walters). Anna shows up to explain that the $20 is not the entire present and suggests they frame it to show that they understand its significance. Sam is unable to explain the absence of the bill, when the stripper comes in from the fire escape to offer it back to him. Anna apparently breaks the engagement.
The stripper uses the $20 bill to buy a herbal remedy from Mrs. McCormac (Gladys Knight). Mrs. McCormac mails the bill to her grandson Bobby (Willie Marlett) as a birthday present. Bobby goes to a convenience store where Frank (Steve Buscemi) and Jimmy (Christopher Lloyd) are engaged in a string of robberies. (During their spree, they prevent Angeline from buying a lottery ticket at a liquor store.) Not knowing he's a robber, the underage Bobby gives Jimmy the $20 bill to buy him wine. Jimmy goes into the store to find that Frank has botched the robbery. Jimmy and Frank leave, giving Bobby and his girlfriend Peggy champagne. The police chase the robbers, who hide in a used car lot. After the police pass by, Jimmy and Frank split up the money, but when Frank sees the $20 Jimmy got from the kid, he assumes that Jimmy is holding out on him. Jimmy tries to explain but Frank pulls a shotgun on him. Jimmy shoots Frank and takes all the money they've stolen, but leaves the $20 bill. The bill, now dripped with Frank's blood, winds up in the police evidence locker but falls into the wrong box.
Waitress and aspiring writer Emily Adams (Elisabeth Shue) shows up at the police precinct with boyfriend Neil (David Schwimmer) to claim some items the police recovered. The police officer (William H. Macy) unwittingly includes the $20 bill. After flying out of the box from the back seat of Emily's convertible, the bill floats around town, and is picked up by a homeless man who uses it to buy groceries. (In this scene, Angeline is again unable to buy a lottery ticket.) The bill is given as change to a wealthy woman who uses it to snort cocaine off the back of her stretch limousine, although she leaves it on her car, where it is picked up by the drug dealer (Edward Blatchford).
The drug dealer also runs a day camp for youth, and he puts the bill into a fish where it is caught by a teen who has it converted to quarters and uses them to call a phone sex hotline in a bowling alley. The bowling alley owner (Ned Bellamy) gives the bill to his lover (Matt Frewer) and tells him to go out and have fun. The Frewer character encounters Sam, who is loitering in a daze behind the bowling alley. Sam turns down an offer of the $20 bill, not knowing it is the cause of his downfall. The Frewer character then uses it to play bingo at a church, where the priest is portrayed by Spaulding Gray. Emily's father, Bruce (Alan North) also plays bingo and receives the bill as change before dying of a heart attack.
At the mortuary, the mortician (Melora Walters), gives the family Bruce's personal effects, including his wallet with the $20 bill. Emily eventually looks in the wallet and finds the $20 bill in the wallet together with a copy of her first published short story. Her mother Ruth (Diane Baker) explains that Bruce also wanted to be a writer. Emily decides to go to Europe. At the airport, she explains her decision to her brother Gary (Kevin Kilner), and she melodramatically rips up the bill in front of him. (Gary was a witness to one of Jimmy & Frank's robberies.) Sam is also at the airport, waiting for a flight to Europe and having a drink with Jack, with the two clearing up the misunderstanding over the $20 bill on good terms. Sam uses a piece of the ripped up bill as a bookmark but it falls out without him noticing it as Sam and Emily walk toward their gate, both striking up a conversation. A title reading "The End" is derailed by Angeline collecting pieces of the bill.
Angeline sits down at a coin-operated TV and patches the bill back together. Just then the lottery numbers are read, and to her agony, they match the serial number of the bill. She goes to a bank and inquires if the bill is still any good. The teller explains that if there's more than 51% of the bill left, it is still valid, and hands Angeline a crisp new $20 bill. The homeless woman dramatically reads the serial number of the new bill and leaves the bank. | psychedelic, comedy | train | wikipedia | The problem with movies that actually try not to insult your intelligence is that they are totally inaccessible and make you feel like you're sitting at a table in the high school cafeteria with the cool kids .
It's a fascinating story of a $20 bill's journey in and out of the lives of people to whom it changes hands.
Sometimes it's only there for a moment, sometimes it's there for days, sometimes it doesn't go where you might think it would go, but it's always an interesting story.
This is a wonderful anthology film that manages to introduce many characters and get you brought up to speed on their lives in a brief period of time.
You know who these actors are, and it's obvious that no one was letting their ego get in the way of telling the story.
It's a wonderful, lovingly crafted movie that is well worth your time to see..
The movie I recommend to friends who've seen "everything".
If you've ever wondered where your money has been, this movie will leave you a little more enlightened...and frightened!
From the G-string of a stripper at a Bachelor's party to the hands of a ten year old in a fishing contest to the frantic hands of a homeless woman with Lottery winnings in mind - this bill's journey is surprising and hilarious.
The stories around the main idea abound and are far from dull.
Christopher Lloyd and Steve Buscemi's scenes are, in my opinion, the highlight of this film.
If you ever decide to doubt the power that one incredible idea can do for a movie, you have desperately got to see this!
Twenty Bucks is one of the most creative ideas ever made into a movie and will definitely earn a few laughs for the writing alone.
While there is no one main character here, the story revolves around a twenty dollar bill.
The movie opens as the money enters circulation, and ends when it is mangled and ready to be burned.
The life of the money is the story of the movie, and it's just delightful!
At times, it appears that it is a good luck charm, and at others a curse sent from God. Steve Buscemi, Brendan Fraser, Gladys Knight, Elizabeth Shue, Christopher Lloyd, and William H.
Macy all get their hands on the money, and there are several others as well.Apparently, this screenplay was written several years ago by Andre Bohem and nothing was ever done with it.
After quite a long period of time, Andre's son Leslie got ahold of the script and modernized it a bit, and the end result is magnificent!
While there aren't any acting performances here that are going to melt your hearts, each star is really enjoyable to watch in one way or another.
The casting director did a fantastic job of lining up so many recognizable faces, and I found it hilarious that the stripper at the bachelor party (Melora Walters), also played the funeral director near the end of the movie!
When I realized they were the same person, I busted out laughing, and yet was still able to see the incredible irony of the whole situation.If you are watching this because you like one of the actors, then you very well could be disappointed by what you see.
No one of the actors here has a tremendous amount of screen time, but all are quite good to watch.
If you love irony, this is a movie for you!
This is an incredible movie with a great storyline.
The characters are each gems, and the actors playing them are of course, all top-notch names.
I'd have to put this in the same category as 12:01, Groundhog Day and Short Cuts as far as the time/space ironies as lives and events intermix.
Good Cast; Fair Story.
This is a series of short stories, detailing what happens to people holding a particularly twenty-dollar-bill as it switches from owner to owner.
Several of the segments are quite good, my favorites being with the holdup men: Christopher Lloyd and Steve Buscemi.
(Now there's two interesting characters actors, for you!) It's not "familar fare"with strippers, profanity and the usual immoral messages that filmmakers love to give us.
The cast is more interesting and deep than the story..
The variety of stories that surround the 20 bucks makes the movie non-Hollywood.
I like the independent, non-Hollywood style of this particular movie with a plot that actually tells something and people who proof that you do not need a gigantic budget to create a refreshing film..
Twenty Bucks is, quite simply, a movie about a $20 bill.
All this may be unusual but when thinking on the subject, each bill's lifetime is as unique as our own and while unusual, not impossible.Just like with our money, some people hold on to some bills longer than others and these people in the movie are the ones with the longer stories.
Easily the most entertaining story was the one with Frank (Steve Buscemi) and Jimmy (Christopher Lloyd).
It did not overdo it and make me sick of the characters.This is is the type of movie you can recommend to those who have seen it all.
"Twenty Bucks" focuses on a $20 bill getting passed around from person to person, and how we get to see the people's lives: a man whose travels have consisted of a trip to the bowling alley, a drug dealer hosting a summer camp, some crooks plotting a robbery, and some people's attempts at relationships.
And it always shows how people are determined to keep going no matter what happens.Does the movie have any problems?
They did a very good job with this movie, and I recommend it.
Starring Linda Hunt, Brendan Fraser, Elisabeth Shue, Christopher Lloyd, Steve Buscemi and William H.
The story follows it passing from one person to the next.
There is petty criminal Frank (Steve Buscemi) recruited by Jimmy (Christopher Lloyd) to go on a robbery spree.
These and others characters are all connected by the $20 bill.This is a high-concept film.
It's hard to make the story consistently compelling when the characters keep changing.
Lloyd and Buscemi are a memorable duo but this is mostly a bunch of random people's stories.
A few scenes are worthwhile, it's as a film that if fails completely to entertain.
If you like this sort of montage, run don't walk and get "Tales of Manhattan" (1942) a marvelous film that follows the life and times of a topcoat..
This is one of the best movies made in a while.It centers upon a twenty dollar bill and we follow the Twenty dollar bill from the day it is made on.
We see stories such as a robbery, Scams, Love and a pre-teen ringing phone sex lines.This is a piece of art that should be seen.
One of the Best low-budget films..........
This is one of the Best low-budget films I've ever seen.
The director weaves a wonderful, magical story around a $20 bill as it passes through the lives of a diverse group of characters..
I loved this movie.
And yes while a few of the plot lines were left dangling like the reverend and Christopher Lloyd's character, I left this movie with a feeling of contentment and resolution that was sorely lacking in Slacker.
A favorite for personal reasons to be sure, but still a great movie.
This was by far one of the best movies I have ever seen.
It had a unique approach to tell a story that followed the lives of people and different stages of their lives.
I liked the way it showed what was going on in the life of the person about to get the bill..
This movie was everything I thought it would be and wasn't-- all at the same time.
Like the plot says it's a movie about the life of a twenty dollar bill and how it is woven amongst the lives of everyday people, but the movie presented this in a very interesting way.
My favorite scene was easily with Christopher Lloyd and Steve Buscemi as two crooks.
Elizabeth Shue and Brendan Fraser's stories are sad, but we can relate to them as normal people.
It is interesting how the director shows so much of each character's personality and background with so little screen time.
* Pretty good underestimated film, following a 20 buck note exchanging hands with the prosperous and pikeys alike!
* Pretty good underestimated film, following a 20 buck note exchanging hands with the prosperous and pikeys alike!
Good film to watch when nothings happening in yer head!
Good film to watch when nothings happening in yer head!
Bad film to watch if your not a fan of Ross from Friends as he has a face like Cliff Richard, you'd never tire of slapping it!.
Bad film to watch if your not a fan of Ross from Friends as he has a face like Cliff Richard, you'd never tire of slapping it!.
TWENTY BUCKS (1993) *** Elisabeth Shue, Brendan Fraser, Steve Buscemi, Christopher Lloyd, Linda Hunt, Melora Walters, David Schwimmer, Alan North, Spalding Gray, Gladys Knight.
This film was written in 1935 by screenwriter Endre Bohem shortly before his death.
He completed the script, updated it for a more modern audience, and filmed it with director Keva Rosenfeld.
A mother with her hands full uses an ATM machine, drops the bill in her hassle, and the story begins.
The rest of this film follows the bill through the hands of 12 complete strangers who, through various ways, pass the bill to one another.
Along the way, the note weaves in and out of the lives of a street person, an aspiring writer, two thieves (a hilarious Steve Bucemi and Christopher Lloyd), and a stripper who also...well, I won't ruin it for you.
Look for such faces as David Schwimmer(NBC's "Friends"), Elisabeth Shue(Leaving Las Vegas), William H.
Macy(Fargo, Wag the Dog), Brendan Fraser(The Scout, George of the Jungle), and Steve Bucemi(Reservoir Dogs, The Big Lebowski).This is a great film to watch with a group of friends.
The Movie I Recommend To Everyone.
This is the movie I always recommend to people when cool indie films come up.
I don't want to spoil the movie, suffice it to say that this is one of the most TRULY engaging films I've ever seen.
You may think that the movie is disjointed with no commonality, but this is not the case.
This movie was made in a thoughtful way for thoughtful people and each story has the denouement we all crave!
I've seen this movie a few times and am surprised that I have never purchased it..
This movie is by far the worst movie ever, The story line is weak and never shows what happens to the people after the 20 was left they hands.
The only good thing was the cast, WOW, lots of big time actors and actress in it.
a story about how the money is spent.
Twenty Bucks is a story about a twenty dollar bill.
Rather then focusing in on plot, the movie trades in the "same ole same ole" genre, and tries something different...following the path of an ordinary, twenty dollar bill, and seeing how the money is transfered from person to person.
From the minute it comes out of an ATM machine, to then end of the film, when the twenty dollars finally gets...ummm....well, it's torn up enough lives, I think it had it coming!
Buscemi and Lloyd are a mismatched double act while Brendan Fraser plays a nervous groom-to-be well.
David Schwimmer shows that he was never meant for movies - even in 1993 - while Elizabeth Shue excels as a budding writer.7/10.
Well, that's the basic premise of this little gem of a movie.
Unfortunately, this low budget indie by director Keva Rosenfeld and written by Leslie and Endre Bohem, didn't go far, as one would have wanted it to go.
We see faces in the film from distinguished actors like Steve Buscemi, Brendan Fraser, Elizabeth Shue, Linda Hunt, William H.
Of course, most of them had not achieved recognition at the time, but their talent was all there for us to see and enjoy.The film follows that twenty dollar bill until its surprising end at the bank when Angeline, the homeless woman, receives a brand new twenty in exchange for the original, but dilapidated bill.This movie will delight anyone who wants to spend a happy time with a surprising and warm film..
Probably one of the best indies I've seen in a long time.
This film monitors the life of a $20 bill from it's birth at an ATM machine to it's sudden death at an airport.
It changes lives and it destroys lives with a surprisingly big all star cast from the likes of Brendan Fraser, Steve Buscemi, Elisabeth Shue, Christopher Lloyd, William H.
Particular standout performances include David Schwimmer as a thinly veiled disguise of Ross as a whiny, neurotic who takes hair baldness prevention chemicals and Christopher Lloyd and Steve Buscemi as a mismatched pair of convenience store robbers.
Definitely a film that should be seen by all..
One of those strange little independent films that pops up late one night on your television set occasionally and makes you ask "where the hell has this been hiding?" That's not to say that it's a great movie or anything but it certainly is interesting.
The film follows a $20 note around, sometimes deviating to follow characters who are not in it's possession , or at least have not had their hands on it yet.
The film is directed in a sloppy fashion at times including a poorly edited scene involving the Gladys Knight character scaring some kids at a diner window and for the best part lacks the style its premise eludes to.
I think it would have been a lot more memorable , though a hell of a lot less subtle, if the likes of Tarentino had got their hands on it but that I suppose is neither here nor there.
Also the storyline involving her character's grandson added nothing but a poor attempt at humour by an over confident young actor and his unconvincing first love in a short story theme lifted from 'American Graffiti' about an underagers' eventful attempts to obtain alcohol.
As has been acknowledged by most commentators Christopher Lloyd's scenes with Steve Buscemi(who must now be recognised as the patron saint of independent American pictures) , centering around a cold and calculated armed robber and his new , loose cannon, partner are the standout of the film.
By the end of the picture you feel let down by Lloyd's character not re-entering the fray.
Also watch out for Ross Geller , yes I know that's not his real name, in an early pre-Friends role portraying a character who almost acts as a prototype for Shwimmer's most impressive outing in a film role as one of the slimy pioneer surgeon's of 'Breast Men'.
What let the film down for me in the acting department was Brendan Fraser who produced an uninspired performance as an uncertain groom to be whose character admittedly suffered from a complete lack of explanation and development.
Instead he just comes across as a loser who wasn't grateful for what he had.Some unnecessarily elaborate and quick plot developments which seemed designed to but failed to deliver any laughs , ie- a cocaine dealer organizing a fishing tournament for kids one of who ends up phoning a sex chat line, only helped to frustrate one into wondering what was happening to the main characters and when would we see them again?
Macy as a fidgety , bored cop and Linda Hunt as preachy , pretentious vagrant whose constant speeches ultimately cost her the destiny which she believes is about to be bestowed upon her, redeemed the scenes that included them and in Hunt's case tied the movie up nicely.
Despite all of the famous stars a viewing of the film pretty much awakens one to why it never got any kind of major cinematic release.
If you liked this or have an interest in similar low budget star packed features then check out the far superior 'Trees Lounge' which starred and was directed by one of this film's most notable names Steve Buscemi..
This is a really good movie..
I saw this movie about 2 years ago when I was digging through my grandparents old VHS tapes.
At first, I really didn't want to watch the movie, just because it looked weird and i've never heard of it, but when I read the back...
In the hands of a crook, in the stomach of a fish, in the G String of a stripper?Another interesting thing about this movie is that it follows the lives of everyone that has the twenty dollar bill.
Honestly, it's a really good look at life.--ACTING- Superb.
Keeps you interested, and you won't zone out or anything.SCRIPT- Really good.
10/10OVERALL- I really enjoyed this movie.
9/10RECOMMENDED VIEWERS- More of a movie for people who like to think about life, but anyone can enjoy it, so- watch this movie!.
Neat little film.
Director Keva Rosenfeld keeps the offbeat, original, and interesting premise moving along at a constant brisk pace as the characters from each individual segment overlap in subtle and surprising ways.
Moreover, there are excellent performances from Linda Hunt as a flaky bag lady who's obsessed with winning the lottery, Elisabeth Shue as struggling writer Emily Adams, Brendon Fraser as hapless blue collar schmoe Sam Mestrewski, William H.
In an especially inspired touch, Melora Walters appears in two segments as both a stripper and a funeral home director; this speaks volumes on how people sometimes have dual lives and further makes a provocative point on how some folks had to work a second part-time gig on the side in order to keep themselves afloat in the recession-stricken 1990's. |
tt0166960 | An All Dogs Christmas Carol | The film opens with angel puppies talking to Annabelle (Bebe Neuwirth). They ask her to tell them a story. She begins to tell them about how Carface saved Christmas with a little guidance from Charlie (Steven Weber) and Itchy (Dom DeLuise).
The movie begins in an alleyway with Charlie, Itchy, Sasha (Sheena Easton), and their friends decorating for a Christmas party. Everyone is enjoying themselves as Charlie and Itchy tend to the young puppies. Charlie checks on Sasha and the money collection for Timmy's operation for his bad leg. Unfortunately, Carface (Ernest Borgnine) and Killer (Charles Nelson Reilly) arrive and start collecting debts from everyone. After Charlie refused to pay Carface back, as his debt payment is not due yet, he blows a mysterious hypnotic dog whistle that hypnotizes them all and causes them to give Carface and Killer all of their bones. Before leaving, Carface and Killer make off with all the food, presents, and money which includes that for Timmy's operation and head off cackling.
After Charlie and Itchy fail several times to get the stolen goods from Carface, it is revealed that he is working for Annabelle's evil cousin, Belladonna (Neuwirth), who plots to use a massive version of the hypnotic dog whistle to hypnotize every dog in San Francisco into stealing the masters' Christmas presents, causing them to be thrown out of their houses and abandoned, much in the same way Carface was when he was a puppy. Charlie plots to scare "the Dickens" out of him and asks Annabelle for some aid, resulting in them being transformed into characters from A Christmas Carol. Itchy becomes the Ghost of Christmas Past, Sasha becomes the Ghost of Christmas Present, and Charlie becomes the Ghost of Christmas Future (as a reference of The Mask) with a Gospel-style song-and-dance. They visit Carface and make him feel guilty about stealing everything, especially the operation money; Sasha tells him that without it Timmy will die, which will cause another — his own, as Charlie shows him that because of his actions, he will cause his own death, and he will be condemned to Hell for eternity.
Carface, having seen himself in Timmy, stops the whistle just in time to prevent the dogs from stealing the gifts. Belladonna flies into a rage and is about to kill him and Killer when she is frozen solid by a massive amount of snow caused by Annabelle.
Meanwhile, with Charlie and the gang, it starts to snow. Everyone celebrates, but Itchy remarks that it's a shame that they didn't have any presents to give the puppies. Just then, Carface appears on a sled pulled by Killer, and gives them everything back, and more. He even gives them Timmy's money box back, which is full to the top. He turns to leave, and Sasha asks him to stay and join the party. Carface respectfully declines the invitation, saying he's going to visit his mother instead, but wishes everyone a merry Christmas.
Annabelle finishes the story by saying "Merry Christmas!" to the audience (whom the puppies wave at), and Charlie and Itchy wish the same. | psychedelic | train | wikipedia | thumbs down.
This is the Christmas special based on the "All Dogs Go To Heaven" universe.
Sometimes I wonder why I bother with prequels as they are never (well, rarely) as good as the original, but maybe I am rating this based on the film that started it all.Again, we do have a return of some old and new characters, and we have the song and dance that was done so well in the original.
However, if you've never seen the original, I would recommend that.
I would not recommend this Christmas special or the sequel to the original.
However, if you're looking for a fun Christmas special and are in need of some background noise or someplace to put the kids, then this will do, but don't expect anything great..
Charlie and his friends adventures ends with a bad ending.
Okay I loved first two All dogs go to heaven movies the first one was heartwarming and charming the 2nd one was not that bad The TV series was pretty good but as for this one it was not all that good it does not even live up to the first two the characters and the plot where okay but this movie could of needed more plot from the begging to the end but its okay I think the good parts in this film was Sasha telling Carface about was going to happen was pretty nice Carface singing a song was another nice Thing I like in this movie but the other parts where not good but Sasha save this film a bit not a lot a bit but the rest of the story line was weak and I think it could of dane better but its better then Herbie goes bananas I am 14 found this movie quit a bit corny if my mum and dad watch it they would hate this movie may be very young kids will love it not by much but they will love it this movie is okay I say okay because Sasha had save it a bit okay not all that good but okay still needed more plot I give it a 3 out of 10 for trying..
A heart-warming festive movie....
Despite what others say, I found this movie very pleasing and much better than I expected.
I first watched it surely after it was released in 1998 and loved it first time.
Of course, no movie is an good as the original, the characters were not the same but they never can be.
However, I still found them funnier than ever.The plot is based on 'A Christmas Carol' by Charles Dickens with the evil - or perhaps not so - bulldog, Carface as the Scrooge, bah-humbug character.
Carface and his boss, Annabell's arch enemy, Belladonna conjure an evil plan to ruin Christmas.
However, they forget that Charlie, Itchy and Sasha are around.
Using Annabell's miracle dog tag Charlie's all set to save the day.
But can this miracle dog tag truly create the Christmas Carol story to convince Carface that he's not all bad?
Or will Christmas be ruined?
A heart-warming, festive movie with lovable characters.
Definitely a must-see movie..
not dog-lover would be complete without it..
Charming.
I still prefer the original 1989 film, but this entry is a great improvement over "All Dogs 2".
Dickens' basic plot for "A Christmas Carol" has been cleverly reworked here.
Ernest Borgnine is wonderful as Carface, and this film allows us to see a different side to him.
The talented Bebe Neuwirth does a nice job of pulling off an interesting dual role as both good Annabelle and evil Belladonna.
The songs are good, and "Clean Up Your Act" is downright irresistible.
This one is not as good as the first, but charming nonetheless..
dragged a bit.
i didn't really like the way they done it like a Christmas carol but i liked one of the songs that was about it it was a bit shut up by the end.
But kids might enjoy the dog side of it.I think it would have been better if Charlie sheen was doing the voice of Charlie.and they hadn't had the annoying song at the start which got so repetitive by the end.
the song that was the best was car-faces song about when he was a puppy.
i didn't like car-faces dog friend who loved Christmas but couldn't tell car-face he was annoying.
it didn't really get me in the Christmas mood round about Christmas time.
I thought it was a bit plane and boring especially at the end but the songs do keep you interested.
And i think it would be an okay film for younger kids..
Great Film!!
I loved this one!
It's my fav of the three All Dogs movies.
The plot is great, the songs are good, and it's great to have Killer back after his absence in All Dogs 2!!!!
:-) He's my all-time fav character!
My advice is: Watch it!
It's absolutely great!!.
Pretty pointless.
The IMDb rating is pretty appropriate, given how bad this movie is.
I admit to not being into the "All Dogs Go To Heaven" franchise, so I don't know how this fits into the continuity of the other films.
The best part is probably how they got the original voice actors back.
It was easy to recognize Ernest Borgnine as I could remember Mermaid Man's voice.
Anyway, this is probably the worst version of "A Christmas Carol" I've ever seen.
As much as people make fun of Disney sequels, Don Bluth had it even worse.This just lacks anything sustenance and we can start with the animation.
The usage of bright colors yet doing so little with them reminds me if this was animated by the same people as "Sonic Underground".
Most of this film isn't even about "A Christmas Carol" but instead focuses on some boring plot about Carface gaining the will to save Christmas.
The only saving grace was Annabelle and she was barely in it!
As someone who found the original film to be just okay, I couldn't find myself attached to these characters.
The story's setup even makes little sense within its own setting.
Really not as bad as the rating suggests.
The first All Dogs go to Heaven is not my favourite Don Bluth movie, but it is one of his most charming and memorable.
I actually didn't mind the sequel either, it was nothing great due to its dull animation and rushed story but it wasn't awful as I liked the soundtrack and voice work, plus I can name worse sequels.
This one was very nice and heart warming.
Is it as good as the original?
But is it better than the sequel?
I think it is.
I however have real issue with the IMDb rating for this movie, literally saying it is horse poop.
Seriously it is not that bad, I can think of a number of animated movies worse than An All Dogs Christmas Carol.
Titanic:The Animated Movie?
Doogal?
The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue?
Pokemon:The First Movie?
Cool World?
Enough of that, let's get down to business.
Right the animation is better than it was in the second.
It's not quite as luscious as the animation in the original, but there are some nice backgrounds and the characters are at least well drawn.
I also really liked the music, and I am probably alone here but I found the soundtracks here and in the second more memorable than in the original personally.
The first song can be repetitive to some but it is nice and well sung, Carface's song about being a puppy was rather touching and Clean Up your Act was irresistibly catchy.The story is also much better thought out and paced.
One or two scenes do drag I agree, but I loved the canine twist on the immortal Christmas literary classic A Christmas Carol and the dig at It's a Wonderful Life(It's a Wonderful Carface) and it was less rushed than the second in my opinion.
Plus the dialogue was pretty good.
Then there were the characters.
Charlie and Sasha aren't given as much to do but they are pretty likable, while Timmy is adorable.
The two scene stealers were Carface, who steals the movie as a Scrooge-like caricature and the villainess Bella Donna who is deliciously bitchy.
The voice acting on the whole is well done.
Ernest Borgnine is brilliant as Carface, while Dom DeLuise is humorous as Itchy.
Sheena Easten is lovely as Sasha, while Bebe Neuwirth was a huge improvement in the dual roles of Annabelle(Melba Moore was better though, and I found Neuwirth irritating in the second film) and Bella Donna(she gave the better vocal performance of the two with Bella Donna).
The only weaknesses for me were Steven Weber, who just lacks that roguish charm, and Charles Nelson Reilly, who not only sounds different here, but got annoying at times.Overall, An All Dogs Christmas Carol wasn't really that bad.
Actually it is quite charming and heart warming.
7/10 Bethany Cox.
"You could be a million things, but obviously you ain't".
I loved watching this movie as a youngster, its the re-telling of the Charles Dickens classic, Christmas Carol....Only by dogs...Carface the local mob dog decides to rob the dog community of their Christmas gifts and decorations thus cancelling Christmas and so Charlie, the dog that has retributed for his earlier crimes in 'All dogs go to heaven' and vows to bring Christmas back and so he gets helped by the heavenly forces who offer him a once in a life time gift to get all access in the magics and show Carface the past, present and future....The film has some great songs which will entertain the kids and keep them happy with a brilliant voice cast who do justice for the film....There are occasions which make you laugh out loud...A Christmas treat for the family. |
tt0053390 | Ukikusa | The film takes place during a hot summer in 1958 at a seaside town on the Inland Sea. A troupe of travelling theatre arrives by ship, headed by the troupe's lead actor and owner, Komajuro (Ganjirō Nakamura). The rest of the troupe goes around the town to publicise their kabuki performances.
Komajuro visits his former mistress, Oyoshi, who runs a small eatery in the town. They have a grown-up son Kiyoshi, who now works at the post office as a mail clerk and is saving up to go to the university. However, he does not know who Komajuro is, thinking he is his uncle. Komajuro invites Kiyoshi to go fishing in the sea.
When Sumiko, the lead actress of the troupe and Komajuro's current mistress, learns that Komajuro is visiting his former mistress, she becomes jealous and makes a visit to Oyoshi's eatery, where Kiyoshi and Komajuro are playing a game of go. Komajuro chases her away before she can say anything destructive, then confronts her in the pouring rain. He tells her to back off from his son, and decides to break up with her. Sumiko calls Komajuro an ingrate, and cites examples when she has helped him out in the past.
Backstage one day, Sumiko offers Kayo, a pretty young actress from the same troupe, some money and asks her to seduce Kiyoshi. Although Kayo at first refuses, she gives in after Sumiko's insistence. She goes to Kiyoshi's post office to make him fall for her. However, after knowing Kiyoshi for some time, she falls for him and decides to tell Kiyoshi the truth. Kiyoshi says it does not matter how it all starts. The two then engage in a relationship which only later is found out by Komajuro.
Komajuro confronts Kayo, who tells him of Sumiko's setup, but only after asserting she now loves Kiyoshi and is not doing it for money. Komajuro has a violent confrontation with Sumiko, and refuses to listen to her plea for a reconciliation.
The manager of the troupe has absconded, and business is bad. Komajuro has no choice but to disband the troupe, and they have a last night together. Komajuro then goes to Oyoshi's place and tells her of his troupe's break-up. Oyoshi persuades him to tell Kiyoshi the truth about his parenthood and then stay together her place as a family. Komajuro agrees. When Kiyoshi later comes back with Kayo, Komajuro becomes so enraged to see them together that he beats both of them repeatedly, leading to a physical tussle between Kiyoshi and him. Oyoshi is forced to reveal to him the truth about his birth there, but Kiyoshi refuses to accept it and goes to his room upstairs. Taking in Kiyoshi's reaction, Komajuro decides to leave after all. Kayo wants to join him, but Komajuro asks her to stay to help Kiyoshi out. Kiyoshi later has a change of heart and goes downstairs to look for Komajuro, but his father has already left.
At the train station, Komajuro tries to light a cigarette but has no matches. Sumiko, who is sitting nearby, comes up and offers him a light. Sumiko asks where Komajuro is going, since she now has no place to go. The two reconcile and Sumiko decides to join Komajuro to start anew under another impresario at Kuwana. The last scene of the film shows Komajuro, tended by Sumiko, in a train heading for Kuwana. | cute | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0101669 | Dead Again | Newspapers detail the 1949 murder of Margaret Strauss (Emma Thompson), who was stabbed during a robbery; her anklet is missing. Her husband, composer Roman Strauss (Kenneth Branagh), is found guilty of the crime and condemned to death. Before his execution, Roman is visited by reporter Gray Baker (Andy Garcia). Asked if he killed Margaret, Roman whispers in Gray’s ear; Baker does not disclose Roman's answer.
Forty years later, private detective Mike Church (Branagh) investigates the identity of a woman who has appeared at the orphanage where he grew up. She has amnesia, cannot speak and has nightmares. Mike takes her in and asks his friend, Pete Dugan (Wayne Knight), to publish her picture and his contact information. Antiques dealer and hypnotist Franklyn Madson (Derek Jacobi) approaches Mike, suggesting that hypnosis may help her recover her memory. When the session is unsuccessful, Madson suggests that they experiment with past life regression. Mike is skeptical, but the woman details Margaret and Roman's lives in third person, from courtship to their wedding. When the session ends, she can speak but still has amnesia. Madson shows them copies of Life from the murder; Mike and the woman bear a striking resemblance to Roman and Margaret. Mike visits disgraced psychiatrist Cozy Carlisle (Robin Williams), who insists that they continue to see Madson; delving into the problems between Margaret and Roman may resolve her amnesia.
Mike nicknames the woman "Grace", and falls in love with her. Doug (Campbell Scott) appears and claims that Grace is his fiancée Katherine, but Mike discovers he is lying and chases him away. Hypnotized, Grace remembers that Roman suffers from writer's block and is broke. He believes that Margaret is flirting with Baker, whom she met on their wedding day. Margaret cannot convince Roman that she is faithful and catches Frankie, the son of their housekeeper Inga, looking through her jewelry box. She asks Roman to dismiss them but Roman refuses, saying that they saved his life in Germany.
Grace sees Mike standing over Margaret with scissors, and is convinced he intends to kill her. Mike insists that he would never hurt her, but when he accidentally calls her "Margaret", he agrees to let Madson regress him.
Dugan tells Mike that he has identified Grace as artist Amanda Sharp. Amanda, still afraid of Mike, accompanies Pete and Madson to her apartment; her artwork focuses on scissors. Madson gives her a gun to protect herself from Mike. Mike visits Baker in a nursing home and asks him about Roman's secret, but Baker insists that Roman said nothing to him. Baker is convinced that Roman did not kill his wife and urges Mike to find Inga, who would know what happened.
Mike realizes that Madson is Frankie; he questions Inga, who explains that she declared her love for Roman, but he rebuffed her advances. Frankie blamed Margaret for his mother's unhappiness and killed her with scissors; he then stole her anklet. Roman stumbled in, and was found covered in his wife's blood and holding the murder weapon. After Roman's execution, Inga brought Frankie to London; he learned about hypnotherapy and past-life regression. After returning to Los Angeles, Frankie was convinced that Margaret’s spirit would seek revenge. When he saw Amanda’s picture in the paper, he knew she has returned. He hired Doug, an actor, to separate Mike and Amanda and distract Amanda while he waited to kill her. Inga apologizes for her role in Margaret's death, and gives Mike the anklet. After Mike leaves to find Amanda, Madson smothers Inga with a pillow.
Mike tells Amanda the truth; terrified, she shoots him. Madson arrives, revealing his true identity; Amanda tries to shoot him, but the gun jams and he knocks her out. He puts the scissors he used to kill Margaret in Mike's hand and tries to make it look like Amanda killed him and committed suicide. Mike wakes up and stabs Madson in the leg with the scissors. Madson falls onto a scissors sculpture, which impales and kills him. Mike and Amanda then embrace. | comedy, mystery, neo noir, murder, violence, flashback, humor, romantic, suspenseful | train | wikipedia | Although he received tremendous praise for his memorable film production of Shakespeare's HENRY V, DEAD AGAIN was the film that really introduced actor/director Kenneth Branagh to mainstream American film, and for a time he and then-wife Emma Thompson were the most celebrated acting couple since Olivier and Leigh.
Scott Frank's clever script makes for a fast-paced, twisting, and fascinating plot-driven film--and it is flawlessly played by Branagh and Thompson, who assume dual roles as the 1940s Roman and Margaret Strauss and the 1980s Mike Church and Grace.
The shifts between past and present, nightmare and reality are exceedingly well done, and although the plot becomes more and more fantastic the entire film is so perfectly executed that one buys into it every step of the way.If DEAD AGAIN has a flaw, it is that some of the twists and turns are predictable--but in the film's favor I must admit that it sweeps you along so quickly that you seldom have time to analyze that failing while you actually watch the film.
Trying to work à la Hitchcock is a very perilous task:Kenneth Branagh walks out with honors.The numerous influences and nods are interesting:"Notorious" "Rebecca" "Spellbound" "Vertigo""dial M for murder" come to mind but there are certainly more...Brannagh is a pupil who assimilates things easily.He's helped by a stellar cast:his then-wife Emma Thompson,really beautiful,Hanna Shygulla ,in an underwritten part ,Robin Williams,Campbell Scott,Andy Garcia -You want to stop smoking?Have a look at his last scene!-....
The marvelously far-fetched plot grabs the audience till the very end as the two stories meet.Brannagh and Thompson succeeded in creating two characters each .The director cleverly uses in turn color (present) and black and white (past).The finale in the flat where the amnesic girl keeps her surrealist works (a la Dali,like in "spellbound" ) is grand guignol at its best.That's entertainment!.
The opening credits show 1948 news stories about symphony conductor, Roman Strauss (Kenneth Branagh), who was executed for murdering his wife, Margaret (Emma Thompson).
As fate would have it, Mike and Grace grow closer and fall in love, an event that is undoubtedly made more convincing by the fact that Branagh and Watson were happily married at the time that the film was made.
Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson (who were then married)each played two roles, one in the past, one in the present, with different clothes, hairstyles and accents, as part of a couple destined to be together forever.Branagh, coming off his rookie directing debut in HENRY V, did a simply beautiful job here, using the same creative team as HV (Patrick Doyle deserves especial kudos for his astounding musical score).
Playing both a cynical private eye ("I'm not looking for Miss Right; I'm looking for Miss Right Now") and a jealous German composer from the 1940's, he turns in two complete portraits of unusual men, while directing as well.The film didn't stay in theaters long (most likely due to studio politics), but has apparently found a new audience on video.
Grace, Emma Thompson,has been in this Catholic sanitarium, Saint Audrey's, since she was found wandering aimlessly on the streets of L.A. With the church not being able to keep or care for her any longer due to her deteriorating mental condition the church's administrator Father Thimothy, Richard Easton,calls a former parishioner Private eye Mike Church, Kenneth Branagh.
Mike and his assistant Pete(Wayne Knight), who later in the film makes one of the most jolting as well as unsuspecting guest appearances in motion picture history, get in touch with former psychiatrist and now grocery store owner Cozy Carlisle, Robin Williams, an expert in past-life regression.
It's then where the truth about Grace/Margrate suddenly explodes right in your face leaving you, like it did both Grace & Mike Church, in a state of shock.Crossing different lives and time periods "Dead Again" in its concluding moments comes to a startling and paranormal rendezvous.
Supporting players Derek Jacobi, Robin Williams, and Andy Garcia put in excellent performances, and the serviceable plot is made transcendant by this fine group of actors.
(We 'know', owing to black and white footage (featuring the same actors, but different characters, about 40 years ago, shortly after WW II) Through hypnotherapy, questions of reincarnation and past lives emerge.The film creates, rather than answers, questions.
Here's a few brief comments, which I don't except will be well-received, but.....The GOOD - It's always a treat to see Emma Thompson on the silver screen, especially when she plays her '40s "Margaret" character in this film.
This was the first movie I saw with Kenneth Branaugh and Emma Thompson and I loved their on-screen chemistry.
Emma Thompson, always a fine actress in almost all of her films, easily tugs at viewers' sympathy by subtly projecting the vulnerability of her character.My favorite, however, is Derek Jacobi who very convincingly essays the role of a middle aged but handsome sophisticated and knowledgeable antiquarian.I already said I liked this movie but I didn't go crazy over it.
But if you're looking for influences of Hitchcock and other master directors of thrillers, there's fun in repeated viewings.If you like films dealing with possible reincarnation and crime, you should also see Chances Are with Cybill Shepherd in the the lead.
The main problem lies with the flawed story but the movie has got a rather cheap and dated look, too.The script is full of plot holes, forced mysteries, riddles that are thrown in to keep the viewer puzzled but don't really make any sense at all.
(I will not reveal it, for there IS a good plot twist leading up to it.)Dead Again sports many familiar faces: Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson (real life husband-and-wife), Wayne Knight (Newman in a reincarnation flick??!), and even Robin Williams (who knew?) Branagh is especially charming as Roman--his meeting with pianist Margaret while madly directing the symphony is memorable.
In the follow up to his acclaimed 'Henry V', actor-director Kenneth Branagh trades high culture for low rent thrills, playing an LA detective hired to learn the identity of a mute amnesia victim (Emma Thompson) suffering nightmares of a much publicized murder case from the late 1940s.
Both Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson did a nice work splitting in two characters with two personalities each, with two different accents...
The plot is convoluted, the acting is overwrought (Branagh and Thompson affecting fake American accents, Andy Garcia trying to be a hardboiled newspaper man with a smoking problem) and the whole thing is tedious and dull, despite attempts by the oppressive soundtrack to keep viewers awake.
And don't tell me he wasn't doing more than a touch of Olivier in _Rebecca (1940)_qv in his black and white scenes - Branagh's sense of humor is just one of the joys of this totally surprising, enthralling, suspenseful and fun film.
DEAD AGAIN (1991) **** Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Derek Jacobi, Andy Garcia.
Brit wunderkind Branagh directs and stars with deft style this psychological thriller with him as a contemporary detective in LA trying to solve a case of a woman with amnesia with the results including reincarnation and many plot twists.
In the midpoint where some things gets revealed, suspense picks up and one is put on the edge of their seat and guessing who did it and why until the end.The only caveat I had was the final way the character died is so over the top, that you don't breathe a sight of relief that you should have.But besides that issue, it is a movie definitely worth watching..
On the other hand, a good romance with attractive people hits my sucker button every time.Put these two elements on the balance and you have "Dead Again" a surprisingly intelligent thriller/romance with incredibly lush, if one can use the word in this sense, Black and White photography that makes you yearn in earnest for the good old days.Though the photographer/friend was obnoxious and Robin Williams was playing, thankfully in a cameo, one of his typically annoying roles, a demented over sexed Patch Adams meets the guy from Good Will Hunting, the rest of the cast was so marvelous and Emma and Kenneth never looked so good..
An amnesiac (Emma Thompson) and a private eye (Kenneth Branagh) find they might have a past life connection.Somehow this film ended up on my list of horror and thriller films to see.
Any time Wayne Knight gets to be anyone other than Newman or the villain in "Jurassic Park" is a good thing.Although I would not recommend to this to anyone looking for a thriller, it is a better than average movie that seems to have slipped through the cracks.
We couldn't put ourselves in her shoes — no one has had a tea party with a zany hat enthusiast (except maybe Liza Minnelli or some other unpredictable broad) — but we were more than willing to act as a sidekick during her so-called journey.Kenneth Branagh, more or less, asks us to do the same thing with Dead Again, a mystery/thriller/fantasy/romance/film noir (yes, it is comprised of that many genres) that spirals into the realms of lustrous cinema, defying explanation.
The segments that make up 1948-1949 portion are in black and white flashbacks, and focus on the tragic love affair of music composer and conductor Roman (Kenneth Branagh) and pianist Margaret Strauss (Emma Thompson).
Thanks to Kenneth Branagh in a dual role as a classical composer and a Los Angeles private eye, Emma Thompson as a stricken waif (who may be the reincarnation of a murder victim,) Robin Williams as a certifiably insane defrocked psychiatrist currently hauling cartons in a supermarket and Derek Jacobi as an antique dealer cum hypnotist, it's well worth watching.
This film tells the story of a private detective who enlists the help of a hypnotist to help a woman who suffers from amnesia.The title "Dead Again" gives the plot away a bit, but there is still a lot of suspense and thrill in the plot.
Still Dead Again is stylish, dark and entertaining, with stunning cinematography and film noir and Hitchockian elements, eccentric plotting, the usual twists and turns and a good script.Another strong asset was the score, the opening theme was very bombastic and haunting.
Kenneth Branagh acquits himself well in a very difficult dual role, one of the cynical LA private detective and the other of the composer executed for the murder of his wife back in 1949, while Emma Thompson is terrific also in a dual role as an amnesiac woman obsessed with scissors and is suffering from nightmares of somebody else's life and the composer's wife.Andy Garcia, Derek Jacobi, Robin Williams and Wayne Knight are also fine in their supporting roles, Jacobi especially.
A hypnotist named Franklyn Madson (Derek Jacobi) offers to help, and under hypnosis, she begins revealing an interesting story from the past: the high profile murder of Margaret Strauss (Emma Thompson) by her husband, Roman (Kenneth Branagh).
But his love letter to film noir is also an suspenseful entry into the genre, and the plot (from a script penned by Scott Frank) is twisted enough to bring back memories of those potboilers.Suspenseful and emotionally effective, "Dead Again" is forgotten thriller that should be better known than it is..
And, while the "modern" scenes are now a little dated (the film has a parallel storyline set in the 1940s), it's still quite enjoyable.Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson, best known for their Shakespeare adaptations, co-star in this 80s style thriller crossed with 40s style film noir.
It's highly recommended to fans of both those genres - though like most supernatural thrillers, one must suspend disbelief in the supernatural premise to fully enjoy it.Great supporting cast made up of talented character actors helps move things along, and while there are some lame attempts at humor, they're more quirky than cringe-inducing.The music score is essential to this one, so be sure to have a good stereo set up!.
I've actually felt those shivers, especially when Emma Thompson's character accused Mike Church (Ken Branagh) for killing her in their previous life and started living alone.
It's always a delight to have Kenneth Branagh as director and actor in the same time, and this movie, as overlooked as it is, is such a good example of his talent in thrillers, too.
I liked all the subtle things Kenneth Branagh put into this movie to give some clues about the identities of Grace and Mike.
Kenneth Branagh plays a private detective (Mike) who comes across a woman who has amnesia-she can't remember anything(played by Emma Thompson).
After his brilliant début as a director with Henry V, director and actor Kenneth Branagh measures himself with mystery, in a good movie in which the mystery plot is combined with supernatural elements.
How this turgid slop can rate above 6 on IMDb is completely beyond me.This movie has an exceptional cast and looks to have an interesting storyline so one should expect to be entertained.The first warning that things have gone awry comes in the opening scene when you discover that Kenneth Branagh, THE Kenneth Branagh of so many magnificent films, is playing a hokey gumshoe detective and has adopted a terrible American accent.The plot turns out to be entirely predictable and the entire cast seem to simply be going through the motions, perhaps knowing that this movie is not going to count among their finer works.Kenneth Branagh is terrible.
In this splendid psychological thriller, a murder from the past haunts a present day woman named Grace, wonderfully played by Emma Thompson.
OK I'm giving this 9 stars not only because it's a great film but mainly because Emma Thompson.This woman is a genius and probably the best modern actress out there today.I knew the killer was Frankie in this movie he was SO creepy and yet I have to say a great actor.The acting in this was superb.Question why do the Brit's have much better actors than the Americans?You have to say they always deliver!oh well I'm making this one a short review because I love anything that Emma Thompson is in.I wish she would do a bit more these days but then again there is not much out there for women.As a woman I'm finding this a bit tiresome what's wrong with Hollywood?.
Robin Williams was also great as a psychiatrist kicked out for enjoying his work too much.Any more would be spoiling a very interesting story that is well worth the time spent watching..
Kenneth Branagh,(Roman Strauss/Mike Church),"Warm Springs",'05 TV, plays the role of a famous pianist who has reached the top of his career and is deeply in love with his wife.
Emma Thompson,(Grace/Margaret Strauss),"Nanny McPhee",'05, gives a great performance as his wife and everything seems like a normal, happy life together.
The fine humor sense used in some scenes can even made this movie funny sometimes.Kenneth Brannagh and Emma Thompson have incredible chemistry together, and the script is perfect.
The chemistry between the two actors (Branagh & Thompson) and the idea of a love that transcends death makes this movie one of the most romantic I have ever seen- even though it is billed as a thriller.If you want an academically sound movie, this is not for you.
I'm boring myself so I'm going to stop.Thank goodness the brilliant Emma Thompson escaped the much over-rated Brannagh's influence.After all, we can all point and click the camera at a decent cast, and direct by numbers.As for Kenneth's acting, he was the right face, the right age at the right time.
But "Dead Again", while starting off with a good idea, went a bit too far.Branagh plays detective Mike Church.
These unfortunates aside, the film has some good acting by Thompson and Branagh himself.
Dead Again was the film that really introduced actor/director Kenneth Branagh to mainstream American film, and for a time he and then, wife Emma Thompson were the most celebrated acting couple since Olivier and Leigh.
The supporting cast is also excellent, with memorable performances by Andy Garcia and Derek Jacobi and a truly exceptional cameo by Robin Williams, who here for the first time demonstrated that his talents went far beyond comedy.
The supporting cast is also excellent, with memorable performances by Andy Garcia and Derek Jacobi and a truly exceptional cameo by Robin Williams, who here for the first time demonstrated that his talents went far beyond comedy.
Once it was over I felt like I wasted my time.If you want a good mystery with great twists, watch Wild Things.
Rough California detective Mike Church (Kenneth Branagh) takes on the case of a mysterious woman (then wife Emma Thompson) who can't seem to remember who she is.
With the help of a doctor (Derek Jacobi) she comes to realize she might be the reincarnation of Margaret Strauss (also Thompson) who was supposedly murdered by her husband (Branagh) back in 1949.
I've only seen Kenneth Branagh in a few movies here and there, and he seems to be a good actor.
The scene in particular that I have in mind is the scene where Mike Church (Kenneth Branagh) and Amanda Sharp (Emma Thompson) are looking at the old photos of the people that look exactly like them.
Emma Thompson, Andy Garcia, Derek Jacobi and Robin Williams are all brilliant in their roles.
The acting was superb, especially the main characters played by Branagh, Thompson and Jacobi and the alternating between the present life and the past (black & white) was a really clever effect.I liked how the film unravelled in its own way, at its own pace, instead of employing cliches to handle difficult parts of the plot.
Kenneth Branagh's Dead Again starts off promising enough with it's film noirsh like premise.
To reveal much else would be to ruin the movie, and I can't do that.Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Andy Garcia, and Robin Williams highlight a remarkable cast and a remarkable film.
But towards the end and through the film, you discover that Mike Church (Branagh) really is American, and that he and Grace (Thompson) have somehow swapped bodies after death. |
tt0253709 | Sin: The Movie | Set in the near future of 2037, many of the levels and locations are reminiscent of their current day equivalents. Banks, building sites, sewage works and other everyday recognizable buildings form the basis of many of the levels in Sin. One major difference in the world of SiN is the lack of a police force. Ten years prior to the game, the police force collapsed due to corruption and ineffectiveness against the rising tide of crime. Private security companies have taken the police's place, with some of them patrolling the streets like the former police, some in charge of protecting their employer's assets.
One of the companies which employ their own armed security forces is SinTek, a large multi-national biotechnology corporation specializing in medical and chemical research, owned by the beautiful and charismatic Elexis Sinclaire. Elexis took over the company following the mysterious disappearance of her father, Dr Thrall Sinclaire, who founded it in 2005.
The protagonist of the game, Colonel John R. ("Rusty") Blade, is the commander of one of the largest security forces in the city of Freeport, HardCorps. Prior to the beginning of the game, Blade is working to rid the streets of a potent new recreational drug named U4, which is rapidly gaining popularity in Freeport and is rumoured to be able to cause genetic mutations to its users. Yet the source of the drug is still unknown, and its effects not entirely studied. As the game begins, the player is placed into the shoes of John Blade as he responds to a full-scale bank heist and hostage situation perpetrated by a well-known Freeport criminal boss, Antonio Mancini. But as the player progresses and pursues the criminal behind the heist, further questions are raised: Who is really behind the heist? And is this linked to the reported appearances of mutants in the city?
As the game progresses, it is gradually revealed that the whole bank robbery is funded by Elexis Sinclaire, who in fact only wanted Mancini to steal a safety deposit box from the bank's vault. When she learns that he launched a full-scale bank heist instead, she injects him with concentrated U4 and turns him into a mutant, sending him after Blade. John manages to defeat the huge creature, and afterwards learns that it was, in fact, Mancini himself. Blade also finds out that the substance found in Mancini's body after his death is only manufactured by one company: SinTek. All these unavoidable facts force Blade to embark on an investigation into SinTEK's vast industrial area located in the outskirts of Freeport.
Later, Blade learns that Elexis Sinclaire's main goal is to poison the Freeport water system with vast quantities of U4, turning all of the city's inhabitants into mutants. He manages to thwart that plan, but it turns out to be just a diversion because, in the meantime, SinTek's troops steal nuclear warheads from a U.S. military base. Elexis threatens to fill them with U4 and launch them at specific targets, turning the entire world's population into mutants. As Blade becomes aware of that, he heads to SinTek's main base in order to stop Sinclaire. However, once Blade defeats the Sintek's security and mutants at the base, he reaches Sinclaire, only for her to escape by transferring her entire body into a rocket that launches itself into the sky, splits and spreads everywhere, JC is unable to locate them, in Blade's fury of the escape, he smashes a button, causing the nuclear missiles to abort and cancel their launching. Sinclaire disappears through the rockets, never to be seen again.
Throughout the missions, Blade is aided via radio link by a computer expert working at HardCorps: JC, a skilled hacker, capable of breaking into even the tightest of networks. In fact, Blade had first found out about JC when investigating a cracker who had broken into the HardCorps system. After tracking down the hacker, Blade, recognizing the perpetrator's talents, decided to make him a job offer at HardCorps instead of arresting him. Thus, JC became one of the HardCorps most valuable assets and the only one able to assist them in hacking-based missions. | violence | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1880278 | Maska | Krish (Ram) is a happy-go-lucky guy who lives with his brother and sister-in-law. He was in love with a girl named Manju (Sheela). Manju happens to be the daughter of Simhachalam (Mukesh Rishi). Krish's only intention is to become rich by marrying her and doesn't have any feelings whatsoever towards her.He weaves a love story between him and a girl called Meenakshi aka Meenu (Hansika Motwani)to make Manju fall for him. He also meets Meenu and he starts to like her for real and falls in love with her.
Meanwhile, Simhachalam and Shinde (Pradeep Rawat) run against each other in a presidential election in Delhi. Shinde is a man of misdeeds. Shinde tries to find faults in Simhachalam's personal life so that he can expose him in front of the high command of the party, so that his route will be clear to get the party ticket. Shinde comes to learn that Simhachalam has another wife (Sita) and a daughter who live in Hyderabad. He sends his men to find them.
The story takes a twist when we learn that Meenu is the unofficial daughter of Simhachalam. With whom will Krish tie the knot? Who will win the election? What happens next forms the suspense of the movie. | psychedelic | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1090671 | No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker | A family is driving down a desert highway when they hit a deer. The dad gets out and comes back with half his face gone. The family is attacked by something.
In a lavish apartment, Trip meets with a dealer, Radford, who provides him with pills for a rave in the desert. Trip steals all of the pills. He meets with his friends Cookie, Nelson, Jack and Gretchen. The group notices an overturned car on the highway, which they dismiss as an abandoned accident.
Gretchen discovers that Trip is carrying drugs and stops the vehicle to kick him out. While parking at the side of the road, the group notices a short, but strong tremor. Gretchen agrees to take Trip back to a diner, which has been abandoned. The car runs out of gas and breaks down, so they decide to stay at the Halfway Motel. Learning from the radio that the highway has been closed, Trip decides to walk down the road for help.Jack and Gretchen pitch camp and sleep outside. After a haunting experience with the drug dealer Radford, Trip escapes and meets a man named Henry driving an RV, who is looking for his missing wife. He goes with Trip to the motel and sets up camp there. Trip doesn't tell his friends about his run-in with Radford, but warns them to be careful.
Looking for signal reception for his mobile phone, Trip releases from a rubbish skip the still-living head, torso and arms of a truck driver who then crawls away. Henry then meets Trip and discovers they both are seeing the dead people. While in his camper, Henry collapses, suffocating as a dark figure moves through the trailer. Still looking for reception, Trip is attacked on the roof by a hooded figure. Cookie is killed while sitting in an outhouse by being dragged into the hole.
Nelson is almost dragged under his bed, but pulls himself back up and jumps on top of the bed. He takes his sneaker off and drops it on the ground, watching as it is shredded. He then tries to escape by jumping through the window, but fatally cuts his throat on a shard of glass. Gretchen and Jack discover Nelson's and Henry's bodies, prompting Gretchen to look for Trip. Jack encounters the creature but escapes when Trip shoots at the figure with his gun. Trip is overpowered by the creature and loses his arm, then dies.
In reality an RV crashed into Gretchen's car after Trip stepped out to call for a ride, at the moment when they experienced the tremor. None of the group had noticed the RV, whose driver was Henry. His wife, Rose had explained that he was suffering a heart attack and lost control. The car that the group saw leaving the diner was in fact their own.
Each of the deaths at the hotel were reflected by their own deaths in the car: Cookie died from internal bleeding, Nelson cut his neck when he was thrown through the windshield, Trip's arm was severed gripping the cell phone and he died from blunt force trauma. Gretchen survived the crash because she was wearing her seat belt and Jack, despite receiving a massive head injury, also remained alive in the car. Radford, who had been stalking Trip, witnessed the accident and attempted to assist; hence the visions of him at the motel and highway.
In the final scene, Gretchen and Jack briefly discuss the fact that neither has any recollection of the accident, and no mention is made of the incidents at the motel. Jack comments that, for a moment in the crash, he thought he could see Gretchen, offhandedly mentioning the color of her eyes. | violence, murder, sadist, flashback | train | wikipedia | In case anyone doesn't know, this movie is in fact a sequel (the first simply called 'Reeker'), and this time it follows the plot, well...almost identical to the first one.This is a major problem.In the original film there is a rather large twist at the end, and if you don't already guess it, it is a great twist.
It's basically a remake, with slightly different circumstances.On a plus point, the baddie does have a little bit of background, unlike in the first movie, but that really is the only plus point.In my opinion, this is a sequel to a film that didn't need a sequel, so again, if you have seen the first film this might be a little boring to watch.On the other hand, if you haven't seen the first film you might just enjoy it.
Once again, Dave Payne serves up a killer opening sequence (pun intended) and the effects are pretty cool and creative, especially considering this is an indie.If you enjoyed the first Reeker, you should like this one, too.
The trick in horror is to keep us guessing, which No Man's Land does and also manages some original kills in the process.Reeker is back with his tool kit and the prequel retains the same tongue-in-cheek humor as the first, with some choice dialog and gory silliness.
If you haven't, then you might enjoy it a little bit.The movie is basically a carbon copy of the original Reeker, except with new characters thrown in and a little bit of background on the Reeker character so that they could create a new film.
I normally have no problem enjoying films that aren't completely original, but No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker adds very little to what the first film brought to the table.You will find yourself EXTREMELY bored as there are no characters to root for and you'll just want them all to die anyway.
You know what is going to happen at the end of your 88 minutes that you're going to waste.The movie does try to shed some light on the Reeker's origin's, but that aspect of the film turns out to be a tiny portion of the film's running time.
If tacking on the same old ending isn't insulting enough, the final scene of the film (after all is said and done) will make you cringe with just how awfully cliché it is.If you've seen Reeker, avoid this one by all costs.
Surely the premise was derivative and the wholesome was overall forgettable, but at least it was a totally unpretentious new horror film with neat gore effects, fresh acting performances and a really cool killer character (a smelly grim reaper like serial killer).
Three guys rob a casino and manage to land at the same gas station/cafe as a father (Robert Pine) and son (Michael Muhney), one a retiring sheriff, and the other the new man in town, were eating.Then things got weird, as one man gets his head practically torn of, but was still able to walk and talk, another man, who was burning a car, is also walking around, and, I kid you not, some legs without a body were running.
On the present days, Sheriff Reed (Robert Pine) is near the retirement and will be replaced by his son; while they are having a meal in a diner in a rest stop in the middle of the desert, a runaway car with three thieves of a casino stops in the spot for refueling.
However, the body of the wounded criminal vanishes and the survivors discover that they are stranded in the place; further they are stalked and chased by a fiend with stench known as The Reeker."Reeker" is a good low budget horror movie that in some moments recall "Identity" and "Jacob's Ladder" and with a great surprising conclusion.
Unfortunately this supposed sequel in nothing more than a messy and unoriginal remake, using the same storyline in a different situation associated to a confused and boring screenplay; better off watching the original good movie again.
I saw RISE OF REEKER at the weekend, and this is a really boring film, the first one was OK, but this is kind of a prequel and a remake all in one.It starts off well, some nice gore to start off with, but then for about an hour nothing really happens.
The other reviewers also said that if you saw "Reeker" then "No Man's Land" will be kind of a letdown.Without having seen the 'Main Event', I think I agree.
. .or enforced.Think about it that way as you watch and begin to scratch your head-- then when the end comes, it will all try to snap together.
Among the few good ideas present here is the fact that there's some really enjoyable and entertaining action to be had here with this one, as once again the film's central plot-point where the main killer runs around in an altered dimension picking off the group one-by-one following a devastating accident gives this the foundation needed for a sterling series of suspense encounters.
These come about here as the opening attack on the killers' hideout and capture in the bloodied body- filled shack is highly enjoyable, the first scenes out in the desert where they come across the killer among the sand-dunes where he comes out of nowhere to attack several people in quite grisly fashion, the traps at the end where he goes out to the different sections of the facility where it chases them around and really brings out some slasher standouts quite nicely as these elements really provide this with not only some rather strong and brutal kills but also quite a few graphic mutilations that come about due to the victim's not entirely dying off after an encounter which leaves their body mangled.
That in a sense is the film's biggest flaw, in that it feels so much like the original mainly because it occasionally did something interesting with the group that plays off like a retread of what happened previously of a group getting stranded in the middle of nowhere and then getting picked off by this particular breed of killer resulting in the same twist ending, and it was only because it's a sequel and there's the creature's name in the title did you really know what it was.
Those who saw the first movie will know that a major twist is coming at the end.
According to writer/director Dave Payne's Reeker films, 'Death' employs the spirit of executed serial killer The Death Valley Drifter to act as a 'soul taker', a being with a pungent stench who exists in the instant between life and death and who torments those trapped there, killing them in a fashion that mirrors their real life demise.If that makes any sense to you at all, then a) you'll probably enjoy this film, and b) perhaps you ought to seek some kind of professional help, this clearly being utterly derivative clap-trap, yet another logic-free scary movie with a supposedly 'clever' twist (so clever that it was done in the first film, and in many, many other films before that).As with the original Reeker, the only good bit occurs within the first few minutes, with the bulk of the film consisting of a series of puzzling supernatural occurrences which are resolved in a manner that only the most unseasoned of horror film viewers could possibly perceive as innovative..
No really, even the twist at the end couldn't save it for me.So my recommendation is not to waste your time, unless you are a really big fan of the first movie, or the director, or any of the actors.
Aside from that, then it is about a group of people trapped at a deserted diner, stalked by a horrible killer whom is followed by the stench of death.Similar to the 2005 movie then the acting in "No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker" was adequate, and people were doing good enough jobs with their individual roles.
I remember liking the original REEKER - a derivative B-movie but one with bite - so I thought I'd give this undistinguished sequel a chance.
It's cop versus robbers, except the two sides have to work together when the Reeker himself shows up, looking for blood.This is the kind of film that lazily throws in stock CGI explosions and some mild gore here and there in a bid to retain the audience's attention.
I have not seen the first one yet, I had no idea what the plot was about this movie, I did not even see a Trailer for this before giving a watch.Somehow I ending up having this is movies collection.This movies as some kind of Supernal force that is killing people.
This movie did have a great nasty Gory start , Which I really liked, there were some descent gory scenes in the rest of the movie.This dose get really odd and really Confusing, which makes scratch your head, Saying what the hell is going on and some of the scene can seem really funny at times.I also enjoyed the twist at the end of the movie, which I think really well done.I going to give this movie 5 out of 10.
After going to my rental store many times and finding nothing but terrible lionsgate movies, i thought, "hey, i'll give one of those redbox DVD machines a try" so i looked at the choices, and there happened to be a cool looking horror movie made by Ghost house.
generally, "rise of reeker" is not bad as long as it's not compared with some "smart" horror movies such as SAW, Final Destination, wrong turn2, etc.
Dave Payne did do a decent job on this, at least "Rise Of Reeker" will not turn up to be a boring low budget one that getting nowhere, cause there is still something worth watching in it.
if u like Hills Have Eyes, Dead End, etc kind of stuff, this could probably happen to entertain u too.PS: the ending is smart anyway, makes the whole movie shine a little bit...
No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker is set on a lonely strip of desert road in the middle of nowhere at a dusty diner & motel, on the day of his retirement Sheriff McAllister (Robert Pine) is about to hand the reins over to his son Deputy Harris McAllister (Michael Muhney) & are discussing things in the diner when a situation breaks out.
All hell breaks loose, a shoot-out between cops & robbers ensues & they all end up stranded there, cut off from the outside world by an invisible barrier & terrorised by a smelly ghostly killer but that's just the start of their nightmare...Like the original Reeker (2005) this was written, produced & directed by Dave Payne who also composed the musical score on both films & is basically more or less a straight remake as opposed to a sequel & I think it's telling that the number 2 doesn't actually appear in the title anywhere.
I think that those who have not seen the original Reeker will enjoy No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker more than those who have since all the twist's & turns are exactly the same in both films especially the ending.
Those who have seen the original Reeker will know exactly how this will end which obviously takes a lot away from the film, the original wasn't even anything that different anyway since the twist had already been done before & in a much better capacity in the excellent Dead End (2003) a couple of years previously so there's definitely a strong sense of déjà vu here with No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker (God I hate that title).
Forgetting about the original & the not very original twist ending on which the whole film hangs No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker taken on it's own merits is fairly enjoyable with a nice pace, some good action, a plot that entertains, some humorous moments & dialogue, some spunky character's that are quite likable & one blonde bird who is drop dead gorgeous (call me weird but even when she is heard talking about someone taking a stinky sh*t in a grease pan she still came across as hot to me), some nice gore effects & one or two nice sequences that add up a better than average horror film & as I have said those not familiar with the original & therefore not expecting or know about the twist ending will find an enjoyable little twist filled horror film that delivers on several counts.
Unfortunately those who have seen or know about the original can't help but know exactly where the film is going within the first fifteen minutes which is not good.
So there you have it really, whether you like No Man's Land: Rise Reeker & how effective it's twist's & turns are will depend if you can guess or already know about it's ending & that's basically what it boils down to in a nutshell.
Also one has to say that writer & director Payne has tried to expand on some of the ideas & themes of his original almost as if he was trying to explain away some of the ambiguities & mystery of the original, for instance he gives the Reeker more of a specific purpose, he gives it & his potential victims more boundaries & rules in which they function & operate & he even gives the Reeker an origin, birth & back-story which I am not sure was needed but Reeker is beginning to smell (pun intended) of a cheap endless sequel driven franchise based around some sort of monster or gimmick & I think Payne sets the roots for a possible series up here.It's quite interesting to note that although film is a very visual & audio based medium how many times the makers base scenes around bad smells which is something by it's very nature the media of film just cannot accurately convey in any way whatsoever.
The cast are alright but no-one I have heard of or seen before although I will just say again that Mircea Monroe is hot in this.No Man's Land: The Rise of Reeker is a better than average horror flick with good gore, good CGI effects, some humour & horror & at only just over 80 odd minutes it's fast paced with some good twist's & turns.
The only problem is anyone familiar with the original will have already seen & therefore know about those twist's or turns which on the one hand is one of the films biggest plus points but by a bizarre sort of logic at the same time are one of it's biggest minus points as well..
In the late 70s, the desert was tormented by a serial killer known as Reeker (Ben Gunther), a man who killed unmercifully because he believed he was an instrument of the gods to do their work.He is caught by Sheriff Reed and is sentenced to death.
I have just seen this movie and was a bit disappointed : Reeker was a good movie, with originality, some good moment and not too many long time without horror action.The second one is not that bad but has too many long time where nothing happens and some scenes are supposed to make their scary suspense effect but something's wrong, i don't know how to explain it ...Anyone else could like this film no doubt but, as far as i'm concerned, i don't think many people will be entertained and will probably be deceived a bit.
The first film was your good usual twist and turn psycho killer horror thriller, and this straight to DVD sequel is just as good, if not a tiny bit better.
The film opens with the origins of how the Reeker came to be, there used to be a man, or the Salesman (Michael Robert Brandon) in the 1970s known as the Death Valley Drifter, and there is a part when he gets caught and chops his own hand off.
It is apparent though that all that did die were meant to, seeing how also they are trapped by an invisible wall, you see the logical way they are killed off in the end, and there is no Reeker at all.
oh my god this movie is the best thing ever seen in my life here my i like the part where the gas tank blew and sheriff flew 18 feet into the air and the invisible wall that cool one of the sheriff try to go throw but wall bounce back the other car crash in the wall that so cool the man head was cool love that movie.
No Man's Land: The Rise of the Reeker.
The deputy at the beginning of the film who was considered a local hero although the killer clearly had him caught between a rock and hard place, is played as an older sheriff by CHiPs own Robert Pine, who meets the man he helped send to the gas chamber in a different way than the last time.
there should be a new genre known as the Desert Horror film and the Reeker series has gone back to the well 2 times.
The writer/director/thief of NMLTROR "borrowed" heavily from I-had-no-clue-I-wuz-snuffed movies like "Stay", "Identity" "Dead End", "Point Blank", "The Sixth Sense", "The Others", "Carnival of Souls" but also the "Final Destination" series when he made the first movie, so it's no wonder that this prequel runs into the same kind of trouble as all the "Final Destination" sequels did: we already know the outcome.
(You need to watch between 50 to 100 horror films before you find one that contains some new idea.) Admittedly, effort was made if not exactly to circumvent this problem than at least to make the movie as unpredictable as possible – within its predictable and limiting parameters.
Hence the ending with two actual survivors this time around, plus the fact that Reeker actually gets killed. |
tt0022180 | Suicide Fleet | Three friends who work on the Coney Island boardwalk, Skeets O'Reilly, Baltimore Clark, and Dutch Herman are all in love with the same woman, Sally. At the outbreak of World War I, the three men enlist in the US Navy. Before they leave for active duty, both Skeets and Baltimore meet with Sally, with the intention of letting her know how they feel about her. Baltimore can't bear the thought of Sally rejecting him, so he never discloses the depths of his feelings towards her. Skeets does propose to her, which she gently declines, being secretly in love with Baltimore.
The three are assigned to a US Naval destroyer, Dutch and Skeets subordinate to Baltimore, who is promoted to a chief petty officer, because he has served in the navy before. A German U-boat intercepts a sailing ship flying Norwegian colors, and when the German officer boards the ship, the Norwegian captain shares information with him regarding the movements of allied shipping, thus showing us that the Norwegian ship is an undercover "message ship" for the Germans. Shortly after this encounter, the destroyer carrying the three friends also intercepts the sailing ship. In an attempt to destroy incriminating evidence, the Norwegian captain sets the ship afire. The three sailors are part of the boarding party, and Baltimore manages to take possession of coded dispatches prior to the ship's sinking.
After the messages are decoded, it enables the US Navy to equip a fake "message ship", and O'Reilly, Clark and Herman are part of the crew assigned to man the vessel. The message ship cruises the Atlantic, hoping to be approached by a German submarine. Eventually they are, and during the encounter, they learn of the German plans to ambush and sink a fleet of American destroyers. As the Germans are about to leave, one of their officers becomes suspicious of the crew of the phony message ship. He exposes the American subterfuge, and the Germans return to their submarine and ready to sink the sailing ship. Before they can, Dutch manages to get a warning off to the American fleet. The US destroyers arrive, and the three German U-boats are sunk, two by American destroyers, and the third by the sailing ship. The three men return as heroes to the United States, and Baltimore marries Sally. | romantic | train | wikipedia | Fighting sailing ships!.
This is not a great movie, but it has some great shots of post World War I-era four-stacker destroyers, submarines, and three-masted wooden sailing ships that play combatant.
A young Ginger Rogers is the love interest in a fairly hokey plot but I am glad that I watched it.
The future Hopalong Cassidy plays the hero as a recalled to active duty Chief Petty Officer.
Based upon a book by an active duty Navy Commander..
Exciting naval footage.
This film is much better than other reviewers would lead you to believe.
If you're a fan of Robert Armstrong, James Gleason and early Ginger Rodgers as I am that would be almost enough.
The three guys and a gal plot may seem old now but it wasn't then.
It's carried off pretty well here.
I appreciated the views of 1930 New York including Luna Park at Coney Island.
As far as I can tell the midway was actually filmed at an amusement park in California; it certainly added a sense of reality.
I, too was confused by the 1931 clothing in a film taking place in 1917.
I kept wondering what war broke out.
However, such anachronisms are to be expected in almost every period film.
Women's hair styles and makeup always give it away.
And if Greed could carry it off wearing late 1890's clothes in 1922 crowds, why complain here?
But the naval scenes are the star here.
To my knowledge they are the most extensive authentic scenes ever filmed.
It's obvious that the Navy gave it's complete cooperation.
Everything looked authentic because it was.
I loved that the film shows the German side without prejudice (or subtitles).
Frank Reicher and Henry Victor lend an air of authenticity here, too.
Except for the semi-comic interludes it could have been an excellent documentary.
Over all this should be better known for its appeal to World War I fans and naval historians.
Look fast for Richard Alexander (Prince Baron of Flash Gordon) as a crew member with one line..
Suicide Fleet: Historical ships.
There were two sailing ships used in this film: "Bohemia" and "Indiana" Both were part of the de Mille "fleet".
Both were built on the Kennebec River, at Bath, Maine, in the 1880s.
The Indiana was built by and for the Sewell Family.
The Bohemia was built by and for the Houghton Bros.
and sailed for them until 1897, when she was sold to Alaska Packers.
Bohemia sailed the West Coast for 20 years before acquired by Hollywood.Bohemia was used in "Wreck of the Hesperus", "Blood Ship" and "Yankee Clipper", all 1927.
("Yankee Clipper" also starred "Indiana"; William Boyd and his real-life Wife, Eleanor Fair.)Bohemia is the ship destroyed in "Suicide Fleet".One of the "four-piper" destroyers used in "Suicide Fleet" was built by Bath Iron Works, which bought the former Houghton yard during World War I..
Weak action comedy.
The threesome of Bill Boyd, Robert Armstrong, and James Gleason play Coney Island carnys vying for the hand of Ginger Rogers, a working gal who sells salt water taffy.
With the outbreak of World War I, the threesome enlist and pursue Ginger from afar.
The first half of this RKO Pathe production is hard going, with the three male leads chewing up the scenery with overcooked one-liners and 'snappy' dialogue that quickly grows tiresome.
The second half concentrates on action sequences as the US Navy pursues both a German merchant cruiser and a U-boat.
These sequences are lively and well-filmed, but overall this is an overlong and unsatisfying comedy-drama with a flat ending.
For fans of the stars only..
aerial footage of destroyer.
Aerial footage of DD345 "U.S.S. PREBLE" (commissioned 3-19-20) while running at flank speed and turning from side to side and while airplane which is photographing bow-on goes from starboard to port and back again a couple of times..
A ponderous and plodding film....
...at least during its first half.
If it had started out with the three buddies in the navy and concentrated on the naval action scenes, it would have been a much better and tighter film.
The second half of the film is worth it, especially for the action sequences and close up shots of early 20th century ships, but it's like a dull toothache getting there.
Also, don't watch this film just because Ginger Rogers is in it.
She has an important role, but it's a small one.The film starts out showing three New York City buddies working the tourist trade and also in good-natured competition for the hand of Sally (Ginger Rogers), a singing candy salesgirl along the avenue.
World War I breaks out, the three buddies seem completely indifferent to the struggle, yet enlist in the navy anyways.
The one of the three with the least industry as a civilian (Bill Boyd as Baltimore) winds up the commanding officer to the other two (Robert Armstrong as Dutch and James Gleason as Skeets).
To make matters more complex, Sally has fallen in love with one of the three, but doesn't have the chance to tell him before the three sail off to war.The film is a little more interesting on board ship, mainly because of the close shots we have of the ship itself, and also because the chemistry among the three buddies is believable.
However, James Gleason at age 49 looks a bit long in the tooth to be a swabby, especially when the sign at the enlistment office said you had to be between 17 and 35 to be eligible.One real obvious flaw in the film that made me believe that everything outside the naval scenes was slapped together with minimum care is the costume design, or, I should say, the lack of it.
In the scenes in New York just prior to WWI we have everyone dressed in the fashions of 1931 and everyone driving the cars of 1931 - no effort was taken to bring this film into period.In conclusion, if you watch the few scenes with Ginger Rogers in them and the last 45 minutes involving the naval suicide mission, you've seen everything here worth seeing.
The rest is padding..
Three United States Sailors Against a German U-Boat Fleet.
Immediately after the United States enters World War 1 against Germany, three men from Coney Island by the names of "Baltimore" (William Boyd), "Dutch" (Robert Armstrong) and "Skeets" (James Gleason) enlist in the U.S. Navy and leave behind a young woman named "Sally" (Ginger Rogers) who each of them have fallen in love with.
Unfortunately, Sally only loves one of them so the other two Dutch and Skeets) do their best to keep them apart by deceiving Baltimore about Sally's true affection for him.
However, although Baltimore falls for their deception, they soon discover that he has his own plans for them as well--and his involves a deception towards the German Navy.
Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a comedy which had a bit of slapstick humor here and there but otherwise I didn't really see much humor in it.
Of course, this film was produced over 80 years ago when budgets were rather strained so perhaps it deserves a bit more slack.
Be that as it may, although it wasn't a great film by any means, I didn't think it was necessarily that bad either and for that reason I have rated it accordingly.
Average..
Tiresome WWI romantic comedy/drama with William Boyd as the star....
Three carnival workers romance the same girl until WWI interferes with their plans.
They join the Navy and the plot meanders all over the place with tiresome effect.WILLIAM BOYD (later "Hopalong Cassidy") spouts his dialog in a slow-moving way, and ROBERT ARMSTRONG and JAMES GLEASON mug their way through some silly shenanigans as sailors looking for a good time.
Boyd is the Chief Petty Officer who comes out of retirement to rejoin the service.
GINGER ROGERS is the carnival gal who can't seem to decide whether to get serious about Boyd or not, until the finale.It's hopelessly contrived and full of hokey situations, dated dialog and interesting only for a glimpse of the Naval ships.Summing up: Totally unsatisfying from almost every standpoint..
The Fleet's In. Suicide Fleet will appeal to those interested in historical naval equipment, indeed, it provides us with nearly documentary footage of several types of contemporary nautical ships.
Unfortunately for me I'm not all that interested in what the navy was like during World War One, and the drama (and comedy) in Suicide Fleet comes up lacking in every respect.We get what amounts to about a twenty minute prologue introducing us to three friends (William Boyd, Robert Armstrong and James Gleason) who are all smitten with the same girl (Ginger Rogers).
Then the United States enters the Great War as it was called at the time, the three men all enlist and Ginger practically drops out of the picture.
The rest of the movie alternates the exceptional documentary footage with weak comedy concerning our protagonists that reminds one of a poor episode of Gomer Pyle.
From time to time we also receive some well-done action scenes, but a definite lack of audience involvement with any of the characters (Armstrong and the sometimes excellent Gleason are too frivolous and too hammy, Boyd is too stiff, and Rogers has simply disappeared) keeps us from caring very much about any of it.Hard to recommend for other than historical purposes, or if one is trying to follow the arc of Ginger Rogers' career (which is why I watched it).
While she's around she's darned cute as a girl plying salt water taffy at Luna Park..
Awfully dull--you can find better similar pictures out there..
"Suicide Fleet" is an amazingly dull film about three guys (two of which are real jerks) in the US Navy.
All three (William Boyd, James Gleason and Robert Armstrong) are in the navy and are infatuated with a young lady (Ginger Rogers).
However, she loves Boyd and the other two spend much of the movie lying to their 'friend' and trying to steal the girl for themselves.
These antics were very tedious and the chemistry between these three is quite poor--making it difficult to like them or care about them.The three eventually volunteer for special duty about a sailing ship that looks similar to a German one that has been disguising itself as a Norwegian fishing boat.
The plan is that when the subs come to refuel and be refitted, they'll alert the American fleet to intercept them.
Despite a fairly interesting plot, the film suffers from uninspired acting, dull characters and a need for more action.
I've seen quite a few other military films made in the 1930s--most of which were frankly a lot more interesting than this one.
Aside from a chance to see Ginger Rogers before her big Hollywood makeover or Boyd before he re-created himself as Hopalong Cassidy, there isn't a lot to recommend this one. |
tt0041141 | Aventurera | The quiet life of the young Elena (Ninón Sevilla), changes dramatically when her mother runs off with her lover, causing the suicide of her father. Alone and without resources, she immigrates to Ciudad Juárez, where she unsuccessfully looks for work. On the verge of starvation, Elena agrees to work with Lucio (Tito Junco), suspecting that his offer is a trap for prostitution. She ends up dancing in the cabaret of Rosaura (Andrea Palma), a woman who leads a double life: six months a year she oversees her brothel in Juarez, and the other six months she is a respectable society lady of Guadalajara. Rosaura abused and deeply humiliated Elena, who ends up running away from her with the help of Lucio, only to have to flee the city when Lucio gets involved in an assault and ends up in prison. Elena decides to start a new life working as a showgirl in Guadalajara. There she meets Mario (Ruben Rojo), a handsome young man who falls for her. Elena accepts his marriage proposal, only to discover, through a bitter twist of fate, that Rosaura is the mother of Mario. Elena decides to continue with her plans as a way of torturing Rosaura and avenge all the evil that caused her. But Lucio escape from prison, complicating the Elena riot situation. | revenge, murder, melodrama | train | wikipedia | "Aventurera" is a very good melodrama - meaning a drama spiced with musical numbers.
Well, anyway by seeing the picture I had the feeling that the actors were not really taking their part so seriously; what I mean is that it felt like they were having fun - the melodrama with its conventions, its stock characters and innumerable twists, had no surprises in store for them.
The only thing demanded of the public was a complete suspension of disbelief and they were only too happy to comply.The stereotyped roles presented by "Aventurera" demanded a stylized interpretation, so the film is a melodrama with a light touch - it tells a tragic story sprinkled with musical numbers.
And here enters the heroine.Niñon Sevilla is wonderful - I'm not speaking of her acting qualities, because good acting was not demanded for her character and would only spoil the film.
One can detect a feeling of camaraderie among the actors throughout the film.There's a musical number where Niñon Sevilla, dressed as Carmen Miranda, sings "Chiquita Bacana" in Portuguese!
"Aventurera" is a really good film - it's a melodrama like no other.
But Mexico is also the home of the 'cabaretera' genre of movie musical, in which a beautiful young woman is caught between a soap-opera plot line and elaborate floor numbers set in a nightclub.
Lovely young Cuban actress/dancer Ninón Sevilla stars as Elena, a virginal (but gorgeous blonde) Mejicana who is utterly devoted to her father.
Elena abandons her villainous mother, and goes off to Mexico City to seek her fortune.She meets a handsome young man named Lucio who offers to protect her, and who immediately takes her to meet a domineering woman named Rosaura who offers Elena a cup of tea ...
Elena's cabaret numbers are campy, but I was relieved that they never quite sink to the Carmen Miranda level.
(I despise Carmen Miranda.) The musical numbers are impressively staged, on a large budget, and are enjoyable in their own right...
The title song, a gentle ballad sung by a male soloist accompanied by Spanish guitar, is wistful and haunting.Eventually Elena escapes from the nightclub.
because (except for her dead dad) every major character whom Elena meets in the first half of the movie turns up 'unexpectedly' in the second half of the film, so eventually these 'unexpected' appearances become very expected indeed.
At one point late in the film, as Elena walked back to her hotel room, I found myself thinking: 'Lucio hasn't come back yet: it's just about time for him to escape from prison and come looking for Elena.' Just as I thought this, Elena walked into her room and switched on the light.
Except for Elena and her father, every major character in this movie is unsympathetic.
His appearance and behaviour suggest a stereotypical pervert, but his interest in Elena really seems to arise from dog-like affection rather than lust.
At the end of the film, El Rana murders Lucio with a well-placed 'cuchillo', then he watches approvingly from the shadows as Elena goes off to seek a better life for herself.
It's clear that this strange little man's interest in Elena is unselfish, and that he realises he's unworthy of her.I'll rate 'Aventurera' 8 out of 10.
I hope no one adds to that excellent plot summary, because the less you know about the story going into it, the better this movie is.
I only wanted to add that one of the delights of "Aventurera" is that it features several of the best singers and musicians of Mexico in that era, beginning with the title song by Agustín Lara.I didn't rate the movie because I think it's in a class of its own.
I know there are other related films in the noir+musical vein, but in terms of talent and plot twists, there is nothing quite like "Aventurera."And ¡Brava!
Two exceptions are Anthony Mann's 1944 Minstrel Man and Gregory Ratoff's 1939 Rose of Washington Square in which Tyrone Power plays an even sleazier and less likable male lead than Tito Junco in Alberto Gout's celebrated Mexican noir melodrama, Aventurera (1950).
Like Rose, Aventurera is superbly photographed (by Alex Phillips) and also boasts a splendid gallery of supporting figures, led by Andrea Palmer's Joan Crawford-like madame and Miguel Inclan's remarkable Rengo who starts off as the most despicable criminal in the movie, yet becomes at the film's end by far the most sympathetic – and without changing his character!
And as for the lavish staging of the musical numbers, Aventurera easily gets the nod.
Albert Ketelbey's "In a Persian Market" receives a truly rousing treatment not only from the orchestra and dancer-choreographer-heroine Ninon Sevilla, but from veteran film editor, Alfredo Rosas Priego (no less than 240 movies, would you believe?).
This greatly satisfying 1950 Mexican film, directed by Alberto Gout, is one of the best of the genre.
It helped to have cast a charismatic Ninon Sevilla to star as the woman at the center of the action.The story of "Aventurera", with its twists and turns, is something that was typical of the 1950s films from Mexico.
The story of a young, and naive young woman who learns about her mother's disloyalty to a father she adores, sends this film spinning into a real adventure.
She will remain a good woman no matter what.As in all the Mexican soap operas that are a staple of that country's TV, "Aventurera" keeps building up on unsavory situations where our heroine will have to fight against until everything turns well at the end.
Elena Tejera is different in many ways; she never stoops low to the sleazy life where everyone wants to get her into.Ninon Sevilla, the Cuban born star of "Aventurera" makes a charismatic appearance in the film.
Andrea Palma is excellent as the villainous Rosaura and Ruben Rojo is the kind Mario.This is a fun film that keeps delighting us..
The best known in a series of lurid "Rumbera" films, a genre peculiar to Mexican Cinema which combines noir and musical numbers, and usually takes place in the underworld of nightclubs and gangsters.
Starring Cuban actress Ninón Sevilla and directed by Alberto Gout who directed her in other similar films with names such as "Perdida" and "Sensualidad".
A campy stage show was created in the 1990's based on the film and is still running today in Mexico City.
So, in many ways it is reminiscent of a post-code Hollywood picture--gutted of its sexuality and sordidness.When the film begins, Elena is a happy young woman and her life seems wonderful.
It all begins when Elena's mother takes off with another man.
A 'friend' offers to help her and after he gives her some adulterated champagne, she awakens to find herself in captivity--forced to work for an evil lady.At this point, you assume Elena is going to be a prostitute--and it looks as if that is what the film WANTS to say.
Nah. They really are attempting, in a very clumsy way, to imply she's a prostitute and sleeps with customers--though you never see anything remotely like this and it's obviously a case of over-sanitizing the plot.What follows is a plot by Elena not only to escape from her boss but to ruin her.
While this is supposed to be one of Mexico's better films of the era, I just found it all to be a boring mess which again and again failed to capitalize on a decent story idea..
"Aventurera" has all the trappings of a modern, classic noir film.
It contains, but is not limited to, an exciting robbery heist gone wrong, double crossing, sexual innuendos, a dastardly mother, and a femme fatale that can not only hold her own with the guys, but dance whenever a moment gets too tense.
Made during an era where films were willing, and excited to take challenges, "Aventurera" begins with a bang and ends with a bigger bang.
It successfully keeps your attention through numerous characters, both evil and righteous, while continuing to keep you in the dark about the true motives of our heroine, Elena (played by Ninon Sevilla).
This is a noir film, it is stylish and backstabbing all at the same time, but there is another element throughout the film which heavily pulls it away from the true roots of the word "noir", and that my friends, is the nearly half-dozen song and dance routines smitten throughout.
It is the one crucial element that pulled "Aventurera" from a supporting noir to a mediocre entry into 1940s cinema.What was there to enjoy about this film?
I digress, Ninon Sevilla portrayed Elena as this no-nonsense girl who wasn't afraid to show her emotion and be the one to take the lead.
Videohound's Independent Film Guide quotes, "Before we saw it ["Aventurera"], we'd never heard of its star, Ninon Sevilla, and now we can't wait to see some of her other movies
", and I couldn't agree further.
Sevilla could even sing and dance, and while it was a distraction from the film, she was graceful and elegant in the way that she did it.
There were elements that felt too lightly handled, but when it came to the big bang moments, the team behind this film had no problem showing us their goods.
"Aventurera" shocked me, much like other films from the 40s, with its dark sexual undertones.
"Aventurera" is a very suspenseful film, and was able to keep this audience right at the edge of my seat.Overall, this isn't a perfect film.
There is one song which Sevilla wears bananas while dancing which brought me into a frustrating sweat due to its similarities to a horrid pseudo-documentary entitled, "Carmen Miranda: Bananas Is My Business".
I loved the juxtaposition between Sevilla and her arch rival, Rosaura (played by Andrea Palma) their scene shot sparks from my DVD player.
The characters are worth viewing this film once, maybe twice, but the songs are fast-forward-able.
These pulp-fiction film-noir musical extravaganzas are considered camp today and this one, starring the incredible Ninon Sevilla, is a classic example.
The Joan's over-heated Deep South potboiler would have made a fantastic cabaretera if they'd expanded Crawford's carnival cooch-dance and later had her become the hottest musical entertainer in Lute Mae's whorehouse.AVENTURERA careens from one melodramatic situation to the next from the outset and never lets up.
How Elena rises to become the top attraction of the cathouse/cabaret is only one of the many jaw-dropping plot developments.
There's a few more surprises as Elena, bitter but ambitious, sets out for revenge, but little does she know there's a man from her past looking to even the score.
It's the world, not the ruling class, that's decadent and corrupt and, unlike Joan Crawford's FLAMINGO ROAD, in the end all you have is yourself.Ninon Sevilla, like Maria Montez, takes her role very seriously and the Cuban dynamo throws herself into the role of Elena with delirious abandon.
Just try to look away from her musical numbers as Americans old enough to remember will re-live the old "Chicquita Banana" TV commercials.
Over-ripe dialog abounds (at one point Elena exclaims "My life has only been the road to perversion!") and there's an unforgettable title tune ("And he who awaits the sweet honey of your kiss/Must pay the price in diamonds for your sin")!
With (director) Alberto Gout, she completed a brilliant cycle of films that include AVENTURERA and SENSUALIDAD.
Sevilla no longer dances the rumba on-stage, but she assures me that she continues to do so in private life.
The only thing you need concentrate on is the incandescent presence of Ninon Sevilla in the title role as Elena Tejero, first an obedient middle class daughter wearing horrid plaid dresses and retarded hairdos that suddenly falls into hard times and her work/career runs the gamut quickly from secretary/waitress to cabaret dancer/prostitute.
This is a film you will never forget if only because the intense gesturing and posturing (there is no acting here) of Ninon Sevilla is too delicious for words, it needs to be seen, and several times, to be appreciated.
I will summarize by stating that her first cabaret appearance is directly related to the "ritual oriental dance" that was a sleazy feature of adventure/film noir and even horror movies since the days of Pola Negri in "The Eyes of the Mummy", which I believe is the first one.
Although she looks like a giant insect that has sprouted antenna, she acts and moves so convincingly as the "cabaretera" that we start to think this is normal, then she jumps into her elaborate Brazillian number, heavily influenced by Carmen Miranda and in the midst of a cloud of fog her headdress is transformed into a basket of bananas with foil accents that are just too divine for words.
He also happens to be the son of a the "evil" woman that owns the cabaret where Elena was transformed from studious secretary into dancing harlot.
This middle aged woman character, Rosaura Cervera (played by Andrea Palma) is so outlandish, yet believable when one thinks that she anticipated the Mayflower Madam in Manhattan by almost half a century, that it deserves a study of its own, not to mention a seminar for split personality experts.
Their double entendre conversations from the moment they meet again as 'decent' women are the blueprint of drag queen competition dialogs, accompanied by a cavalcade of sudden tragic expressions, fits of fluttering from multi-leveled eye-lashes, twisting of the mouths into serpent-like lip acrobatics, all of which could turn plumbers into female impersonators if adequately imitated with patient study, which actually makes this film a true primer for drag studies.
There are many more twists and turn to the story which includes a film-noir jewelry heist, the unbridled passion of an escaped criminal, a murderous, deformed, yet loyal friend of Elena's, and so much more excitement than this summary could possibly describe.
An extraordinary creation of kitsch that anticipates Latin soap operas by a generation, this is a groundbreaking document of B cinema, film noir and gender studies..
Take a Lana Turner impersonator, a melodramatic plot from a Douglas Sirk film, stir with Busby Berkeley dance routines and more than a little film noir shadows and fog, and you will have "Aventurera," a camp classic that provides 101 minutes of entertainment with a lot of fun and laughs.It has a plot that goes on and on, the sort of story that would have been packed between the lurid covers of a '50's paperback.
"The mother of the man she loved was the madam who'd turned her into a harlot," the banner across the cover would have read.
The nightclub in Rosaura's brothel and her office, with its window that looked down on the customers seemed taken directly from "Gilda." Fog-shrouded streets resembled those of any number of noirs I've seen (foggy finale of "The Big Combo").The dance numbers, all of which were superfluous to the plot, were influenced by 20th Century Fox musicals that featured Betty Grable and Carmen Miranda.Had this been an American film, it would not have pleased the Hays Office for it is explicit in making clear that Elena becomes a prostitute.
Elena's rape is never shown, and when she appears the following morning to confront the madam, Rosaura, demanding to be let out of the brothel, all of her makeup is in place.
The Hays Office would have demanded that such scenes be deleted.Another thing that interested me about this film: all of the lead actors look very American.
Ninon Sevilla, who plays Elena, obviously a graduate of the Lana Turner School of Dramatic Arts, acts with the Turner flashing eyes and flaring nostrils.
In this cabaretera, Elena's curdled milk of human kindness would choke Mother Teresa.
Elena Tejero (Ninon Sevilla) is a peppy young girl from a well-to-do family in Chihuahua, the kind who skips across the dining room to plant a happy kiss on her loving father's indulgent cheek.
When her mother leaves home for another man and her father kills himself, a sad Elena decides to go to Juarez and find a new life as a secretary.
Thanks to Pretty Boy Lucio, a pimp and gangster, the innocent Elena winds up drunk, drugged and assaulted in the brothel/cabaret owned by a woman known as Rosaura.
Elena's future is simple, Rosaura tells her.
Elena does what she must, gains popularity as a dancer, never meets a man worth more than a used piece of wet chewing gum and gets out as soon as she can.
It's not long before Elena is a smash as a dancer and singer in Mexico City.
Elena by now has turned into a hard young woman who is determined to wreak vengeance on those who have ruined her life.
The twist, when it comes, is going to give Elena a lot of gimlet pleasure.
Aventurera is Elena's story.
We're talking corruption and revenge; songs and production numbers; diaphanous costumes and pineapple hats, melodrama and death; sex and sin...lot's of sin.
The movie is a type of Mexican film called a cabaretera, a cabaret/crime/melodrama movie that was hugely popular in post-WWII Mexico.
Ninon Sevilla may not have been a great actress but she had energy to burn.
With all the songs, dances, theatrics and...well, stuff, is Aventurera as campy as some say?
"Sell your love dearly, Aventurera./ May it pay the great cost of your painful past.
This is a gas.Its Mexican, and in the Spanish tradition that everything goes: all sorts of narrative devices and all sorts of plot types are sliced and diced and served in a sort of salsa that makes sense.Its old fashioned floor show musical, but sexier.
And it works, which is the miracle that is the most attractive.The noir elements are in the simple plot: girl on the street gets sold into slavery to a woman whose rich son she subsequently marries out of spite and then falls in love with him. |
tt0045074 | Red Skies of Montana | Cliff Mason, a veteran foreman of the Forest Service's smokejumper unit, is called out with a crew on a fire, despite the fact that they have not rested in three days. Accompanied by R. A. "Pop" Miller and four other men, Cliff leaves the smokejumper base at Missoula, Montana to parachute into a nearly inaccessible area of Bugle Peak. Hours later, at base, superintendent Richard "Dick" Dryer becomes worried because Cliff is not answering radio calls. The next day, after the fire crowns, Dick flies by helicopter into the area and is stunned to find only Cliff, in shock and wandering through the devastated region. Cliff is rushed to the hospital, where he gradually recovers, although he cannot remember how he got separated from his men, or why he was the only one to survive.
Upon his return home, Cliff is greeted by Pop's son Ed, who is also a smokejumper. Ed expresses genuine concern for Cliff, but Cliff, sensitive about his lack of memory and worried that he might be responsible for his crew's deaths, becomes antagonistic. A board of review conducts a hearing into the matter, and Cliff grows increasingly defensive after several grueling days of repetitious questioning. Cliff's paranoia grows that he might be thought a coward who deserted his men despite the assurances of his devoted wife Peg and Dick, who lets him return to work only as supervisor of training. Ed continues to grill Cliff, asking him how he might have come to be in the protected rock slide area that was the only possible place of survival when the bodies of his crew were found on an exposed ridge across the valley. Ed's suspicions escalate and Cliff reacts even more bitterly. One night, an emergency crew is called out to repair downed transmission lines, and when Cliff's longtime friend Boise Peterson is shocked by a live wire, Cliff saves him. Ed pointedly remarks that it was not necessary for Cliff to prove his bravery. Cliff is cleared by the board of review but confides to Peg that he is plagued by doubts about his courage. Later, Dick shows Ed a watch, mistakenly sent to another man's family, that Ed recognizes as his father's. Upset again, Ed confronts Cliff with the watch, and jogs his memory.
Cliff recalls that when the fire began to race along the treetops, all of them had reached the rockslide where he urged them to lie down in the crevices. However a burning snag fell on the rockslide and the crew continued running. Cliff attempted to stop Pop, pulling off his watch and ID tag as they grappled, but Pop knocked him into a crevice that protected Cliff from the worst of the fire. Ed furiously accuses Cliff of deserting his men and goes AWOL, parachuting from a private airplane onto Bugle Peak, where he finds Pop's identification bracelet on the ridge, not on the rockslide, where Cliff says he saw Pop last. Believing he has obtained proof that Cliff abandoned his men on the ridge, Ed returns to base, only to discover that Cliff and another team of men have been sent to fight a fire in Carson Canyon. Confronting Dick with the ID tag, Ed accuses Cliff of killing his father, and Dick fires him from the smokejumper unit for going AWOL on a personal grudge. In Carson Canyon, Cliff's crew brings the fire under control but weather conditions threaten a re-burn, prompting Cliff to request more men and equipment.
Ed joins the smokejumper reinforcements without authorization and at Carson Canyon tracks down Cliff, scouting the fire that now has them trapped. After losing his head and trying to kill Cliff with the axe end of his Pulaski, Ed breaks his leg when he tumbles down a slope as they fight. Cliff returns to the crew's anchor point to organize the men, sending three with heavier equipment to bring in Ed. Cliff orders the others to dig foxholes, knowing that burying themselves and allowing the fire to pass over them is their only hope for survival. The men protest but grudgingly comply when Cliff insists. Ed is surprised to discover that Cliff is responsible for his rescue, and when he is brought back to the anchor point, the crew panics and starts to flee. Ed sees Cliff knock down Boise to quell the panic and realizes Cliff was telling the truth about Bugle Peak. After the fire has passed, all of the smokejumpers have survived and Ed, reconciling with Cliff, sheepishly grins and asks for a cigarette, inspiring Boise to do the same. When Dick realizes the entire crew has survived, he reinforces Cliff's men from the air as an even larger ground force with bulldozers swings into action. | revenge | train | wikipedia | Wonderful Adventure Film.
Red Skies of Montana is one of a series of outstanding adventure films in which Richard Widmark starred during the 1950's.
It portrays the dangerous lives of smoke jumpers, who fight fires in the great northwest by parachuting into the flames.
Richard Widmark is a team leader, under suspicion after he is the sole survivor from a group of smoke jumpers killed in a massive fire.
He can remember nothing of event, yet must resume life amidst the doubts of his comrades.
The film adeptly the blends personal lives of the men and women involved, excellent firefighting action, and the suspense created by Richard Widmark's flashbacks of his near fatal event.
Jeffrey Hunter plays the vengeful son of one of Widmark's slain team; and Richard Boone adds dimension as the stern, professional commander of the unit.
This film is utterly believable.
The fire scenes are awesome.
Red Skies of Montana portrays a lifestyle that needs no "over the top" fiction or outlandish action to make it thrilling.
I think this is a timeless film, and a truly entertaining one.
And if you do enjoy it, I recommend "Destination Gobi"; another outstanding Widmark adventure..
The Real Story.
This film is based on an actual event, the Mann Gulch Fire, documented by the late Norman MacLean in his deeply moving book, "Young Men and Fire", where a team of smoke jumpers landed, confidently, on a hillside but were suddenly confronted by a firestorm, chasing them up a steep hill.
One of the group, the team leader, lit a grass fire, jumped into the ashes, and survived.
All but two of his comrades were burned to death in their futile attempt to escape.
MacClean wrote his book in his last years.
He actually saw the Mann Gulch fire as a younger man, I would recommend this book to anyone.
There are no braver people in the world than smoke jumpers..
I like it..
I would say that Red Skies of Montana is a good show, but it's better than good, it is a classic and well worth the time to watch it if you can find it.
It rarely shows on T.V. anymore and I can't seem to find any rental or purchasable copy anywhere.
When you watch it remember it was made back before computer enhancement so when you see it getting hot it may be faked but it's faked with fire not some digitalized fakerooney of a fire, some of the antique equipment is worth watching too if you are a Wildland Firefighter there are some that no longer exist and look like they should be brought back for use today.
Especially the trailmaker thingy that scuffs the dirt and tosses it aside to help smother the fire along the line of travel, cool machine.
***** (that's as close as I can get to 5 stars)..
Based upon an actual event.
This film is very loosely based upon an actual event known among smokejumpers -- and the entire state of Montana -- as the Mann Gulch tragedy, in which 12 out of 15 smokejumpers were burned to death.
Norman Maclean, author of "A River Runs Through It" and a resident of Missoula, Montana, home to the first smokejumpers and now the principal school for them, spent the last 13 years of his life research the event, in incredible detail, and writing an utterly fascinating book, "Young Men and Fire", which I heartily recommend.
Obviously, since the book was not published until after Maclean's death in 1990, it was not the basis for the movie, but the event was.
I first saw it in a fund-raising presentation in the Wilma, an old Art Deco theater in Missoula, coincidently sitting beside a student from the Smokejumper Center.
His attention was rapt.
The funds, BTW, were used to recover and restore the actual DC-3 that carried the Mann Gulch smokejumpers.There is an account of the presentations made at the 2004 National Smokejumpers Association reunion by the spotter (gives the "go" signal, on board the aircraft), the dispatcher, and one of the survivors from the Mann Gulch tragedy, found on the University of Montana Web site, at www2.umt.edu/comm/f04/airplanes.shtml.
It's short but intense, and will give you an appreciation of what happened.
Then the book .
. .In electing to give this a 9, I've taken into account the technology available and the style of movie making and acting of the times.
I would say the acting would rank significantly lower by today's standards.
But it is well worth watching..
Like Paratroopers They Jump.
The skies of Montana are red because of forest fires and this film is about the men who jump into those fires to put them out.
Red Skies Of Montana's main feature is the on location cinematography in Missoula, Montana in a national park of the smoke jumpers who go in from the air like paratroopers to contain and then extinguish forest fires.Sad to say the film is tied to a rather pedestrian plot situation.
Joe Sawyer who is a veteran smoke jumper is among many killed when they're caught in a fire that springs up and overwhelms the men of Richard Widmark's crew.
Widmark is the only one who survives, he's rescued by head smoke jumper Richard Boone.
Widmark is suffering burns and a bad case of amnesia as to what happened.Of course there is an inquiry, but that does not satisfy young Jeffrey Hunter who is Sawyer's son and who believes Widmark personally culpable for Sawyer's death.
That's the basis for the conflict in the film and if you're any kind of veteran film watcher you know how this will resolve itself.But the incredible location cinematography done in color and with newsreel footage of men actually fighting the fires is the main feature of Red Skies Of Montana.
Some of the best you'll ever see.
I'm really surprised the Motion Picture Academy did not recognize this film for both editing and color cinematography.To see a good film about some brave men who now include women in their ranks by all means see Red Skies Of Montana..
Red Skies of Montana Reaches to the Stars ***.
This action adventure film is still another great opportunity for Richard Widmark to display his great acting talent.In this very good film, he leads men into fighting forest fires in the Montana-Idaho areas.When tragedy strikes, a disoriented Widmark can't remember what has transpired.
The film provides a wonderful supporting performance by Jeffrey Hunter, a fellow fire-fighter, who lost his father in the blaze.
A suspicious Hunter feels that Widmark ran out on his men.The film shows what these men have to go through in fighting such dangerous fires.
Heroism is the order of the day and Widmark and company respond valiantly..
I remember this movie..
I was a kid, when it first appeared on "Saturday Night at the Movies" in the early sixties.
Sat and watched it with my sister and mom.
Haven't seen it listed much since then, and certainly not recently.
This and the movie "The Halls of Montezuma" made me a Richard Widmark fan.
And Jeffrey Hunter was a favorite as well.
Made in 1952, the year of my birth, I remember it for its vivid color and mountainous beauty.
Yesterday's (June 30, 2013) announcement of the death of 19 smoke-jumpers in Arizona had me spot on with the memory of "The Red Skies of Montana"!
Got the name, the stars, and year of release all correct.
Now, that's an impressive movie.
I highly recommend it..
Skies on fire.
The movie essentially focuses on the documentary side :how the fire fighters worked in the fifties,how they often risked their lives (still do today)and how(sometimes) they were unjustly accused of cowardice .their relatives are not forgotten :Widmark's wife and Hunter's mom are present and are even together when they are waiting for their men to come back after a dangerous mission.The plot concerns a fire fighter who suffers from amnesia:he does not remember what happened during a mission in which all his men were killed:a man among them was the father of a young fire fighter who cannot forgive him because he thinks he abandoned his men to save his life.Without any flashback,we do understand the whole thing during the final mission ,much to the credit of the film..
Poor film adaptation.
'Red Skies of Montana' is a loose adaptation of George R.
Stewart's book 'Fire.' After Stewart sold the rights to Hollywood, the story was so altered that it bore absolutely no resemblance to the book.
A fourth rate movie, to be sure.
Read the original book - it is a much better use of your time..
Time Travel Still Impossible.
As time travel is yet impossible, this film was not based on the book, Fire, written by George R Stewart, as claimed by another reviewer.
Since that book was published February 1, 1984, 3 years after Richard Boone's death from oral cancer, it would have been impossible to have filmed this book.
The film was shot in 1952, long before the book was published.The F/X are amazing for their time.
There's no CGI and the flames are from burning trees and forest.
It's remarkable no one was killed making this film.
One wonders how much acreage was consumed during filming.At the time it wasn't known that controlled fire was a healthy part of forest growth and management.
Times have changed.
All the Smokey Bear campaigns preventing forest fires caused a buildup of materials on forest floors and when forest fires occurred they were hotter and too destructive for the forests to survive.The actors are better than the plot. |
tt0055198 | Mosura | An expedition to an irradiated island brings civilization in contact with a primitive native culture. When one sensationalist entrepreneur tries to exploit the islanders, their ancient deity arises in retaliation.
In waters off Infant Island, a presumed uninhabited site for Rolisican atomic tests, the Daini-Gen'you-Maru is caught and run aground in the turbulence of a typhoon. A rescue party following the storm finds four sailors alive and strangely unafflicted with radiation sickness, which they attribute to the juice provided them by island natives. The story is broken by tenacious reporter Zenichiro (also known as "Bulldog" or "Zen-chan") Fukuda (Sakai) and photographer Michi Hanamura (Kagawa), who infiltrate the hospital examining the survivors.
The Rolisican Embassy responds by co-sponsoring a joint Japanese–Rolisican scientific expediction to Infant Island, led by capitalist Clark Nelson (Ito). Also on the expedition are radiation specialist Dr. Harada (Ken Uehara), linguist/anthropologist Shin'ichi Chūjō (Koizumi), and stowaway reporter Fukuda. Chūjō has studied the cultures of islands in the area and ascertained that one of the key hieroglyphs in their written language, a radiant cross-shaped star, translates as Mothra. There the team discover a vast jungle of mutated flora, a fleeting native tribe, and two young women only twelve inches tall (Emi and Yumi Itō), who save Chujo from being eaten by a vampire plant. The "Shobijin" (small beauties), as Fukuda dubs them, wish their island to be spared further atomic testing. Acknowledging this message, the team returns and conceals these events from the public.
Nelson, however, returns to the island with a crew of henchmen and abducts the girls, gunning down several natives who try to save them. While Nelson profits off a "Secret Fairies Show" in Tokyo featuring the girls singing, both they and the island natives beseech their god Mothra, a giant egg, for help. Fukuda, Hanamura, and Chūjō communicate with the young women via telepathy; they express conviction that Mothra will come to their aid and warn that "good people are sure to be hurt". Meanwhile, Fukuda's newspaper has accused Nelson of holding the girls against their will; Nelson denies the charge and files a libel suit against the paper. Meanwhile, the island egg hatches to reveal a gigantic caterpillar, which begins swimming the Pacific Ocean toward Japan. The caterpillar destroys a cruise ship and survives a napalm attack on a beeline path for Tokyo. The Rolisican Embassy, however, defends Nelson's property rights over the girls, ignoring any connection to the monster.
Mothra finally arrives on the Japanese mainland, impervious to the barrage of weaponry directed at it, ultimately building a cocoon in the ruins of Tokyo Tower. Public feeling turns against Nelson, and he is ordered to release the girls. He flees incognito to Rolisica, where Mothra, newly hatched in an imago form, immediately resumes her search. Police scour New Kirk City for Nelson as Mothra lays waste to the metropolis. Ultimately, Nelson is killed in a shootout with police, and the girls are assigned to Chūjō's care. Church bells begin to ring, and sunlight illuminates the cross atop the steeple with radiant beams, reminding Chūjō and Hanamura of Mothra's unique symbol and of the girls' voices. Chūjō hits upon a novel way to attract Mothra to an airport runway. The girls are returned amid salutations of "sayōnara", and Mothra flies back to Infant Island. | fantasy | train | wikipedia | This is the first Mothra movie, a story where a corrupted businessman kidnaps tiny twin priestesses on radiated Infant Island to exploit them for profit gain.
This angers the island's guardian goddess named Mothra, who awakens and goes in search for the kidnapped twins, threatening to leave a wake of destruction along the way.
For this movie, there is a great screenplay by Shinichi Sekizawa, imaginable effects by Eiji Tsuburaya, good directing by Ishiro Honda and a beautiful music score (though not by Akira Ifukube, Yuji Koseki composed an equally superb music score).
This movie has the usual elements in any "kaiju" movie: military, city destruction, tropical islands, scientists, reporters, natives and villains.We get to see the very first appearance of Mothra's tiny twin priestesses, played here by the "Peanuts," a popular Japanese singing-duo.
The male lead, played by Frankie Sakai, was hilarious and provided most of the comic relief in this action-packed monster flick.The natives' rituals and chants to awaken Mothra are spellbinding and enchanting, some of the greatest piece of cinema work I've seen.
Overall, this film is a great introduction to Mothra, who would go on to appear in many other monster movies, most notably alongside Godzilla in his many sequels, produced by Toho.
MOSURA (1961, released in the USA as MOTHRA) is like no other monster movie.
The chase goes from Tokyo to Newkirk City (I guess this is suppose to be a little real life hamlet just south of Yonkers!) What I really love about MOTHRA is that it has many things most other monster movies don't.
Mothra is what I call part of the holy trio of the Toho monsters (the other two being, of course, Godzilla and Rodan).
The Japanese people represented by some scientists and a chubby newspaper reporter and his sidekick photographer try to rescue the girls and return them to their home before Mothra, a giant caterpillar then moth, comes to Tokyo to retrieve them, leaving devastation in its wake.
The film has many beautiful color backgrounds, some great music(love the song the Ito sisters sing), solid acting from all, and some pretty nice miniature sets.
The "monster" itself really is good, despite its destruction of the Japanese countryside, part of Tokyo, and New Kirk City in Roscilica(Beats me where the names here came from).
Though not a great fan of the Godzilla universe movies I cannot deny their quality, their charm and how much they accomplished with creating the universe in general.Here we see the debut of Mothra getting her own film, a character who would go onto be one of the most commonly seen creatures.It tells the story of a rich businessman who kidnaps two tiny ladies from their native land to use in show business.
In doing so Mothra was summoned to retrieve them using any means necessary even if it means the entire destruction of Tokyo in the process.Mothra actually looks good for it's day, there is no man in a goofy suit as usual and Mothra in both infant and adult forms look far better than you'd expect.The cast are less generic than usual, the lead is fairly comedic and the whole thing feels above average within this original kaiju film.Certainly one of the better films of the series that I've seen thus far, but still highly niche.The Good:Some of the sfx are quite good for their dayCharacter development is better than usualThe Bad:Still highly cheesyA few weak points in the plotThings I Learnt From This Movie:Stowaways are not only not punished but they are given gunsA gigantic monster worm in a coccoon isn't newsworthyThe transitional phase for giant moths is a peanut.
It is a good story and gets to the heart of the Mothra myth with the singing fairies that summon him.While maybe not as iconic as Godzilla, Mothra is a kaiju worthy of his own film series (which he has), and those interested in Toho's work really ought to check it out..
In the beginning, though, the lepidopteran made its debut in this old-fashioned monster flick.1961's Mothra runs pretty evenly, allowing the story to breathe adequately before dishing out some modest mass destruction.
As the original feature, however, the only formula this film adheres to is that of the classic monster picture, with a bit of adventure thrown in, and it's neat that way.The story's pretty much outlined above; it is a well-structured plot with a cast of alright (and sometimes goofy) characters.
With all the fairies and monsters on display, I always felt that Mothra was a grade more unbelievable than most other monster movies, but thanks to the film's earnest tone, it works as a fine and dandy fantasy (and it's pretty neat to see such fantasy being opposed by modern and ultramodern weaponry).
Music is not bad either.No matter how silly or fantastic it gets, I have a soft spot for Mothra, especially in seeing her future clashes with Godzilla and other monsters.
The first and most original Mothra film presents the basics of Mothra-lore, which in turn echoes parts of the original King Kong, and would stand proudly next to classic monster flicks like Godzilla.
The two "peanuts" call to their protector Mothra for aid, and the title monster travels to Japan to save the little ladies, while leaving unintended harm and destruction in its path.Mothra is a sympathetic character which became popular and went on to co-star in many more Toho adventures.
The female creature starts out as a gigantic crawling caterpillar, but late in the movie emerges out of its self-spun cocoon, as a huge and colorful flying moth that causes intense catastrophic winds when flapping its wings.
I have always been a big fan of the charming little song that the twin fairies sing in honor of their savior, Mothra.
I first seen mothra back in the 70's on chiller theater channel 11 in new jersey,its not a chiller nor a scary movie.its a very well made sci fi fantasy about two twin women who are like 12 inches high that are kidnapped by a Japanese gangster while on an expedition on an island.well the twin girls have a guardian on the island,the god of their people,she is called mothra.now this is the debut of mothra and it begins as a giant caterpillar that eventually turns into a very pretty colorful moth that gracefully destroys Tokyo,not like Godzilla rodan and others.but mothra means well,the bad guy is the gangster(jerry Ito)who played a cop in the manster(59)and his thugs.so japan suffers because the twin girls are captive.the special effects are very good,not cheesy like most of the Japanese monster films.i believe mothra was made earlier then 1961,it was released by Columbia pictures in 1961 and dubbed for the American audiences.mothra was always my favorite of all the Japanese monster movies,sorry Godzilla.but mothra rocks.a very good movie for children and adults.10 out of 10.a must see for all Japanese monster fans.kudos to toho for producing a great gem like mothra..
Investigating the mysterious survival of a shipwrecked crew who had been exposed to radiation, an expedition (including the usual 'resourceful reporter' characters) lands on an ostensibly uninhabited tropical Island only to find a native culture who worship a deity called 'Mothra'.
"Mothra" (and her sequel 1964's "Godzilla vs the Thing") are among the best of Toho's daikaiju films.
The movie is very well done with a strong story and good human characters (admittedly somewhat stereotypical) supporting the titular monster who, in both her forms, is imaginative, engaging, and very well executed.
The two fairies, who in some form or another accompany Mothra in most of her movie outings, are played by the singing twins "The Peanuts" (Emi and Yumi Ito) who also star in "Godzilla vs the Thing" and "Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster" (1964), and (IMO) are the best of the various singers who have played the roles over the years.
The benevolent giant moth is one of Toho's most popular and enduring kaiju characters and appears in twelve more films (as of this writing), generally as a friend, ally, or guardian (except, or course, when her brain is taken over by malevolent space aliens).
As a fairly old film, this movie is interesting in setting up its own Universe with Godzilla and Rodan.
The original "Godzilla" film depicted the title character as just this monster that wanted to destroy.
The plot of this movie is that some tiny singing people (probably fairies) are taken from an island to perform.
I mean, Mothra first appears as a larvae, so it's pretty obvious by its name that it's going to turn into a moth later.
It's a curious thing - I KNOW I've seen at least some if not all of Mothra in my life (probably in that one week where I watched a bunch of monster movies in a marathon that was made possible by, ironically, Emmerich's Godzilla), but it didn't stick out the way that Godzilla: King of the Monsters or some of the others did (even the bad ones like Godzilla's Revenge).
Mothra *her*self is not even really seen in her full winged glory until around the last ten minutes of the movie, and before that when she hatches from an egg (long story...
No, probably not, but that's part of why I had a good time with this movie - he and the writers seem to embrace the dumb clichés of the characters like the (at first) bumbling comic relief in the fat reporter, or the villain who looks like he was born with a scowl and evil eyebrows, or his accomplice who seems to be missing an Edward G.
There's also the sorta bland hero and heroine, and, almost as a good luck charm, the great Takashi Shimura appears as the newspaper editor (and even in a seemingly thankless role where he's largely at a table or on the phone he gives as much dramatic tension and listening skills as an actor like him should do - yes, listening, watch him damn it!) So in a sense this does and doesn't have the issues that something like the 2014 Godzilla movie had; that had weak human characters and, while impressive, not as much Godzilla as one might've liked.
Here, the characters and the actors playing them (one of them in this English dub is "Nelson!"!) commit fully and bring some real emotion and reaction to what is essentially more of a quasi Skull Island movie than something we'd usually see with Godzilla.
And yet again when thinking about it, it's almost a challenge of a monster movie for the filmmakers after several films (and more to come) that are just guys in rubber suits, it's ambitious that they attempted to have a flying puppet (albeit one that's more cute than an outright threat), and there's even an odd delight that a giant larvae-slug-what-have-you is causing destruction for several scenes.
All I knew was sitting there watching this (in a Rifftrax style presentation by the way, one of those times where it's a riffing on a movie that's not really all that bad) Honda and his team were out to do a riff on the 'Kong' formula of monster being taken out of its environment (plus those enigmatic, delightfully gleeful women) and the havoc is immense.
Ishiro Honda directed this wild but imaginative film that sees Japanese scientists investigating reports of unusual activity on a mysterious remote island that had been exposed to atomic testing.
They find a primitive people and good-hearted "Twin Fairies", two women a foot-high who are kidnapped by a greedy foreign industrialist to be exploited for their unique size and singing ability, which is really a cry for help to their legendary protector: a giant prehistoric moth that attacks Japan, trying to rescue them after being taken to Tokyo.
Having an honored place in Japanese monster film lore is Mothra a giant caterpillar/butterfly who's a Deity on the island of Beiru.
And while the special effects of Mothra destroying Tokyo with the flapping of his giant wings, those paper mache, baling wire models that are a trademark of these film, still it's good fun.
And of course Mothra came back several times, often in conjunction with other Japanese monster creations.Almost fifty years later Mothra's still a lot of fun..
strange classic Japanese monster movie.
The giant moth creature Mothra is hatched by the natives.The colors are bright.
This is a classic Japanese monster movie..
The characters are very good, the effects are better than most of Toho/Daiei's films, and the monster is NEAT!
Mothra (1961) **American version**** 1/2 (out of 4)A jerk businessman finds a couple twin fairies on an island and kidnaps then, which lets loose Mothra, a giant caterpillar who eventually takes flight to wreck Japan.
This monster movie from Toho is probably one of their most loved and it's also one of their best.
This film is all Mothra and of course the twins who are always getting kidnapped by some greedy person or persons because little tiny twins are bound to make you a lot of money.
The usual, people try to get twins back if they can not then Mothra comes marching slowly into the city and takes forever to do anything and then spins a cocoon and then still does very little compared to other monsters, gets said twins then she is off.
In this movie, you will experience things like two stupid twin girls about 30 centimetres tall, really irritating music and natives, and some kind of a bad guy.
It's in fact the first time I've seen a bad guy in a monster movie.
Mothra is a different type of monster movie.
SPOILER WARNINGS(like you haven't already seen this, and if not, shame upon your house)!!!Ah, MOTHRA...We die-hard giant monster fans usually have widely divergent opinions on what the finest films in the genre are, and by that I don't mean regarding such merits as camp value.
The identical twin fairy priestesses who speak in unison, the song for help that the twin fairies sing endlessly to summon Mothra that people misinterpret as merely a quaint native folk song (HOO BOY, are they ever wrong!!!), Frankie Sakai as the pugnacious reporter "Bulldog," Bulldog's edge-of-your-seat rescue of an infant, Mothra blithely cocooning herself and the subsequent (pointless) use of an atomic heat-ray to try and burn her alive, the truly beautiful and majestic image of the winged Mothra taking flight and demolishing everything in her path with hurricane-level winds...it all adds up to a perfect, entertaining family film.
Complications ensue when the girls' giant moth guardian Mothra arrives and begins leveling Japan while searching for the fairies.
Directed with real skill and intelligence by Inoshiro Honda, with a thoughtful script by Shinichi Sekizawa, a steady pace, exquisite widescreen cinematography by Hajime Koizuma, exciting sequences of mass destruction, a sweeping, majestic score by Yuji Koseki, a strong central message about the severe consequences of human greed and selfishness, a strangely beautiful and poetic creature, a potent and affecting conclusion, and fine and convincing special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya, this film achieves a certain poignancy and resonance because of its unusually graceful and sympathetic monster who's essentially benign, yet still dangerous because of her immense size.
Mothra does level (some of) Tokyo, but trying to rescue her twin miniature priestesses kidnapped on their native island.
This movie's meaning is clear-cut and -for once- the monster has good reason to level Tokyo.
Wow, it's taken me a long time to get around to the original "Mothra" and I was surprised to see that it was actually filmed in color, unlike the 1956 film "Godzilla, King of the Monsters".
Mothra's a 'she', having the power of telepathic communication with a pair of twin fairy island girls who have been kidnapped by an unscrupulous Japanese businessman in order to cash in on the discovery.
The caterpillar form of Mothra wreaked it's own brand of destruction on the city of Tokyo, while the colorful moth version headed over to the Rolisican island city of New Kirk in search of the twins.Not too much scientific mumbo-jumbo is offered regarding the existence of Mothra, but I did get a kick out of the introduction of the atomic heat gun used to attack the cocoon on the Japanese tower.
Of all the Japanese kaiju, or giant monster movies that I've seen, MOTHRA has to have one of the most ridiculous menaces: a giant caterpillar that ends up cocooned before turning into a giant furry moth.
Elsewhere, it's business as usual for a monster flick, with the human side divided into two forces: the good guys – here, virtually all of them are reporters, which makes for a nice change – and the bad guys, who, as usual, plan to exploit the situation for themselves.The acting is what you'd expect for the film.
Film theorists postulating that giant movie monsters serve as figurative representations of the destructive force of female emancipation post-WWII will assuredly have a good chuckle with Ishiro Honda's Mothra, one of the most sturdy, well-crafted, and enjoyable of the Godzilla brethren.
I got this movie from the mill creek entertainment Sci-fi Creature Classics and Mothra was one of them.
A bit later when the Peanut sisters sing it awaking's Mothra which appears about halfway though the movie.
Reminding myself of the time that a former employer told me he tried to get his teenaged sons to watch Godzilla and their response that the monster was nothing more than a man in a rubber suit, I went into "Mothra" expecting mediocre special effects, bad dubbing with stereotypical Japanese accents while speaking English (indeed, all the "l's are pronounced as "r's" and vice versa), and too much exposition and not enough science fiction.
Eventually, we had 'good' monsters (Mothra, and even Godzilla) squaring off against 'bad' ones (robots and aliens).
Not much in the way of acting, though; I'd say there's four characters: the Japanese guys, the Rolisican guys, the miniature girls, and Mothra. |
tt0071671 | The Island at the Top of the World | In London in the year 1907, a British aristocrat named Sir Anthony Ross (Donald Sinden) hastily arranges an expedition to the Arctic to search for his lost son Donald. Donald had become lost on a whaling expedition to find the fabled island where whales go to die.
Sir Anthony employs the talents of a Scandinavian-American archaeologist Professor John Ivarsson (David Hartman) and Captain Brieux (Jacques Marin), a French inventor/aeronaut who pilots the expedition in a French dirigible named the Hyperion, which Captain Brieux invented. Upon reaching the Arctic, they meet Oomiak (Mako Iwamatsu), a comically cowardly/brave Eskimo friend of Donald's, and trick him into helping them join in the search.
Ultimately, the expedition becomes (temporarily) separated from Captain Brieux, and discovers an uncharted island named Astragard, occupied by a lost civilization of Vikings, cut off from the rest of the world for centuries. The Vikings capture Sir Anthony and Ivarsson, but Oomiak escapes. Shortly thereafter they find Donald, but are nearly put to death by the fanatic Godi (pronounced "Go-dah"), a sort-of Lawspeaker/Soothsayer authority figure.
The three men (Sir Anthony, Ivarsson and Donald) are saved from being burned alive by a brave and beautiful Viking girl named Freyja, with whom Donald is deeply and mutually in love. They escape, and are rejoined by Oomiak and eventually find the Whales Graveyard, but are attacked by Killer Whales. Here they are saved by the sudden reappearance of Captain Brieux, but they are still being pursued by the angry Godi and his rather unwilling warriors.
Finally, Godi is killed by the explosion when he shoots a fiery arrow at the Hyperion, but the Vikings will not let the expedition return to their world unless one of them remains behind as a hostage. Ivarsson however, willingly volunteers to stay, because this is a chance to live history. Ivarsson also points out that if someday Mankind is ever foolish enough to destroy itself, places like Astragard may become humanity's final refuge.
Sir Anthony, Donald, Freyja, Captain Brieux and Oomiak, are allowed to depart in peace, promising not to tell the Outside World about Astragard. As Ivarsson heads back to Astragard, he turns to look back just in time to see his four friends move further and further away until they vanish into the Arctic mist. | suspenseful | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0452052 | Shadow of Rome | The game begins as the Roman army, under the command of centurion Agrippa (voiced by Rick Weiss), is fighting a Germanic army in the northeastern provinces. In Rome, Julius Caesar (Michael Bell) is on his way to the Senate when he is stabbed. As he dies, he looks at his killer and says "Et tu, Brute?" As he is cremated in the Foro Romano, Cicero (Peter Renaday) reveals the assassin to the public; Vipsanius (Daniel Riordan), Agrippa's father. As Vipsanius maintains his innocence, Cicero announces Caesar's successor, Antonius (Chris Cox). Listening from the crowd, Octavianus (Scott Menville), Caesar's nephew, refuses to believe Vipsanius is guilty. Meanwhile, in Germania, Agrippa receives word of Caesar's death, and orders him men to return to Rome.
Soon after the funeral, Octavianus meets Pansa (Jack Angel), formerly Caesar's most trusted spy. With Pansa's help, Octavianus sneaks into the Senate where Maecenas (Larry Cedar), Antonius' secretary, proposes that rather than immediately executing Vipsanius, they hold a gladiatorial tournament across the Empire, the winner of which will perform the execution. Antonius approves of the idea, but dictates that Vipsania (Moira Quirk), Vipsanius' wife, be publicly executed immediately. Agrippa arrives back in Rome, and Octavianus explains the situation. At the execution, presided over by Decius Brutus (Daniel Riordan), Agrippa attempts to save Vipsania, but as they flee, she is stabbed in the back by Decius, who then defeats Agrippa in combat. However, before Agrippa can be arrested, he and Octavianus are saved by a woman on a chariot. She reveals her name is Claudia (Nicole Balick), a female gladiator. She tells them about the gladiatorial tournament, and that her brother, Sextus (Roger Rose) runs a gladiator camp which Agrippa could join to gain entry to the tournament and possibly save his father. Meanwhile, Octavianus will remain in Rome and investigate the murder.
As Agrippa fights his way through the tournament, Octavianus begins to follow Cicero's protégé, Marcus Brutus (Cam Clarke). At the camp, Claudia tells Agrippa she and Sextus are not brother and sister; he rescued her as a child after her brother was killed by a Roman soldier. Meanwhile, Sextus is visited by Iris (Heather Halley) and Charmian (Jennifer Hale), who come with "a direct order from our mistress." They want Sextus to assassinate someone, in return for their mistress aiding his plans. Sextus agrees. In Rome, Octavianus finds Cicero stabbed in his office. The dying Cicero tells him a group of conspirators are responsible for Caesar's assassination, and Vipsanius is innocent. Marcus is a member of the group, but the actual murderer is "another Brutus." Meanwhile, Agrippa makes it to the finals of the tournament in the Colosseum. Octavianus heads to meet Marcus, where he finds multiple senators murdered, and a distraught Marcus, who says the other Brutus is killing off the members of the conspiracy. However, he refuses to reveal his identity.
At the camp, Claudia tells Agrippa Sextus is really the son of Pompeius, who was killed in battle by Caesar. She explains he plans to assassinate Octavianus (Caesar's only surviving blood relative) in order to gain support for his conquest of Rome. Meanwhile, Octavianus finds a note in Caesar's handwriting speculating as to the worthiness of possible successors, and learns that Antonius was not his chosen heir. At the camp, Sextus abruptly disappears along with a number of gladiators, and Claudia learns he is working for Iris and Charmian. In Rome, Sextus confronts Octavianus, and is about to kill him when Claudia intervenes. Octavianus flees, and witnesses Decius stabbing Marcus. A dying Marcus tells Octavianus that Decius is the "other Brutus." Maecenas then has Octavianus arrested.
In the final of the tournament, Agrippa faces Decius, whom he defeats and is about to kill him when Maecenas arrives in the arena, announcing the return of Caesar. He explains the man killed was a decoy employed because Caesar knew about the conspiracy, announcing the murder was carried out by Decius, not Vipsanius. Caesar arrives and addresses Antonius, telling him he did not chose him as his heir. Iris and Charmian revealed Caesar's true choice to Antonius, who masterminded the conspiracy. A shocked Antonius admits his guilt, at which point Maecenas reveals Caesar really is dead, and the man pretending to be him is his true chosen heir - Octavianus. A furious Antonius orders Decius to kill Octavianus, but Agrippa intervenes and kills Decius. At that moment, however, Rome is attacked by Sextus, supported by soldiers loyal to Antonius, who is able to escape the arena. Agrippa and Claudia head to Ostia and confront Sextus. Agrippa defeats him and begs him to surrender. However, Antonius attacks the docks, and Sextus sacrifices himself to save Claudia. As a battle rages at sea between those loyal to Octavianus and those loyal to Antonius, Agrippa faces Antonius, whom he defeats and kills.
Back in Rome, Agrippa, Octavianus and Claudia mourn Sextus. She tells them she is leaving Rome, but will keep her eye on things. As she leaves, Agrippa asks her to promise she will return, but she doesn't answer him. Octavianus then vows to fulfill Caesar's dream of the Pax Romana, with Agrippa vowing to help him any way he can. In the epilogue, a content Iris and Charmian state it is time to tell their mistress they have "reached the end of the beginning." | violence | train | wikipedia | Shadow of Rome is awesome!!. Shadow of Rome is the best action game ever!! Since all the other games Capcom has developed over the years id have to say this one is about 3rd place Now to the game, in the game u can chop guys arms off heads off and they bleed like a fire-hose and after u cut an arm or and they are rolling back and forth u can stab them to make them stop!! The weapons variety is awesome as well, u can have a parma, spike shield, gladius, halberd, maul, mace, scimitar, bow, fire bow, and the kind of all swords the MAGNUS! There are a couple of bosses to keep your adrenaline rush throughout the game including one that comes back...I'll admit sadly that yes the Octaianus levels are puzzles but you get to strangle guys will string bash them over the head with pots and take their clothes and dress yourself in them!! And finally i would just like to say if u want a challenge of both body and mind Shadow of Rome is the game for you.. My favorite next to GTA. This game is basically about a ex-soldier named Agrippa who's father is accused of murdering Ceaser.He is accompanied by Octavinous, a close relative to the late Cesar, you will be doing puzzle missions in the game using him. Which some are easy, actually most are easy but a few are really annoying.Some other characters Pansa- he and Octavinous know each other, you frequently go back to his house, you can save your data there as well.Brutus- the true killer of Cesar, you will face him in a match near the end of the game, watch out, he is hard Sextus- a gladiator promoter who trains Agrippa to fight Claduia- the "sister" of Sextus, he saved her when she was a child, she fights as well Barca- The German king, you fight him two times, one in a battle, and two, in a final match at a arenaDema- A vertran of fighitng, he suffers from a condition in which he cant be in the sun, he really does not have any effect on the game, he gives you advice on stuff but that's really it.Miceanus- A person in the royal court, he is involved in some pretty suspicious things, but he is not bad, you follow him a littl bit for a mission or so.Vipsanius- The father of Agrippa who is accused of murdering CeaserAntonius- The person who is falsely named the Roman Emperor. Loving It!. Bascily, the game is split into two parts. Agrippa is a bear of a man trying to free his father who has been arrested for Julius Ceaser's murder. But to do that he has to enter the games as a gladiator and must defeat all his opponents, from big guys with maces to wimpy women with fire arrows and blood-thirsty tigers to killer elephants. (Yes you actually have to fight even elephants in this game! Trust me, I find animals are much better fighters than warriors.) Also another good bit is Agrippa can cut arms clean off and chop people in half, though for people who fell sick at this can turn this effect off. While Agrippa has a hellish time battling, his best friend Octavisnus (who is also Ceaser's nephew) sneaks around Rome trying to find out who is the real murder of Ceaser. He has to use whatever he can find such as vases and slippy banana skins to knock out his enemies. (You'll love the banana skin part!) Octavisnus must keep hidden and keep changing his costume to 'blend in' with the crowd. The one thing I didn't really like about this game was how much blood was in it but for anyone who can't stand a lot of blood is given the choice to take it off at the beginning of the game, making it a hell of lot less violent. The game starts slow but as it goes on it gets much better. You get really attached to your characters and I was so mad when I found out that some maddo wanted to kill Octavisnus. (I won't say who it is as I have spoiled enough but you get to beat the crap out of the killer, as well as some other cool bosses. Trust me, revenge has never been sweeter!) Overall mark: 9/10 (the producers went a little over the top by putting blood everywhere.) |
tt0050879 | Raiders of Old California | The film begins with the surrender of Capt. Miguel Sebastian (Dobkin) to Capt. McKane (Davis) from the U.S. Army at the end of Mexican-American War. Three years later, McKane was taking lands from their owners by intimidation and treachery.
Words reach Judge Ward Young (Heydt) and his son Marshal Faron Young (Young). After a talk with Pardee (Van Cleef), they investigate with Diego (Colmans), a farmer and an old veteran with Sebastian, and then they investigate with McKane, and learned about a witness in the deal named Johnson (Lauter). Pardee tries to threaten Johnson to keep him from saying anything. Johnson tells Judge Young about the deal and agrees to testify in court.
McKane's men ambush the lawmen and Johnson receives a dangerous wound, but tells them to look for Sebastian, who is still alive. They were overheard by Pardee, who went to interrogate with Diego and kill him.
McKane's men follow Marshal Young and watch him survive an attack from the Comanches. They try to kill him but he manages to shoot them first. He mortally wounds Boyle and takes him to the town priest. Dying Boyle identifies the priest as Miguel Sebastian himself. Pardee arrives in town and inquires about Sebastian from a drunk named Pepe (Diamond). He tries to kill Sebastian but he was gunned down by Young.
Upon this new finding McKane was ordered to be in court. He sends his men to kill Sebastian, but he dodges them through underground passage. McKane plans a cattle stampede through town. In the trial, Sebastian testified that he was forced to give his land to McKane under death threat, and that Johnson refused to sign as a witness because it was extortion and collaboration with the enemy, but he was forced to sign. Sebastian was permitted to leave for Mexico, but Pardee tracks him and pushes him off a cliff and left him for dead. Judge Young ruled that the grant was illegal because McKane bargained with the enemy at war time, and that McKane will be sent to be court-martialed.
The court abrupts by the coming of the stampede, and McKane is caught in the stampede and was killed, along with the sheriff. Father Sebastian agrees to give the his lands to the farmers. | violence | train | wikipedia | I guess the film makers just didn't care....
As a history teacher, this sort of western irritates the life out of me.
While it's supposed to be set just after the Mexican War (which ended in the late 1840s), nothing about the film looks right—nothing.
The guns are all repeating cartridge pistols circa 1870s-1880s, the cavalry uniforms from the 1860s and the whole look of the film is just another late 1800s film.
So why, then, did they bother setting the film in this much earlier era if they just didn't care what they slapped on the screen?
I guess they just wanted to churn out anything—hoping the public just would watch it anyways.The film involves a very common theme to westerns—the baddies who are trying to grab up all the land and force the good people off their own property.
In this case, an evil American is trying to force Mexicans off their land now that it's become a US territory.
Unfortunately, it's all very familiar, the acting is unspectacular (at best) and the production just looks cheap and slapped together.
My feeling is that since there were at least 13923035440509 other westerns made during this era, why not try watching one of the others first?
After all, it's most likely a lot more interesting and better produced than this cheapie.
And, perhaps my score of 3 is a bit generous..
Country Stars And A Young Lee Van Cleef.
Former Cavalry officer Jim Davis and fellow heavies Lee Van Cleef and Marty Robbins take control of a huge parcel of land following the Mexican American War, pushing the Mexican peasant farmers off the property given them by it's former owner, a General in the Mexican Army.Raiders Of Old California looks a bit cheap but it's so hard-boiled and action packed that the low-budget doesn't hurt it all that much, though I wish country stars Robbins and Faron Young could have strummed and sang a few tunes.Speaking of Young, he's pretty good as Davis' nemesis, a justice seeking U.S. Marshall.
If he had been fifteen years older he could have been an excellent Saturday matinée western star.Lee Van Cleef too has a pretty meaty role as Davis' number one henchman.
Here he's just as mean, cold, and cruel as he is in later performances.
This is essential viewing for Van Cleef fans..
Quite a surprise, and a very pleasant one.
Never having heard of producer-director Albert C.
Gannaway, I wasn't sure what to expect, even though I am a long-time fan of Jim Davis.In addition, I had never seen Faron Young in a movie, either, and again had no idea what to expect.Faron Young, whom I remember from my childhood as a singer, turns out to be one good action hero, an excellent cowboy movie star.Director Gannaway was an absolute master of camera placement.So I was not only surprised, I was exceedingly pleased by what I saw in "Raiders of Old California."The script has some flaws.
I never heard of Comanches in California, but except for the title, California doesn't seem to have anything to do with this.
It seems, except for the title, to be in Texas and maybe Arizona.
"Seems" because of a discussion about the boundaries of the land in question.But the story moves otherwise beautifully, with superb action, highly professional stunts, and plenty of them, and, again, lots of action, with Faron Young playing his part as if he had made a hundred movies.Harry Lauter gets one of his best roles, and plays it perfectly.
He was an actor!
And deserved more and bigger roles.Jim Davis has never been more evil.
Another truly great actor.Douglas Fowley gives what must be his most unusual performance, as a crusty desert-rat kind of sheriff.
Another truly great actor, he more often played a villain, and usually a city slicker, but his characterization here is just eye-popping.Lee Van Cleef also gives an excellent performance as a nasty character, and his eventual switch to hero roles was gratifying to his fans, and impressive to his audience.
He was paid, according to reports, with satchels and briefcases full of money to make a series of Italian westerns, and he earned every penny.Everything -- except for the occasional script and/or title flaw -- about "Raiders" is excellent.
For a very little known western, it is more than excellent, and I highly recommend you give it a look.
There is a first-quality print available at YouTube, where I saw it.
I hope you like and admire it as much as I do..
Subpar western.
Jim Davis is star and protagonist of Raiders Of Old California, a western from the last days of Republic Pictures.
Davis is an army captain who uses the Mexican War and the uniform to steal himself a Spanish land grant from the previous owner Lawrence Dobkin who after a murder attempt by Davis henchman Lee Van Cleef on his life, retires and becomes a friar.It's been previously pointed out the disparity in times for a film set in the post Mexican War years, with Davis, Van Cleef etc.
wearing Civil War era uniforms and carrying even later weaponry.
Herbert J.
Yates was not much for authenticity and research.Faron Young and Marty Robbins from the Grand Ole Opry are a good guy and a bad guy in this film.
It was getting a little too late for country and western stars to become western stars on the big screen.
Their time to become another Gene Autry had passed.Those who are thespians do a good job with their roles.
But Raiders Of Old California is a subpar western..
Good cast, but flabby oater's cheapness and incompetence is irritating.
Although full of actors with a lot of experience in westerns--Jim Davis, Harry Lauter, Lee Van Cleef, Douglas Fowley--this cheap and irritating film from Republic comes across like it was made over a weekend by a couple of guys who got some money (very little of it, from the looks of things) together and said, "Hey, let's make a western!".
This was released by Republic near the end of its existence--the studio went out of business two years later--although it wasn't actually made by them but was an independent production they picked up for distribution.
That at least salvages their reputation somewhat, since Republic specialized in making westerns and knew how to make efficient, action-packed horse operas; I can't think of any of its own product that is as tenth-rate as this mess is.There are so many things wrong with this film that it's difficult to know where to begin.
For starters, although it's called "Raiders of Old California", it's set along the Texas/Mexican border, nowhere near California.
As pointed out by other reviewers, the US troops wear uniforms and equipment that weren't issued until 15 years or so after the period the film was set in (the late 1840s).
The film opens during the Mexican-American War of 1848 with a US Army attack on a Mexican fort, and it's an indication of what's to come--the "action" is dull, slow, poorly staged and full of stupid mistakes (while attacking the fort, the US soldiers don't bother running but stand out in the open, where they are promptly shot; soldiers fall off their horses although no shots are heard being fired; after the battle is over and the Americans have taken the fort, a Mexican soldier rides through the front gate and starts speaking to his commanding officer--in English--apparently not noticing that the fort has been taken over by American soldiers), and the "fort" itself is a painfully obvious, shoddily made set that looks like it was slapped together with wrapping paper and plywood.The story of greedy villains trying to take land away from poor defenseless peasants and farmers has been done a thousand times before (and a thousand times better) and despite the cast of western veterans, no one acquits themselves particularly well.
I hope their checks didn't bounce so at least they got something out of it, because this flabby, badly written, sloppily made hackjob isn't anything any of them should be proud of..
Raiders of Old California had another turn by Jim Davis I highly enjoyed.
After making The Badge of Marshal Brennan earlier in the year, Jim Davis once again teamed with producer/director Albert C.
Gannaway and co-stars Arleen Whelan, Marty Robbins, Lee Van Cleef, Louis Jean Heydt, Harry Lauter, and Douglas Fowley, among others, for this one.
Here, he's Captain Angus McKane who, after the Mexican war, takes the land that once belonged to his enemies by force and threatens to shoot anyone who dares to challenge him for it.
I admit to being partly confused by some sequence of events but a flashback near the end explains nearly everything to my satisfaction.
I also noticed one sequence involving fighting Indians that seemed the same one from the other picture I mentioned at the beginning of this review.
Probably was done that way for budget purposes but it didn't ruin my enjoyment of this one.
Really, there's good action and compelling drama throughout.
So on that note, Raiders of Old California is recommended..
Reasonably exciting if somewhat blood thirsty!.
A forceful western set against the background of the American-Mexican war, this is most certainly a novel approach to the usual cowboys and Indians formula.It's well acted too and features some very convincing performances from the likes of Jim Davis, Lee Van Cleef, Faron Young and Marty Robbins.Although Arleen Whelan is prominently featured in the movie's credits and in all its advertising, her role is both small and unimportant.
This is a men's picture and just about all the players turn out to be either heroes or baddies.Allegedly based on true history, the somewhat bloodthirsty plot is crowded with action -- perhaps a bit too much action at the expense of exposition?By the humble standards of the Independent Western, Gannaway's direction is remarkably speedy and never less than competent.
He makes very good use of his real locations. |
tt0118790 | Buffalo Soldiers | Specialist Ray Elwood (Joaquin Phoenix) is a U.S. Army soldier stationed in Stuttgart, West Germany, in 1989. Bored with the lack of a war, he instead devotes his attention to black market deals, as well as cooking heroin for a gang of drug-dealing Military Police led by Sergeant Saad. As a supply specialist, Elwood poses as a model soldier and friendly confidant to his incompetent commanding officer, Colonel Berman (Ed Harris), who gives Elwood the opportunity to turn Army protocol to his advantage. Berman has no idea what supplies his subordinate is requisitioning or that Elwood is sleeping with his wife (Elizabeth McGovern).
Elwood's company then gets a new First Sergeant, Robert E. Lee (Scott Glenn). This new Top is both menacing and savvy, quickly assessing that soldiers like Elwood are engaged in graft. Meanwhile a tank crew, under the influence of Elwood's heroin, unintentionally kill two soldiers in charge of a weapons convoy by crashing through a gas station. Elwood happens upon the cache and steals it, hiding the trucks in a missile base.
Lee confronts Elwood about his abuses, and when Elwood tries to bribe him, Lee revokes all of Elwood's privileges, destroys much of his property, and makes him share his room with a new, naive and deeply honest soldier, Pfc. Knoll (Gabriel Mann), who doesn't fit well with Elwood's lifestyle.
To get back at Lee, Elwood pursues the first sergeant's daughter, Robyn (Anna Paquin), taking her out for the night and then deliberately having sex with her in his car outside her house, which Lee sees from his window. Though thinking he has won, the next morning Elwood finds his squad are doing weapons training, with Elwood's car used as target practice. Lee then leaves a hand grenade trap in a locker some soldiers have been using to hide heroin. The grenade explodes and kills Stoney, one of Elwood's friends.
Elwood sells his hidden cache of weapons to a Turkish dealer nicknamed "The Turk" (Haluk Bilginer) who will only exchange them for a massive amount of opium. Elwood reluctantly accepts and plans to cook it into heroin. However, a fight between Saad and Knoll occurs, and Elwood is forced to save Knoll and recruit the pair as assistants into his plan to cook the opium. In order to have time to trade the weapons from the missile base and collect the drugs, Elwood sells out Col. Berman, who is on an army exercise against another regiment. His unit's failure as part of the test ultimately leads to the colonel's dismissal. Berman, unaware that he has been betrayed, reflects ironically on this turn of events with Elwood.
On the night of the Fall of The Berlin Wall, Elwood sneaks to the base swimming pool to meet Robyn while the opium is being cooked. Knoll then appears with 1st Sgt. Lee. Here it is revealed Knoll is actually a 2nd Lieutenant from the Inspector General's Office disguised as a junior soldier in order to investigate Elwood. Knoll puts Robyn in a car while Lee beats up Elwood. However, Robyn tells Knoll that her dad is going to kill Elwood, something Knoll – as an honest officer – cannot allow. Meanwhile commandos reporting to Knoll attempt to arrest Elwood's partners, but Saad, intoxicated by opium fumes, provokes a bloody gunfight that kills many of the fighters. Lee attempts to kill Elwood by throwing him out of a window but Knoll holds him at gunpoint. The building explodes from a gas explosion in the basement, caused by burning morphine and the firefight. Elwood wraps his handcuffs around Lee's neck and draws him out the window as Knoll is engulfed in flames. Elwood survives by landing on Lee.
The film concludes with heavy irony. The US Army decorates Elwood with medals (Lee receives a posthumous Silver Star) and transfers him to Hawaii, where his new CO is just as naive as Col. Berman. Elwood states that Robyn remains his sweetheart and that she will be visiting soon. The film ends with Elwood requesting excessive supplies, implying that he plans to sell them on the black market again. | violence, murder | train | wikipedia | Pleased...not disappointed.
Picking this movie up from the library shelf, I didn't read anything on the box about it being historically accurate or factual so I didn't expect to get a history lesson by watching it.
For a one hundred minute made for TV movie I wasn't at all disappointed, and felt entertained for the time I invested in it.
Besides being filmed on location, it appeared a good effort was made in the uniform and prop department and it did not have a Hollywood look or feel to it.
I would recommend this movie to those who like westerns; and don't have an eye and ear for knowing it all, or watch movies for their political or social messages.
I did notice that their 1873 Colt's had the wrong frame for the time period, and the cylinders weren't beveled as they should have been, but I guess we all have to find fault somewhere, even us simple mined folk.
Watch it, and enjoy it for what it is..
"Buffalo Soldiers" is a major disappointment..
The story line offered with the movie, "Buffalo Soldiers," starring Danny Glover, describes the film as fact based.
With the apparent noble intention of illustrating and informing their audience of the important contributions made by African American soldiers in the invasion, occupation and settlement of the southwestern United States, writers Jonathan Klein and Frank Military weave a tale of Company H, Tenth Cavalry and its attempt to capture an "Apache warrior named Vittorio" who slaughters settlers in New Mexico.
Directed by Charles Haid, the film further promises to reveal "the truth about the Indian invaders." "Buffalo Soldiers" is a major disappointment.
The great cinematography delivers misinformation at best and definitely sets back the education of the public with its false narrative.In 1997, I saw this movie and shook my head.
Because a number of people have mentioned it to me this year (2012) with praise, I saw it again last week.
This time, I was appalled.Black cavalrymen and infantrymen of Buffalo Soldier fame were well respected by their Indian adversaries.
They earned grudging recognition from fellow white soldiers and genuine praise from their white officers.
And, they certainly did not commit the repugnant crime purported near the end of the movie.
Civil War hero Colonel Grierson was not the wimp portrayed in the movie, nor was he wounded by Indians during his twenty plus years as the commander of the Tenth Cavalry.Chihenne Chief Victorio (not "Vittorio") is known to scholars as well as buffs.
Between 1970 and 1991, authors Eve Ball and Dan Thrapp wrote scholarly and complete volumes about Chief Victorio and why he led his Mimbres Apaches (sometimes called Warm Springs Apaches or Eastern Chiricahua Apaches) in a fourteen month war against the United States.
Called America's greatest guerrilla fighter, Victorio was certainly not a Mescalero Apache as he was called in the movie, though a few Mescalero warriors joined his band.At Rattlesnake Springs in West Texas, the movie makers missed a chance to depict the actual dramatic showdown.
It was Grierson versus Victorio.
The two generals deployed their troops expertly and with aplomb.
That day, Grierson used his Companies A, B, C, G, and H – each a company of Buffalo Soldiers.
Find the factual and exciting outcome in readable story form here along with a recommended bibliography for your reading pleasure.
https://bobrogers.biz/Page_per_Book/First_Dark.html "Buffalo Soldiers," in addition to being an instrument of misinformation, is a teaching opportunity squandered..
This film may be a tribute to the African American soldiers but at times it is almost racist.
All white men are portrayed as evil while all buffalo soldiers are noble.
Even the scout is a black Seminole which is not historically accurate as most scouts at this time were recruited from reservation apaches.
the movie also has African American soul music playing over some of the scenes.
the movie itself is exciting and a good way to spend a Saturday afternoon but it gets bogged down in the trumpeting of the black soldiers as 'nobler' than their white counterparts.if you want a realistic portrayal of the Apache wars watch 'Ulzana's Raid' with Burt Lancaster or 'The Missing' with Tommy Lee JonesOverall i found this movie enjoyable but irritating at times.
it is full of 1990's political correctness but could do with this being played down a bit..
Realistic Message About Our Shared Humanity.
Anyone who says this is 'revisionist history' is in denial.
The movie is about Victorio's War, which was part of the Apache Wars.
To see how the Apache Wars ended, see the movie Geronimo (1993).
The dialogue is less Victorian and more like Western movies, but it has a lot of jokes that serve to show the characters' personalities outside of their jobs as soldiers, so it works.
My only disappointment is that the opening credits run during the best part of the movie - the religious ritual that the Apache are performing before they flee from their poverty-stricken reservation.
It strikes me as disrespectful to run credits during any religious content.
However, the Native Americans are played by Native American actors and the Mescalero-Chiricahua language is spoken, so Native Americans are portrayed in a positive way, not a stereotypical one.
In the movie, the buffalo soldiers variously respect and mistreat the Apache, because if they fail to arrest the Natives, black people in general will look like unfit soldiers.
Title implies more than delivered; the subject deserves better..
From the title, I expected a good overview of the Buffalo Soldiers.
Instead, we get a drawn out, soap-opera-ish tale of hunting down a single Indian villain.
Since I missed the first minute or two of opening credits, this script may have been pure fiction for all I know.
As one complaint, there is no mention of John Pershing's (of World War I fame) association with these troops.As could be expected, the wrongs and conflicts from racism are well set forth.
Nonetheless, the Buffalo Soldiers, many ex-slaves, proudly risk their lives and stay in the cavalry by choice.The acting is commendable, particularly that of Danny Glover as the central character.
Some '90s idioms (the 1990s, that is) find their way into the dialog.Given the title and the general ignorance (myself included) about the Buffalo Soldiers, this tv movie was very disappointing.
Surely, these men did a lot more on the frontier than they are credited with here..
little told American history.
In the post-Civil War world, Texas Rangers track Apache war chief Victorio across the border to the federal New Mexico Territories.
Sgt. Washington Wyatt (Danny Glover) leads the all negro US Cavalry H Troop.
He arrests the Rangers for trespassing and murder.
Commander Gen. Pike looks down on the colored troops and their command abilities.
He puts southerner Maj. Robert Carr (Timothy Busfield) in charge despite his unwillingness to lead them.
Col. Benjamin Grierson is a more supportive officer.
John Horse (Carl Lumbly) is the native guide.
Victorio is on the loose and on the attack.This is an interesting and little told American history.
There are compelling stories to be told.
It would have been more interesting to have more diverse personalities in the colored troops.
I would also love to see the other side of the story from Victorio's point of view.
This is still a very compelling TV movie..
One of the worst films I have seen - Pure Propaganda!.
Why are the revisionists in Hollywood content to produce worthless drivel that no one cares about?
Fiction that professes to produce some sort of truth is nauseating to watch.
Boring work like this is only worthy of a gullible TV audience, victims of TV and Hollywood propaganda that does nothing to disseminate the truth.
Danny Glover should be ashamed of himself and his performance, to be taken in by such trite, politically correct dialogue.
Poorly acted, because there is no script or story or truth, this movie is, simply put, just a complete waste of time.
This movie is not worth reviewing.I think historical research by people who can glean truth out of historical records would have benefited this project immensely.
Why can't Hollywood producers do that anymore?.
The way of freedom.
"Buffalo Soldiers' is an average western/adventure entry that tell a story about a troop in the U.S. Army after the Civil War exclusively for black soldiers.
Based on this historical point, the movie is concerned with some crucial aspects of these arrangements: the bad treatment that was given to the black soldiers by some of the white officials, the evident absurdity of serve in the U.S Army, die for the country and not receive an equal treatment and some other minor stuffs.
'Buffalo Soldiers' tries to do that without lose the sense of adventure and action along the way.
Sometimes, you feel that the dialogs are a bit too dialectical, too political, to be really natural.
And the ending is a bit too unreal, maybe, especially when one considers the shape of conscience of the sergeant-major, played by Danny Golver.
All considered, that is not a bad movie.
But its commitment to discuss aspects like freedom, self-conscience, compassion and respect for the Apache culture, weighed the movie a bit too heavy.
Good performances all around, especially Carl Lumbly as the scout named Horse..
Fine production ...
I did notice that a same scene was used twice in vert two different time & space scenes ...
when an "apache" is hidden behind giant rocks shooting/firing (0:36:07) and then again when in distant place from that scene : another "apache" shooted from the very same rocks (1:08:13) ...
is akward due to the many places that the film was supposed to be filmed .....
Three points of view: from white people-native Indians-Buffalo Soldies...you choice!!.
This dramatization states to shown how bad were those years when the US Army had to kill almost a whole native people whom were the real landowners and were slaughtered and aftermatch deported to some dry reservation,a shame that never the american people will forget....of course a new generation of clean brains shall fix it at least recognition and get back the black hills which the high court given a final descision,and put 6 millions dollars to pay the lands,but no one take the money....they wants their lands back and another sacred places to them ,in another point about Buffalo soldiers who deserves more respect from the american people...fine piece of art to shown such atrocities!!Resume:First watch: 1998 / How many: 3 / Source: Cable TV-DVD / Rating: 7.
Not Soundtrack Listing/Cedits - Contains Kothbiro.
This entry contains no soundtrack listing and neither are there any acknowledgments in the end titles/credits.
About halfway or so in the film I heard the song "Kothbiro" - the exact same track that is played and listed in "The Constant Gardner".
I had thought this 1993 song first appeared in that 2005 film.
Apparently it was used in this film first..
Danny Glover leads good cast in Western film!.
The film "Buffalo Soldiers is very good and is a fictional account of some of the historical campaigns in the Western territories involving black US Cavalry troops, who were often pitted against American-Indian factions during this tumultuous time in U.S. history.
It originally aired on TNT but is now available on DVD, recommended for those interested in modern Westerns, also American history, especially for students & young people.
Danny Glover was involved as a producer.
Timothy Busfield, Glynn Turman, Carl Lumbly all have good roles here.
Michael Warren, Mykelti Williamson, and Tom Bower round out the cast.
This is a little talked about part of American history, but it should be more widely known..
Nice way to spend an hour and a bit.
An interesting tale of the Indian Wars.
Glover carries the movie as the taciturn n.c.o. still on the receiving end of racism from so called fellow officers .An Indian renegade is on the loose and the US cavalry need to hunt him down and capture or kill him to make the west a safer place The film is a pleasant way to spend an evening not too challenging or provocative, but compelling and compassionate.
The rapport between the troops is perhaps too nineties but in essence it is amusing.An interesting counterpoint to the movie Geronimo where the Indians were less one dimensional.
quite fictional depiction of Buffalo Soldiers in 1887 Southwest.
The authors know nothing of the history of the Buffalo Soldiers nor how a dedicated soldier would behave.
The authors completely rewrote the history of the particular character of Nana (who was a real person).
It's pretty disappointing that the authors chose to give an explanation of the Apaches killing spree as a group who didn't want to live on a reservation.
The Apaches historically had raided and murdered many other peaceful tribes as well as settlers; there is plenty of historical documentation.
The authors chose to depict them as victims in this film.
It's clear that the authors also know nothing about the military and show little regard for them in this film.
The Buffalo Soldier would have done his duty with honor as any soldier would, they were not men of cowardice or considered themselves victims.
I'm quite ashamed of writers like this who change stories to make a personal statement, they have an agenda.
I thought there might be something more accurately portrayed when I rented this movie but it turned out to be quite disappointing..
Politically Correct Crap.
This film held my interest for quite a while.
All the ingredients were present to make a fine film.
First, the topic of the Buffalo Soldiers is highly interesting.
In real history, these men were a tribute to the uniform they fought for.
In the movie.
well things kind of fall apart.The good guys are just too darned good.
And the bad guys are really bad.
Indeed, almost if not completely psychotic.
And geez, it turns out the bad guys are the white officers under which the valiant Buffalo Soldiers serve.On the other hand, the Indians are really good as are the black soldiers.
These two oppressed peoples are so good in fact, that when the Buffalo Soldiers are about to kill an entire tribe of Indians that they've been looking for the whole time, the karma in the air kind of magically makes them change their minds.
Like any enlightened person of the 1990's they let the Indians go.
Something tells me it wouldn't have gone down that way in the 1870's.The makers should have called this film, "Politically Correct Buffolo Soldiers from the 1990's Go Back to the Future.".
A good movie gone bad....
For TV standards this was a good, well made film.Basically, the makers of this motion picture lost an excellent opportunity to make a great film, which would not have required too much more, The camera was very good, the sound also (allbeit the soundtrack is a little overly melodramatic).
The acting was also very good, especially for television standards, and overall the film gives a very realistic impression.
Unfortunately it could have been much better.
Just the ending alone destroys most of the good impressions made during the movie.
Why on earth did they want to depart from the historical facts in order to engage in creating a situation so absurd that not even a 5 year old kid would believe it.
All for the sake of political correctness?
How stupid do they think the viewers are?
If you only do as much as look up the Indian wars in Wikipedia, you will find that "Encounters with the Indians usually resulted in skirmishes; however the 10th engaged in major confrontations at Tinaja de las Palmas (a water hole south of Sierra Blanca) and at Rattlesnake Springs (north of Van Horn).
These two engagements halted Victorio and forced him to retreat to Mexico.
Although Victorio and his band were not captured, the campaign conducted by the 10th successfully prevented them from reaching New Mexico", not that they sat down with the Indians, had coffee, talked about it and then let them go!
It just doesn't make sense.
Why destroy a perfectly good movie with nonsense like this?In other, the character development is far too simple, too one-sided for this to be an "important" movie.
All in all, good made for TV fare, but unfortunately nothing more..
good movie ...remember it's entertainment.
I enjoyed the movie, it's good entertainment.
I have to compare the movie to older westerns rather than newer movies that try to be super realistic.
If you compare this with movies made up through the 1970's then it's good.
Somewhere along the line people started demanding more accurate historical movies, and I do appreciate authenticity and accuracy.
This movie at least gets me asking questions to find out the real story...
isn't that what movies do well in the first place?
Those reviewers who criticize the movie as "propaganda" are looking for realism.
They are also looking for "propaganda" so they can get upset about "left-wing Hollywood", and forget that movies are first entertainment.
This movie is dark and brooding at times and takes you along with it.
The only complaint I have is definitely the ending where they have "Victoria" surrounded and he surrendered, his soldiers were kneeling with the rifles above their heads in surrender.
All the buffalo soldiers had to do was disarm them and the climactic scene following at the end would never had happened.
It made no sense, not because it was "propaganda", it just was a silly ending.
But Hollywood is full of silly endings that have no political bent...sorry, I just don't get that twist.
Sure the movie makes you think and tries to put you in the shoes and times of the Buffalo soldier and it can go over board, but so do most movies especially military movies where they try to make "heroes" and "villains" out of regular people...just to drive the story.
That's what happens here. |
tt0097550 | I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle | A motorbike gang kills an occultist with a crossbow during a satanic ritual. An evil spirit inhabits a damaged bike. Noddy is then seen purchasing that very motorcycle for the price of £1100 from a dealer, but he tells Kim he only paid £600. He proceeds to take it home and fix, with his friend, Buzzer, and girlfriend, Kim, the damage caused by the crossbow by replacing the fuel tank. Buzzer steals the petrol cap for "funsies" but then the bike kills him by decapitation.
It is revealed to the audience that the vehicle has become a bloodthirsty monster. Noddy goes to the scene of the crime where he meets an inspector who smells like garlic. Later, Noddy has a bad dream that the inspector gives him Buzzer's head in a bag and it talks at him but then he wakes up. Then he goes back to sleep and dreams Buzzer is a poo that jumps in his mouth and starts asking how he is. Noddy wakes up again and is chewing his duvet. Noddy and Kim go to the pub and order a large vodka tonic and a pint of cider. Then ten of the bikers from the beginning come in and shoot the bar with the crossbow. One then offers to show Kim his "chopper" while she is playing pool. She declines, claiming not to have brought her magnifying glass. He then proceeds to unsheathe an axe and attack the pool table and moving onto plates, starting a bar wide brawl of 10 bikers against our protagonists. Kim manages to slip out the front and drive the bike round the back of the pub where Noddy jumps on it from the first floor and then gets shot with a crossbow bolt.
They then have Chinese. When Kim orders garlic prawns, the bike goes mad and drives off with her. It takes her under a bridge, throws her off and makes advances on her, until it notices the crucifix around her neck. It drives off back to the pub where Chopper attempts to steal it but the bike stabs him through the leg with a large metal spike, then launches him at some graffiti artists. It then proceeds to exact its revenge on the rest of the gang, decapitating the majority and leaving only Roach with a bolt inserted into his posterior.
Noddy then finds out Kim has been taken to hospital where she describes the bike's advances with a hollow look in her eyes. It is then seen that the inspector is looking at some heads. Noddy then goes to a priest, who also has a motorcycle. There is then several crucifix wipes as they travel to the garage where the bike is kept. The priest is sarcastic and does not believe Noddy. Not wanting to be taken into the sunlight, the bike uses its brake lever to sever the priest's fingers. Determining the bike is a vampire, the priest decides to do an exorcism. Believing the bike will come back for Kim, the priest gives her a crucifix and garlic. The priest throws a shuriken at a fly whilst planning the exorcism and exclaims "Right. Let's go kick some bottom!".
The vampire bike stops Noddy and the priest on the way home by disabling the bike they are riding, so they decide to call a taxi but instead wait for a bus. It is a race against the sun to get to the vampire bike before nightfall when it will be free to roam once more. During the exorcism, the priest is hit in the head with a wrench and Noddy is blown around the room by a mysterious wind, knocking him into cupboards. The priest is then crucified with a crown of barbed wire. Believing to have successfully vanquished the demon, the priest sprinkles holy water, but that only makes the bike angry, growing spikes and glowing red.
Noddy runs off and steals a police motorcycle, dragging the policeman behind him, who is almost run over by the vampire bike. The bike is chased by a police car, while the priest attempts to explain it to the authorities and Kim is washed, having her garlic removed. The bike evades the police by driving vertically down a wall and goes to the hospital to finish off Kim but not before cleaving the tea lady in two. Kim uses her crucifix to scare it away, so it goes after Roach, passing the priest and inspector in the corridor of the hospital. Roach crashes while fleeing and lands in a coffin. He is presumed dead.
The bike then goes for Noddy but gets its front wheel stuck in a bridge, giving Noddy the chance to throw it in a river and spit. Thinking he is safe, Noddy has a victory smoke, but the audience sees a red-light under the water. Noddy then sees it and screams and runs around like a lunatic. He hides in a gym, but the bike doesn't take long to find him and start attacking the patrons with its spikes. Noddy then bashes the bike, which feigns death, making everyone feel safe, until it starts throwing people's limbs in the air. The inspector scares it with his smell. The bike manages to trap Noddy against a wall, but is stopped when Noddy turns on a sun bed. Everyone uses their crucifix and/or garlic breath to force it into the light and it melts. Kim asks how much Noddy really spent on the bike and the priest says they are usually reliable. Back in Noddy's workshop, he accidentally cuts his hand and the blood drips onto the bike's old fuel tank which springs open, leaving the audience begging for a sequel. | violence | train | wikipedia | For anybody who needs to give their brain a rest.
I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle is the definition of "Good Bad", from the title that describes the entire plot, to the broad-brush performances, to the suspension of disbelief that comes when you know the budget is laughably small, but you *don't care*.
Those who love the work of Troma will discover that the British can do the same thing, and with even more gore and humour.Neil Morrissey, pre "Men behaving Badly", plays Noddy, an innocent young Birmingham motorbike courier who buys a classic Norton with a dark history.
What follows provides a hilariously imaginative reworking of every scene you'd expect from a self-respecting vamp flick, but on two wheels and set in Birmingham.
The special effects are zero-budget but enthusiastic, and the title creature in its mutated hunting guise is a highly impressive piece of kit, complete with Ancient Briton-style axle blades.
Morrissey looks as terrified and bemused as the script requires him to be, but the film is stolen by Anthony "C3PO" Daniels as a camply gung-ho biker exorcist, complete with razor-sharp throwing-crosses.
Michael Elphick provides sterling support as a Sweeney-esque copper with a life-saving taste in snacks.
As the punk rock soundtrack pounds (complete with inevitable theme song "She Runs On Blood...She Don't Run On Gasoline) and the severed heads of Hells Angels fly across the screen, you will revel in thrills, spills, cheap sexual innuendo, and low comedy.
Great fun movie, with a "don't care" attitude.
I've caught this movie quite a few times and I always enjoy it.
It's the tale of a despatch rider (played by Neil Morrisey) who buys a demonically possessed motorcycle that runs on blood instead of petrol.
It's a silly idea fleshed out with great characters; a comedy vicar (played by Anthony Daniels) and fine comic copper (Michael Elphick).
The films cheap, but resolutely cheerful and the overall effect is very pleasing.
Particularly good apres pub viewing.
I'd recommend it..
Enjoyable.
An enjoyable romp by the cast of Boon who are obviously enjoying themselves in a silly but entertaining horror.Not to be taken seriously , not the greatest horror , a definite B-Movie as it was supposed to be , so for me it hits the targets .If you liked Boon a motorcycle courier and almost Rockford files English TV programme with Michael Elphick and Neil Morrisey just shot in Nottingham rather than Birmingham which the film is then u will probably enjoy the actors hamming it up.Reminded me of some of the old Dracula films by Hammer , but using a motorbike instead of a foreign Count and that i think is what it is a Homage to Hammer by a TV cast using cheap effects and filming worth watching just don't expect too much..
Brilliant film!.
This was one of the best b-films I've seen for a long time, with humorous references to classic sixties biker/horror films such as Psychomania and The Damned, more than a few hilarious one liners, and Neil Morrisey before he was famous.
And anyone who has actually owned and ridden a Norton like the star of the film, will know exactly where the writers are coming from.
Rent it now - highly recommended for an evenings dvd entertainment..
Great British Comedy Horror.
Watching this movie is like going back in time; lots of blood 'n' guts, and all done in worst possible taste!
However, unlike some of the earlier video-nasty 'slasher' films which often just tried to shock, this story unfolds with a sense humour, albeit not very subtle.
Without giving too much of the story away, the title sums up the plot.
Neil Morrissey is great as Noddy the dispatch rider, who buys a second hand Norton at a 'knock down' price, not realising it's possessed by a vampire demon.
Other great performances from Amanda Noar as Kim, Michael Elphick (sadly missed) as garlic-breathed Inspector Cleaver and Anthony Daniels as the Priest ("Let's go and kick some bottom!").
This is surely Danny Peacock's finest hour when he appears as a talking turd!
Also good to see Burt Kwouk as the owner of an unfortunately named Chinese Takeaway and Graham Padden as PC Ben E.
Dorm.
Great music score by Dean Friedman, who coincidentally also wrote the music for Boon (starring Michael Elphick and Neil Morrissey).
It's a pity they don't make films like this any more!.
Vampire bike, Classic.
Starting off with a biker group demon worshipping when the rival bike group let loose heel and kill all the guys.
The bod who's been calling up the demon gets possessed and some thing strange happens to the bike!
A normal bloke (noddy) buys it wondering why it only starts at sundown.The bike getting its own revenge for the killing of its former owner.
hilarity ensues with the former cast of boon try's to capture the rouge demon bike.Thank god C3PO gets involved in the form of the priest.A classic spoof horror, which you don't see anymore, Still a bit weird watching Neil Morrisey in things other than B&Q adverts..
Without doubt the worst movie I have ever seen.
Dreadful!
A friend of mine (who obviously thought I had an abysmal sense of humour) recommended this.It's bobbins.
I almost switched it off.
It is only my anal desire to not leave things unfinished that prevented me doing so.This was evidently a British attempt to make a movie with a bunch of also ran TV actors using some lame script from their mate in the business.
I struggle to think of anything even approaching the paucity of this movie.
Less funny than global warming.I'm not normally so vehement, but I watched this well over ten years ago and thought that I wasted an hour or so of my life on it is destructive.Puerile, plot less, useless tosh.I'd rather eat my feet than watch it again..
Take it for a spin..
Brummie motorbike courier Noddy (Neil Morrissey) buys himself a classic Norton Commando, unaware that his new ride is possessed by a demon and requires blood for fuel.
With the help of a garlic-breathed police detective (Michael Elphick) and a biker priest (Anthony Daniels), Noddy tries to stop the evil machine's reign of terror.A man behaving badly, Private Schulz and C3PO versus a motorbike: this loopy British comedy horror looks cheap and the humour is uneven, but it is all so delightfully daft that it's hard to hate on it too much.
Similar in tone to early Peter Jackson movies (but nowhere near as full throttle, mind you), I Bought A Vampire Motorcycle combines low-brow comedy with oodles of gore, making it the perfect accompaniment to a couple of beers (or whatever you prefer to smoke).The craziness includes a talking turd in a toilet (played by Daniel Peacock), a sword fight in a pub, an ex-Grange Hill student (Paula Ann Bland) in a nurse's uniform being cut in half, the riderless Norton decapitating a gang of Hell's Angels, a traffic warden getting her comeuppance, and Burt Kwouk as a a Chinese Takeaway owner called Fu King.
All that and a healthy serving of cheesy splatter makes the film worth a go, even if we are presented with the genuinely horrific sight of Morrissey's arse rising from the crapper..
Terrible yet strangely compulsive.
The film is boring and yet it has to be watched simply because of the premise indicated by the daft title.
But the toilet scene is quite fantasticly disgusting.
If you have the time, watch it and forget it..
The Worst British Comedy Ever.
"What a load of SH**" said the Drunk in the Back row of the UCI in West Thurrock.
He then fell back into his seat and fell asleep.
The movie continues and a piece of SH** nearly chokes a man to death.
luckily the drunk was in dreamland when this scene came on.i stayed to the bitter end.
The cast have to deliver the worst line i have ever heard.id sooner watch Boys in Blue with Cannon and Ball than this rubbish.Anthony Daniels shows why his best playing C3P0,His awful as a Priest.Loads of Blood and gore no laughs though and considering its a comedy well you could of fooled me.1 out of 10.
Underrated British gem.
OK this movie ain't going to win any awards but for undemanding fun it's great and the late Michael Elphick(Boon)is fantastic as the garlic breathed Police Officer, yes you can see where this characters breath is going to really come in handy, there is gore,even a talking turd that flies into Neil Morrissey's mouth ewwwww.
Also if you love the classic Motorcycle Norton you will really like the "monster" and it's even got a rock song "She runs on blood...She don't run on Gasoline"and loads of carry on style humour.
You can see the cast had a blast doing this film So go on watch it and if you get the UK region 2 M.I.A disc it's got heaps of great extras.
For example they used the Boon Cast and sets without prior permission from ITV great stuff.
She crawls on blood.
Nothing fancy here, the low budget shows in every scene but basically this is an OK horror comedy with a lot of love for 70s and 80s bikes and some cute gags; the music is not bad either and there's some good screaming.Sadly, the whole thing goes on for much too long and at a snail's pace - as if the filmmakers had decided that full feature length was compulsive (which it is not, especially for such a one-trick pony).
There are only so many ways in which you can portrait an inanimate object as menacing and frankly the movie starts to drag sooner or later depending on your goodwill.
To fill the whole time, there should be more plot, which brings me to the burning question why the titular "vampire" Norton Commando doesn't spawn any bloodsucking offspring throughout the movie ...
a finale with a whole armada of vamped-up bikes (sorry, couldn't resist) would have been the obvious way to go.
Oh well, budget restrictions I guess ...Recommended for fans of those bikes (like me) and cheap laughs (like me) but don't expect any wonders and keep that bottle handy! |
tt0115561 | L'appartement | Max (Vincent Cassel) is a former bohemian and an amateur writer who gets a job in New York and leaves his girlfriend Lisa, with whom he was madly in love, in mysterious circumstances. After two years, he returns home to Paris and decides to settle down and gets engaged to Muriel (Sandrine Kiberlain). By chance, he catches a glimpse of his lost love, Lisa (Monica Bellucci) in a café, but fails to make contact with her before she storms out. Determined to meet her, Max secretly cancels his business trip abroad to pursue his lost love. Through a series of ruses and perseverance, he enters Lisa's apartment. Hearing that somebody else has arrived, he hides in her wardrobe.
First he thinks it is Lisa as the girl who came to the apartment resembles Lisa from behind. After several misunderstandings they finally get acquainted. The girl introduces herself as Lisa. The same night they make love and their relationship starts to develop. The girl's real name is Alice (Romane Bohringer). During the film, flashbacks are intertwined with the narrative to provide a background for Max, Lisa, and especially for Alice, shedding light on the situation.
The flashbacks show that Alice and Lisa were best friends, living in apartments on the same floor of two facing buildings, and that Alice became obsessed with Max, Lisa's then-boyfriend, from a distance. She restyled herself to look like Lisa while secretly engineering a breakup between them. Lisa is a stage actress and leaves abruptly for a two-month tour, giving Alice a letter to deliver to Max asking him to wait for her; Alice never sends the letter. Max, believing Lisa left because she didn't love him, accepts a job in New York and leaves. Upon her return, Lisa is heartbroken that Max has left her and leaves on a cruise (a gift from Alice) to ease her mind, where she meets a rich, married older man named Daniel.
Lisa is being pursued by Daniel, who might have murdered his wife to get closer to her. For this reason, she avoids her flat and lets Alice use it. To complicate matters further, Alice is dating Max's best friend, Lucien, who is also Max's confidante.
Eventually, the truth begins to unravel in front of everyone's eyes, leading to dramatic and life-changing consequences for all involved.
In a sub-plot, Alice is seen to be acting in Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream, drawing comparisons between the four lovers in the film to those in Shakespeare, and it is arguable that the whole film is a rendition of the play. The film begins and ends in "reality" where Max and Muriel have a world weary but sensible life in high finance (and the implication is that Muriel is the boss's daughter, thus imitating Egeus' involvement in Hermia's marriage to Demetrius), but almost all the action takes place in a dreamlike trance where the lovers don't really know who they love. Lucien is always faithful to Alice, and pursues her, but both Alice and Lisa (who, as their names imply, are reflections of each other) initially both love Max, and Max, although madly in love with Lisa, turns to Alice after reading her diary, just before reality dawns and he accepts his fate with Muriel. Alice leaves her life behind and flies to Rome, bidding Max one last farewell glance as he embraces Muriel at the airport. Lisa returns to her apartment and is confronted by Daniel, who drops a lighter on the floor (covered in gasoline) causing the apartment to explode and blowing Lucien through the window of a café across the street. | romantic, intrigue, flashback | train | wikipedia | This is an astonishing film: a romantic thriller with a convoluted but perfectly constructed and devastatingly symmetrical plot, brilliantly buttressed by the use of recurring visual motifs.
There's one small scene about three quarters of the way through where she does nothing more than smile; yet in that instant, says more than hours of Hollywood junk.One cannot do justice to this film without at least mentioning the superb, sequential climax: sad, shocking, ironic and subtle in turn.
I knew nothing about this movie after being recommended to watch it by a friend, but I decided to take a chance on it as I have come to really like Vincent Cassel ('La Haine', 'The Crimson Rivers', 'The Brotherhood Of The Wolf'), even if I don't always enjoy the movies he's in (e.g.
The packaging proclaimed 'The Apartment' to be "the French Single White Female", and while there is SOME comparisons between the two movies I think it gives the viewer quite misleading expectations, and is probably best ignored.
"L'appartement" has to be among the best French films I have ever seen (along with "Hatred", also starring Vincent Cassel, and those great Gerard Dépardieu/Pierre Richard movies).
With a bit of effort following the twists and turns, you can understand each of the characters; and key events in the film are reshot from the point of view of different people.
The acting was very good, with a standout performance by Romane Bohringer as Alice torn in three directions by the three other characters in the ensemble.
It's symbolic for them to have fallen in love with this movie!Directing: his camera is bright, alive, plays with the sets or can be mysterious with long close-up "à la David Lynch".Cinematography: the light is beautiful, between gold and rust, like their love!A never-seen before Paris: It's a Paris out-of-time of more accurately, a composite of a lot of districts!
A true delight with so many great things going for it from the homage to Hitchcock to two beautiful ladies in Romane and Monica.
While Monica is very beautiful, Romane is a very sexy lady and steals many of the scenes she inhabits.I am not sure why people think this film is convoluted as the scenes are such a perfect blend of past and present acting as a counterpoint to the characters' own remarkable journey that the film simply flows and you barely realise that 116 minutes of beauty and mystery have left the viewed enchanted and bewitched.
Like most French and European films this story would never translate across the Atlantic as no studio could capture the magic without throttling the life out of it with the Hollywood bleaching common to most movies that become lost in translation.
perhaps if they let someone like a young Polanski work on it then maybe they would not totally butcher an English version...For those who do not watch subtitled films you will spend a lifetime in ignorant bliss.
Stylish, erotic and complex, Gilles Mimouni's only film to date appears at first sight to be quintessentially French, but has links to American identity-themed, noirish thrillers, such as Preminger's Laura and Hitchcock's Vertigo.
(I'm also not so sure as other postings that all the locations and interiors are actually Parisian; the credits indicate that a lot of the movie was made in Spain.)Max (Vincent Cassel) is a successful, young executive, engaged to be married, who catches a fleeting glimpse of an ex-lover, Lisa (Monica Bellucci), and immediately drops plans to travel to Tokyo, in order to find her.
By the end of the film almost every i has been dotted, and t crossed, so that theoretically it should be possible to re-edit the movie so that it is linear.
A wonderful story about the consequences of obsessive love with the beautiful romantic back streets of Paris as its location.
After two years working in New York in the 90's, the successful executive Max Mayer (Vincent Cassel) returns to Paris and will sooner get married to his fiancée Muriel (Sandrine Kiberlain).
However, he glances at a woman leaving a telephone booth and he believes she is Lisa (Monica Bellucci), the greatest love of his life who had disappeared years ago.
Max borrows the car of his best friend Lucien (Jean-Philippe Écoffey), who is in love with his girlfriend Alice, to go to the apartment wait for Lisa.
The performances of Vincent Cassel, Monica Bellucci and Jean- Philippe Écoffey are excellent, but the sexy Romane Bohringer steals the movie in the role of an outcast woman obsessed by her only girlfriend.
Why Lisa trusted on a single letter, instead of looking for Lucien and asking Max's address in New York and send an ultimate letter?My interpretation of the plot is that the lonely and needy Alice is obsessed by Lisa and creates all the missing encounters to avoid Lisa to meet Max and leave her alone again.
Well, do not waste the time because this film is a pretentious, overlong piece of French 'style' - lots of visual cleverness and moody pouting (called great acting when it is in a French film) but little substance.
At the end you could not care less what happens to these self-obsessed characters and I must have had a bad day because I could not follow a lot of this.
This is "Single White Female" meets French pretension made by a director who has studied too many Hitchcock films but failed the exam..
It was also my introduction to the hauntingly beautiful Monica Bellucci (HER face could launch a thousand ships).The twists and turns and bizarre ending makes this a must see.
Many seem to have come up with their own explanation for the conclusion in an attempt to make sense of it and maybe that was Mimouni's intention (which makes this a pretentious film) but for me merely rationalizing that a character is a 'flawed' human being isn't enough to explain an action that is completely out of place.
I'm not saying that I would have preferred a happy ending (certainly not the usual Hollywood ending) but at least something that made sense of the character.Vincent Cassel, Monica Bellucci and Romain Bohringer deliver first rate performances.
Had it not been for the disappointing ending and lack of consistency, this could have been a great film..
You can't tell much of the plot without giving some of the game away so as to the story let me only say this: The worldly Max (Vincent Cassel) is about to be engaged to Muriel (Sandrine Kiberlain).
Think of Hitchcock's Rear Window and Vertigo crossed with Kurosawa's Rashomon and treat yourself to having the action happen in Paris with the achingly beautiful Monica Belluci, a passionate Romane Bohringer and that unwitting, lucky bastard Vincent Cassel who gets to smooch with both of them.
I loved everything in this film, the colors, the acting, the camera work, the script, the flat (I want a flat like that!!)...
However, Romane Bohringer had even at this early date more than mastered the art of 'personality dominance', whereby beautiful girls fall by the wayside and don't get noticed because Romane is being so fascinating you can't take your eyes off her long enough even to look at the beautiful girls, and you end up only thinking of her.
A brilliant storie, very detailed, which I just very much love.The best French movie I've seen (and French cinema is very good)!.
Specially for Vincent Cassel who wouldn't (at the time it was filmed) be the first character you think of for such a role.
As I've only seen about twenty French films, I can't say whether they are prominent characteristics in French films in general or just this genre.The film's comments on the whimsical nature of love and the constant, almost vaudevillian near-misses where the characters come within echo the shenanigans that go on in Amelie when she's trying to chase down Nino.I don't know why I'm babbling on about this anyway, it's pretty irrelevant.
L'appartement is simply a great movie : Mimouni's timing and cross-reference story is a state-of-the-art craftsmanship.
What I prefer in this movie is, apart from the excellent acting of the three main actors, Paris, Paris which is an active part of the story as the eternal city where anything can happen, especially decisive encounters.
An example of this is evident throughout the film as Muriel/Lisa stalks Max.The montage is essentially the story.
This is a good story marred by miscasting, none more so than Vincent Cassell as Max, around whom the plot swirls.
These 2 movies are quite different, but they have one thing in common: a GREAT story.
several years ago i saw this film, without subtitles, on television, and despite me not understanding a word of what the characters were saying i still got the general idea, and the mood of the film fascinated me no ends.at long last i saw it again a few weeks ago.
what follows is a wild rollercoaster ride of flashbacks, changing perspectives and really inventive twists in the plot, and at the end of the film i was left breathless.
Gilles Mamouni is playing with the audience with the story of Max (Vincent Cassel) in search of his biggest lost love (Monica Bellucci) just before to get engaged to another woman.
Mamouni uses many flashbacks sequences without warning so the best way to know where we are in the story is to watch for the actor's haircut.
A very good french film about the twists and turns in relationships.
This film has many twists and turns in the plot and is superb.
Reflecting the drama through the production of A Midsummer Night's Dream was a lovely touch and the conundrum plot never gets confusing because of the simple but perfect devices of differing hairstyles to assist the viewer.
It's seeing a film like this that reminds you why you first fell in love with cinema.
This is a wonderful thriller I watched many times and never can get enough of.It's all about the obsessive love 5 people have for eachother in Paris, (un)lucky coincidences, false identities.The music makes it really gripping.There are hardly any flaws in the characters,just the end is not very credible,but a definite "must-see" still..
A lot has already been written about the film itself, so instead of adding to the noise I just want to say a few words on the two female actors.It has to be a daunting prospect for any actress to star, in a sense, versus the spectacular Monica Bellucci, but Romane Bohringer pulls it off to sensational ends.
A film starring Monica Bellucci where I fall in love with the other girl??
that is, until the scheming, neurotic and obsessive Alice (the versatile Romane Bohringer) becomes very involved in the lives and loves of the other three.The rich plot is thickened by a curious chronological jumble, and the movie emerges as an intricate jigsaw, the eye-candy of picture-postcard Paris at the heart of it all.
The use of colour does not go unnoticed, particularly in Lisa's spectacular apartment (presumably accounting for the film's title), where the reds and yellows provoke the fires of passion and lust.The audience can relate to Max: he truly wears his heart on his sleeve and is constantly punished by irony and circumstance for it.
Monica Bellucci (Cassell's real-life spouse at the time of writing) has recently found fame in the Anglophone film industry, but perhaps for the wrong reasons - true, she is divinely beautiful, but behind that is a talented actress who can dominate a scene in classic 'leading-lady' style, which many British and American actresses dismiss in favour of the all-too-easy 'subtle' approach.All in all, watch this film!
I was captivated by the film's raw beauty- cinematography, Parisian splendour, the mise en scene, and of course the gorgeous cast of Vince Cassel and Monica Bellucci- the epitome of elegant perfection.
There are many love stories in this movie.
And the different characters in this movie have love interests that are quite diverse!
And also Monica Bellucci..She has a perfect beauty I have ever seen..Recommended for everyone who can feel...-Look at this, so simple.Yet majestic sober.
Max, who has lived in New York for two years and intend to marry a girl he met there, comes back to Paris and unexpectedly meets his ex-girlfriend whom he still fancies very much but finally finds out the one he loves the most in fact is her best friend.
The good cinematography also makes her and Monica Bellucci look very beautiful.
A good commentary of today's love and undoubtedly a film worth seeing.==Monica Bellucci is still so pretty especially in IRREVERSIBLE.
The director has left more than enough clues in all scenes.The first 3/4 of the movie centers about the question: why did Max and Lisa split?
Having experience with French movies, I predicted that the story pretty soon would get a sick twist and I was right.
In the end of the first part it becomes clear, after many twists and turns, that Max and Lisa were manipulated by Alice.
Well, of course not, time has passed by and things have changed.Many European movies use a story telling technique I fully enjoy.
Worst of all is Monica Bellucci ("ooh,isn't she so yummy?") who swans through the film to no great effect,her role merely to be absurdly gorgeous and act as a hollow erotic talisman for the archetypal passionate yet soft-headed French romantic lead,played by the gormless Cassel.
Then again did Max ever really love Alice/Lisa/his fiancée?
-SPOILERS------------ I am a fan of 60's-70's french cinema but not necessarily of the more modern,so to be honest i watched this because of Bellucci.She is very young here,extremely beautiful and on top of this supposedly this movie is where they met with Cassel,so it gives it some extra importance.The movie begins with a very nice style reminiscent of DePalma.Then suddenly we are thrown to flashback,and the back and forth goes on which gets tiring.I don't mind one flash back,but do it and get it over with man!!!Anyway,the movie is still interesting to me until a point when the first and definite hole in the plot,that allows for the rest of the story,never lets me enjoy the rest.I can allow for little holes here and there,but not to base an entire plot on hot air.This is the story of a man who is literally searching for an old flame.This is the main plot.I will go along,when the story at some point will convince me that there are really mysterious things going on,but in this story there's nothing really mysterious.Bellucci-Cassel are a couple ,then Bellucci urgently has to leave for some job in Italy(not the farthest place on earth from Paris)and she leaves him a message,which for reasons later explained he doesn't get.OK,so what?Don't these people have phones?Supposedly she was away for 2months(not a century exactly) and wouldn't she call her boyfriend in Paris to see how he's doing?
Of course not.Instead,even after she gets back she forgets all about him.And thats fine,but later in the movie she tells her friend that it was her greatest love and was ready to commit for the first time in her life.Yet she failed to give him a call for 2months and then never tried to get back with him.And what about Cassel's character?He was supposedly unable to locate her in Italy,really hard to find someone in Italy,its probably like Siberia,especially an actress who is probably listed even in the arts papers.And after 2months when she would be back,really hard to find her and ask for an explanation.
First because you already know all the plot turns that make the story great and second because - I never thought I would ever say this - Diane Kruger is much better for the part than Monica Bellucci (and this comes from a man who is a big fan of the latter).
Well I avoided that movie like the plague when it was first released, simply because, a) I knew it had absolutely nothing to do with Wicker Park, and living in Chicago, I didn't see why they called it that - it was filmed in fricking Canada for a start!
Great acting, Romane Bohringer is an absolute gem - sorry, but she acts Monica Bellucci off the screen in every scene.
And I've seen Jean-Philippe Ecoffey in a lot of movies and I just love him - the scene where Alice dumps him in the restaurant and he just looks like someone's told him his puppy's been run over was excruciating!
Even his clever denouement has you guessing.The three central performances are also top class, with Vincent Cassel, Romane Bohringer and Monica Bellucci doing their utmost to add to the mystery.
When they get it right, they really get it right.Vincent Cassell is intriguing as the deceptive Max, Romane Bohringer obsessive as the new Lisa, and Monica Bellucci is mysterious as the first Lisa.
I was surprised how I got hooked by the story, which is a combination of "Midsummer Night's Dream", "Rear Window", and 1940's noir movies (North by Northwest for example), but in a colorful palette.Brillian start of careers for Cassel and the young French actress Romane Bohringer (who plays Alice).
As of now I haven't rewatched the movie and I don't think I will.The story follows the experiences of a man, Max, who is engaged to be married to Muriel.
The movie then moves through a whole range of twists and finally leads to an ending which could be interpreted in many ways.
What I love about the fact is that a movie about obsession, jealousy is done in such a light hearted manner.
Vincent Cassel as Max gives a great performance.
But the real star of the movie is Romane Bohringer as Alice.
L'Appartement is a French film that stars Vincent Cassel, Monica Bellucci and Romane Bohringer.It was directed by Gilles Mimouni.The movie follows the romantic obsession of Max (Cassel), a young corporate hotshot who leaves his successful new world behind to search for his elusive lost love Lisa (Bellucci). |
tt0018524 | Uncle Tom's Cabin | === Eliza escapes with her son, Tom sold "down the river" ===
The book opens with a Kentucky farmer named Arthur Shelby facing the loss of his farm because of debts. Even though he and his wife Emily Shelby believe that they have a benevolent relationship with their slaves, Shelby decides to raise the needed funds by selling two of them—Uncle Tom, a middle-aged man with a wife and children, and Harry, the son of Emily Shelby's maid Eliza—to a slave trader. Emily Shelby is averse to this idea because she had promised her maid that her child would never be sold; Emily's son, George Shelby, hates to see Tom go because he sees the man as his friend and mentor.
When Eliza overhears Mr. and Mrs. Shelby discussing plans to sell Tom and Harry, Eliza determines to run away with her son. The novel states that Eliza made this decision because she fears losing her only surviving child (she had already miscarried two children). Eliza departs that night, leaving a note of apology to her mistress.
Tom is sold and placed on a riverboat which sets sail down the Mississippi River. While on board, Tom meets and befriends a young white girl named Eva. Eva's father Augustine St. Clare buys Tom from the slave trader and takes him with the family to their home in New Orleans. Tom and Eva begin to relate to one another because of the deep Christian faith they both share.
=== Eliza's family hunted, Tom's life with St. Clare ===
During Eliza's escape, she meets up with her husband George Harris, who had run away previously. They decide to attempt to reach Canada. However, they are tracked by a slave hunter named Tom Loker. Eventually Loker and his men trap Eliza and her family, causing George to shoot him in the side. Worried that Loker may die, Eliza convinces George to bring the slave hunter to a nearby Quaker settlement for medical treatment.
Back in New Orleans, St. Clare debates slavery with his Northern cousin Ophelia who, while opposing slavery, is prejudiced against black people. St. Clare, however, believes he is not biased, even though he is a slave owner. In an attempt to show Ophelia that her views on blacks are wrong, St. Clare purchases Topsy, a young black slave, and asks Ophelia to educate her.
After Tom has lived with the St. Clares for two years, Eva grows very ill. Before she dies she experiences a vision of heaven, which she shares with the people around her. As a result of her death and vision, the other characters resolve to change their lives, with Ophelia promising to throw off her personal prejudices against blacks, Topsy saying she will better herself, and St. Clare pledging to free Tom.
=== Tom sold to Simon Legree ===
Before St. Clare can follow through on his pledge, however, he dies after being stabbed outside of a tavern. His wife reneges on her late husband's vow and sells Tom at auction to a vicious plantation owner named Simon Legree. Legree (a transplanted northerner) takes Tom and Emmeline (whom Legree purchased at the same time) to rural Louisiana, where they meet Legree's other slaves.
Legree begins to hate Tom when Tom refuses Legree's order to whip his fellow slave. Legree beats Tom viciously and resolves to crush his new slave's faith in God. Despite Legree's cruelty, however, Tom refuses to stop reading his Bible and comforting the other slaves as best he can. While at the plantation, Tom meets Cassy, another of Legree's slaves. Cassy was previously separated from her son and daughter when they were sold; unable to endure the pain of seeing another child sold, she killed her third child.
At this point Tom Loker returns to the story. Loker has changed as the result of being healed by the Quakers. George, Eliza, and Harry have also obtained their freedom after crossing into Canada. In Louisiana, Uncle Tom almost succumbs to hopelessness as his faith in God is tested by the hardships of the plantation. However, he has two visions, one of Jesus and one of Eva, which renew his resolve to remain a faithful Christian, even unto death. He encourages Cassy to escape, which she does, taking Emmeline with her. When Tom refuses to tell Legree where Cassy and Emmeline have gone, Legree orders his overseers to kill Tom. As Tom is dying, he forgives the overseers who savagely beat him. Humbled by the character of the man they have killed, both men become Christians. Very shortly before Tom's death, George Shelby (Arthur Shelby's son) arrives to buy Tom's freedom but finds he is too late.
=== Final section ===
On their boat ride to freedom, Cassy and Emmeline meet George Harris's sister and accompany her to Canada. Cassy discovers that Eliza is her long-lost daughter who was sold as a child. Now that their family is together again, they travel to France and eventually Liberia, the African nation created for former American slaves. George Shelby returns to the Kentucky farm and frees all his slaves. George tells them to remember Tom's sacrifice and his belief in the true meaning of Christianity. | cruelty | train | wikipedia | This is perhaps the best film adaption of the classic Harriet Beecher Stowe novel.
An early appearance of Virginia Grey as Little Eva, Harry Pollard's mastery of filmmaking, and Margarita Fischer's beauty and talent all combine to make film preservation an important cause..
While this movie certainly suffers from the prevailing prejudices of the times it still carries great emotional weight and manages to humanize slaves and rightfully demonize the institution of slavery itself.
Turkish actor Arthur Edmund Carewe is a little more believable as a light skinned black person than is Marguerite Fischer in her role as Eliza but Fischer's performance is pretty effective.
Lowe, the only actual African-American actor in one of the lead roles is outstanding as Uncle Tom. What is even more outstanding is the dignity and lack of minstrelsy in the way he is allowed to play him.
Not at all typical of even the few films with sympathies toward the plight of black Americans and slaves from the start of American cinema to the late 1950's, this treatment and characterization of Uncle Tom goes a long way toward negating the ridiculous portrayal of the slaves of the kindly Shelby's as happy and content, even thankful (Tom and his wife proclaim how the Lord has blessed them with their life on the plantation)to be in bondage.
Certainly some slave owners were otherwise decent people who were also victims of the pseudo-science that proclaimed blacks as simple naive and in need of white guidance at one end of the philosophical spectrum and as sub-human and even evil at the other.
Even though the characters are both "black" the actress playing Cassie was not and the hand holding with and affectionate nursing of Lowe's Uncle Tom was the kind of action that would normally raise howls of protest from certain audiences.
One of the first multi-million dollar productions, this film is not quite faithful to the book but still catches the viewer up in the plight of George and Eliza in particular and manages to indict the evil institution of slavery despite its concession to certain "sensibilities".
A scene showing Uncle Tom rescuing Eva from the river was cut-probably so as not to give a black character too much heroic prominence but Eliza's escape over the ice floes is as realistic (even though it was done, or rather re-done on a studio backlot after having some footage shot on location originally) as anything of the times or even later.
Cinematically and dramatically the film more than justifies its huge budget and if a modern viewer can stomach some of the cliché portrayal of blacks and slaves and the cartoon-ish portrayal of some of the white characters they might find themselves understanding why Abraham Lincoln upon meeting Harriet Beecher Stowe was supposed to have remarked "So you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!" Only a true Simon Legree could look at even this stylized portrayal of slavery and still support the "peculiar institution".Added December 12 2005:Wanted to mention to Joseph Ulibas that while he is right that this film marks an innovative use of a racially mixed cast thecharacters of the slaves George, Eliza and Topsy were all played by white actors..
Based on the 1852 novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, this silent film is a grand melodrama with all the trimmings and includes some of the most famous characters and scenes in American literature.
Oddly there has never been an American talkie version of this classic.Released by Universal with a "no-star" cast, the film captures most of the highlights from the novel, including Eliza's flight across the frozen river pursued by bloodhounds (very well done), the death of Little Eva, and the villainous Simon Legree.
Lowe as Uncle Tom), most of the other parts are also played by Black actors (but I suspect a few were whites in black face).Margarita Fisher (in her final film) stars as Eliza, 10-year-old Virginia Grey in her film debut plays Little Eva, George Siegmann is a terrific Simon, Lucien Littlefield is the lawyer, Aileen Manning is Aunt Ophelia, Mona Ray is Topsy, and Eulalie Jensen is wonderful as Cassy.
A Family Man. In these days Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel of Uncle Tom's Cabin is known more by historians as a contributing cause of the Civil War than as an actual literary work.
So sadly did the king, but that's another story.What you're seeing in this 1927 version is not Harriet Beecher Stowe's story, it couldn't be because there are references in the film to the Dred Scott decision, the firing on Fort Sumter and the Emancipation Proclamation all in the future because her story was published in 1852.What slaves, free blacks, and sympathetic northerners like the Quaker family you see who rescue Eliza and her baby are afraid of the new strict fugitive slave law.
Even the idea that black people were to be thought of as equal was radical in too many eyes back in the day.Stowe used a lot of what would later be labeled stereotypes, most importantly the phrase 'Uncle Tom'.
The criticism has certain validity, but I think for the wrong reasons.As seen her old Uncle Tom is the elder head of the plantation blacks on a Kentucky estate who the master even trusts to go to free state Ohio on business for him.
No one can believe that Uncle Tom actually returns, the criticism is that his pride is so broken he accepts what the slave owners give him.Tom returns, not because he accepts, but because in that cabin are his wife and children, even in slavery he's a family man.
Families being destroyed is the cardinal sin for Stowe.Except for young Virginia Grey playing little Eliza the innocent who hasn't learned to regard certain people as beneath treating as human, most people today won't know the cast members.
Harry Pollard is my great uncle, and Margarita Fisher is my great aunt,I loved the movie and i couldnt belive that they had this on video.I remember as a kid all the stories and pictures about my aunt and uncle that my grandmother Katherine Havens would tell me and to see all this on the internet just blew me away.
Arthur Edmund Carewe (an actor whom IMDb fascinatingly claims is of Native American descent- Chickasaw- and yet is said to have been born in Tebiziond Turkey?) is quite good as George Harris the light skinned husband of Eliza and father of Harry- although he barely appears in the film since much of George's story has been edited out.
This movie is the origin of the stereotypical "Uncle Tom" not Stowe's novel.
The faith connection between Tom and Eva is completely absent from the movie, yet one cannot appreciate the true nobility of their characters without seeing this bond between them brought about by a shared love of the world beyond.
This filmed version of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" is pretty good despite an embarrassing stereotype.
When I discovered that a filmed version of the novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" was available at the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, I had to check it out.
Now while there were plenty of exciting scenes of attempted escapes-like Eliza (Margarita Fischer) on ice floes in the dark with her son on her arms or a later sequence of her trying to recover that son as she runs after a horse wagon-and some tense scenes with the bullying Simon Legree (George Siegmann) when he gets his comeuppance, there were also some noticeably missing ones that made me wonder why some things happened the way they did.
Lowe with dignity, the stereotyped pickaninny Topsy is obviously played by a white female named Mona Ray with all the embarrassing histrionics, including the eye bugging and-in deleted DVD extras-her referring herself as the N-word and trying to be white by powdering her face.
That character and performance is the only really awful thing about this movie which, despite the many cuts, is mostly a compellingly filmed version of a famous novel, even with the setting changed to when the Civil War was going on.
Uncle Tom's Cabin (1927) was a very big budgeted silent film production that was one of the first Hollywood movies to use an actual cast of black and white actors working together.
This is the first movie or one of the first to cast black people as slaves and they are well cast for the most part especially considering that these actors didn't have resumes to show if they had the goods to act in a feature film.
Lowe's performance as Uncle Tom creates a large amount of charisma because it is made clear that he is a nice man who loves anyone who shows him kindness.
It is also a great way to know the story of Uncle Tom's Cabin if you don't like reading books.
The movie makes some significant changes to the story, notably shifting the period to the beginning of the Civil War (allowing the "Yankee" Army to free the slaves), eliminating the shootout between George and pursuing slave-catchers (perhaps the image of an escaped slave shooting at white men was considered too incendiary for the times), and adding a more 'Hollywood-style' ending (a last minute heroic rescue and the villain's righteous comeuppance).
The film also combines the characters Eliza and Emmeline and eliminates most of the story that takes place amongst the Quakers in Ohio (all of whom, despite living in a 'free state', were breaking the law by helping the runaways - again perhaps to spare the audience's feelings).
Like the movie, the novel includes many good, honorable, Christian slave-owners, but the book clearly distinguishes between 'being good' and 'doing good'.
While Stowe's book as some humorous moments (e.g. spitting tobacco juice, Ophelia's battle with her trunk), the movie movies pushes for laughs through stereotypes that parody both blacks (Topsy, the black children devouring a watermelon, slaves mugging and energetically dancing to 'Turkey in the Straw') and whites (lawyer Marks).
The film is noted for having most of the significant black characters played whites in blackface with the exception of Tom himself, who was played by African American actor James B.
The main characters Eliza and George are not even in blackface and to modern viewers, the idea that the obviously white actors are runaway black slaves may seem ridiculous.
Lowe is good as Tom but needs to be appreciated in the context of the stagy, theatrical acting style that characterized most silent films.
The movie is worth watching for fans of the book, social and cultural historians, and silent-film aficionados.
There is the content of Stowe's novel transcribed to film of course, depicting the cruelty of slavery, and the separation of families.
Lee quote on the evil of slavery, which is more than a little ironic.White actors playing all of the African-American characters, except Uncle Tom (James B.
It is just a shameful, shameful performance.By shifting the movie forward in time, the Union troops eventually arrive to 'save the day', as if all of the problems for African-Americans were solved in that moment.On the other hand, there are many positives to the film:
As in the book, the scene with Eliza (Margarita Fischer) running away with her son in her arms, across the ice floes of a river, is compelling, and really stands out.
Lowe turns in a good performance, portraying dignity, faith, and stoicism.The scenes which have the whipped turning the tables and doing some whipping themselves are a little cathartic.It's a small moment, but in the scene on the riverboat when Eva (Virginia Grey) is handing out treats to the slaves in an act of kindness, one African-American girl (actually played by an African-American) turns away, with such a look of pain and forlornness in her eyes.
The very brief scene where the black women discuss with irony the horrific "white" wedding of George and Eliza is one of the most telling moments in the film.
One reviewer notices the presence of George Siegmann from Birth of a Nation (he was however an enormously prolific actor) but fails to spot Griffith's fellow Kentuckian, the wonderful Madame Sul-Te-Wan who provides for my money some of the most electrifying seconds of black defiance in that wretched Griffith film.The really shocking thing about this million-dollar extravaganza is how regressive it is in its racial politics by comparison with the 1914 version.
In this film the whole story has been dissolved into a kind of "Southern" western with all the typical nostalgia for the elegant, aristocratic South in the good old days of slavery (much as one will find again in Gone With the Wind).So, whereas the 1914 film begins by emphasising the ghastliness of slave-owning and the imperative for most African Americans to escape somehow to liberty (Shelby being quite clearly shown as an EXCEPTIONAL slave-owner), here the exact opposite is done with the Shelbies' "gentle rule of the slaves" being specifically misrepresented - one can hardly believe one's eyes - as "typical of the South".
Except for a bad egg or two, slavery was a sheer pleasure, where black folk could play music, dance and eat water0-melons to their hearts' content.I am loath to criticise any black actor but Lowe is every inch an "Uncle Tom".
We are on the way here to that later classic of disguised racism - To Kill a Mocking Bird - where it is not the plight of the negro that is to be pitied but that of the long-suffering "white" liberal.There are of course rather a lot of bad eggs in the story (the film can hardly change that) but the conflation with the Civil War (nothing to do with the novel) allows the "Lincoln" card of unification to be played (again very Griffith) and all possible nastiness to be glazed over in a final apotheosis (the US cavalry as the heavenly host) where Tom's brutal murder is rather a secondary event and all focus is on the reunited family, a very white grandmother conveniently added (another change from the book) so that the film can come as near as dammit to suggesting that they are not really blacks at all....It is a beautiful film (in terms of its production) but the beauty cannot make up for the racist beast that lurks throughout this film.....
Also there are white actors in (obvious) black face and the two leads (Eliza and George) are white also.
Still, this is a great movie.Some of the character names (Uncle Tom, Little Eva, Simon Legree, Sambo) have become part of our language in good and bad ways.
The movie also is well-acted (especially by Margarita Fischer as Eliza) and very moving at times (even though it does overdo it a bit with little Eva).
Characters like Topsy and Eva the little white girl and black slave girl are never fully integrated in to the whole and I understand that some of Eva's scenes have been cleaned up for modern eyes.
In "Uncle Tom's Cabin", he's the villain again, but as the slave trader and owner Simon Legree.
This adaptation reworks Stowe's novel to focus less on Uncle Tom and more on Eliza, who, surely not coincidentally, is played by the director's wife.
(Also, a girl plays, for no apparent reason, Eliza's child, who in the story is a boy.)An African American plays Uncle Tom, which was also the case in the 1914 film.
The two deleted scenes included on the Kino DVD feature Topsy and are more racist than anything in the rest of the picture.As aforementioned, however, I did find the narrative engaging, as well as somewhat emotionally involving, and the film retains enough of Stowe's anti-slavery standpoint to be politically pleasing.
The sequence in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" isn't as good as the ones in those two films, but it's impressive, nonetheless.
Okay, it's true that people watching this well-intentioned movie today will very likely be offended by some of the over-the-top imagery of happy slaves singing and dancing and enjoying their bondage during the first portion of the film.
This "happy slave" myth is advanced in the film--most likely to assuage the guilt of White America concerning the evil of slavery.
Plus, as the movie was made after the Civil War while the book was made in the 1850s (before the war), they were able to give it a more satisfying conclusion--leaving the audience with an uplifting segment where the Union Army frees the slaves of Simon Legree's hellish plantation.The movie gets very high marks for some of the camera-work--especially the rousing scene where Liza crosses the ice flow with her young son.
Acting is generally good--particularly by Mr. Lowe as Uncle Tom, though there were quite a few silly and overacted scenes here and there.
The emphasis in the film is more on "Eliza", a very light complexioned slave (probably an octoroon), than on "Uncle Tom", who is almost a background lay figure.
Uncle Tom's Cabin (1927)*** (out of 4) Universal dropped $2 million on this adaptation of Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, which had been one of the best selling books other than the Bible.
The film tells the story of slaves Eliza (Margarita Fischer) and George (Arthur Edmund Carewe) who, after being married, get sold off and spend the rest of the film trying to locate their kid.
This movie has its heart in the right place but I'm sure many would watch this film and find it nearly as racist as something like THE BIRTH OF A NATION.
The roles of Eliza and George were light-skinned characters in the book and they're played by white people here.
That's somewhat to be expected as most black characters were played by whites in blackface but thankfully the director didn't do that here with Uncle Tom and many of the supporting characters.
This film was groundbreaking in the use of black actors and on a historic level, this keeps the movie entertaining throughout.
Lowe also gives the best performance in the film and delivers a character who will certainly touch the viewer in his strength. |
tt0398563 | Sky High | Will Stronghold begins ninth grade at Sky High, a high school that exclusively teaches teenagers with superpowers. Will's parents are The Commander and Jetstream, some of the world's most famous superheroes. Will's best friend, Layla, who happens to have a crush on him, has the power to manipulate plant life. Will is anxious about attending Sky High, located on a floating campus reached by a flying school bus, because, unbeknownst to his parents, he has not developed any super powers. On the first day, he and the other ninth graders are harassed by a trio of bullies: Speed, a burly senior with super speed, Lash, a skinny senior with extreme flexibility, and Penny, a senior cheerleader who can clone herself. Because of his lack of powers, Will is slated to enter a curriculum for "Hero Support" and becomes a sidekick. His classmates include Ethan, who melts into a fluid; Zach, who glows in the dark; Magenta, who transforms into a guinea pig; and Layla, who joins the class in protest against the two-track nature of the school's education system. The class is taught by The Commander's former sidekick, "All American Boy."
Will learns that not everybody gets powers, and there are such cases of those who have two superpower parents do not get any superpowers, such as the Bus driver Ron Wilson. The Commander is unaware that his son has been relegated to Hero Support, and shows Will his hidden trophy room. He is particularly proud of the mysterious weapon, "The Pacifier", which he took from his science-themed nemesis, Royal Pain, years ago. Unknown to either of them, Royal Pain, who had been presumed dead, watches the exchange from a hidden camera in one of the other trophies. As Will settles into Sky High and makes friends with the other sidekicks, he comes into conflict with pyrokinetic student, Warren Peace, whose supervillain father had been imprisoned by The Commander. During a fight between the two, Will demonstrates super strength, impressing Gwen Grayson, a beautiful and popular "technopath" who controls machines with her mind. Will is subsequently transferred to the "Hero" track and begins spending more time with Gwen and her clique of friends, ignoring the sidekicks and Layla, who reveals to Warren that she has loved Will for a long time. On the day before the dance, Gwen tricks Will into throwing a party at his house, and uses Speed to steal the Pacifier when she seduces Will into showing her the Secret Sanctum. After Gwen lies to Layla, who shows up to investigate the noise and believes the lie, Will breaks up with Gwen, refusing to attend the dance, even though his parents were invited as honored guests. Later, he looks through his father's old yearbook and sees a student who resembles Gwen. Believing that the student is Royal Pain and that Gwen is her daughter, he rushes to the dance.
At the dance party, Gwen reveals that she is actually Royal Pain. During her previous confrontation with the Commander, the Pacifier, which is meant to turn its target into an infant, had malfunctioned, turning her into a baby instead, thus faking her suspected death. She has since waited sixteen years for revenge. With the help of Speed, Lash, and Penny, she takes over the school and uses the Pacifier to turn the faculty and students into infants. After returning to school, Will apologizes to Layla, and teams up with Warren, the sidekicks and Ron Wilson to try to save the day. The sidekicks demonstrate their heroism after Royal Pain sabotages the school's anti-gravity drive and their powers come in handy restarting it. Meanwhile, Will discovers that he has Jetstream's powers of flight when he is thrown off the edge of the school grounds and prevents the campus from falling using his two abilities. Gwen and her henchmen are defeated and arrested and the faculty and students are returned to their proper ages. Will and Layla kiss, and a voiceover at the end reveals that they become a couple, he and Warren became best friends, and Ron Wilson gained superhuman powers after falling into a vat of toxic waste, thus becoming a superhero. | good versus evil | train | wikipedia | Kanzaki is a detective searching for a serial killer who is killing young women and keeping their hearts.
On his wedding day his wife becomes the killer's next victim sending Kanzaki on a quest for revenge to murder the person who killed his wife.
Part love story/supernatural ghost story/action movie.
Go through the gate and be reborn, become a ghost, or take revenge and kill, and end up in hell.....Ryuhei Kitamura, who directed the action packed Azumi, tones down the violence here, but still stages some impressive action sequences.
And the love portion of the story works well, both for the detective Kohei, and his bride Mina, but also the bond between the killer, her boss (who needs the hearts for a ritual) and the boss's sick wife.
Not everything is as clear cut as it would seem to appear here, and this is a refreshing change.Although I've not read the comic book, as a movie it is very impressive, with a lot of imagination.
If only writers and directors in Hollywood and the west could come up with ideas this imaginative.This is a movie worth checking out..
Based on the blurb, I was expecting a supernatural-serial killer movie.
It's very intelligent, thought provoking, yet also full of action scenes (mostly sword-fights).The heart of this film is very existentialist.
There's a lot of minor characters, but all have very distinct personalities.I thought the sword fighting scenes were fairly impressive, especially the scene at the temple gate.The pacing is somewhat slow, but I found it gripping.
Yumiko Shaku from "Princess Blade" plays Mina who is killed at the beginning of this movie.
Normally I drop DVDs when I read things on the back cover like "Killer cuts the hearts out of his victims" etc., but "Sky High" is the exceptional case of a movie that has a fantasy story with interesting characters, lots of sword fights and even the dreadful serial killer theme and adds it up to something fresh.
I think I have now seen all of his movies (Heat After Dark, Down To Hell, Versus, Azumi, Aragami, Alive......
This definitely sits in my top 3, with Versus and Azumi.Anyone familiar with Kitamura's films will recognize his style immediately.
Fantastic cinematography, digitally assisted effects, hyperkenetic fights, and story lines that at best can be described as complicated.
He seems to weave a mythology into most of his work, and it all seems very new and interesting.In any case, Sky High really got to me because the world he spins here has really defined rules, and they are played to the best of their limits.
We know that the death of one character will cause a chain reaction in both the living and spirit world, and that was really intriguing.The film has flaws, to be sure.
This is the kind of movie that looks good enough to have a very wide theatrical release (except for the demon at the end, what was with that?) and do well once word of mouth got around.Anyway, highly recommended viewing.
I saw someone who really ranted about this piece, but I guess it was another Hollywood fan because Kitamura is, as always, bending the borders a bit and I do understand if the inveterately Hollywood fans will find this "controversial", by judging the camera work, plot, scenes e.t.c. The scenery in "Sky High" is lovely!
I believe Kitamura is a genius,but most people in this forum do not understand what he was trying to accomplish.The story lines in(Sky high,Versus) are basically about death and the many beliefs that are out there, about the subject.In Versus(the resurrection is mentioned)in Sky High(reincarnation, and your belief determines how you will end up in the after life).Kitamura's ability to take the right music with the right scene is staggering.The man is a true talent.Some of the comments I have read in this forum is just amazing.One person says the sword play was really weak.Once again you have someone that cannot follow a story.Ordinary people who were just about to marry and has her heart ripped out by a rich man who thought money could buy everything until his wife meet with some unfortunate accident.The point is if you have never picked up a sword how well do you think your sword play would be?Sky High is truly a great movie!.
At my age of 52, I actually like it when a film proceeds not always at full speed, but lingers on one detail or another.My biggest enjoyment was to see Franz Schubert's String Quartet in D minor (D.810), with variations on Death and the Maiden, being played at the concert hall - until dripping blood interrupted it...
But it's just a fantasy story, and quite enjoyable as such - and a big box of eye candy (take the curved corridor with reflecting walls as just one example).I find it a good, strong movie which I can well recommend.
If you love Stargate, you also find a touch of that in Sky High :^) Also, the last split-second (Mina points her sword at you and says "Go!") raises memories of the famous shoot-at-audience scene from Great Train Robbery (1903)..
As with many of Ryuhei Kitamura's film, Sky High displays plenty of great ideas (a serial killer ripping people's hearts out, the gates of Rage, where murdered people go and are given three choice - heaven, earth, or hell), an genre bending story (sword play, horror, sci-fi, love story, serial killer) and plenty of visual style.
However, Sky High also fall foul of Ryuhei Kitamura's usual faults.
Kitamura tries to give the story depth and meaning (failing most the time), when it should be a great popcorn flick with less depth.
Alive, another of Kitamura's films, which is very similarly themed to Sky High, also suffers these faults.
Given the right script, Kitamura will make a genuinely great film (he almost did it with Versus), but until then, he need someone to come and cut his film down..
The Best Romance/Action Film On the Face of the Planet.
This brief list is a testimony that cinematic greatness is achieved in different ways, whether it be strong dramatic elements, horrific philosophical expositions, masterful storytelling, or action choreography.
Sky High represents another title that achieves greatness like the aforementioned films achieve greatness, albeit in its own unique way.Ryuhei Kitamura has had his disappointing films (Alive, Godzilla: Final Wars), but when he is "on his game" there is perhaps no one who delivers such a perfect combination of stylish camera-work and engaging sound.
Virtually every action scene is preceded by ultra-cool character mannerisms supplemented with an excellent score.
Sky High is a cornucopia of amazing images and sounds that puts most every other film to shame.
Killing is not simply an act to end life, but instead is used to serve a specific eternal purpose.
The originality of Sky High is obvious in that it represents the act of killing as a form of self-sacrifice for the betterment of someone else.
It's a very unique and breathtaking play on an old concept.Many movies have tried to bridge action and romance genres, but few have succeeded.
In The Bride With White Hair (1993) the man totally discounts the word of his alleged lover regarding a murder, which provides an excuse to start the final action scene, but at the same time invalidates their entire relationship.
In other words, blending action and romance is just as difficult as creating an effective drama, and most attempts miss the mark quite badly.Sky High, on the other hand, is the perfect example of internally consistent character action that maximizes the believability of the primary love relationship.
Character action is not introduced merely to start fights, but instead represents a logical decision with reference to a specific lover.
The primary love relationship is developed throughout the entirety of the film and culminates in the main character's change of philosophy, of which his love for his deceased wife serves as the primary catalyst.
So here we have a film that succeeds in introducing 3 separate love relationships that are consistent with character action, while most other action/romance movies fail to produce 1.
Kitamura chose to ground most of the action with realistic sword maneuvers, similar to The Hidden Blade (2004), while adding a few supernatural elements along the way.
In this sense, Sky High is a different sort of action film that relies on situational excitement over choreographical complexity, and it works very well.I'm sure that I'll be criticized for giving an action/romance like Sky High a rating of 10 out of 10, but in all honestly – I don't care.
Sky High is simply the best action/romance film on the face of the planet.
I dare someone to cite another similar film with an equal mastery of visual/audio technical skills, an equally original take on killing, similarly effective situational fighting, and character action that is perfectly consistent with the romantic elements.Good luck to you on that challenge..
Although this isn't like 'Versus' or 'Azumi', it plays along the same sort of line with the action and story.
The action's incredibly exhilarating, filled with impressive sword fights and stunning magic effects but this gets sadly overshadowed by the film's slow pace and some uninteresting characterisation.Overall, this is a visually adequate but slight action thriller with a good amount of action to make this overly bearable for fans of the 'Kill Bill' series..
It looked like something you would see on TV, but in full you can really tell it is a movie.
The film shows an interesting version of heaven and hell.
You would expect the special effects to be high, but all you get are some interesting sparks added to some cool sword fighting scenes.
Yumiko Shaku does an OK job and has a cool fight scene, but that is about it.
Then the "bad guy" is played by Takao Osawa which was probably my favorite performance in the film.
This film is like a fantasy and a horror piece put into one.
A great looking & very well made film, yet still a little disappointing.
Well, I was expecting the worst from Sky High after hearing lots of bad reports, so maybe having low expectations helped - because I absolutely loved it.
To me it was his best film since Versus, and leaps and bounds above Azumi.Personally I thought Versus had a much stronger story and a better way of telling it than most of Kitamura's films (especially Azumi), but I seem to be in a minority there.
I think Sky High still has weaker storytelling than Versus, simply because it is far less economical.
In fact I'm kind of glad the extended cut on the R2J special edition doesn't have subtitles, because the theatrical cut is already 2 hours and could have benefited from a little more trimming.The action scenes certainly aren't up to the level of those in Versus, and anybody looking purely for action is sure to be disappointed.
it's a very ambiguous and vague set of ideas but I find that all the more interesting I think.Overall, it's a film with flaws (that are partly attributable to short budget/schedule and partly to Kitamura's lack of maturity as a director) but one that I found much more interesting than I expected from the reviews.
Oh, some of the acting is really bad I should mention (why anybody decided giving Yumiko thingy another acting job was a good idea after Princess Blade I don't know), but on the plus side the film has an extremely high quotient of gorgeous women (oh, maybe that's why).
I thought that was the unfathomably gorgeous Kanae Uotani as Rei, but she's not credited on IMDB as such - so which new incredibly gorgeous actress was it?Anyway, I'm one of the few people that really enjoyed ALIVE as well, so if you didn't like that then don't get too excited about SKY HIGH from my recommendation :p.
Kanzaki is a detective who's working on a case involving woman having their hearts cut out.
On his wedding day he finds Mina, his fiancé, has been killed the same way.
At the Gates of Heaven she is faced with a choice: go to heaven and await reincarnation, become a ghost to walk the Earth forever, or kill someone who wronged her, but go to hell for eternity.
She must find a way to stop Kanzaki from killing her murderer so he doesn't fry in hell.
This cut differs from the Theatrical one as there's much more dialog (which doesn't really flesh out the movie that much more) and the ending fight scene seems a tad longer.
Kitamura finally gives us a story..
Ryuhei Kitamura's films seem to be built entirely on the strength of his visual style.
I figured I'd had enough after checking out Versus, Alive, and Azumi, ready to write Kitamura off as a perpetual B-Movie factory.Just by chance I happened upon a cheap copy of Sky High at the local FYE, and the synopsis piqued my interest.
He restrains himself from the campy action scenes of the aforementioned films, instead presenting competently staged fights that didn't entirely leap beyond plausibility.
For the first time, I found his story to be engrossing and actually cared about his characters.This film has bought Ryuhei Kitamura a new respect in my eyes, because I know now that he can make a real film.
On the page for Ryuhei's film are actually from Disney's, someone should get that corrected.The movie is about a madman, Kudo, that is trying to summon a demon by way of cutting out the hearts of some girls.
One of these girls ends up being the fiancé, Mina, of detective Kanzaki.It is a really good story and plot.
It doesn't have plot holes nor is it a vague movie with horror and fighting.
I like Ryuhei Kitamura movies.
"Sky High" is a Ryuhei Kitamura film, alright.
So if you really want to see this film, if you feeling that you don't want to miss one of Ryuhei Kitamura experiences, watch it, but don't expect for masterpiece.
Sky High is a occult sci-fi starring Yumiko Shaku.
Kudo and Miwa is collecting six hearts from women who used to be the keeper of gate of death to bring back Kudo's fiancé back to life.
Kudo first is skeptical, but later believes what Kishi is saying, and together they go off to stop Kudo.Yumiko Shaku can play a part of ordinary intellectual woman, but she excels in playing a lead in sci-fi movie.
I have a feeling this movie is done shooting in less than a week.If you don't have any expectation, want to see the funniest homemade sword fight video or perhaps interested in a unique brainstorm, this one just maybe your cup of tea..
I had been looking forward to watching this film for a long time.
I read that it wasn't the director's (Ryuhei Kitamura) best film and having seen 'Versus', 'Azumi' and 'Godzilla: final wars'.
The story is quite good, the acting is OK, much of the directing is good, sometimes very good, but surprisingly many of the fight scenes appear little more than opportunities for the antagonists to pose about like power rangers with swords, which had me thinking 'get on with it'.
I don't expect none-stop action in Ryuhei Kitamura's movies, but the action scenes don't come close to those in 'Azumi' or 'Versus'.Very often I'll watch a film thinking this could of been a great film, but sadly we ended up with only a good film.
'Sky High' could of been great, but settles for good.
One of the things I have come expect from the director is originality, sadly this film had little, borrowing heavily from other films.
Sky High This movie has a lot to do with why I enjoy Asian films.
She ends up at the Gate of rage and is given ten days to decide between 3 choices basically come down to heaven, hell or get revenge and go to hell.While making her decision she and her still alive husband(who can't see or hear her) discover that she was the victim of a madman who is stealing the hearts of the women who in between lives had served the as the guardian of the gate.
Swordplay, CGI effects, Strong women characters and a little gore all help Sky high worth a rental.
While the plot and the story are far from perfect it is a cool film from Kitumara the director who made popular Swordplay films Versus and Azumi.
I thought all four films were good but I think Sky high and Alive involve better more developed storylines..
Beautiful.The whole cast gave some great performance, but it was Yumiko Shaku's performance that blew me away, the end scene was just very sad and emotional, it was beautiful acted out, when Mina must say goodbye to her lover.
The one thing, I would like to have seen done better was the action, but Mina's climactic battle shut me up.Simply beautiful..
Highlander + Ghost = Sky High.
Basically, Sky High concerns a young woman who is killed on her wedding day.
She finds out what happens after death, which leads to all sorts of mystical mayhem, including sword fights, babes, otherworldy warriors and some really nasty bad guys.It's directed by Kitamura of Azumi fame.
It's not really an action movie per se, but the last twenty minutes is almost pure sword action.
Visually it's almost what you'd expect a supernatural thriller by Bryan Singer to look like: slightly downbeat, sober, with a blue sheen.There is quite an ensemble for the movie, and the main hero figure changes throughout.
The bad guys are pretty damn evil, and for some reason most of the cast is very attractive young women.The main problem with Sky High is the name.
Don't expect loads of gore or violence; Kitamura proves here he can tell a strong story. |
tt0104530 | Ironheart | Ironheart opens at a Portland nightclub (Upfront FX), where Milverstead, who is considered the most powerful and ruthless man in town, and his group of thugs are looking at the female clientele with an approving eye. Milverstead is shipping illegal arms out of the Portland docks, and to sweeten the deals with his trading partners, he kidnaps local lonely dancers, strings them out on heroin, and sends them along in the deal. He notices Cindy Kane (Meagan Hughes) dancing furiously to U-Krew's hit "If You Were Mine" and decides to kidnap her. To lure her into his trap, he instructs his young lieutenant Richard (Michael Lowry) to flirt with her and get her to go with him. Cindy is ostensibly with her loser boyfriend Stevo (Rob Buckmater) at the club, but wants to get him jealous and so leaves with Richard. Milverstead and his gang leave shortly thereafter.
However, they are being tailed from the club by a new policeman on the Portland force from LA named Douglas (David Mountain), Douglas has been tipped to Milverstead's shady dealings and follows everyone to the docks, where most of the gang is now dragging Cindy onto a boat, locking her in a cage and shooting her full of heroin. At this point, Milverstead's second in command, Ice (Bolo Yeung) takes some of the gang and lays a trap for Douglas. They beat Douglas senseless, at which point Ice shoots Douglas in cold blood on a pile of old tires, and also blows up his car with gunfire.
Back in LA, Douglas's old partner John Keem (Britton K. Lee) is made aware of his partner's untimely death and strangely ordered to Portland to assist the local police in the investigation. While driving to Portland in a red convertible Porsche, he stops for a sandwich when he notices some men on the beach smoking marijuana and, subsequently, attempting to rape a female jogger. He goes to investigate when he is charged by a drugged out rapist named Spike, and promptly beats him and the rest of the potential rapists up, saving the jogger's life. When he goes to check on the woman, she has fled in terror from the bizarre encounter.
Upon reaching Portland, he immediately goes to meet with Captain Kronious (Joe Ivy), who offers assistance and mentions that a woman also disappeared the same night Douglas was killed, a Cindy Kane. John goes to talk to Stevo and see if there is perhaps a connection between Cindy's disappearance and Douglas's fateful death. Milverstead arranges to have Cindy sent overseas with his next shipment, and brags to Ice how pleased he is things are going so smoothly, as he HATES chaos.
John Keem meets up Stevo, who tells him Cindy left with a strange guy from the club, so they go to investigate that night. Milverstead is there along with his gang, so John Keem stirs things up a bit by starting a fight to get Milverstead's attention when he sees a friend of Cindy named Kristy (Karman Kruschke) being harassed by a couple young punks. Puzzled that Ice has never heard of this new heavy hitter, he sets about to find out who exactly John Keem is.
Kristy runs a dance studio, so John Keem decides to pay her a visit the next day and question her about Cindy. Cindy, unfortunately, became a "tragic dancer's story", where she was talented, but got lazy and started simply dancing at the clubs trying to land a rich guy, leading Stevo on the whole time that he had an actual chance with her. They go to lunch, where they are interrupted by Stevo (whom Kristy calls "Cherub") who tells John Keem to check out an address given to him by the Captain. John races off to follow the tip, leaving Stevo to awkwardly hit on Kristy just one day after his girlfriend goes missing.
John finds the address, but when he gets closer to the house to investigate, he sees a bomb planted just inside the window by Milverstead's henchman Simmons (Pat Patterson) and runs away just as it explodes. Simmons and his accomplices try to corner John, and they then engage in a wild gun battle where two of the gang are killed and Simmons wings John Keem in the shoulder. At this moment, Kristy arrives out of nowhere in an old Volkswagen Beetle and just drives through the middle of the battle, allowing Simmons to escape. Kristy jumps out of her car and gets in a shouting match with John, who calms her down and blows up her car so it can't be traced. They drive off together to continue the hunt.
Back on Milverstead's boat, he is relaxing with a drink Ice just made when Simmons arrives. He quizzes Simmons about whether or not John Kim was dead, and makes him feel guilty about botching the operation so badly. Simmons sputters out some nonsense about knowing that he shot John Keem, but refuses to answer whether or not he terminated the target. Disgusted, Milverstead tells Simmons the dead men's blood scream for his, so he has Ice strangle Simmons with his own tie and toss him overboard.
Kristy attends to John Keem's wounds back at her place, when she starts to get emotional. Unmoved, John Keem listens and then they promptly sleep together with no apparent pre-text other than they were both there. Stevo is frantically trying to reach John Keem, so he calls Kronious to let him know that Richard, the guy Cindy went home with, works for Milverstead. He then goes off to complete his route for Hot Flash Pizza. However, Captain Kronious calls Milverstead with this information, and not John Keem. Milverstead gets off the phone and asks Ice, who has been bouncing a pencil while awaiting his next order, if he'd like a little "exercise". Ice throws down the pencil and goes off to find and kill Stevo.
After their sexual encounter, John Keem goes off to finish the investigation while Kristy goes to collect her 8 year old daughter she left at the club with the reception several hours earlier. John Keem learns that Stevo has been killed, and makes the connection that Milverstead is involved. He takes the fight to Milverstead by impersonating a homeless man and banging on the door to Milverstead Shipping in downtown Portland to alert the night watchman. They let him in, and he promptly kills or maims the entire security team and finds evidence to finish Milverstead once and for all.
Milverstead is waiting for him at the club, and offers a bonus to any of his henchman who kills John Keem. Kristy leaves her daughter at home alone again to try and lure Milverstead out into the open by dancing up a storm at the dance club. Milverstead knows she is working with John Kim, but decides to kidnap her and send her overseas anyway to punish her for working with him. Unfortunatetly, John Keem dispatches his henchman with a single punch and quickly follows Milverstead and Ice to the docks. There he also finds the double-crossing Captain Kronious, and gets him to tell him where Milverstead is before he shoots and kills him.
He then kills off the remaining henchman (besides Ice) and corners a helpless Milverstead. Wielding a samurai sword he took off one of the henchman, he chops a sobbing Milverstead's head off and turns to face Ice. He quickly beats (but does not kill) Ice, avenging his friend's death. He goes back to LA with Kristy and her daughter to start a new chapter of his life. | revenge | train | wikipedia | "I was born and raised in Korea ...".
The hero John Keem is going after some drug dealers who kidnaps girls for some reason.
On his journey he uses karate and kung fu moves and I don't believe he got hit a single time during the movie.
This is Crap..
This movie has no plot and five lines of dialogue.
The acting was bad, and the plot, well i don't think there was one.Some fat blonde chap who is always dressed in a dinner suit, kidnaps a sort from a nightclub, i think he then kills a copper.
pointless fights then happen Kidnapped girl is put in cage on a boat, why?
Tough uncompromising martial arts trained cop turns up, speaks bad english and does stuff that does not make sense.
Its utter tripe.
But he does have a nice car.
christ on a bike, this film was a waste of 90 minutes..
Milverstead - Greatest Villain Ever?.
Richard Norton really lights the screen up in this Portland, Oregon based martial arts masterpiece.
Norton, an Aussie heartthrob, plays the evil Mr. Milverstead who runs a successful import/export business both smuggling arms and participating in the female flesh trade.
Usually the women are plucked from his favorite dance club with the help of a squad of goons the most well known of who is Bolo Yeung, playing the role of Ice. Trouble comes for Milverstead when a new cop in town John Kim (Britton Lee) is out to avenge his dead partners murder at the hand of Milverstead's organization.
If you have time to see only one martial arts movie this year, don't miss this classic..
This really is the worst movie I have ever seen.
This really is the worst movie I have ever seen.
For a while, I made a habit of watching lousy movies, including "Battlefield Earth", "Delta Force Commando" and "Starship".
All of these movies are cinematic gems compared to Ironheart.There isn't much point in summarizing this piece of junk; I think it's more beneficial to summarize my reaction to the movie, which is as follows: I become furiously angry and I want to rip the tape out of the VCR and burn it after (roughly) 80 minutes of play.I rate this movie a 0, but IMDb does not let one rate a movie less than 1.
I give it a 0 knowing full well that I am saying any movie that has any score above 0 is infinitely (undefinably) many times better than this one - That's really how bad it is..
This movie had the potential,but blew it..
This movie had it all,great fighters,among them Bolo Yeung and Britton K.
Lee and a descent budget,but it seems that the director did everything to ruin it.The movie starts of good,but after that it only gets worse.WHY didn't he have more fight scenes in this movie.Bolo Yeung was only in one real fight scene that I can remember,I hoped to see more of him,because he has one of the sickest styles ever.Dont let the cover fool you,this is nothing what it could have been..
A great film...if you're 12..
My brother plays "Moose" in this film.
Although most of his scenes were left on the cutting room floor.
The funniest line is the movie is "nothing wong with stat." So anyway, this is filmed in Portland, OR, where we grew up.
The dance club is/was called "Up Front FX".
What I loved about this movie is that the main character (who is not named on the box because Bolo brings more clout) is supposed to be a police detective...a great opportunity to drive around in a red convertible Porsche.
I need to get a copy of this, preferably the director's cut, so I can see all the scenes my brother is in.
The only scene he is in is the beginning when they are in the dance club.
He got the spot because he was dating this cheerleader from a semi-pro football team called The Oregon Thunderbolts.
It is interesting because his name comes up as the first entry in IMDb. Fame has him, fortune, not so much..
A few insights.
While I agree that this was the most horrendous movie ever made, I am proud to say I own a copy simply because myself and a bunch of my friends were extras (mostly in the dance club scenes, but a few others as well.
This movie had potential with Bolo and the director of Enter the Dragon signed on, but as someone who was on set most every day I can tell you that Robert Clouse was an old and confused individual, at least during the making of this movie.
It was a wonder he could find his way to the set everyday.
I would also like to think that this might have been a better movie if a lot of it had not been destroyed in a fire at Morning Calm studios.
I can't say that it would have been for sure, but it would be nice to think so.
I was actually surprised that it was ever released, and that someone like Bolo would attach his name to it without a fight.
Also look at the extras for pro wrestler Scott Levy, AKA Raven.
He was a wrestler in Portland at the time...nice guy, very smart..
At least Bolo is in it.
Me and a couple of friends went to rent some movies one day, we picked one each and one of us picked Ironheart.
Lets just say that from now on, we never let him pick a movie.
This movie sucks.
How much would you pay to laugh at a horrible film?.
I saw this on sale - NEW - at my local store for $6 and said "hey!
an action film with that guy from Bloodsport and Enter the Dragon, directed by the guy who did Enter the Dragon - and it's cheap!" So I bought it.
Oops!
This is possibly the worst film I've ever seen, and I've seen some doozies.You know how movies which are intentionally campy, like Evil Dead II and Dead-Alive, are AWESOME?
You know how movies that are supposed to be serious but turned out so awful that you have to laugh out loud, and watch them again, like Lionheart (an old Van Damme film) or John Carpenter's Vampires, are pretty cool?
This film, Ironheart, manages to be NEITHER of those.
I don't know what the filmmakers were thinking, but it looks as if this movie was made with no time to shoot, no budget for anything, and no script to speak of.
(While I'm on the script note, I should point out that Bolo Yeung has NO LINES in this movie - the only reason he gets first billing on the box is the fact that he's the only actor in the film that you'll ever recognize (unless you're a Jackie Chan fan, in which case you'll recognize the bad guy - and you'll want to call him Giancarlo!).)What's also sad is that this film is from '92.
By that time, T2: Judgment day had come out, so you know that the era of 80s campiness was over...
After this, you'll think 80s Chuck Norris films, high-school comedies, and Jason/Freddy sequels were works of sheer genius.
Things to know:1) Nobody in this film can act for beans.
The closest you get is Richard Norton looking appropriately rich and cocky, and Bolo Yeung looking appropriately mean ...
and cocky.
Everything else is dreadful.2) The martial arts scenes are forgettable - just many instances of white guys with lots of muscles taking off their shirts, yelling, running at Britton Lee, getting kicked by Britton Lee, getting punched by Britton Lee, then falling down.
Even the final showdown against Bolo is disappointingly short, and about as creative as the design of my running socks (and equally stinky).3) The rest of the action is pathetic, too: the guns look like they came from the toy department at K-Mart, and indeed they fire with the sound of a capgun.
When someone gets shot, they bounce around a little bit, then lie still with splotches of brownish-red liquid on their clothes.
Britton Lee apparently gets shot in the side, but you don't see it at all, then later that day you see the wound ...
I've had paper cuts that were worse than that!4) Of course then the girl dresses the wound, then they kiss, then next thing you know they're lying in bed talking after sex.
Huh?
Believable development of the love interest, as well as any kind of character development at all, are overlooked completely in this film.
Remember how Bruce Lee's characters didn't need to have sex with anybody to be cool?5) The car chase is by far the worst I've ever seen.
It looks like the director was sitting on the curb with a hand-held camera as the two cars weaved down the road doing, oh I don't know, about 30 miles an hour?
Don't try this at home, kids, these people are professionals!
Hah!6) Really bad writing.
Here's a scene for you: Lee is being followed, so the girl follows the followers to "warn" Lee, but her car is too slow.
So by the time she catches up, Lee and the bad guys are out of their cars and there's a gunfight in progress.
Lee has killed two bad guys, but the third is shooting at Lee when the girl almost runs Lee over, so the bad guy runs away.
(Huh?) Then the girl's car stalls and she can't start it.
She tells Lee she's involved now and she's coming with him.
He points out to her that they can't leave her car there because the bad guys will trace it to her.
She somehow convinces him that he should decide how to deal with this problem - so he shoots the gas tank and blows up her car.
(And remember, later that same night they have sex.) Huh?!?7) If you look closely, in more than half of the nightclub shots, the dancers are very much out of sync with the music.
The dancers are also all way too co-ordinated with each other (apparently in the '80s all people at dance clubs took dancing lessons).
There is a girl in the DJ booth with a microphone, but she never does anything except dance.
The bouncers tell people who are fighting to "take it outside" - without moving their lips.
In one scene, the only bouncers Lee and Stevo pass by are just inside the entrance, but with their backs to it!
Also, apparently, if you're a major character in the film, you can go straight to the head of the line.8) Lee notices the first time he is being followed, but he doesn't notice the second time - even though it's the same guy in the same car.
The girl, however, notices.
Bad guys get followed twice, but they never notice.9) Lee is worried the bad guys will trace the girl's car back to her, even though they have already seen him show up where she works twice.
The girl proceeds to leave her child at work, in the care of a friend, while she is off having sex with Lee. DO NOT learn parenting from this film!Can't think of more gripes right now ...
you get the idea ...
Ironheart is so bad, it ain't even funny, it's SAD..
YEESSSAAAHH!!.
I think that just sums up this film.
Watch it and you'll find out why.
The acting of the lead character John Keem is really, really bad and he has no on screen charisma whatsoever.
It's very funny because of this thought, as is the ending where Keem beheads the bad guy despite the fact he is unarmed and has surrendered.
Brilliant!.
utter rubbish & meaningless crap.
1 Bolo Yeung is in the movie ten minutes altogether including when he's serving iced drinks to his boss.
2 a lot of street thugs looking like junkyard keepers get instantly overpowered by the Asian superhero who talks like an illegal alien just out of the back of a manure truck.
3 (thug) let this to me -shirt off, gay model like muscles- heee-haaw!
hee-heeew!
hap hap!
- he's dead on the floor with his neck, elbow, chin or balls broken - 4 cheap semi-sex scenes where the white broad come out of nowhere digs the Asian superhero.
5 Norton (former C action movies star ) does nothing but pose as an eccentric trendy weapon smuggler who traffics white slutty girls hand picked at a night club where they willingly follow some idiot posing as a millionaire snapping at them ( you reap what you sow ) 6 yes, the local police captain is involved and yes, the first butchered cop is the former patrol teammate of the super-hero ( yaawn!
). 7 Action scenes are fake, like A) hee-haw!
Chinese tries some spinning kick B) skinny leg of Chinese to the throat of negro thug C) finishing death move to his head too much like Walker Texas ranger fake action 8 end titles finallyutter rubbish.
Those people are good enough only to be stand ins or body doubles in other C movies and be credited AT MOST collectively as "stunt crew provided by the county prison ". |
tt0072288 | Thunderbolt and Lightfoot | As a young ne'er-do-well named Lightfoot (Jeff Bridges) steals a car, an assassin attempts to shoot a preacher delivering a sermon at his pulpit. The preacher escapes on foot. Lightfoot, who happens to be driving by, inadvertently rescues him by running over his pursuer and giving the preacher a lift.
Lightfoot eventually learns that the "minister" is really a notorious bank robber known as "The Thunderbolt" (Clint Eastwood) for his use of a 20 millimeter cannon to break into a safe. Hiding out in the guise of a clergyman following the robbery of a Montana bank, Thunderbolt is the only member of his old gang who knows where the loot is hidden.
After escaping another attempt on his life by two other men, Thunderbolt tells Lightfoot that the ones trying to kill him are members of his gang who mistakenly thought Thunderbolt had double-crossed them. He and Lightfoot journey to Warsaw, Montana to retrieve the money hidden in an old one-room schoolhouse. They discover the schoolhouse has been replaced by a brand-new school standing in its place.
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot are abducted by the men who were shooting at them—the vicious Red Leary (George Kennedy) and the gentle Eddie Goody (Geoffrey Lewis)—and driven to a remote location where Thunderbolt and Red fight each other, after which Thunderbolt explains how he never betrayed the gang.
Lightfoot proposes another heist—robbing the same company as before—with a variation on the original plan, since Lightfoot inadvertently killed their electronics expert, Dunlap, in his rescue of the fleeing preacher. In the city where the bank is located, the men find jobs to raise money for needed equipment while they plan the heist.
The robbery begins as Thunderbolt and Red gain access to the building. Lightfoot, dressed as a woman, distracts the Western Union office's security guard, deactivates the ensuing alarm, and is picked up by Goody. Using an anti-tank cannon to breach the vault's wall, as they did in the first heist, the gang escapes with the loot. They flee in the car, with Red and Goody in the trunk, to a nearby drive-in movie in progress. Upon seeing a shirt tail protruding from the car's trunk lid (which is a strong indication one or more people are hiding in the trunk to avoid paying), the suspicious theater manager calls the police and a chase ensues. Goody is shot and Red throws him out of the trunk onto a dirt road, where he dies.
Red then forces Thunderbolt and Lightfoot to stop the car. He pistol-whips them both, knocking them unconscious, and kicks Lightfoot violently in the head. Red takes off with the loot in the getaway car but is again pursued by police, who shoot Red several times, causing him to lose control of the car and crash through the window of a department store, where he is attacked and killed by the store's vicious watchdogs.
Escaping on foot, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot hitch a ride the next morning and are dropped off near Warsaw, Montana, where they stumble upon the one-room schoolhouse—now a historical monument on the side of a highway—moved there from its original location in Warsaw after the first heist. As the two men retrieve the stolen money, Lightfoot's behavior becomes erratic as a result of the beating.
Thunderbolt buys a new Cadillac convertible with cash, something Lightfoot said he had always wanted to do, and picks up his waiting partner, who is gradually losing control of the left side of his body. As they drive away celebrating their success with cigars, Lightfoot, in obvious distress, tells Thunderbolt in a slurred voice how proud he is of their 'accomplishments', and slumps over dead.
Thunderbolt snaps his cigar in half (as it is no longer a celebration), and with his dead partner beside him, he drives off down the highway into the distance. | violence, comedy | train | wikipedia | Lightfoot (a superlative Jeff Bridges) has a crush on Thunderbolt (an astonishing Clint Eastwood) at first sight.
Michael Cimino's first film is an arresting fusion of early 70's road movie, 'Buddy' picture and 'planning a heist' action-thriller.
We get a real sense of his character's connection to Bridges which makes the 'Midnight Cowboy'-ish ending genuinely moving.Like all the great 70's movies, it has some wonderfully memorable scenes and dialogue: Dub Taylor ranting about the imminent collapse of the American economy at a nocturnal gas station; Bill Mckinney as a crazed speed-freak with a trunk full of white rabbits; Bridges encountering a hammer-wielding female motorcyclist, etc, etc.Throw in some breath-taking scenic photography of Montana by Frank Stanley (prefiguring the use and role of landscape in relation to character later explored by Cimino in 'The Deer Hunter') and some beautifully understated character work in the smaller roles, and you have a fondly remembered minor classic ripe for some serious re-appraisal..
This is mostly due to Cimino's script and Bridges acting and honest words.This is far more than a buddy picture,rather one of the greatest love stories on film(all homosexual connotations aside),taking the male relationship in film to new levels because of the contrast of characters and there immediate like for one another.Skipped is most of the bickering used in lessor buddy flicks instead great interaction between the two and Clint still gets to shine as one of the coolest tough guys of the 70's.Great cinematography coupled with beautiful backdrops and a fine supporting cast make this a must see..
Michael Cimino, who co-wrote the ecological SF sleeper 'Silent Running', and wrote the first (and best) movie in Eastwood's 'Dirty Harry' series, debuts impressively as director here.
Eastwood himself is very good as enigmatic thief Thunderbolt, even better is Jeff Bridges who steals the movie as his young protege Lightfoot.
The plot eventually comes together with a robbery involving the two and character actors George Kennedy ('Cool Hand Luke' and Eastwood regular Geoffrey Lewis ('The Way Of The Gun').
There's no way I'm going to argue that 'Thunderbolt And Lightfoot' is a forgotten classic, but it is a lot of fun to watch, it is unpredictable and interesting and features some fine performances, and that is a lot more than you can say for most subsequent Hollywood movies of this type.
If wanted, one can consider this little gem as one of his first steps at "auteurism" (I know, this theory is aged, but not completely wrong).Eastwood certainly did take this movie serious as did Bridges, whose fifth important picture this is (after Last Picture Show, Fat City, Bad Company and Last American Hero).
The same goes for Eastwood-extra Geoff Lewis (still active today in US TV) and Gary Busey, who spends his time today in grade E action-schlock.In addition to this perfect cast and the direction, which I would describe as one full of "lazy assurance" (although by a newcomer) we have a well balanced, highly entertaining story with superbly drawn characters (the movie is evenly balanced and to equal parts plot- and character-driven).
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974)Plot In A Paragraph: A bank robber (Eastwood) gets his old gang back together, to organize a daring new heist, with the help of a young sidekick (A brilliant Jeff Bridges)This is one of my favourite Clint movies that isn't a western or a Dirty Harry movie.
Thunderbolt & Lightfoot might just be the second best film in both Eastwood & Bridge's career.
Doherty (Eastwood), an ex con / bank robber is by fate, recklessly aided by Lightfoot (Bridges) helping Doherty make a sharp exit from his former criminal associates (played by G Kennedy & G Busey).
Jeff Bridges is a remarkable and funny actor in this film, his part reveals a warm and naïve handsome young fella, yet somehow edged with that wise-fool-20-something vision that provides infectious viewing, especially the line to Clint "I don't know want your money man.
most people remember Michael Cimino for his classic masterpiece the DeerHunter,, this film while not quite that is very close i think to a cult classic,, Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges work so well together,, add in Geoffrey Lewis,, George Kennedy,, small parts for Catherine Bach Vic Tayback , and Gary Busey, plus a great story,, and music, you have a wonderful film to behold,, Johnny is on the run from Red,, from a job he pulled 10 years ago,, Red tries to kill him but with Lightfoot's help Johnny lives another day,, he then convinces Johnny to pull the exact same job as 10 years ago, because they would never expect it..
I really like this movie, and I believe Thunderbolt and Lightfoot are one of the better movies with Clint Eastwood, and he really make a great pair with Jeff Bridges.
The location where Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is filmed are wonderful, the casting is perfect, good plot, great theme song in the beginning and at the end of the film, add this together and you have a really good movie!
Cimino keeps the story simple, funny and pretty involving: A young hotshot (Bridges) inspires a has-been bank robber (Eastwood) to take another crack at the bank which nearly brought him down the last time he hit it, and along the way they are both sabotaged and helped by Eastwood's former buddies (Kennedy and Lewis).In my humble opinion, Jeff Bridges is ace as "Lightfoot" in this movie.
Along the way, the violence and mayhem that made Eastwood leave it all back then catches up with them and they have to fight for their lives.The movie is a must-see for fans of Eastwood, Cimino, Kennedy and Lewis - but it belongs to Jeff Bridges..
See the movie...you'll see what I mean!Also, according to IMDB Clint Eastwood felt he deserved an Oscar nomination since his co-star, Jeff Bridges, received one.
Sterling cast (Clint Eastwood, Oscar-nominated Jeff Bridges, George Kennedy, and Gary Busey--billed as Garey) keeps it afloat, and the final twist is clever.
It's too relaxed and laid-back to be considered a successful action picture, yet the story is also too thin and too vapid for us to take the movie very seriously.The movie does have great star power, and Bridges' performance is outstanding, but the meandering script takes too much time to get moving and the direction has no energy, no zest..
Excellent script from infamous Michael Cimino and with fantastic beautiful and memorable photography THUNDERBOLT AND LIGHTFOOT is still a great film to watch.
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot casts Clint Eastwood as a former bank robber now turned preacher who is trying to escape from his former gang who think he sold them out.
Eastwood himself says to Bridges that he came along about ten years too late in his life.Michael Cimino was acclaimed for his first film as both director and writer.
Cimino's script doesn't explain and I don't think it's on the cutting room floor because the film as a whole is well and tightly edited.Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is one of Clint Eastwood's best films, certainly one of my favorites.
Part road trip movie, part Heist movie "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot" brings together Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges.
Geoffrey Lewis (Goody) and George Kennedy (Red) join Thunderbolt and Lightfoot to set the record straight and do the job that didn't get finished off properly last time.
Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges made a good film with "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot." Both actors compliment each other as the personalities of their respective characters are totally different but are united in the pursuit of crime.
(Why would he be preaching in a little country church if he had half a million dollars?) Running from Red, Thunderbolt runs into Lightfoot (Jeff Bridges) - a small timer who'd like to pull off something bigger.
An excellent character based comedy / drama, "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot" is a well above average 1970s vehicle for established star Clint Eastwood.
Cimino gives his film great pace, and, in collaboration with cinematographer Frank Stanley, gives "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot" some impressive widescreen compositions.Endearing entertainment all the way, further enhanced by Paul Williams's touching song "Where Does a Fool Go".Nine out of 10..
I love the title song by Paul Williams which is just a different way of telling the story of John "Thunderbolt" Doherty story, notice how the young Lightfoot act like a sort of guide through the movie.
The actors are extremely good, Eastwood of course show his usual two expressions, but they do fit the role, George Kennedy is very good, but above everyone is Bridges, I love is performance, I think he is just a great actor, and he have been since the beginning, and he is at his best here.
Before "The Deer Hunter" and "Heaven's Gate," Michael Cimino wrote and directed this unsung Clint Eastwood heist film that is less an action movie than a satiric play on one.
Eastwood and Jeff Bridges (an Oscar nominee for best supporting actor) have a vaguely homosexual relationship which itself makes this unusual, and it is the delightfully offbeat characters, rather than the action, that make this such a winner.
He inadvertently teams-up with a young scalawag (Jeff Bridges) and they concoct a mad heist with a couple of the former's old partners.Written & directed by Michael Cimino, "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot" (1974) was the infamous director's debut and pulsates with cinematic magic from beginning to end.
Actors Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges are this film's friends in question.
It is also A film about it's characters who are played wonderfully by a grade A cast starring Clint Eastwood as the laconic loner, also starring Jeff Bridges who gives A wonderful Oscar nominated performance as Lightfoot, with wonderful supporting actors George Kennedy as the violent and menacing red Leary, and also Gregory Lewis as Eddie Goody.
Clint Eastwood & Jeff Bridges star in this peculiar crime/road picture as they portray a veteran crook/thief and his willing/free-spirited young partner who reunite with Clint's(Thunderbolt) old partners(George Kennedy & Geoffrey Lewis) to finish a heist job they had committed seven years earlier, but were unable to collect the loot.
A lot of the humour of the film comes from Bridges antagonistic interaction with the character played by George Kennedy, who is the obvious villain of the piece.
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot plays it's crowd-pleasing elements - things such as comedy, action and strong performances from good leading men, as far as they can go and this is what makes the film a winner.
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot plays it's crowd-pleasing elements - things such as comedy, action and strong performances from good leading men, as far as they can go and this is what makes the film a winner.
And this is testament to the great characters and crowd pleasing elements that this film gives it's audience.Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges really couldn't be much more different if they tried.
And this is testament to the great characters and crowd pleasing elements that this film gives it's audience.Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges really couldn't be much more different if they tried.
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is both a buddy movie and a character driven crime caper, and it plays both of these sides of it's personality to great effect.
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is both a buddy movie and a character driven crime caper, and it plays both of these sides of it's personality to great effect.
Here is a work over-looked in the much maligned career of Michael Cimino, though also for actors Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges.
I loved how the basic premise- Eastwood leading Bridges, and two others (one George Kennedy in a well-fit villain-type tole) to rob an Armory in a small Montana town after a botched attempt- keeps getting put aside for more of the 'little' things that they come across.
Or early on in the scenes establishing Thunderbolt and Lightfoot- somehow it's weird to see how these people would meet, but they're together, and a strange fit.The film isn't great, however the aspirations of what would come in Cimino's later films (for better or likely for worse) are seen here in good light.
At the heart of the film is the friendship between Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges).
Interesting in that it stars Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges, and is probably the only movie to include both of them.
Jeff Bridges is great as Lightfoot and Clint Eastwood is solid, and very Eastwoodesque, as Thunderbolt.
It starts out slow where Eastwood's and Bridge's characters first meet and form a rapport.George Kennedy and Geoffery Lewis join in on the caper, and all 4 actors complement one another nicely in a unique way.
And Geoffery Lewis was the bumbling, harmless lackey who provides some comedy relief.Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is kind of a feel-good buddy film and action-adventure rolled into one.
it stars Clint Eastwood as vetern bank robber John "Thunderbolt" lured back into the criminal world with a new sidekick, Jeff Bridges as Lightfoot.
With Clint Eastwood's fighting, Jeff Bridges' humor, and George Kennedy's evil streak, 'Thunderbolt and Lightfoot' features smart action, fun, and an unforgetable sad ending that everyone will love.
I don´t know why Jeff Bridges and Clint Eastwood only made two movies together; the two partner up very well.
Rarely seen on (at least) UK TV schedules, I was pleased to re-new my acquaintance with it, recognising it for the first time as being written and directed by "Badlands" director Michael Cimino.A combination buddy/caper/road movie it starts very quietly with a car in the distance carving out a plume of dust as it approaches a country church whereupon it explodes into life with the car's driver entering the church, brandishing a shotgun and taking potshots at the preacher, a rather improbable Clint Eastwood ("Thunderbolt" from the title).
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is the first film directed by Michael Cimino.
I wouldn't recommend this film toanyone, even if they love Clint Eastwood or Jeff Bridges..
Michael Cimino's 1974 Crticial & Commercial Hit 'Thunderbolt and Lightfoot' is A Fantastic Film, along-with an Astonishing Performance by Academy-Award-Winning, Legendary Actor, Jeff Bridges!
Cimino's strong direction, combined with two very charismatic leads (Clint Eastwood and Jeff Bridges) and a solid script makes it an entertaining way to spend two hours.
THUNDERBOLT AND LIGHTFOOT (1974) *** Clint Eastwood, Jeff Bridges, George Kennedy, Geoffrey Lewis, Gary Busey.
Clint Eastwood is a career bank robber (Thunderbolt) who teams up with a novice played by Jeff Bridges (Lightfoot) to get the money hidden from a previous robbery.
Anyway, Cimino made his directorial debut with "Thunderbolt & Lightfoot." This exciting, tour-de-force Clint Eastwood & Jeff Bridges thriller ranks as one of the top ten perfect crimes heist movies of the 1970s.
Cimino's film chronicles the friendship between an older man, a Korean War veteran on-the-lam, and a hopelessly footloose but fast-talking twentysomething who cherishes grand theft auto, easy women, and clichés.Ultimately, Joe Doherty, aka 'Thunderbolt' (Clint Eastwood) and Lightfoot (Jeff Bridges) team up reluctantly with Eastwood's old partners-in-crime, Red Leary (George Kennedy of "Cool Hand Luke") and Goody (Geoffrey Lewis of "High Plains Drifter") to rob an armored car company.
There is the talent involved, Eastwood in his prime, Jeff Bridges laying out the kind of persona he would riff on for the next thirty years, George Kennedy in full blown red neck psycho mode, and Michael Cimino working on the friendship/futility of life themes that would then be refined in the masterpiece that is Deer Hunter.
Preparations are in order to rob Montana Armoured when a young goof-ball roadie named Lightfoot(Jeff Bridges, nothing short of amazing)convinces ex-bank robber Thunderbolt(Clint Eastwood, very mellow and pleasant in this particular film)and his ex-heister partners(Geoffrey Lewis as Goody & George Kennedy as the extremely volatile Red Leary..who originally plan to kill Thunderbolt believing he hid the loot they stole from that very bank of Montana Armoured ten years prior)to attempt the daring feat of working over a bank twice.
All the cast are good even though Clint Eastwood is basically playing himself but it's impossible to mention the cast without mentioning that this is Jeff Bridges film .
This is a film which is heavy on the character work and the humour, with oddball but likeable performances from the likes of Jeff Bridges, Geoffrey Lewis, Gary Busey and George Kennedy.
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot came up and the catchy name combined with Clint Eastwood and Bridges beckoned.This is a good character building movie.
"Thunderbolt and Lightfoot" was Michael Cimino's first film as a director and to me it is one of the best heist movies that I have ever seen and perhaps the most entertaining movies of the genre.
The movie stars Clint Eastwood as a bank robber named Thunderbolt who in the first scene we believe to be a preacher but his mass gets interrupted when shots get fired and he ends up escaping the scene, after the shooting he ends up meeting a young man named Lightfoot (played by Jeff Bridges in an Oscar nominated performance) and start a friendship with one another and they are on their way to Warsaw, Montana to look for a one room schoolhouse for some money that hasn't been found, and they end up going to the wrong school whilst assuming that the one room schoolhouse was torn down while getting some ice cream.
Gordon Green expresses his love for Michael Cimino's debut feature; "I'm obsessed with this actor (Bill Mckinney) from THUNDERBOLT AND LIGHTFOOT, he has an amazing role where he picks up Jeff Bridges and Clint Eastwood and he's got the raccoons in the car and the bunnies in the trunk.
THUNDERBOLT AND LIGHTFOOT is a sort-of mix of many elements – it's a road movie that becomes a heist one, and that's always a buddy film, all with some folk music.
Teaming up with young con-artist Lightfoot (Jeff Bridges) Thunderbolt re-unites with former members of his gang Red Leary (George Kennedy) and Eddie Goody (Geoffry Lewis). |
tt0323250 | Mike's New Car | Mike is obsessed with his new six-wheel drive car, and insists on showing it off to Sulley. Unfortunately for Mike, anything that can go wrong does go wrong. Sulley plays with the adjustable power seat until an annoyed Mike asks him to stop. Mike starts the engine and hears the seatbelt reminder tone sound off.
Although Sulley manages to get his seatbelt on easily, Mike finds his seatbelt stuck and accidentally locks himself out of the car while trying to unstick it. Mike tells Sulley to push a button, but confused by the massive amount of buttons on the dashboard, he pushes a button that pops the hood open. When Mike goes over to close it, he is unable to reach it. Sulley helps Mike close the hood but accidentally closes on Mike's fingers, causing Mike to scream, Sulley helps Mike get free but ends up trapping him in the engine compartment.
Sulley opens the hood, Mike manages to escape, re-enters the car, and is exasperated by the continuous seatbelt reminder tone. Mike manages to put his seat-belt on, but the windshield wipers get turned on, much to his frustration. As Sulley tries to help, Mike tells him not to touch anything and decides to do it himself. Mike pushes a button that launches the entire car into chaotic malfunction, including Latin conga music playing loudly on the car's stereo system.
Mike finally ends the chaos by pulling the key out of the ignition, but then Sulley accidentally breaks the rearview mirror in an attempt to realign it. Mike gets angry, forces Sulley out of the car, and speeds away, wrecking the car completely. Sulley mutters, "Huh, that's weird, the airbag didn't go off." Right on cue, the airbag inflates, and its force sends Mike flying back up the street. Sulley catches Mike, who mourns for his old car before agreeing to walk to work while the credits roll. | psychedelic | train | wikipedia | With the money from his new found fame and success, Mike buys a brand new powerful car to replace his old one.
However this car is a little more complex than his last model.When I borrowed the Monsters Inc DVD off some friends I was impressed by the sheer number of extras on it, whether the tv spots or the weird Japanese games or the outtakes etc.
Of all the things additional to the movie, this short is the second best extra (the best being the musical `Put That Thing Back Where it Came From Or So Help Me').Although it relies much more on physical humour than the film does I must admit to still being tickled by it.
It appealed to the toddler audience a lot more simply because there were no real `over the head' jokes aimed at adults and not at the kids plus it involved one character being hurt!Overall I enjoyed this short and, when I watch Monsters Inc with any young relatives, I always make sure that the musical and this short are part of the viewing agenda..
Mike's New Car is perhaps the worst short to be featured before Monsters Inc, a touching and original movie with a unique plot.
Mike, the one-eyed side-kick to the big-hearted and fuzzy Sullivan gets a new 6 wheeled car that follows the principle 'Everything that can go wrong does go wrong'.
Now the thing with a Pixar short is that it has to aim for the jugular in its first attempt.
Am I going to watch Mike's New Car again for interpretations?
This short animation is about the new car Mike bought.
He is proud of it until things go awfully wrong."Mike's New Car" is aimed at very young children.
The plot is a simple one, featuring merry mishaps of Mike and Scully while working with the technologically advanced car.
If this was nominated for an Oscar, then the other shorts must have been very bad, or there were no other shorts.I find "Mike's New Car" rather forgettable.
Funny animated short.
As a little extra on 'Monsters, Inc' Disney and Pixar bring us 'Mike's New Car', a terrific animated short film that was nominated for an Oscar.
If you liked 'Monsters, Inc.' I see no reason why you should not like this little film.
One of the two main characters of 'Monsters, Inc.', Mike (voice by Billy Crystal), has bought a new car.
The other main character, Sulley (John Goodman), joins him for a drive.
Sort of.This film is quite funny, especially the ending is hilarious.
As with all Disney/Pixar films the animation is perfect.
Especially Sulley seems almost like a real creature the way his hair and facial expressions are animated.
If you like other films from Disney and Pixar Animation Studios you should not miss this one..
I enjoying watching Monsters, Inc. with Sulley and Mike, then seeing them in this short film.
It is nice bonus to Monsters, Inc. that Pixar put Mike's New Car with buying or renting on VHS or DVD at your video store.
Mike is funny when he and Sulley react to the new car.
I like more films with the characters.
I will not be surprised if the Mike and Sulley make a special appearance in Finding Nemo at the end of the film in the goofs..
Mike and Sully, the two heroes from Pixar/Disney's MONSTERS INC.
are back in this short film about Mike's new car.
At first, Mike is very, very proud of it, but over time, more and more and more goes wrong--and in the process poor Mike and Sully are bashed to pieces by their overly-gadgeted car.I saw this film recently in the new DVD of Pixar animated shorts and while it was very pleasant and funny, I was rather shocked to find out it was nominated for the Oscar for Best Animated Short Subject--which it lost to the better short film THE CHUBBCHUBBS!
Now this isn't knocking MIKE'S NEW CAR--it's well executed and fun.
The "message" being sometimes it was a lot better with a basic simple machines of the past."Mike" (Billy Crystal) has a new car he wants to show off to "Sully" so he invites him to take a ride.
They never get to the ride because "Sully" (John Goodman) either hits a wrong button or does something to stall things, driving Mike nuts.
The cartoon also is a comment on the sometimes-annoying noise the car will make if your seat belts aren't secured.This animated short came with The "Monsters, Inc." DVD and is a fun four minutes.
Mike and Sully, of course, were the stars of the feature film.P.S. The car is very cool..
I have seen Monster's Inc, thinking that no computer animated movie will ever reach the levels of Shrek.
This short feature about Mike's new car is simply hilarious.
Just watch Mike's and Sully's facial expressions..
Mike's New Car settles for visual humour that only just conveys their monstrous personalities..
Pixar's short animations tend to be either original meaningful films or continuations of existing intellectual property.
A slight diversion from 'Monster's Inc', Mike's New Car is simply our favourite one-eyed fledgling purchasing a new car and figuring out how to utilise the vehicle, with "great" assistance from Sully.
Bought a new car, sat in it thinking "damn, look at all these buttons".
Having adapted to the feature film, we now know what these characters are like around each other and how they react to certain situations.
Crystal voices Mike to perfection whilst Goodman unfortunately does not have too much to say.
Mike and Sully are one of my favourites characters from the Pixar universe.
In this case, they're entertaining us with Mike's new car and it's absolutely hilarious.
A nice short film, but not one of my favourites from Pixar.
I saw Mike's New Car not just because it was Pixar but I just love Monster's Inc, finding it very funny and with lots of heart.
Mike's New Car is not as good as Monster's Inc, and I do prefer other Pixar shorts like Geri's Game, Presto, One Man Band, Knick Knack and Jack-Jack Attack.
The short is short, perhaps too short, so while funny it sometimes lacked the heart of some of Pixar's other work, and I wasn't crazy about the intro, lovely understated jazz music but the miniature versions of Mike and Sulley look odd.
This said, the physical humour is great, very funny especially the ending, and there is some dialogue, and it is witty with the best being the "PUSH THE BUTTON!" exchange .
Mike and Sulley are likable characters with an easy-going chemistry, and they are voiced wonderfully by Billy Crystal and John Goodman.
The music is jazzy but with a soothing quality, but the best asset is the beautiful animation, like with Monsters Inc I am still impressed at the lengths given to make Sulley look as furry and as real as possible.
This short TV special is about Mike's new car.
How he recycles his old car and buys a new one.
His friend Sully ends up putting him in tragic and then all of a sudden, he wants his old one back.Now, the reason why this special was a thousand times worse than the movie is because of the stupidity Mike and Sully have gotten now.
Although, this special is for little kids who are finding humor and Mike and Sully are still hilarious, but doesn't surpass the humor in the original theatrical movie.The plot is pretty predictable and the show's too short.
It's only about two minutes long of Mike and Sully's disaster about the new car.
Then all of a sudden, Mike decides he wants his old car back.Look, I'm not saying that this special is terrible or anything, it was still somewhat good and slightly funny, but I prefer the theatrical movie over the special..
This is a clever short film that strikes me as something of a deleted scene from Monsters, Inc, into which this short film would have fit quite nicely, especially clocking in at a whopping three and a half minutes!
It's an interesting illustration of the dangers of upgrading to these high tech new cars available today, especially if you are just a regular guy like Mike.
He buys this fancy new car with six wheels and can't contain himself at how cool it is, and then he and Sulley get beaten up by it because they have no idea how to use it.
It's probably something similar to what would happen to me if I managed to get my hands on a brand new car.
When cars are driving themselves I'll still be excited to have power steering.It's pretty funny to see Mike and Sulley struggle to figure out the new car, especially when Sulley gets all fascinated by the power seats, quickly annoying Mike, who seconds earlier couldn't wait to show him all the new gadgets in his fancy new car.
I have come to expect more than this from Pixar, though, especially in their short films, which generally contain enough charm and amusement in just a few minutes to fill a full-length movie.
Still a pretty cute film, though, and it's not like you can really complain about a three and a half minute short anyway, right?.
This one, from the boys over at Pixar, is a continuation of the "Monster's Inc" storyline with Mike (voice of Billy Crystal) showing Sulley (voice of John Goodman) his new car.
The animation is typical pixar, the voice talent is game.
Fun Pixar Short.
Mike's New Car (2002) *** (out of 4) Fun Pixar short has Mike (Billy Crystal) and Sulley (John Goodman) from MONSTER, INC.
Mike gets a new car and decides to take Sulley for a drive but he doesn't know how all the controls work yet, which leads to a lot of trouble for the duo.
I actually haven't seen the full length film that the characters are from but after seeing this I'm certainly going to try and make a stronger effort in getting it on.
I thought the film showed a lot of imagination considering how little time they had to tell the story.
The idea of various instruments going wrong could have made for a simple film but the nice imagination takes the idea and really runs with it.
I loved the sequence where Mike gets sucked up in the engine and his only way out is by making a phone call to Sulley who's still sitting in the car.
I was a little surprised to see that this was nominated for an Oscar but either way it's an enjoyable little film..
But when I saw this film alongside the other animated shorts in the Oscar running, it seemed a little lite.
This is a wonderful little bonus to Monsters, Inc. included by Pixar on VHS and DVD release.
While I like cel animation slightly more than CGI (odd, because I have zero artistic ability and can't draw a straight line even with a ruler), Pixar's work enthralls me.
This point appears to elude entirely too many people of late, including the folks at Disney (Pixar, it should be noted, is not part of Disney, but is a separate company that has a distribution deal with The Mouse.) and it's not that hard to make sure you have a story first, though all too often it must seem that way in the film industry.
I hope Pixar continues to do shorts, whether for R & D purposes or just because they want to do them, as they do a great job.
A Funny Little Short....
Sully and Mike, of "Monster's Inc.," are the stars of the five minute short, "Mike's New Car," which shows Mike trying to figure out how to drive his new car, with Sully watching Mike act like an idiot, basically.If you liked "Monsters Inc.," You'll love "Mike's New Car," which features the voice talents of Billy Crystal and John Goodman.3.5/5 stars -John Ulmer.
This little short movie followed MONSTERS, INC.
There wasn't much of a purpose to this short film other than that maybe Billy Crystal and John Goodman enjoyed making MONSTERS, INC.
Anyway, the whole isn't all that great, but I do recommend seeing this before you watch FOR THE BIRDS.MIKE'S NEW CAR: 3/5..
Mike's New Car. Reuniting the comedy duo (and reprising the voice talents) of Sulley and Mike from the feature film 'Monster's Inc.' makes this gag-driven short worth watching for any fan of these two characters and their relationship.
The premise is a clever continuation from the movie, where Mike was not allowed to drive to work due to the current energy crisis in Monstropolis.
In the short, the deprived monster gets a chance to show off his new 'six-wheel drive' to his partner.
This subtle attention to detail and character is a display of how intimate Pixar Animation Studios are with their work.
Unfortunately for Mike, the display doesn't run smoothly, creating a hilarious predicament in the middle of the street.'Mike's New Car' might feature a little too much slapstick for some viewers, but many should appreciate it for what it is.8/10.
It's funny and a must see for all Monsters Inc Fans..
This short is about Mike getting a good deal in trading his old car for a better one.He shows it to Sully and wants to give it a test drive around the neighborhood.Only operating the vehicle isn't as easy as it appears to be.This short has plenty of gags in it.I won't spoil anything but it is really funny to watch.They still have Billy Crystal as Mike Watsoski and John Goodman as Sully.You able to see this on the Monsters Inc. DVD..
When I saw the DVD of Monsters inc came out, I thought this would be some cruddy part of it...but when I saw it for the first time, I was absolutely dying laughing, as there was every sight gag in the books.
Everyone who is a normal person and likes to laugh, this is a must see, because even though it is about 3-5 minutes long, it is absolutely hilarious, hence the title of this.
I have to say I quite like both Monsters, Inc. movie and this short film came out a year after the first.
The animation is good as always with Pixar and I liked especially how the car had a bit of an evil face which fit nicely the way Mike struggled with it.
However, none of these jokes really had the joy or fun that came with the full feature films starring this unusual duo of friends.
A third of this short film is only about Sulley adjusting his seat which seems to make Mike very angry for some reason.
There is also not a real message in this film, something that usually comes with Pixar.
I don't know.This short film is written and directed by Pixar big name Pete Docter and he got help from Roger Gould and a couple writers who also worked on the first Monsters movie.
They managed an Oscar nomination in the animated short film category which makes me shake my head.
"Mike's New Car" is one of Pixar's worst.
One of my least favourite Pixar shorts but cleverly executed.
I probably saw this short for the first time 11 years ago when I watched this on the 'Monsters, Inc' DVD and it is brightly coloured like the feature it relates to but it isn't as funny.The premise, which involves Mike not getting the hang of the car's controls and trying to dissuade Sulley from messing with them, is basic.
There are a couple of funny moments, especially Mike phoning Sulley from inside the bonnet and the ending when the airbag inflates off-screen just after Sulley says it didn't go off.
The musical score is pleasantly jazzy and the music in the first half sounded like a stripped-down version of the memorable opening music from 'Monsters, Inc,' while the cut-out like versions of Sulley and Mike shown in the beginning and ending titles are cute.
Further to the end credits, I like how the dialogue continues with Mike missing his 'old car' and everything about it when Sulley offers to walk him to Monsters, Inc, which links to them walking instead of driving there in the actual film.Overall this is one of my least favourite feature-related shorts but it has wonderful jazz music, the odd funny moment and clever ideas nonetheless.
It's so funny and matches from characters and situations from the feature film.
I do not get tired or bored of that short film.
I hope they make another short film for Monsters University.
I like how they put funny things in Mike's New Car. It released the year after Monsters, Inc., so it was not in the theaters.
I would definitely recommend this short film to anyone who hasn't watched it.
It's the best short film I have ever seen!
They need to make more short films like this one!.
Quality short film.
"Mike's New Car" is a quality short film from Pixar.
He seems to be way more aggressive and hostile than he ever was in the feature film.
Those faces are priceless, and I will probably watch this short film over and over again just to see the faces..
Mike's New Car. If you have got the Monsters, Inc. DVD then you would be able to watch this special short film for after the main feature.
Basically Mike (Billy Crystal) has bought a new "monster" car as a treat, and he decides to show it to Sulley (John Goodman), and take him for a spin.
It is Sulley stepping into the car that Mike sees all the problems with adjusting, getting started, and obviously driving.
The computer effects are quality, the gags involving the car's gadgets are cool, and it ultimately a good film that follows the main feature. |
tt0400525 | The Ice Harvest | At mid-afternoon on Christmas Eve in Wichita, Kansas, mob lawyer Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) and crooked businessman and pornographer Vic Cavanaugh (Billy Bob Thornton) steal over $2 million from their mob boss Bill Guerrard (Randy Quaid). While it appears there will be an easy getaway for the pair, they learn the roads out of town are too icy to drive on. Vic takes the cash for safe-keeping and they split up and try their best to evade being captured by Guerrard and his men, who have discovered their scheme.
Charlie visits Sweet Cage, a local strip-club, owned by Renata Crest (Connie Nielsen), a woman whom Charlie has long lusted for. She is upset because a new law will prevent strip clubs from operating after the first of the year. In response to Charlie's advances, she tasks him with bringing her an existing compromising picture, taken of a local crusading politician, so that she can use it to blackmail him to keep her club in business. She hints that she might respond favorably to Charlie's sexual desire if he helps her with this. Before he leaves the club, Charlie sees someone looking for him. He hides in the bathroom, where "As Wichita Falls, So Falls Wichita Falls" is written on the walls. He manages to evade the hulking man because Sidney, the bartender, lies and tells him that Charlie already left. Once the man leaves, a panicked Charlie calls Vic to warn him, but Vic dismisses his concerns.
Charlie drives to another strip club owned by Guerrard to remove the photo from the backroom safe. Before he gets there, his car skids on ice and he is stopped by Officer Tyler, who asks Charlie to remember him to his boss, Guerrard. Charlie promises to do so, but then can't remember the man's name a minute later. At the second club, he is unexpectedly nice to a stripper, and the bartender there takes note of that. While Charlie is in the back stealing the photograph, the menacing man shows up again, once again demanding to know if Charlie has been there. Once again, the bartender lies for Charlie and he's again able to evade capture. Once he leaves, a now very panicked Charlie rushes out with his phone open to call Vic again, but slips on the ice and breaks his phone.
Charlie drives to a restaurant to meet with Vic in person instead, and Vic assures him things will be okay. While they're talking, Vic gets a phone call from someone and tells Charlie it's his overweight wife asking when he'll be home. Vic leaves, but before Charlie can go, the bar manager asks Charlie to take care of Pete (Oliver Platt), Charlie's old and now very drunk friend. Pete is married to Charlie's beautiful ex-wife Sarabeth. Charlie takes Pete to the home of Pete's current in-laws where his children and Sarabeth are having dinner with her parents. It's clear that Pete doesn't want to go in, and is unhappy with his new marriage to Charlie's ex-wife. While still outside the house, he drunkenly confesses to Charlie that he and Sarabeth were constantly "fucking everywhere" while she was still married to Charlie. Pete asks Charlie if that makes him angry, and Charlies replies, "Actually, it makes me curious. Makes me wonder who she's fucking now." Once inside, Pete acts out, cursing and saying terrible things about both his wife and his in-laws. Charlie attempts to talk to his children, but is met with open hostility from his older son for not being more involved in their lives. Finally Sarabeth's mother tells him to leave, and take Pete with him. So Pete and Charlie go back to the restaurant they'd left earlier, and ask the bartender for one more drink. She agrees to give them each one for free if they will drink it and then leave. Charlie calls the Sweet Cage looking for Renata while Pete makes drunken sexual comments to the bartender, despite the fact that her boyfriend is waiting there for her to close. The boyfriend eventually throws him out of the restaurant and then kicks him in the scrotum. Pete vomits in Charlie's car, Officer Tyler shows up again, and Charlie drives Pete home (which was previously Charlie's house), where Pete passes out. Charlie "borrows" Sarabeth's new Mercedes (which was a gift from Pete) from the garage.
Charlie goes back to Sweet Cage to find Sidney the bartender beating up a guitar player. Renata has returned, so he gives her the photo. Based on Charlie's kindness to the stripper at the other club and his refusal to demand anything in return for the valuable photo, Renata deduces that Charlie is hiding something. He hints at the existence of money, and she suggests they go off together. Before they can do that, however, she tells him that Vic had called her earlier to say Charlie had been right about mob enforcer Roy Gelles (Mike Starr) looking for the two of them, and that Charlie needs to go meet with Vic at The Velvet Touch while she closes her bar.
Charlie goes to The Velvet Touch and finds a severed human thumb in the back room. He drives to a bridge to be sick, and is once again spotted by Officer Tyler, whose name he still can't remember. He heads to Vic's house and sees a gun go off through the window. He breaks into the other car in Vic's driveway and finds ID belonging to Roy, so he assumes that Roy just killed Vic. He calls Renata to tell her so, and she encourages him to take Roy out and get the money from him so they can run off together. She encourages him to make this his "defining moment" to be "something more." Charlie goes into Vic's house, finds Vic's wife newly dead and is then startled by Vic himself. Vic tells him that Roy shot his wife, but that he managed to lock Roy up in a trunk. After an argument about which car would hold the two bodies best, the two of them stuff the trunk with Roy inside it into the back seat of Sarabeth's Mercedes, and the corpse of Vic's wife's into the trunk, then head for a local lake. On the way, Roy continues talking to the two of them, telling Charlie Vic killed his own wife, and that he's going to kill Charlie too. Vic berates Charlie for "being nice" on Christmas Eve, saying it's a dead giveaway that he's planning to leave town, then gets annoyed with Roy's talking and shoots into the trunk, which becomes quiet. Charlie and Vic get the trunk down onto a dock at the lake, but it's shot open from the inside and Roy gets out, shooting Vic in the process. Vic shoots Roy dead, but then falls into the frozen lake. Vic begs for help, but Charlie realized that Roy was right, and Vic was planning to kill him once they got the bodies into the lake, and then take the money for himself. He dumps Vic's wife's body on Vic, telling him, "I don't want you to die alone," and leaves Vic to die, still pleading to be saved. But then Charlie discovers the duffel bag in the car does not have the money in it, and that he doesn't know where the money actually is (and with Vic dead, has no way of figuring that out), so he gets drunk. He calls Renata and tells her what has happened, but she asks him to come to her despite not having the money. When Charlie hangs up the phone, it is revealed that someone is pointing a gun at her.
First Charlie heads back to his old house and delivers some very cheap Christmas gifts to his children, leaving them under the tree. Pete is still passed out there, and wakes up to beg Charlie to take him with him when he leaves town. Returning to Sweet Cage, Charlie discovers Bill Guerrard's car in the parking lot. He goes inside just as Guerrard is in the bathroom, to discover Renata tied to a chair. She has just enough time to tell him where a shotgun is hidden before Guerrard emerges from the bathroom, not seeing that Charlie has arrived. Charlie manages to fetch the double-barreled shotgun from behind the bar, and Guerrard discusses the situation with Renata, surmising it was really she who designed the plan, as Vic was too dumb and Charlie too cowardly to pull it off without her encouragement. Charlie returns and points the gun at Guerrard, but Guerrard just taunts him. At Renata's urging, Charlie fires the gun, but it is loaded with birdshot and only superficially wounds him. As Charlie starts to cut Renata loose, Charlie is stabbed in the foot by a recovered Guerrard. Officer Tyler, making his rounds, hears the gunshot and arrives but Guerrard shoots him dead. Renata frees herself and stabs Guerrard in the chest. A struggle ensues, and Charlie manages to kill Guerrard with a second shot to the back of the head at point blank range.
While Renata cleans Guerrard's blood off of herself, Charlie tends to his wounds and suddenly sees Vic's duffel bag containing the money in Renata's open closet. Flashing back, he realizes Renata is the one Vic was having dinner with earlier, and that he and Renata were planning to go off together after Vic had killed him. Renata emerges from the bathroom acting as if she is going to seduce Charlie. As they embrace, Charlie shoots Renata with Guerrad's gun just before she can kill him with a concealed razor she brought out of the bathroom.
On Christmas morning, a sad Charlie drives out of town with the money. He finds Sidney with his kids on the side of the road in a camper-motor home, on their way to Six Flags. They are stalled because the camper has run out of gas. Charlie lets Sidney siphon some gas from his tank and Sidney tells him that Charlie's the nicest guy he knows. Charlie says he's "awfully sorry to hear that." They wish each other well, but Sidney's motor won't immediately start. Before he drives off, Charlie pulls a red Sharpie from his pocket and begins to write "As Wichita Falls, So Falls Wichita Falls" on the back of the camper. Based on the handwriting and the ink color, it's implied that he was the one writing this phrase all over town the entire time. Not seeing Charlie back there, Sidney accidentally backs into him, knocking him to the ground. Charlie picks himself up and gets back in the Mercedes, where Pete is revealed to have been lying in the back seat the entire time. He has at last awoken from his stupor, and wants to know where he is. Charlie tells him he's in Heaven. They wish each other "Merry Christmas" and drive off to a new and different future. | comedy, neo noir, philosophical, murder, flashback | train | wikipedia | He just happens to be a Witchita attorney for a Kansas City political boss.The film begins when Charlie Arglist (Cusack), with over two million in stolen cash, jumps into the car with partner-in-crime Vic Cavanaugh (Billy Bob Thornton).
Throughout the evening Charlie encounters strip club owner Renata (Connie Nielsen) and drunken colleague Pete Van Heuten (Oliver Platt, his fist scene-stealer in a number of years).The character of Pete offers some great comic relief to the story.
And bit player Ned Bellamy, cast as a strip club bouncer with Mom issues adds some fine scenes.This is about the most straight-forward "noir" I've seen since Lawrence Kasdan's "Body Heat," but as directed by Ramis, it feels slightly like a Coen brothers movie, with the occasional comic twists to the genre, and the casting choices of Thornton ("The Man Who Wasn't There") and Starr ("Miller's Crossing").It's not the best movie of the year.
The Ice Harvest is attractive to two audiences, those being the film noir and/or crime fans and the people who think a movie with Cusack and Thornton directed by ex-Ghostbuster Ramis is going to be a mishap-riddled caper comedy.
The good news is that he pulls it off very well.The Ice Harvest happens to be one of the movies I watch at Christmastime, because the film is actually so well-directed and so well-shot that it captures that constantly sought-after perfect cozy winter atmosphere on film.
No matter how much time it spends during the outlandish drunken bouts of Oliver Platt or the destructive tantrums of Ned Bellamy's overaggressive bartender, The Ice Harvest never breaks its meticulous feeling and image for one moment.Even though it's not what is expected by the vast majority of those who have seen it or those who mean to, it does have impressionistic characteristics of those expectations that deliver sensationally, such as Thornton's tremendously entertaining time on screen and the thicket of distrust that ushers in over the course of the holidays succeeding his and Cusack's so-called perfect crime.
Really, the essence of the story lies in Cusack's descent into complete detachment from any virtue in life, feeling as if he's only an observer when encountering darkly humorous yet brooding things over his Christmas.The Ice Harvest is not really a comedy and not really a film noir.
'The Ice Harvest' looked very entertaining from it's previews and starred a talented group of actors including John Cusack (Grosse Point Blank), Billy Bob Thorton (Bad Santa), Connie Nielsen (Gladiator), the hilarious Randy Quaid (National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation) and the even more hilarious Oliver Platt (Showtime's 'Huff').
THE ICE HARVEST (TIH), another quirky triumph from Focus Features, should really be sold as a thriller with darkly comedic undertones a la FARGO rather than a comedy with thriller elements a la GROSSE POINTE BLANK (even though John Cusack looks remarkably like he did in GPB here).
The suspenseful yet surreally funny Kansas-set story of nervous Mob lawyer John Cusack teaming up with laid-back yet ruthless Billy Bob Thornton to steal over $2 million from Cusack's boss Randy Quaid, only to find themselves stuck in Wichita by an ice storm and all manner of goof-ups and goofballs, with a hit man on their tail to-boot, TIH tells its twisted tale as if my fave thriller author Jim Thompson (THE GRIFTERS, THE GETAWAY, POP.
Life becomes more complicated as the night goes on and Charlie meets up again with Vic. More twists and surprises follow.I almost didn't go to this movie, because the teaser for the Austin Film Festival made it look like a Cusack-Thornton buddy movie, and I'm tired of the character Thornton keeps playing.
Connie Nielsen, Billy Bob Thornton, Randy Quaid, and Oliver Platt all turn in perfectly tuned performances, but Cusack, with his low-key, mesmerizing timing, is the center.Anyway, if you're looking for a fast-moving comedy, look elsewhere.
It's been a while since I've seen such a successful mixture of black comedy and film-noir/thriller.Charlie (John Cusack), a Kansas attorney on the verge of a burn-out, and his associate Vic (Billy Bob Thornton) have just stolen 2 million $ from their boss on Christmas Eve. They're planning on leaving that same night to enjoy their money elsewhere.
John Cusack fails to give a performance that would generate any great interest or sympathy, and Oliver Platt gives a performance that is awful, studied, and unfunny, pretty much ruining any chance of the film being particularly good.
The writing is enough to betray Lara Phillips and Billy Bob Thornton (who seems to do every caper film these days, good or bad) without any help from the actors, because their characters are completely predictable.I have little else to say here about it.
I went to see a preview of The Ice Harvest last night, and knew nothing about the movie except for the stars John Cusak, (who I like very much) and Billy Bob Thorton.
One of Harold Ramis' better efforts as a director, with understated performances by Billy Bob Thornton, John Cusack, and Connie Nielsen, all working off a script by Oscar winner Robert Benton and Emmy nominee Richard Russo.
John Cusack stars as Charlie Arglist, a morally compromised lawyer who has joined with strip club owner Vic Cavenaugh (Billy Bob Thornton) to steal 2 million dollars from a local mob boss, and black comedy hilarity ensues.
This movie is pretty funny, as I have always been a fan of the main actors in this movie (Billy Bob Thornton, John Cusack and Oliver Platt).
"The Ice Harvest" is about a man named Charlie (John Cusack) who has decided to rob his boss on Christmas Eve. Charlie along with his partner Vic (Billy Bob Thornton) plan to spend the last night in Wichita saying good bye to their family and friends and then leaving the next morning to begin a new life.
It's a pretty entertaining flick for its small target audience and is differently a different type of movie for its lead star John Cusack and its director Harold Ramis.MovieManMenzel's final rating for "The Ice Harvest" is a 7/10.
Even though the "Analyze This" films were about the mafia, I wouldn't go as far as calling them "dark comedies." "The Ice Harvest" is at times a bit too low-key, but those who don't have the attention span of a three-year-old shouldn't mind.
Platt's comic turn as an unhappy husband who imbibes a little too much Christmas Eve liquor is the perfect spoil to Cusack's wry, bland ex husband.Connie Nielsen is understated as the Veronica Lake like strip club manager and is enticing and throaty.Billy Bob Thornton is brutally funny as Cusack's sidekick in embezzlement.Twists and turns along the way keep the movie going and you'll never check your watch.A Must See that I'll be seeing again!.
In Wichita, in the Christmas Eve, the coward and smart mob lawyer Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) associates to the small time crook pornographer Vic Cavanaugh (Billy Bob Thornton) and embezzles more than two million dollars of the powerful mobster Bill Guerrard (Randy Quaid).
Along the long night, Charlie discloses secrets about Vic and Renata."The Ice Harvest" is a sort of blending of film-noir with black comedy that unfortunately does not work well in spite of having a great cast.
I love the director (Harold Ramis) and cast (John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Oliver Platt, Randy Quaid, et al.) and the premise (stealing from the mob).Sitting through this movie, I kept wondering when it was going to start getting good.
Once in a while, however, some unexpected, relatively unknown film just grabs you and holds you to the screen with a tightly-constructed plot and wonderful sense of character; such a film is The Ice Harvest.This is a crime thriller set in a seedy milieu at Christmas time, like glittering diamonds in the trash, and it's a heist film--but the money has already been stolen when the film begins--what follows is a struggle between a batch of not exactly admirable characters to see who gets to keep the cash--at times zany, frequently gruesome, but always fascinating, I found this to be highly entertaining--and with Cusack, Thornton, and Oliver Platt interacting, it's hard to go wrong..
Black comedy is at its finest in Ivan Reitman's "The Ice Harvest." Mob lawyer Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) decides one day to steal 2 million dollars from his boss, Bill Guerrard (Randy Quaid).
But with the mob now on their tail, they're having problems with trusting people in their community and problems trusting each other.With Charlie trying to seduce Renata (Connie Nielsen), a stripper who is not as trustworthy as she seems and trying to keep control of Pete (Oliver Platt), his ex-wife's new husband who's trying to reach the "perfect stage of drunkness", Wichita turns into a battleground.With a great comedic performance from Platt (his character is drunk through the movie), "The Ice Harvest" brings John Cusack to the screen in prime comedic form.
Although I would have liked to see more of Randy Quaid (screen time is less than 20 minutes) and a longer cut of the movie, "The Ice Harvest" succeeded in making me laugh (mostly Platt) and keeping my attention.9/10.
Directed by Harold Ramis, this movie is reminiscent of the Coen Brothers, maybe Fargo, with a schmo in the middle of something big, and its humor, with the action taking place during a bleak, dark winter night.John Cusack makes the film for me - he is understated, a nice guy into something he's having trouble handling.
"The Ice Harvest" has all of the requisite ingredients of your classic film noir (the perfect crime, the femme fatale, a partnership undone by avarice, meaty plot twists), but it doesn't feel like a pastiche; and it's part of the movie's sense of humor that the crime goes down at Christmastime (in Wichita, no less, which is appropriate given the overall sleepy vibe) And not the bad sleepy, either.I came away from this with a smile on my face.
But it's a slippery evening in Wichita, and Charlie's way if killing the hours are likely to be trouble...This film, made from a book by Scott Phillips, resembles other wintery black comedies like "Fargo", "The big white", "In Bruges", "Fuck up", "Thin ice" and "A simple plan", but falls shirt on one level, the humor.
The action takes place in Wichita, Kansas, on Christmas Eve. Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) and Vic Cavanaugh (Billy Bob Thornton) steal $2 million from local gangster and strip club owner Bill Guerrard (Randy Quaid).
The Ice Harvest is a film noir, with a story that is worth watching, but the execution is just too slow for me to make it a good movie.
Director Harold Ramis knows how to move his talented cast around in a never-a-dull-moment adventure that no matter how bizarre the many twists become, the viewer is glued to the screen afraid to miss a moment of the convoluted plat.Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) is a lawyer for the crime mob in Wichita, Kansas informs us at the beginning that though people say there is no such thing as a perfect crime, he is about to show us one.
And probably that's what saved "Ice Harvest" for me, his charismatic, down-to-earth-but-not-really kind of guy.The film is about Charlie (Cusack) who teams up with Vic (Billy Bob) and steals a big load of money.
It was great to see John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton matched again having both been principals before in Pushing Tin. Oliver Platt was just absolutely delightfully hilarious.Wonderful movie ...
If you know the plot standards of film noir (moral ambiguity, femmes fatale, double crosses etc) then there are few surprises here.Cusack plays a mob lawyer who, with the encouragement Thornton's strip club owner, rips off his gangster boss to the tune of several million dollars but, for reasons that are only glibly explained, must hang around until the day is over.So we follow him around for his final hours in town and watch the plan go violently, and occasionally comically awry.
Don't rent it.Billy Bob Thornton, Randy Quaid, Oliver Platt and John Cusack should be ashamed of themselves and at least one of them should have told Harold Ramis this was a bad thing.
The movie starts with Cusack's character, Charlie, an lawyer committing the perfect crime stealing millions of dollar along with his partner Vic (Thornton) during Christmas Eve. But for some reason they can't leave town to avoid people's suspicion, since everybody knows them, so they decide to stay in Wichita until things get easier for them to get out.
Until such thing happen, Charlie will have to deal with an bizarre amount of problems such as follow along a drunk friend (hilariously played by Oliver Platt) who keep causing more and more trouble in all the places they go; help an old flame of his (Connie Nielsen), who's having some problems with an politician; smile to an persistent and annoying cop every time he appears on his front, suspicion of everything he does; and running away from a hit-man (Mike Starr) who's looking for him and Vic.Basically, it's a movie with Cusack trying to solve problems before putting his hands on the money and get out of Wichita.
Its plot about the complications that set in after a seemingly perfectly-executed heist, doesn't sound particularly original (and of course it isn't) but a group of totally untrustworthy characters, a series of neat twists and plenty of dark humour combine together to make this a movie that's hugely enjoyable from start to finish.On Christmas Eve in Wichita, Kansas, mob lawyer Charlie Arglist (John Cusack) and his partner-in-crime Vic Cavanaugh (Billy Bob Thornton) successfully relieve their employer of more than $2 million.
Billy Bob Thornton and Connie Neilsen are both well-cast in their roles and Oliver Platt is outrageously funny as Charlie's friend who enjoys intoxication because it distracts him from the lack of respect and enjoyment that he derives from the rest of his life."The Ice Harvest" is well-paced, sleazy and often violent but its strongest elements are its interesting characters and its wonderful humour..
In the vein of the Coen brothers' "Fargo" and "Blood Simple," in which death and dying are all part of the fun, comes this newest release, "Ice Harvest," starring John Cusack ("High Fidelity") and Billy Bob Thornton ("Bad Santa") as a pair of inept but sincere crooks who pull off a Christmas Eve heist of $2 million in Wichita Falls, Kansas.Directed by Harold Ramis, who has helmed such comedy classics as "Caddyshack," "National Lampoon's Vacation," "Groundhog Day" and "Analyze This," this dark-humored noir picture is smart, entertaining and holds up well, despite the blood-splatter and whiplash-inducing plot twists.
Infinitely cool, twisted, post-modern and blackly comedic noir that ends up being an ideal antidote to the saccharine-overloaded bloat of sickliness that defines most festive movies.Mob lawyer Charlie (John Cusack) and his associate Vic (Billy Bob Thornton) heist two million in cash from gang boss Guerrard (Randy Quaid) on Christmas Eve. Now all they have to do is act normal and get out of town on Christmas Day. But, as is the inevitable way of such things, it's not going to be that simple.Cue cross, double-cross, duplicity, murder, violence, slapstick and some razor sharp dialogue along with a sex-on-legs femme-fatale (glacial Connie Nielsen) and Charlie's friend, and also husband of his ex wife (alcohol challenged Oliver Platt) and you have a neo-noir classic to watch as the chestnuts roast and the wine mulls.Cusack, Thornton, Platt, Nielsen and Quaid are immensely watchable and the minor characters who come and go as the film proceeds are all impressively sketched.
The Ice Harvest (2005): Dir: Harold Ramis / Cast: John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Platt, Randy Quaid: Title defines the term "skating on thin ice" as two mobsters steal a large sum of cash on Christmas Eve and try to avoid the consequences.
Funny guy Harold Ramis produces and directs this dark comedy set on Christmas Eve. Charlie Arglist(John Cusack)is a mob lawyer that convinces partner-in-crime Vic(Billy Bob Thornton) it is time to lay low after stealing a little over two million dollars from his boss(Randy Quaid).
THE ICE HARVEST (2005) *** John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Platt, Randy Quaid, Mike Starr.Black Comedy For Those Not In The Holiday SpiritJohn Cusack has always been one of the few actors who merit the Gold Standard when it comes to watching a film for pure entertainment and he excels with his good-hearted average guy manner in an unlikely dark comedy with another actor who is also in the same league of criteria, Billy Bob Thrornton (both co-starred in 1999's "Pushing Tin" a sort of satirical comedy about air traffic controllers at each other's throats) and together they make a fine comic duo.The post noir plot has to do with Kansas City 'mob lawyer' Charlie Arglist (Cusack) and his acquaintance Vic Cavanaugh (Thornton) ripping off one of Charlie's clients, Bill Guerrard (Quaid), by skimming some $2M in change and heading for warmer climes then the titular weather condition that serves as a character in itself in causing things to get slippery in their grand scheme of the high life on a chilly Christmas Eve in Wichita Falls.Charlie doesn't have much luck: his wife has left him for his best friend Pete van Heuten (scene stealer Platt) who keeps turning up like a bad (drunken) penny throughout the festive evening while Charlie's doubts of the perfect crime getting gummed up as he fears his (rightful) paranoia that Bill will catch wind of their theft and finds solid evidence that he is right in the form of Bill's henchman Roy (Starr) who keeps showing up moments after Charlie has arrived at say a strip club bar he frequents.
John Cusack stars as a mob lawyer in Kansas who steals two million dollars from his boss with the help of his friend Billy Bob Thornton. |
tt0081809 | North Sea Hijack | Misogynist freelance marine counter-terrorism consultant Rufus Excalibur ffolkes (Moore) is asked by Lloyd's of London to develop a contingency plan should any of the North Sea oil installations they insure be threatened.
Months later, Esther, a North Sea supply ship, takes on board a group of men posing as reporters who are visiting the oil production platform Jennifer. The leader of this group, Lou Kramer (Anthony Perkins), along with his second-in-command, Harold Shulman (Michael Parks), hijacks the ship, and two scuba diving henchmen attach limpet mines to the legs of Jennifer and its oil drilling rig, Ruth. From the bridge of Esther, Kramer issues a ransom demand for £25 million or he will blow up Ruth; then, if the ransom is still not paid, he will destroy Jennifer. For good measure, he rigs Esther with explosives and has all the charges wired to a control panel that never leaves his side.
Lord Privy Seal Dennis Tipping (Jeremy Clyde) informs the British Prime Minister (Faith Brook) of the situation. The British government is opposed to yielding to terrorist blackmail, but Tipping suggests that, as a compromise, Lloyd's could pay the ransom. After Lloyd's is consulted, the Prime Minister is shown a video of ffolkes practising a rescue mission aboard a mock-up ship. He has anticipated that terrorists might hijack a supply ship and has worked out a plan. Flying out to Jennifer, ffolkes first proposes that, to buy time, a large explosion should light up the night sky, fooling Kramer into thinking Ruth has exploded by accident so that he won't push the button at the deadline. ffolkes and Admiral Sir Francis Brindsen (James Mason) are to meet with Kramer on board Esther. ffolkes makes Brindsen practice accidentally dropping cigarettes on the floor, the idea being that the admiral should distract Kramer, giving ffolkes the opportunity to kill him before he sets off the bombs; his team of commandos will in the meantime take out the guards posted on the vessel.
A sub-plot involves the imprisoned crew trying to poison their captors using the ship's medicine supply. A reporter who came with Kramer's men offers to do this, but the crew quickly suspects him to be a plant, so they tie him up. Unfortunately, Kramer has been spying on them, and when the food is delivered he forces one of the "conspirators" to drink the poisoned coffee; Sanna (Lea Brodie), the other main participant and the only woman on board, flees and apparently falls overboard.
Later, Kramer demands that Brinston and King (David Hedison), Jennifer's manager, join him on Esther, unintentionally going along with ffolkes' plan. However, Kramer doesn't trust ffolkes when he meets him and orders him to leave the ship. The reporter who got the blackmailers onto the ship gets cold feet and wants to leave, so Kramer agrees to release him. At the last moment, Kramer shoots him in the back as he is being winched aboard the helicopter.
With time running out, the Prime Minister considers paying the ransom, but ffolkes replies angrily that that would send a message that "anyone with a rowing boat and a stick of dynamite could hold this country to ransom." ffolkes still thinks he can rescue the hostages. However, to save the lives of the 697 men and women aboard Jennifer, ffolkes urges that Esther be obliterated with a bomb if his team cannot rescue the hostages in time.
Ffolkes' men storm Esther, bringing down the guards. ffolkes joins them wearing a borrowed vermilion scuba suit, but is forced to throw overboard his second-in-command, who has mistaken him for a terrorist. Sanna, who had been hiding in a lifeboat, manages to take out one of the terrorists who tries to take a shot at ffolkes. ffolkes races for the bridge as the helicopter carrying the bomb approaches. At the appointed time, Brindsen offers a cigarette to Kramer, drops them on the floor and bends down to pick them up. ffolkes appears at the window and shoots the distracted Kramer with a spear gun, pinning him to his chair. Seeing armed men running by, Schulman races for the detonator switch, but he gets impaled at the controls with a spear in each side. Just as the Royal Navy helicopter drops the bomb down its rear loading-ramp, ffolkes fires his signal flare into the sky; the helicopter pilot desperately pulls away and the bomb narrowly misses Esther, falling harmlessly into the sea.
However, Kramer isn't quite dead, and he slowly reaches for the detonator. ffolkes pulls the wires out and watches him die. Before he slumps over, Kramer's last words are, "I — still — don't — like — your — face".
A ceremony is held at ffolkes' castle to celebrate the end of the hijack. Among those present are the former hostages, the oil rig staff and the commandos. ffolkes has expressed his disdain for medals, so the Prime Minister presents the cat-loving eccentric with a new litter of kittens, named Esther, Ruth, and Jennifer. For once moved, and a little at a loss for words, ffolkes leaves amidst a round of applause to give his new kittens a saucer of milk. | comedy, murder | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1669268 | Awakened | === The Isle of Skye ===
Zoey and Stark reassure their connection by having sex under the wishing tree and become connected. Zoey finds out that she wields the ancient magick of the fey and can bring back old fey that serve her elements, prompting Queen Sgiach to ask her to stay on Skye indefinitely and be her successor.
Aphrodite and Darius leave Skye, but Zoey and Stark decide to stay a little longer while Stark recuperates. Zoey continuously senses Darkness on Skye, leading her to believe that she cannot hide from Darkness anymore.
=== Tulsa ===
Neferet returns to the House of Night. In an attempt to draw Zoey back from Skye after Kalona's failed mission, Neferet kills Jack as a debt payment to Darkness. Finding out about Jack's death, Zoey realizes that no matter how good she feels on Skye, Tulsa is her home and she has responsibilities as a High Priestess and returns.
Kalona finds out that he can enter Stark's mind because of the immortality he breathed into him. For the same reason, he realizes that the oath he swore to Neferet doesn't apply to him anymore as he hasn't been fully an immortal since his return.
Neferet allows Zoey to light Jack's funeral pyre and during the ceremony, Neferet asks Zoey for forgiveness to regain everyone's trust. Zoey accepts the fake apology even though she sees through Neferet, but many other people think the apology is genuine. Neferet summons Darkness to drag Rephaim to the funeral and accuses him of being allied with Darkness and Stevie Rae for being allied with Rephaim, then orders the Sons of Erebus to kill both of them.
Kalona interferes and faces the Sons of Erebus with Rephaim. The two fight, but Rephaim only defends himself rather than attacking the warriors. Stevie Rae asks her friends to cast a circle to stop the battle and save Rephaim. She asks Kalona for his son's freedom and he grants it and takes off. A white feather falls from him, symbolizing his good deed. The feather breaks Stevie Rae's concentration and Dragon Lankford lunges to kill Rephaim. Convinced by Stevie Rae's words, Zoey steps between them and stops Dragon, arguing that Rephaim is on the same side, having chosen the path of Light.
Nyx appears then and forgives Rephaim, bespelling him to take human form at night and raven form during the day, to atone for killing Anastasia. She also talks to Damien and Dragon, to convince them to move on, then disappears. Rephaim goes to Dragon and offers his service to pay for the grief he had caused, but Dragon rejects him. When Zoey tries to calm Dragon, he lashes at her for her age.
Because Neferet and Dragon do not accept him at the House of Night, Zoey, her friends, and the red fledglings leave to start a new House of Night on their own in the tunnels, with Zoey being the "vampyre queen", Stevie Rae being the High Priestess, Aphrodite being the Prophetess, Kramisha being the Poet Laureate, and all the red fledglings and Zoey's friends being the students.
Towards the end of the book, Neferet cooperates with the white bull and intends on sacrificing Sylvia Redbird, but ends up killing Linda Heffer (who had recently left Zoey's stepfather due to his infidelity) to create a Vessel for her (someone who has to obey her completely) as a weapon to use against Zoey. Meanwhile, in the Otherworld, Heath is given the opportunity by Nyx, to be the lost soul in this Vessel and he chooses it over being reborn in the real world or remaining in the Otherworld; this way, he can help Zoey in the modern world. Meanwhile, Stark and Zoey are making out and preparing to have sex for their third time, but Stark becomes aggressive, which is unlike himself. He bites Zoey, but she is finally able to stop him (It is implied that it was Kalona, not Stark, in Stark's soul, who took over and got aggressive). When they go to sleep, Zoey has a dream where she learns of her mother's death and realizes that her mother really cared for her. The book ends with Zoey waking up with this new realization and beginning to cry and grieve for her mother's death, and Stark being there to comfort her. | paranormal | train | wikipedia | null |
tt0229339 | Diddy Kong Racing | Timber the Tiger's parents go on holiday and leave their son in charge of the island they live on, leaving him and his friends to organise a race. Their enjoyment is derailed when an evil intergalactic pig-wizard named Wizpig arrives at Timber's Island and attempts to take it over after having conquered his own planet's racetracks. He turns the island's four guardians (Tricky the Triceratops, Bubbler the Octopus, Bluey the Walrus and Smokey the Dragon) into his henchmen. The only solution available to the island's inhabitants is to defeat Wizpig in an elaborate series of races that involve cars, hovercrafts, and aeroplanes. Drumstick the Rooster, the best racer on the island, failed this challenge and was transformed into a frog by Wizpig's black magic.
Timber recruits a team of eight racers: Diddy Kong, the first recruit; Conker the Squirrel and Banjo the Bear, recruited by Diddy; Krunch the Kremling, Diddy's enemy who follows after him; and Tiptup the Turtle, T.T. the Stopwatch, Pipsy the Mouse, and Bumper the Badger, inhabitants of Timber's island. Aided by Taj, an Indian elephant genie residing on the island, they eventually complete all of Wizpig's challenges and confront Wizpig himself to a race and defeat him. Shortly afterwards, Drumstick is turned back into a rooster, and Wizpig leaves for his home planet, Future Fun Land. Fearing that Wizpig would again attempt to invade Timber's Island, the islanders travel to Future Fun Land for a second challenge. When Wizpig loses the second race, the rocket he rides on malfunctions and launches him to the moon. However, an additional cutscene reveals Wizpig's spaceship flying through the sky, unscathed. | psychedelic | train | wikipedia | Diddy Kong Racing!. The Donkey Kong series is one of the most different adventure video games! The characters, the action, and the sure thrill of adventure makes this game a fun non-stop playing time! Below is a brief look how I think the game is! Game Play: The game play is very good. There is really basic controls here and is easy to perform. Novice gamers should have a good time here! Graphics: The graphics are wonderful especially for the N64! The backgrounds are really beautiful! Difficulty: The game is easy but as it goes on you find out that it will become more difficult! Music: The music is great! Just fantastic catchy tunes through out the game! In My opinion its some of the best music ever in a video game! Sound: The sound is great. Nuff said! Overall: I have always loved Diddy Kong Racing! If you like excellent adventure up games then I strongly recommend you play this game! To purchase this video game check out Amazon.com!. Fun Racing Game For The N64. Rated E Diddy Kong Racing is a racing game for the Nintendo 64.Another spin off from the Donkey Kong series.This game is great.An extremely fun and good racing game for the Nintendo 64.This game has plenty of great characters to choose from with their own unique vehicles and plenty of area's to choose from.The characters in this game range from Mario,Luigi,Donkey Kong,Diddy Kong and Conker who would later be featured in the M-rated Conker's Bad Fur Day.Diddy Kong Racing is a very fun racing game.If you find this game at a garage sale or on EBAY and you have an N64 then this game is worth it.Very fun! 9/10. Best Racing Game Ever Made. 11/10 stars. Superior to Mario Kart in every way except battle mode. But holds up better today than Mario Kart. Controls are tight and distinct. Music is the best soundtrack to a game hands down.. Nice game but if it had been a bit less childish and colourful and had looked better then it would have been a real winner and not just an "OK" Mario Kart clone. Despite already having Mario Kart on the N64, Nintendo obviously felt that there was sufficient demand for colourful racing games to warrant spinning off the Donkey Kong franchise as well. The result was a racing game that is similar to Mario Kart in style and in different ways is both superior and inferior to that game. Not being a big fan of the N64 Mario Kart (but in love with the SNES version) I ended up giving DKR a try to see how it compared.Immediately I was hit by how childish and average the graphics were not just by today's standards but also back then. Considering the power of the N64, they were surprisingly sketchy. It didn't help that they tried to have a lot of stuff moving around or that the colours and characters were aimed so squarely at an age-bracket than just wanted to drive round as a monkey or a tiger, but generally I wasn't impressed. It scrolled well enough but it just didn't impress or interest me. The characters were equally annoying and I would have happily gutted all those cutesy and cheerful animals in return for the lean, green Koopa.The races themselves are annoyingly cute and look too colourful and slow for my tastes. However in some ways they are better than Mario Kart. They are more skillful for example and you can actually pull away from people if you are driving really well. The items are mostly a lot harder to use as well and the computer characters use them less as well, again meaning that a skillful driver will not just get pelted because the computer wants to keep the race tight. The choice of vehicles is a nice touch as well, with the ability to fly around the same tracks that you drive round being fun (not sure about the slow and annoying hovercrafts though might have been a nice idea on paper). The races feel a bit slow as well, again like it is aimed at children although conversely some parts of it are annoyingly difficult to get passed and, although more skillful than MK64, it isn't skill-based to the point where you can grow past them, it is really just a case of plugging away and hoping. The little games between the races are quite fun though and long after I'd given up on it as a racing game I was still coming back to steal vulture eggs from 3 other players! Overall this is an OK racing game and younger players who liked Mario Kart will probably like it as well. However for me it was a bit too colourful and childish not only in looks and characters but also in terms of the races and the game as a whole. It may have strengths over MK64 (not a great game itself) but generally it only comes out as a so-so game and certainly not one that too many adults will have given more than a passing glance to. |
tt0091943 | Sherman's March | The documentary chronicles General William Tecumseh Sherman's historic "March to the Sea" through Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina during the fall of 1864. It shows Sherman marching 62,000 Union troops over 650 miles in less than 100 days, and losing only 600 men along the way. The march introduces a new concept to the already brutal Civil War: total war, where the distinctions between combatants and civilians is blurred. While hated by white Southerners as a destroyer, Sherman is hailed by black Southerners as a liberator. It ends with Union victory and closes with Sherman as an old man living in New York and fondly remembering how his "nephews" and their "uncle Billy" would make ten miles a day.
The documentary utilizes state of the art production techniques including CGI, special effects and historical re-creations. It relies on historical reenactors to play Sherman's soldiers and all dialogue is in fact quotes from historical sources: letters, Sherman's memoirs, diaries, etc. The documentary features a psychological profile on Sherman, stating that in the months leading up to the Civil War he was accused of being insane and that he contemplated suicide.
Bill Oberst, the actor playing Sherman, states in a behind-the-scenes featurette that while the general will always be a controversial figure, he hopes that the documentary will shed light on why the man did what he did. It emphasizes that Sherman was loved by the enslaved blacks whom he freed and that while he did not see himself as fighting to destroy slavery, he nevertheless made a point of treating blacks whom he met with courtesy and respect. (The documentary also shows the reactions of his soldiers as they met blacks along the March. Many had never seen a black person and were surprised to learn that blacks were ordinary people.) The documentary also mentions that Sherman killed far fewer Confederate soldiers and civilians than did Ulysses S. Grant, his friend and fellow general, yet Sherman was the one vilified. The scholars interviewed postulate that the South had need for a scapegoat in the wake of the Civil War and that Sherman was the easiest target. For his part, Sherman is stated to have seen himself as only doing his duty and that he did not care what people said about him one way or the other. | autobiographical | train | wikipedia | Instead, Sherman's March is an incredibly patient and passionate examination of oneself, the pain and frustration that come with mid-life depression, and the quasi-comic mystery surrounding Southern culture.
In filming his relationships with a number of different women over the course of a year, McElwee reveals himself to be a deeply frustrated individual, whose penchant for chasing life with a camera proves both constructive of an insightful film, as well as destructive to his own sense of balance and structure in his own life.
One sequence ends with McElwee's filmed conversation with a woman with whom he has tried to forge a romantic involvement out of an ancient friendship; the sharpness with which they speak to each other is jolting.
McElwee manages to evoke an entire persona for himself - whether authentic or not - with scenes like these, at the same time drawing an insightful - if slightly overblown, though satirically so - comparison of himself to William Tecumseh Sherman and his devastating Civil War march through the South.
Sherman's march through most of Georgia and the Carolina's left a painful scar of our country in troubled times.
And quite easily, this documentary changes tone as Ross becomes obsessed with the women he encounters on the way.
At times he does jump back to "Sherman's March", but the lure of lust and love prove to be too much for Ross.After seeing this movie, I ask myself, What did I just see?
It took a while to think about this documentary, and it opens up thoughts of life and love.
A southern documentary filmmaker starts to make his film about Civil War General Sherman but he breaks up with his girlfriend and goes back home down south and starts filming everyone in his life (his parents, his siblings, his friends) and they are all giving him advice on his struggling film career and his love life and they all try and fix him up with all these "southern belles" and he just films it all.
Ross McElwee is an incredibly talented filmmaker and a sweet, neurotic human being who has no trouble baring his soul on film.
Ross McElwee, a native Southerner, started off wanting to make a straightforward documentary film about General Sherman's march, but then his girlfriend broke up with him.
The result is an idiosyncratic and personal documentary, as McElwee tries to film his Sherman movie but can only obsess about the various women he meets along the way, and his own personal failings."Sherman's March" is funny because of its many characters and lines of dialogue that are so crazy, you'd never believe them if they were in a fiction film.
At one point he discusses the strength and courage displayed by the women of Atlanta when Sherman destroyed their city, then cuts to some footage of two self-absorbed actresses--you can't help thinking that Southern women have diminished in quality over the last 100 years.
But he never picks up this thread again."Sherman's March" is a rambling movie, and at over 2.5 hours, way too long.
Ross McElwee is a filmmaker commissioned to make a movie about the Civil War. Right before he begins his odyssey, his girlfriend leaves him.
This film and his follow-up, Time Indefinite, seem to serve as his personal catharsis.
But I have yet to see a more personal and entertaining documentary than Sherman's March..
If you watch "Sherman's March" with that it mind, it can be a tremendously rewarding experience - touching, subtly funny, and thought-provoking.
Ross McElwee will never have the commercial viability of Quentin Tarantino or Arnold Schwartzenegger or whoever, but I don't think his "home movies" are intended to be viable.
Sherman's March is three hours of footage from a broken man's life.
Ross McElwee takes us on a journey to make a documentary on Sherman's March, but ends up showing us a sequence of extensive real life footage from his subsequent crisis in love.
The "alternative" title Ross McElwee initially came up with captures the mood of the film very well as it was called:"Sherman's March: A Meditation to the Possibility of Romantic Love in the South during an Era of Nuclear Weapons Proliferation".
Originally McElwee set out to make a documentary following the route General Sherman took during the Civil War and investigate the impact he had on the lives of people past and present who live there, but somehow he ended up marking the lives of past girlfriends and practically every other woman he meets on his journey, interwoven with occasional bits of history.The film is quite funny in it's own way as well.
And there's a hilarious subplot involving Burt Reynolds, who increasingly becomes McElwee's nemesis.Wisely, he trimmed the original title a bit, which he perhaps could have done with the movie itself, which is a bit long, 155 minutes, but it doesn't matter much, especially when watching it at home.
Combined with the occasional touch of history and the wonderful voice-over narration of Ross McElwee, this is a truly inspiring journey of almost epic proportions.
But this gives a great introduction to his "style" -- the guy who takes the camera everywhere and films his life, and not just in trivial ways -- ala web cams today.
This pre-dated the well-known and wildly successful "Sex, Lies, and Videotape" -- some would call it an outright steal or rip-off of "Sherman's March." As far as I know, McElwee had nothing to do with and is not credited in "Sex, Lies, and Videotape.
"Sherman's March" has indie-film written all over it; it's not about stars, only indirectly about sex, and everyone plays themselves: it's a documentary.
Ross McElwee originally set out to shoot a documentary following General Sherman's Civil War path in the south, but then decided to shift the focus, upon a break-up with his girlfriend, to the various single women he comes across while ambling through the south.
In the purest of D.I.Y. film-making, McElwee stars, operates the camera, handles sound, and narrates...all at the same time!
On the surface, this loose and rambling documentary might appear too self indulgent, but it does indeed succeed its task of tracking General Sherman's historic march, albeit in a most unique way.
It follows Ross McElwee around while he is trying to collect footage that can be edited into a documentary on General Sherman.
Ross McElwee and his team of post-production editors would needed to have edited down from hours and hours of footage, however the final running time of two and a half hours is still too lengthy.
It is innovative, original and reflects something very true about all documentaries: that they are ultimately subjective, showing what the filmmaker believes and feels.
McElwee compares his journey in the film to Sherman's actual march, which is a fascinating example of this type of subjective expression.
The artist in this case, however, just does not quite know how to trim down what exactly he wants to say, but what he does say is interesting nonetheless, and you do learn something about General Sherman too..
Sherman's March is one of the best documentaries I've ever seen.
Ross McElwee starts out making a film about General Sherman's march through Georgia, North and South Carolinas during the Civil War. It becomes much more of a personal story, as Ross has just broken up with his girlfriend and has trouble remaining focused on his project.
Although a bit long at over two and a half hours, I never lost interest in McElwee's quest for knowledge and companionship; Sherman's March is a winner..
The overall structure of the film is a clever look at the unpredictability of an artist's focus, in that filmmaker Ross McElwee set out to make a documentary about the Savannah Campaign and ended up making a film about his failed relationships.
But McElwee's free-form approach to storytelling is the sole cause of the films only major flaw; at a whopping 157 minutes, it's padded with excessively long shots and pointless detours, including several attempts to find Burt Reynolds.
Ultimately, this film is worth viewing for its glimpses into the human condition and the interesting characters that enrich McElwee's travels (I especially like Charleen).
If Ross McElwee was aiming for a movie about a very sad, very pathetic man, then he hit the target.
Unfortunately for him he made a mockery of himself instead of actually getting to a point with this uninspired, unintentionally funny documentary.Let's start at the beginning.
Mr. McElwee sets out to make a documentary on a man named Sherman, a famous General who destroyed a lot of things in the South during the civil war.
Well, we get to learn a small amount about General Sherman throughout the film, facts that have no real context in the rest of the movie.Now, let's get to the real point of the movie.
There was no sense of reality in any of the conversations he had with any of the females; the only one that seemed slightly sane he made CRY.I think my favorite part in this movie is when he, Ross, takes the camera to a woman he sort of saw in High school.
Watch it only if you wish to feel better about your own life, and/or to laugh at a very sad, very pathetic hairy little man..
Ross McElwee is on the march..
Ross receives finance to produce a documentary on Sherman's bloody march through the southern states of USA during the Civil War. But the subject of looking for a wife sidetracked him as he followed certain women who had the potential to be Mrs. McElwee.
But the parallels between Sherman's violent march and McElwee's peaceful march through the States in search of love is an interesting concept in itself..
It seems as though pride and responsibility have left director Ross McElwee long before his journey to find Sherman.
mcelwee, with his narcissistic focus on himself, something morris always avoids, manages to record (as opposed to filming, because the recording mostly concerns his puerile musings on his own love-life) a lot of drivel.
there was definitely some salvageable material in the film if viewed as a portrait of the south,but i don't know how the movie could have been organized or edited to save it..
This is nothing more than a movie about a self obsessed person driving around looking for woman to try to sleep with.It is pretty clear to me after watching the movie that Ross had never intended on making a movie about Sherman, but rather was the inventor of the modern day self absorbed BLOG.TERRIBLE - POINTLESS - BAD FILM.
How dare Ross McElway declare his life experience to be an epic.How dare he take my tax dollars and use it to go on a journey of self-exploration.All we end up seeing is his inability to connect with women.All we end up hearing is his whining about how he can't get laid.I don't find it funny, amusing - or the least bit entertaining.Any time a filmmaker decides to turn the camera lens on him/herself in order to capture "Poor Little Me," I lose interest immediately.It reeks entirely of everything that pathetically-defined the (Poor Little) "Me" Generation.Grow up Ross - get a real job.(Oh - wait a minute - Harvard ended up hiring you as film prof - uh...guess that's why I attended YALE???).
I saw that film when i studied films in england, i liked the director's techniques with his subjects.First of all he provokes them in order to get more informations from them, second he manages to become intimate to the viewer with his monologues that take the form of a confession.Many commented that his life is pathetic, maybe so, but it takes courage to expose to the public some very 'personal' moments.Many people might comment about the ethics of documentary, because sometimes he seems to abuse some of his subjects, or even mock them,i have a specific scene in my mind:When he interviews one of the so called patriots,inside a snack bar he pans his camera and while we listen to the 'patriotic credo' we watch another man dressed like a clown.I think this is a film that deserves to be seen because it is a prerequisite for people who enjoy BIG BROTHER and other similar assortments, that victimize their subjects sometimes to the extreme.Compared to those SHERMAN'S MARCH is very innocent much more entertaining though.8/10.
A brilliant documentary ostensibly about a man tracing General Sherman's swath of destruction across the south that won the civil war for the North.
Watching "Sherman's March" is like discovering a great novel for the first time.
The lines between personal, political, fiction, documentary, history, and present are blurred from the beginning, and this only continues for two hours where McElwee's personal scars mirror the blasted landscape Sherman carved, and just as equally the South's selective memory when it comes to the war.
McElwee says "Sherman really loved the South.
It must have been a terrible choice to make to destroy it.", and so continues to echo a southern Gothic tradition of ambivalence and nostalgia through the personal documentary medium way ahead of its time.
Sherman's March" is complex, awkward, sad, sweet, and very funny, a film so rich in character it's impossible to forget..
After seeing this documentary "Sherman's March" by Ross McElwee in 1986, I was so confused and had no idea what the main point of this "documentary" is.
My first impression was that why the title of this film is called Sherman's March?
I have no idea why he wanted to name this long film "Sherman's March"?
If the director could change the title, and remove General Sherman part, this documentary could be a nice piece about man, woman, and love.
Then I think in the process of seeking love, and he could realize what he really wants by meeting different women around him.
Even though I think this is not Sherman's March - instead, it is Women's March!
The director's unrestrained and vigorous thought and humorous conversation actually made the "path way" to "true love" more interesting..
However, this one was so pathetically pointless and sad, I felt through much of it that someone was reading some very dull person's blog--every excruciating detail including their thoughts, interests and even random people they meet.
Referring to it as a blog isn't originally my idea, though, as roberttroll previously reviewed this film and his observation seemed right on the mark.The film ostensibly stars out as a documentary about Sherman's March.
Instead, the film focuses on the love life of the film maker (Ross McElwee).
This part of the film felt like I was watching someone's home movies.
Ross McElwee's most famous film is a unique masterpiece of autobiographical filmmaking.
It not only is a hilarious journey of love but also one of the greatest and most memorable films of all time.
If this film were purely fictitious, it would still be hilarious and entertaining-which is something I certainly cannot say about every documentary!A great documentarian often searches for the extraordinary in the ordinary, which is exactly what McElwee does here, and he does it to true perfection.
Before I continue praising this masterwork, I must speak of its playful and fascinating premise.Originally, this film was intended to be a documentary on Civil War General Sherman's march through the South-but then McElwee himself reveals that his girlfriend recently broke up with him, inspiring him to go on quest to find a new partner.
He follows the path that General Sherman took through the South, and hooks up and breaks up with various women-all while sometimes being sidetracked by reoccurring apocalyptic nightmares and a search for actor Burt Reynolds.
Ross McElwee brilliantly captures real life in all of its painful and wonderful glory!.
Ross McElwee sets out to make a documentary about the lingering effects of General Sherman's march of destruction through the South during the Civil War, but is continually sidetracked by women who come and go in his life, his recurring dreams of nuclear holocaust, and Burt Reynolds.This epic documentary has received high praise.
What was allegedly supposed to be an investigation of Sherman's march to the sea, it instead seems to be the director's ongoing attempt to get romantically involved with a series of women.As far as documentaries go, this one works well in an offbeat sort of way (like "Grey Gardens") but I think ultimately fails because it doesn't really document anything.
After almost three hours, the only thing viewers will learn is about the pursuits of Ross McElwee, which hardly seems worth knowing.
I wish I had more time to write a review but Sherman's March is simply one of the greatest and most epic documentaries ever created.
Rarely do epic two and a half hour documentaries show themselves to be worth watching, but this film does.
I believe some critic once said Mcelwee points his camera with "phallic resolve" toward the women he meets.
I wish I had time to say more.Watch the film.
When Ross McElwee's girlfriend walked out on him, the expatriate Confederate filmmaker decided to channel his frustration into a documentary of William Tecumsah Sherman's destructive campaign across Georgia during the Civil War. But along the way something unexpected happened: the project began to evolve into a roving chronicle of McElwee's own unsuccessful love life.
I found and remembered this title from the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, I did not find many reviews by critics for this film, but I was hoping for something interesting.
Sherman's "March to the Sea" during the American Civil War. But filmmaker Ross McElwee is filmed constantly being side-tracked by various women in his life.
So, this film is much more about McElwee's experiences with women, love, romance and religion.
But there is also a little discussion about nuclear holocaust in the Cold War and the legacy and complexity of General Sherman's own life.
The film follows a repetitive narrative pattern, with McElwee becoming enamoured with many women, developing feelings for them. |
tt0108401 | The Trust | Sergeant David Waters and his boss/friend Lieutenant Jim Stone both work in the Evidence Management unit of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Disillusioned and bored with their jobs, they also find it hard to make ends meet. While going through case files, Jim comes to know of a drug dealer who has access to large amounts of money, as indicated by his bail receipt, which was paid in $200,000 cash.
Using his vacation days, Jim engages in a stint of undercover work at the same hotel as the drug dealer is employed and comes to discover that all of the merchandise the dealer and his gang move is taken to one building, and never moved again. David, after acquiring blueprints from the local planning office, discovers the dealer and his gang have built a large safe in the back of an industrial freezer in the building. Realising it is an easy hit, Jim and David scour items required for the heist, including a diamond tipped drill and unlicensed firearms, paying for them with illegally acquired cash from a corrupt colleague. They break into the apartment above the freezer building and muffle its two occupants, but Jim ends up shooting and killing one after he attempts to escape. After drilling and the use of improvised explosives, they are able to unlock and access the vault. David, who has become attached to the surviving female hostage, allows her to call her 3-year-old son's father to assure him that she is okay.
Jim and David search the safe, which contains vast quantities of diamonds, cash and gold coins. Despite Jim being elated, David becomes concerned that stealing so much valuable property from the gang will get them killed, and subsequently relocks the safe so Jim can't access it. Enraged, Jim threatens David at gunpoint, forcing him to reluctantly open the safe and unload all of the valuables. As they are packing up the drill, David kills Jim in a brief shootout and returns the contents to the safe. He then drives off with the hostage to drop her up north, assuring her of her freedom. Later, David sees two vans following him and he notices the phone number advertised on the back of one of them as the same number the hostage called earlier. Despite identifying himself as a police officer, David is shot dead by men in the vans, who rescue the woman (implied to have been a member of the same gang responsible for watching over the safe). The movie ends with David's badge and the drill being catalogued in the Evidence Management building where he and Jim used to work. | murder | train | wikipedia | null |
tt1191078 | Vidas robadas | === Juliana's kidnapping ===
The central plot of the story revolves around Juliana Miguez (Sophia Elliot), a young woman who is abducted at Rio Manso and entered by force into a prostitution ring. Her parents, Rosario Soler (Soledad Silveyra) and Juan Miguez (Patricio Contreras) since then do everything in their power to find and retrieve their daughter. They soon discover that the police would not really help, and even collaborate with the network. Rio Manso, the site where the story goes, is not a real site: although there is a homonymous site at the south of the province of Corrientes, the scenes that take place in that town were filmed at Carlos Keen, of Buenos Aires province, and in the plot is mentioned as a bonaerense village.
The prostitution ring is managed by the powerful businessman Astor Montserrat (Jorge Marrale) and his assistants Nicolas Duarte (Juan Gil Navarro) and Dante Mansilla (Adrián Navarro). Monserrat seems to possess many legal properties such as industries and buildings, which give an image of a respectable businessman, but are actually front organizations for laundering the money earned from prostitution.
Another of the protagonists is Bautista Amaya (Facundo Arana), an anthropologist widowed at the beginning of the novel as Duarte runs over his wife with his car and not left in place to help her. Baptist casually begins an affair with Ana (Mónica Antonopulos), who rescues when trapped in the mountains. Ana is the daughter of Astor, but completely ignores the activities of his father. Bautista discovered that Duarte was the one who ran over his wife and fled, but ignoring its relationship with the father of Anna
At first the plots of Rosario and Bautista followed different development until Rosario contacted Bautista and asked for his professional help. From that point, Bautista works with Rosario at her foundation in the search for Juliana. Along with Bautista also joins retired prosecutor Fabio Pontevedra (Carlos Portaluppi), with contacts in the judiciary. Bautista usually operates alongside former police also known as "El Tano" (Daniel Peyras), weapons specialist.
=== The network ===
Duarte had taken Juliana as a ward, and was in his possession until Montserrat removed his support for Duarte and tried to kill him, after which he became a fugitive. Juliana went on to be in psession of Astor himself, who comes under pressure from his wife Nacha (Virginia Innoccenti) for the release. By that time, Juan Miguez, who was shot in prison for killing a pimp, was strangled by his cellmate, hitman of Astor Montserrat. Taking advantage of the ignorance of Rosario and others about their involvement, Astor joins them, and prepares an assembly to simulate a negotiation with the kidnappers, who are really his subordinates. But when they were about to do the liberation he discovers that Juliana had seen him once, so he recaptures her.
After this, Pontevedra's investigations are beginning to shed evidence that the head of the mafia would be Astor, and also found other evidence connecting him with Claudio Kurtz, a leader of the mafia which meet all other leaders and not shown in person until the end of the series. At first Bautista refuses to accept those versions, since Montserrat is the father of his girlfriend.
The foundation located "El Griego" ("The Greek"), a dealer who handled the sale of sex slaves outside the country, and posing for treating Rosario talks to buy several with a similar profile to that of her daughter, using money stolen from one of the disrupted operations. While thus achieving the freeing of several young prostitutes, Juliana was not in the group: being unaware that the buyer was actually Rosario, Dante took Juliana to prevent her being sold, and sent instead to Nicolas Duarte exiled in the Triple Frontier. Meanwhile, the prosecutor Marcela Urquiza, who was conducting the case, is first threatened and then murdered in a parking lot.
=== Monserrat's suicide ===
Astor's situation gets increasingly complicated. The pressure of the Foundation, the incriminating evidence against him and the rejection of his family were added for the return of Duarte and the abandonment of Dante. His contacts and other Mafia leaders withdrew their support at the level of media exposure that reaches for Juliana. This means that, when police surrounded his house to take custody, Montserrat simulates to perform a suicide, although in reality it was a person of similar texture to his who committed suicide disfiguring his face. After the apparent death, prosecutor Pascale (Jorge D'Elia) takes over the case. At first follow the advice of the Foundation, but when Duarte sends an anonymous video in which Bautista seems to commit the murder of Luz, a woman infiltrated in the network of trafficking to find her daughter, Bautista becomes a fugitive from the law and Pascale ignores them and tries to capture him.
While Montserrat is hidden in the residence of his ex-wife Helena (Marita Ballesteros), the only one who knows his situation as well as the maid Valeria (Carla Crespo) who ignores his identity, Nacha joins the society of Mansilla and Duarte. They try to forcibly take control of the network, but are resisted by the other leaders. Nacha invites secretly Duarte and Mansilla to live at the ranch. However, shortly after going there, Julian tries to escape by hiding in the trunk of a hitman who was leaving. Discovering his attempt to escape, Mansilla does not request that they send her back, but take her to another place to get more humiliating treatment, as punishment.
However, once in their new destination, a client of the brothel record a video of Juliana with a cell phone and uploads it to a pornographic website. He is discovered by employees of Bautista, which located the brothel because its name is seen in the background. A doctor determines that Juliana would be pregnant, presumably of Duarte, and that his health is very delicate. Upon hearing, Duarte attempt to rescue and return her to the ranch, but are stopped en route by members of Montserrat who, pretending to be police officers, will go with her. Then they reported by telephone to Montserrat that Juliana had died by the medical complications mentioned.
Meanwhile, Bautista was kept hidden in a house in the Delta del Tigre. In this situation he was trying to avoid being found by both the justice and Duarte. One of the sex slaves freed, Daniela (Eleonora Wexler) sought a daughter she had while in captivity and that he had been removed, and began to think that Emma, the adopted daughter of Inés and Octavio (Bautista's brother) could be her daughter. Octavio was prepared to allow a DNA test, but Inés refused it outright. Believing that justice would try to take Emma, is brought into contact with Bautista to escape with her. Bautista prevents it, and the appointment to a dock for a chat. After the meeting, Bautista is located in Duarte by men who kill Inés and persecute Bautista at the Delta rivers. Finally, is rescued by Fabio and Tano. Then, they send it ceased to be a fugitive being protected witness.
=== The Urquillo brothers ===
From the suggested kidnapping and death of Juliana (not shown on screen), for a number of episodes it was not clear if she was still alive in the hands of the brothers Unquillo responsible for his capture, or if they died. Nicolas Unquillo even indicate a site with a body buried in that state that would have left after his death.
Shortly after she left the country, Bautista discovers that Helena, Montserrat ex-wife and birth mother of Ana, hidden Montserrat at her country house. Tano and Bautista go to the place to capture him, but Bautista is shot and Tano takes him to the hospital, letting Montserrat escape. Bautista receives surgery for the gunshot wound received, and finally manages to save his life and recovered without sequelae of magnitude. After his escape, Montserrat goes into hiding in the company of Unquillo.
Meanwhile, Rosario keeps track of Juliana at the company of the Unquillo, and to spy on the activities of the former manages to be hired as a maintenance worker. During the time she remains in the company discovers that the Unquillo stores the bulk of the monetary proceeds of the Network. | murder | train | wikipedia | null |
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