In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.

in brief : best bleak comedy film
since heathers . full of wonderful swipes at the fifteen minutes of fame mentality that feeds so much of modern american pop culture .
go see it !
so , i prepared for this film by watching a moving interview on " hard copy " with pam smart , the new hampshire media teacher who was convicted of engineering the death of her husband back in the 1980 's .
" hard copy " 's diane diamond asked smart what she thought about nicole kidman 's fictionalized portrayal of her in the new film to die for .
smart replied that she thought kidman 's character came off as a dumb , vicious tramp
and she thought that the publicity the new movie generates might just hurt her chances in her latest court appeal .
( smart was convicted and given a life sentence for her part in the murder of her husband . )
smart 's got a point .
it would n't be the first time that the public took the better scripted and well - acted movie version of an event as the absolute truth over the duller and far less artistic real life version .
however , given a choice between the mass media ' happening ' of the real event and the fictionalized movie , i would definitely opt for the later .
real murderers rarely have dialogue as witty as what buck henry has written for this movie and smart , while pretty and alluring , is no match for the cinematic charms of nicole kidman .
to die for begins in a town called little hope , new hampshire , the archetypal dry and intellectually barren american suburb .
the story concerns the ambitious suzanne stone and how she tackles the obstacles between her and her life long ambition of being ' on tv . '
of course , one of those little obstacles turns out to be her dull and unambitious husband larry , played by matt dillon .
but , with a little imagination , some charm and raw sex appeal and a rather novel approach to junior achievement , our heroine manages to overcome the nay - sayers in her life , at least temporarily .
kidman triumphs in the trashy role of suzanne .
i have never really been all that fond of this actress but
she shows a wonderful flair for comedy in this picture .
her portrayal of the incredibly shallow and dumb femme fatale resonates .
kidman knows a star - making role when she sees it
and she plays the conscience - deprived suzanne as the ultimate career driven , post - feminist uber - temptress from hell .
she is ably abetted by wonderfully demented comic dialogue , which kidman delivers in a unselfconsciously funny way .
at one point suzanne is expounding on her knowledge of world events to her future husband and sister - in - law .
"
you know , " she knowingly exclaims , " gorbachev would still be the leader of russia or whatever , if he had just had that ugly purplish thing removed from his head .
"
her husband beams at suzanne 's profound knowledge of world politics and then proudly proclaims that this qualifies her to be the next barbara walters .
this is very close to pop culture bashing heaven , folks .
the other standout performance in the film is delivered by joaquin phoenix .
he plays jimmy , a burned out teenager who becomes addicted to suzanne 's sexual favors .
kidman 's character , vapid though she is , is a sort of suave beacon of success to jimmy and his lost friends russell and lydia , winningly portrayed by casey affleck and alison folland .
phoenix looks like the very embodiment of gen - x slackerhood ( as envisioned by tabloid tv , of course ) .
his jimmy has the dead eyes and demeanor of a kid who knows that he ai n't going anywhere , ever .
phoenix reacts to the sexy suzanne with a sort of obsessed amazement
and he makes us believe that a loser character like jimmy really would be willing to kill for someone like suzanne , someone who actually noticed him .
gus van sant ( drugstore cowboy ,
my own private idaho )
direction is first - rate .
he keeps the pacing in this not - quite - thriller snapping along .
van sant rightly keeps the focus of this movie on the amoral suzanne and does n't stop to proselytize the audience about the rightness or wrongness of her actions .
van sant trusts his material and trusts his audience to ' get it ' without stopping to explain what is funny about this all - american story .
the screenplay , by buck henry , is absolutely great and includes some of the best bleakly comic lines i 've heard since heathers .
henry 's story is a blast against the shallowness of the american media and the mindlessness of fame , yet the screenplay delivers this sharp message by focusing on just a few characters .
henry
ably manages to avoid diluting his story by aiming at too many targets and the result is a crisp and funny mini - classic .
danny elfman did the original music for this movie and he delivers another eccentric , loopy score that strongly echoes his themes for edward scissorhands .
either film score would make wonderful background music for halloween trick - or - treat parties .
all - in - all , a wonderful production , well worth your seven bucks ! to die for : a columbia pictures release directed by gus van sant .
written by buck henry score by danny elfman starring nicole kidman , matt dillon , joachin phoenix based on the book by joyce maynard .
rated r - for language and mature themes .
( respect the r , not for under 14 's ) rating ----- stars .
go see it .
P

the first species was a moderately - successful science fiction yarn that diverted audiences with some nifty special effects , a few well- paced action sequences , and frequent views of model - turned - actress natasha henstridge sans clothing .
however , it was definitely not a movie that cried out for a sequel . and , considering the quality of species 2 ,
it 's obvious that mgm should have stopped while they were ahead .
the only thing that distinguishes species 2 is how awful it is .
if you throw away the plot , which is characterized by a blatant disregard for intelligence , logic , coherence , and consistency , species 2 actually has a few things to recommend it to a select audience .
of course , that audience is primarily comprised of teenage boys ( who , at least in theory , should n't be able to get into an " r " -rated film ) and connoisseurs of bad movies .
there 's enough blood , gore , simulated sex , and bare flesh in species 2 to prevent it from ever becoming boring .
this is a grade z exploitation flick that 's ripe for the mystery science theater 3000 treatment .
somewhere , someplace , i recall hearing species 2 described as
" erotic .
"
i would love to know who used with that adjective for this movie , because he ( or she ) has a peculiar notion of eroticism .
sure
, there 's a lot of sex and nudity , but it 's almost always accompanied by the ripping open of a woman 's abdomen as an alien baby
claws
its way free , splattering blood and gore in all directions .
anyone turned on by that is not someone i would care to be sitting next to in a theater .
i suppose the main attraction in species 2 is natasha henstridge ( and , to get the obvious question out of the way -- yes , she does remove her top , but only once , and only briefly ) .
although the character she played in the original species is dead , government scientists still have the dna , and , out of what can only be described as a suicidal impulse , they decide to create another clone .
this creature , dubbed " eve " by its creator , dr .
laura baker ( played by marg helgenberger , reprising her role ) , is genetically engineered to be kinder and more docile .
meanwhile , man has finally set foot on mars .
a team of three , led by patrick ross ( justin lazard ) , has traveled to the red planet , but when they return to earth , they bring something with them .
ross has become a half - human / half - alien hybrid , and he 's soon mating like crazy , collecting the blood - soaked children that are the result of each sex session .
his intention is obviously world domination .
standing in his way is that indomitable soldier of fortune from the first film , preston lennox ( michael madsen ) , and one of patrick 's fellow astronauts , dennis gamble ( mykelti williamson ) .
but when patrick learns about eve , a female of his kind , there 's
no damping his ardor .
i 'm not sure what the budget for species 2 was , but a significant portion of it must have gone into paying handsome salaries to several recognizable actors ( as opposed to being diverted into the special effects ) .
michael madsen and marg helgenberger , both back for a second round ,
are clearly on hand to do as little as they can , grab the money , and run .
ditto for james cromwell , who plays patrick 's father -- " underused " is too kind a word to describe his involvement
( " invisible " would be more like it ) .
george dzundza gets to do a little scenery- chewing as an angry - but - inept general .
meanwhile , justin lazard 's performance as patrick is so flat that he makes natasha henstridge 's limited abilities look good by comparison .
the only one in the whole production with any energy is mykelti williamson , who is cast in the part of the wisecracking black sidekick .
complete with cheesy special effects , bare breasts around every narrative corner
, and dialogue capable of producing howls of laughter , species 2 has been dumped into the marketplace without advance screenings for critics .
director peter medak , a journeyman film maker with a significant list of mediocre movies on his resume , has added another forgettable title , but at least he appears to have had fun doing it , which is more than can be said of anyone trying to take this film with even a scintilla of seriousness .
do i recommend the movie ?
absolutely not
,
but i will admit that species 2 is dopey enough that it did n't try my patience to the degree that some pseudo - intellectual bad movies do .
here 's hoping there 's no species 3 .
N

the year is 1962 and the military is conducting nuclear testings .
involved in these tests is hank marshall ( jones ) , an army colonel who is critical of the above - ground tests that are being done .
he urges below - ground tests which no one will consider at the time until it is learned that the soviets have conducted underground tests of their own .
marshall is also troubled by a turbulent marriage to carly ( lange ) who is topless on the base 's beach in full view of the entire personnel .
hank 's reaction is one of amusement .
he 's been here before and he deals with it in the only way he knows how .
the problem is carly is a manic - depressive and when she is n't flirting with any man who happens to be near her , she 's fantasizing about a fictious world where she 'd rather be .
typical of the mental illness , she also is promiscuous and foul - tempered .
the mood swings are quick and violent and the torment she puts her husband and their two daughters is considerable .
from hank 's reports which state his opposition to the army 's methods of testing , he is transferred from hawaii to alabama .
carly patterns herself after movie stars and tries to become marilyn monroe , bleach - blond and all .
the new home in alabama is pretty run - down and depressing and sets carly off on a violent tantrum .
after meeting his new commanding officer ( booth ) , hank sees an all too familiar pattern begin to repeat .
carly openly flirts with the co .
hank tries to deal with the situation , but his only resort is to carry her off and throw her into a nearby pool .
arguments ensue .
the family becomes even more alienated .
the co is very interested in pursuing an encounter with carly and sends hank off to observe an underground test which causes the irradiation of two local ranchers , much to the vocal objections of hank , who spots them but is unable to cancel the detonation of the bomb .
back at home , the two girls try to hold things together but they wonder why their father ca n't deal with their mother 's problems .
one daughter says , " he 's blind and she 's crazy .
"
the other answers , " they 're perfect for each other .
"
it reaches the breaking point when the older girl ( locane ) and a boy , the co 's son ( o'donnell ) see her mother and the co making love in an abandoned shed .
she forces her mother to tell hank and get it all out into the open .
hank returns home and finds his wife in the middle of a musical put on by the military wives , including the co 's wife ( snodgress ) .
he confronts the c .
o .
but not about carly .
he is upset over the coverup surrounding the accident during the testing .
a fight breaks out between the two when the co accuses hank of not being able to satisfy his wife .
hank is arrested .
what follows is manipulation and revenge on the part of the co .
he convinces carly to commit hank to a hospital for observation .
instead , they fill him with so many drugs that he can barely cope .
he foams at the mouth and can not even finish sewing a leather wallet as presents for his daughters .
carly is determined to free her husband from the clutches of the army and succeeds in doing so only by being the strong one in the family for the first time .
the film has an upbeat ending with hope that the family has found a way to deal with its problems .
the performances are solid throughout .
jones is sympathetic and loving and is most effective in those quiet moments when he tries to deal with his wife 's rage .
he comforts her and offers protection .
lange gives a strong and spirited portrayal of a woman on the edge who draws up the courage to try and put things right for her family .
amy
locane is very good as she fights to keep her family together while struggling with her own doubts as to whether she even should .
blue sky is based on the story of the stagner family .
the screenplay was written by rama laurie stagner ( with arlene sarner and jerry leichtling ) .
the film marks the final work of tony richardson who died shortly after its completion in 1991 .
he had made such classics as look back in anger ( 1958 ) and tom jones ( 1963 ) .
orion pictures underwent bankruptcy and caused the film to sit on a shelf for three years .
the film joins an alread promising fall line - up of films and is well worth catching for the performances alone .

P