niryuu/sni-each-converted huggingface dataset:
after being hypnotized , a man believes there is a ghost in his house .
the review two low - key summer horror films have become surprise financial successes this year : the blair witch project and the sixth sense .
each has made well over $ 100 million in north america , based on a combination of strong word of mouth and clever advertising .
if a film 's box office take were based primarily on its quality , stir of echoes would join blair and sense in grossing far more money than expected , for it is as scary , if not scarier than the other two .
writer / director david koepp has given artisan entertainment , the folks who distributed blair witch a second creepy hit .
the story gets going after tom witzky ( bacon ) , an average blue - collar dad , gets hypnotized by his wife maggie 's ( erbe ) sister lisa ( douglas ) at a party .
while the hypnosis goes as expected to the party - goers , it triggers something in tom 's head .
things begin to change around him ( blinking red lights let off a strange hum , for example ) , and he fights to stay in control of his own senses .
where these experiences take tom , maggie and their son jake ( cope ) , who tom thinks might have some answers , is down a dark path that will scare and disturb you .
david koepp keeps the action localized ; the majority of the action takes place at tom 's house or just down the street .
by keeping things at home , koepp is able to proceed without having to resort to any clumsy segues ( montages of driving down roads as we move from one city to another etc . ) .
unfortunately , the dread and spookiness of stir of echoes are frequently interrupted by moments of levity .
humour can take the tension away from a scene faster than any shoddy special effect or poor acting .
several tense moments become completely diffused by a few misplaced jokes .
also , there are a couple of plot developments that are left unresolved , though to mention them would be to give too much away .
kevin bacon handles the duel task of playing an everyman and a man losing his sanity admirably .
his total lack of understanding of what is happening to him is believable , as are the reactions from his wife
maggie .
kathryn erbe is given a role meatier and better written than that of most " wife who can no longer handle her husband " parts . while it is still a supporting role , her maggie is moving as she watches
both her husband and her son enter what she calls " a private club that i 'm not invited to " , where they whisper about things all day long .
as jake , zachary cope equals the performance of haley joel osment in the sixth sense , but gets less screen time .
both children manage the same trick , making the audience creeped out by their apparent acceptance of the way things are .
fans of blair and sixth sense will almost surely love stir of echoes .
it combines the dread of blair , a creepy closed - in feel thanks to cinematographer fred murphy and great performances by the whole cast , specifically bacon , to give the fall its first genuine scary film .
if only they had let up on the unneeded funny bits and tweaked the plot a bit more , this could have been one of the year 's best .
Output: P
being the self - proclaimed professional film critic that i am , i am somewhat embarrassed to admit that i had not seen lawrence of arabia ( coming soon to dvd ) until only recently .
after all , it 's considered by just about everyone to be
the masterpiece epic of
director david lean , who also directed films such as bridge on the river kwai , and doctor zhivago .
so one day , a friend of mine loaned me a copy of the video and i sat down and watched it .
i was initially skeptical that something made almost 40 years ago would be able to keep my attention for the butt - numbing 3 1/2 hours of its duration .
but now i fully understand why this has become the film that other epic films are judged against --
the winner of seven academy awards in 1963 for best picture , director , editing , cinematography , art direction , music , and sound .
after watching the film again , i am convinced that it is simply one of the finest works of cinematic genius to ever illuminate the big screen .
based on the autobiographical writing of british officer t .
e . lawrence during world war
i , lawrence of arabia depicts lawrence ( played by then - unknown actor peter o'toole ) as a lieutenant lacking any sort of military discipline whatsoever .
bored with his assignment of coloring maps for the british army in a dimly lit headquarters building , lawrence jumps at the opportunity to be re - assigned as an observer for an arabian prince fighting against the turkish army .
lawrence quickly sees just how caring and great these desert dwelling people can be and ends up rallying the various tribes together to fight the turks and help the british turn the tide of world war
i . shot in panavision 's famed super 70 mm format , the film beautifully
illustrates the definition of the word epic .
it is absolutely breathtaking . using stunning cinematography , costuming , and direction , shot in the most uninhabitable location on the face of the earth , i can only imagine what it must have been like to sit in a theater in 1962 and watch this story unfold before my eyes .
every shot is choreographed as a portrait -- a living tribute to a great land .
david lean put his reputation on the line to get this film completed , and the fact that it was even greenlit in the first place says something about the ideology of the motion picture industry at the time , a far cry from its pathetic , uncreative existence today .
after watching the film , the first thing that came to my mind was , " i 've got to do a remake of this film !
"
but then i thought about trying to pitch the idea to a modern - day movie executive : " okay , it 's going to be almost four hours long and shot over three months on location in the sahara desert .
we are going to need to blow up a full - size train because computer - generated effects probably wo nt do it justice .
and we are not going to use any big stars , and wo n't have any female actors since there 's no love story .
"
yes , my friends , the velvet curtain fell on the golden - era of hollywood a long time ago .
but at least we still have the proof to show all would - be producers and directors out there just how good a film can be .
Output: P
what i look for in a movie is not necessarily perfection .
sometimes a movie has such strong ideas that despite whatever flaws it may have , i will prefer it to a better - made film that is not as thought - provoking .
the thin red line is flawed
but it provokes .
terence malick returns to filmmaking 20 years after days of heaven and produces this meditative look at war .
unlike this year 's saving private ryan , which dwells on war as a necessary evil and explores the moral ambiguities thereof , the thin red line simply says war is waste .
while that might seem obvious to some , only after experiencing the film do you realize how profound a waste it is .
saving private ryan has an underlying and practical acceptance that war will occur and it has a great cost ; the thin red line says idealistically avoid this at all costs .
one message is not necessarily more correct than the other .
it just depends on one 's point of view .
in malick 's film , war is set in a tropical paradise , and john toll 's cinematography is beyond lush .
the setting poses the question , why are we fighting in the face of such beauty ? in saving private ryan , the capture of a german soldier presents the moral quandary of whether to let him go .
in the thin red line , the japanese present the moral quandary of war in the first place .
they are just like the americans -- frightened and angry , grieving and praying .
all that separates them is war .
the flaw in the thin red line comes in the voice - overs .
unbelievable as coming from the characters and sometimes pretentious , sometimes corny , the voice - overs tell us what the images before us already do and are completely unnecessary .
dispensing with them , malick could have achieved a tarkovskian grandeur .
instead , he gets distracting self - consciousness . aside from that , malick 's direction is stunning .
the tracking shots across windswept hills and around transports speeding toward shore are extraordinary .
sean penn , elias koteas , and nick nolte give the best performances .
penn is subtle as a sergeant trying to hide his humanism , koteas is genuine as a compassionate captain , and nolte startling as a colonel whose blood vessels are about to burst if he can not win his battle .
john travolta and george clooney are the worst in cameo roles .
ultimately however , the thin red line 's interest is not in the characters and it is not in drama .
it has been frequently criticized for its lack of dramatic structure , but malick clearly has different things on his mind .
has no one ever thought that getting dramatic entertainment from war is exploitative ?
what malick is working with is theme , and in that , the thin red line is most provoking .
Output: P
an indian runner was more than a courier .
he * became * the message he was carrying .
what danger is a bear , to a message ?
i used to think sean penn was an immature , arrogant , photographer- punching , madonna - marrying , loudmouth .
but all that has changed now .
the guy has grown up .
and that 's not all .
it seems that sean penn has talents both as a writer and a director , if this film is any indication .
one might imagine a movie with plenty of ruthless rage and showy machismo , given penn in charge of bronson and and hopper .
but , no .
this film is about a real struggle , and the victories and defeats are not simple .
penn lets the story unfold at a pace dictated by the lives of the characters , without unnecessary rush or flash .
the focus of the story is two brothers .
david morse is the brother who has grown up in the small midwestern town in which they were raised , tending a failing farm and finally becoming a police officer .
viggo mortensen is the wild brother , whose wild behavior seems to be a reaction to some ancient pain that he ca n't name , much less resolve .
the film picks the story up on the day when mortensen returns from vietnam , and morse coincidentally encounters an armed youth fleeing for the state line .
it becomes clear that some kind of conflict threatens the link that the brothers once shared .
the film is unobtrusive , simple , direct , plain , and sincere .
it is n't exactly perfect , but its sincerity is well invested in the struggle of the two brothers to identify the sickness before it destroys them .
life seems to move forward a little faster than they can get a handle on their problems .
this is a good film without big budget sets , or big name stars pushed into your face .
in fact , i 'm reviewing it because i suspect that it may not get much marketing .
there were perhaps 10 others at the showing i saw .
i thought the structure was clean and not oversimplified , though there are a few free - form sections which also work very well .
the obligatory 1960s music seemed a little cliche , but what are you going to do -- this movie * does * take place in the 1960s after all .
in my opinion , it is worth full - price admission .
Output: P
not since attending an ingmar bergman retrospective a few years ago have i seen a film as uncompromising in its portrayal of emotional truth as secrets & lies .
like bergman , director mike leigh is interested in probing his characters ' inner depths through hypernaturally blunt confrontations .
also like bergman , leigh engages in frequent closeups of his characters ' ravished and wracked faces . and the prominent mournfulness of a cello on the soundtrack recalls bergman 's own use of a bach cello suite in an earlier film .
all that is missing is a discussion of god .
which is not to say that secrets & lies is nothing more than an homage to the swedish master .
in fact , it is quite possible leigh had no such intentions in mind .
nonetheless , what we get is so far removed from the average moviegoing experience -- even from the reason we go to the movies in the first place -- that it takes some effort to adjust to the film 's rhythms .
once the adjustment is made , however , there are great rewards .
one such is the chance to see life on the screen as it really is .
though leigh may have adopted some of bergman 's stylistic touches , most obviously in an early scene of terse cross - cutting during a married couple 's strained conversation , as well as in that somewhat obtrusive score , the overall feeling of the film is that it eschews any " style " at all .
whereas bergman uses artifice as a tool to expose reality , leigh makes the camera a mere observer , almost as in a pbs documentary .
the effect of this is to focus all of your attention on the actors .
it is a tribute to everyone involved that , despite such scrutiny , only infrequently are we aware that anyone * is * acting .
much has been made of brenda blethyn 's performance , and rightly so , but it is only when you remind yourself that you are watching a fiction that you realize how good she is .
there are a few missteps .
for one , except for one scene ( tragicomic , as it happens ) , there is scant humor in the film .
this leads to a certain monotonous tone throughout .
and occasionally ( as with bergman ) the bluntness of the situations can seem forced .
for all that , this longish film manages to keep hold of your attention .
it is unfortunate that the audience for secrets & lies will most likely be limited to an intellectual elite , for there is nothing inherently intellectual about this film .
in fact , it might easily resonate more strongly for millions of working class filmgoers who will likely never see it .
there is even a sweet but significant irony in the film 's unspoken take on race relations , something an american audience at least would do well to observe .
nonetheless , secrets & lies is not for the faint of heart .
though there is nothing physically horrific to make one squeamish , the exploration of common human frailty can be so raw and unsparing that it is tempting to turn from the screen .
needless to say , it is also very depressing at times .
but for many of us , of course , so is life .
and though the film is too honest to tack on a phony happy ending , that same honesty allows it to admit that things can also get better .
Output: P
after a successful run in australia last year , and with much critical praise heaped upon it , muriel 's wedding opens into medium release this weekend in north america .
muriel heslop is a withdrawn , overweight young woman living in porpoise spit , australia .
she is often the target of her father 's frequent rants at the family , and drowns out her feelings of inadequacy with abba music and fantasies of marriage .
her self - loathing is such that only being we
d
shall she prove herself to be a success ; marriage will transform her into a new person who is respected and admired .
after her four cliquey friends dump her , muriel plots to follow them to a resort where they are celebrating the honeymoon of one of the girls , and muriel 's wedding unfolds from there .
toni collette plays muriel in a winning performance , conveying both the sadness of her character and her desperate eagerness to be accepted .
collette gained a frightening 43 pounds in order to play the chubby title character .
she has a natural screen presence and exudes charisma ,
easily winning the audience over with an honest , painful performance .
collette basically carries the film , appearing in almost every scene .
muriel 's father , bill " the battler " heslop , is portrayed by bill hunter as a slick politician / developer .
while chumming around with young fans and crowing ' you ca n't beat progress ' ( his slogan ) , bill labels his family as worthless and embarrassments .
rachel griffiths plays rhonda , who becomes muriel 's cheeky new friend in the film .
she has good chemistry with collette , and the film suffers when griffiths is off - screen .
muriel 's tormenters , played by pippa grandison , rosalind hammond , belinda jarrett and sophie lee , are two - dimensional caricatures , all saucy , vain and bumblingly spiteful , though that is probably due to hogan 's scripting muriel 's wedding is essentially a genre teen comedy with more intelligence and a lot of charm .
hogan 's use of abba tunes ( which virtually comprises the entire soundtrack ) is interestingly appropriate , although its repetitiveness tires after awhile . hogan 's script is right on the mark in terms of proportionately mixing comedy with muriel 's earnest quest for acceptance , and the gorgeous scene with muriel window - shopping beautifully illustrates the wonder that marriage has for her .
the glaring pastel colours worn by the performers is an interesting touch .
muriel 's wedding features a fine performance by toni collette and a charming , if a bit too straightforward and conventional story by p .
j .
hogan .
on my four star scale , i give muriel 's wedding three stars .
Output: P
wong kar - wei 's " fallen angels " is , on a purely visceral level , one of the most exciting films i 've seen in a long while .
unfortunately , wong seems more interested in experimenting with his camera than creating tangible characters for the audience to root for .
ordinarily , that alone would be enough to sink a movie , but in the case of " fallen angels " , this is not so .
every shot in this film is exciting
just to * look
* at .
wong
does really interesting things with the camera , but he does n't allow the pyrotechnics to completely take over , as was the case with last years dismal " knock off " ( which contained a shot of a foot entering a shoe . ugh . )
the movie follows three pairs of lost souls as they struggle to find some meaning in their lives .
i ca n't say much more than that as i did n't really know what was going on most of the time .
in fact , it was n't until about halfway through the movie that i was able to distinguish between each character .
the constantly moving camera does n't really allow for the audience to associate with any one character .
we 're always kept at a distance from these people , i suppose in order to further add to the feeling of alienation felt by the characters .
" fallen angels " is
a refreshing change - of - pace from most hollywood films , which never bother to try anything different , at least on a visual level .
in fact , i 'd go so far as to say that " fallen angels " is more challenging visually than any mainstream hollywood film i 've ever seen .
sure , there 's directors like robert rodriguez who enjoy turning violence into operatic orgies of death , but to see a filmmaker like wong who actually assaults the senses with images is
truly something worth celebrating .
but if wong wishes to become a legendary filmmaker , he needs to work on incorporating an actual story into those awesome images .
there were far too many instances during " fallen angels " in which i asked myself , " now who are these people again ?
is this that first couple or the second couple ?
"
it was impossible to keep track .
perhaps he could let the audience know right away which character is which , by introducing them to us with " name cards " , as in scorsese 's " mean streets " .
that 's really besides the point , though .
wong kar - wei has proven himself , through very few films , that 's
he 's a movie - maker to watch .
let 's just hope that he hones his storytelling skills with his next few movies .
Output: P
usually when one is debating who the modern queen of the romantic comedy is they will bring up names like julia roberts or sandra bullock .
others will mention meg ryan .
but for me , it 's not even close .
janeane garofalo is not only the queen of the romantic comedy , she is the best comic actress in hollywood
right now .
and it 's a good thing she 's starring in the matchmaker , because without her presence the movie would be bland , unfunny , and dull .
garofalo stars as marcy tizard , a top aide to boston senator john mcglory , who is suffering in the polls .
in an attempt to capture the irish vote , he sends marcy on a mission to a small irish town called ballinagra in search of other mcglory 's that never moved to america .
unfortunately for marcy , her visit coincides with the town 's annual matchmaking festival .
things get off to a rocky start for marcy though .
she has no hotel reservations ( for no rational reason ) and the tiny confined room ( tired old cliche ' )
she has to stay in
has a visitor in her bathtub .
his name is sean , and marcy finds him repugnant at first , so you can obviously tell where this is headed .
the movie runs into a few roadblocks .
for instance , the story is very thin .
none of the characters ( except the old local matchmaker ) are nearly as interesting as garofalo .
some of the characters , like the political aide played by denis leary , have wandered in from a completely different movie .
i think the director realized this and decided to throw in numerous shots of the beautiful irish scenery , and
several close - ups of garofalo 's winning smile .
the strange thing is that it works .
garofalo 's charm and the irish scenery could carry the thinnest of stories , and it carries this one .
Output: P
susan granger 's review of " bread and tulips " ( first look pictures ) in this delightfully frothy italian romantic comedy , after accidentally being left behind by a tour bus while on a family vacation with her cranky husband and two cynical teenagers , rosalba ( licia maglietta ) , an unhappy housewife from pescara , finds herself - and love - in venice .
for the first time in years , rosalba 's on her own when she 's abandoned at a highway rest area .
although her philandering husband ( antonio catania ) , a plumbing - supply dealer , orders her to stay there until she 's picked up , she impulsively accepts a ride to venice , a bohemian paradise which she 's never visited .
rosalba finds refuge and romance with fernando ( bruno ganz ) , a gruff icelandic waiter who offers her a spare room in his modest apartment and prepares breakfast for her each morning .
to support herself , she gets a job working with a florist ( antonio catania ) .
film - maker silvio soldini
gently explores the blossoming of this bored , middle - aged , middle - class woman with warmth and affection , savoring special moments such as when rosalba starts playing the accordion again and abandons her maroon stretch pants , silver jacket and orange sneakers for a simple , new red - and - white dress with platform - soled espadrilles .
the superb actors slip into their roles seamlessly , particularly luminous licia maglietta and low - key bruno ganz , along with marina massironi as her nosy massage - therapist neighbor and giuseppe massironi as the inept plumber - turned - private eye who 's sent to retrieve her on orders from her frantic husband - who 's discovered that his mistress has no interest in doing his laundry or cleaning the house .
on the granger movie gauge of 1 to 10 , " bread and tulips " is a beguiling , escapist 8 .
as the summer ends , it 's a magical getaway for mature audiences . .
Output: P
the word ' rest ' in the title should be stressed since this is a movie that lacks any action scenes at all .
what does takes place is more based on character development .
the film starts right in the middle of the lives of four people :
nick , beth , carol and sid .
what they have done earlier is for the most part only hinted at .
nick and beth have a relationship and have decided to move from enfield , arizona to butte , montana .
( and i who thought that butte was pronounced slightly different . . . )
carol is nick 's ex - girlfriend and beth 's best friend
, sid is a joint - smoking painter that comes to repaint their house before the new tenants move in .
obviously based on a stage play , the problem with the movie is that there 's a lot of things left out .
it 's not obvious that nick and beth are in love with each other , the reason why nick was fired from his job is n't mentioned .
and why nick suddenly decide to go visit his parents remain a mystery , when he has n't seen them for many years .
set in a small ( fictional ? ) town in arizona was a good move , since this makes the film focus on the four characters and not on their surroundings .
the name of the city is not important , this could take place anywhere with four young people in a house discussing life and the future .
particularly impressive is bridget fonda as beth who end up in bed with sid when her fiance nick leaves her . not an actress that i have found interesting earlier or seen many pictures with , but i 'll keep an eye on her in the future .
interesting trivia : this was rated r in the us but rated ' barntill ?
ten ' in sweden wich means that anyone at any age can see it .
Output: P
this is the movie not the perfume .
a slow moving , stylish psychological thriller in imitation of hitchcock 's vertigo .
it is adapted from an original story by brian de palma and paul schrader , and is directed by de palma and scripted by schrader .
set in new orleans , 1959 , it shows the wealthy michael courtland ( cliff robertson ) sitting on top of the world , celebrating his tenth wedding anniversary with a party in his mansion , as his lovely wife elizabeth ( genevi ?
ve bujold ) and young daughter amy ( blackman ) ,
both look up to him beaming with joy .
his real - estate development partner bob la salle ( john lithgow ) proposes a toast to him and to their prosperous business , while his high society friends give him their best wishes . upon retiring for the night , his daughter and wife are kidnapped in their bedroom
and he is left with a ransom note to deliver $ 500 , 000 tomorrow or they will be killed .
inspector brie ( stanley reyes ) comes up with a plan to put in phony money and a transmitter in the briefcase exchange , as that will lead them to the kidnappers .
but the kidnappers burst out of the house surrounded by the police , taking the two victims with them and in the pursuing police chase , the kidnapper 's car explodes and goes over the bridge , where none of the bodies were found .
grieving the loss of his wife and child , the guilt - ridden michael builds them a tomb on the expensive land they were to develop .
sixteen years later he goes with his partner bob on a vacation and he revisits florence , italy , where he met his wife .
when he goes to the church where they met , he sees a young girl who looks exactly like his wife .
her name is sandra portinari ( genevi ?
ve bujold )
and she 's working there restoring art that is decaying .
he falls instantly in love with her and does n't heed bob 's warnings that she might be a gold digger and decides to take her back to new orleans and marry her .
sandra becomes his second chance to prove his love , as he thinks he can finally put the past behind him .
the surprises to come were n't really all that surprising , as the beauty in the storytelling is almost exclusively in the understated acting by the soul stricken cliff robertson , the emotionally impactful performance by genevi ?
ve bujold , and the competent acting of john lithgow .
it plays too much like a rehash of the master 's work , to break any new ground , yet
it is still thrilling in its own way .
Output: P
when jim henson passed away , he left behind diverse legions of fans and a company whose ultimate success , it now seems , hinged on his input .
jim henson productions and the creature shop are still thriving financially , but as the last two muppet films ( or that silly computer - generated monkey from lost in space ) demonstrate , the thrill and genius are gone .
i 'm not sure the dark crystal , made today , would generate from an audience of kids five to fifty the same awe - filled response .
an all - powerful crystal has cracked , causing the leaders of the green world to split apart into two beings : the big , gentle mystics , and the vulture - like skeksis .
the mystics send jen , a naive gelfling boy , on a mission to find the shard that cracked away , which must be reinserted into the crystal before the skeksis become eternal rulers , before the great " conjunction " of three suns .
along the way , jen encounters and teams up with the only other gelfling alive , the rebecca demornay - like kira , an ogre - witch named aughra , who removes her eyes to look at things , and a spastic - but - friendly , tumbleweed - like animal named fizzgig .
much of the beauty in the dark crystal , which is a simple tale ( though it does not condescend to any viewer ) , lies in its art direction and creature design .
the puppeteering is phenomenal -- observe the scenes in which jen plays his flute , or the landwalker chase -- but i must stress that any thoughts of strings and hands and remote controls all but vanish in the opening moments of the picture , a delicately - narrated ( by john baddeley ) , absorbing prologue .
the voice work in the film , by muppet regulars and irregulars , is tone - perfect .
as well , trevor jones ' score should not be discounted : it contributes to the film almost as an unseen character .
i suppose , due to the complexity involved in executing a movie of this nature , that it could n't be helped , but i wish the film was longer .
jen and kira have wonderful . . .
well , chemistry , and more scenes of them quietly conversing would have been appreciated .
the dark crystal has a very small cult following .
the weaker labyrinth is probably better - known , which is upsetting .
a friend of mine related a story to me that henson was pressured into planting humans among labyrinth 's creatures due to the financial failure of people - less the dark crystal .
that film never quite found its footing ; it played like an acid - trip episode of " the muppet show " with david bowie as guest - host , borrowing from tolkien and pandering to tolkien 's fan - base .
( i suppose i just made labyrinth sound appetizing to a certain sector of the public . )
the dark crystal deserved ( and still deserves ) a bigger audience .
it 's the best kind of children 's entertainment : elegant , fantastical , and courageously
un - hip .
brian henson , fortunate son , keep looking back at this , your father 's masterpiece .
Output: P
bob the happy bastard 's quickie review :
the mummy brendan fraser 's stuck in the past again , but at least this time he has something better to do than to quote sitcom lines and try to woo alicia silverstone .
. .
fraser is the lead star of the mummy , the second directorial effort from action director stephen sommers ( who also brought us the decent thrill ride that was deep rising ) .
it 's a rough adaptation of the 1932 film , and i say rough because it focuses more on special effects than on some guy in bandages , like boris karloff was engulfed in .
but who cares ,
the movie has a sort of swashbuckling quality to it
you ca n't get from , oh , say , godzilla or armageddon .
fraser plays a soldier who gets a premonition during a battle with soldiers in an egyptian ground .
basically , it 's a little sign from the mummy buried underneath- a priest named ihmoetep who was buried alive for taking part of murdering the king and making out with his mistress .
his plan- wake back up and wake her up also , making him invincible .
of course , fraser returns to the site years later with a librarian ( rachel weisz ) and her brother ( john hanna ) , along with a former buddy of his ( deep rising 's kevin j .
o'connor ) and some " americans " . . .
and guess what ?
yup , ihmoetep ( arnold vosloo ) awakens and wreaks havoc .
fire flies from the sky , flesh - eating beetles crawl about , and , well , ihmoetep 's plan begins to unfold .
ok , so it 's not really all that new a story , but the way sommers tells it is entertaining enough .
the special effects from industrial light and magic are top notch , and the acting from fraser and weisz is n't half bad either .
the action is pretty intense
( favorite scene : the sandstorm ) and there are a few shocking scenes just to jolt you horror - loving folks as well .
no , it 's no phantom menace beater , but if you 're looking for a solid warm - up to the summer movie season , you wo n't find a better film under wraps than the mummy .
if this does n't give fraser forgiveness from blast from the past and encino man , then nothing will .
Output: P
apollo 13 is simply one of the most dramatic film
this summer ( apart from swashbuckling braveheart ) .
director ( and former actor ) ron howard ( splash , backdraft , far & away ) , most noted for his dramatic film making , displays again his brilliance in creating drama and suspense in apollo 13 . being the second largest box office hit in the us this summer ( with more than us$150 million in the states alone ) , this film is his most successful effort yet .
perhaps one of the most appealing feature of this film is the pool of talented actors such as tom hanks ( gump himself ) , kevin bacon ( footloose , tremors , a few good men etc . ) , gary sinise ( forrest gump ) , bill paxton ( aliens , true lies , boxing helena ) and ed harris ( the abyss , just cause ) . .
all of whom gave good performances in their respective roles .
apollo 13 was the second worst accident ever to occur in the history of us
spaceflight ( the worst being the challenger accident ) .
jim lovell ( hanks ) , the mission commander , together with his crew , fred haise ( paxton ) and last minute replacement tom swigert ( bacon ) are put to the ultimate test when part of their command module explodes on the third day of the mission , more than three quarters way to the moon .
suspense and drama ensue as the three men are left in space with their spaceship out of control and the problem of surviving the journey home .
. . if they ever reach it .
ed harris and gary sinise who play , respectively , the man in charge of the entire mission control and the astronaut who was supposed to fly but was diagnosed with measles , both delve into their roles superbly
.
audiences are shown the chaotic and worrisome state of the entire ground control crew , as they frantically attempt to come up with ideas on how to save the astronauts from hurtling into space .
also , there are quite a number of real news footages which were broadcast during the accident which took the entire us nation into 5 days of drama in 1970 .
the special effects by digital domain are up to standard and the music suits the suspense and drama
very well
, thanks to film - music maestro james horner .
watch out for the launching sequence , it is simply one of the most breathtaking scenes of the film .
a bad point though : apollo 13 features much technical jargon and many physics concepts in its script .
those who consider themselves ` scientifically illiterate ' might have a slight problem understanding what caused this and what caused that during the course of the show . this is however , just a minor point , just forget all those technical bullshit and immerse yourselves into the drama and suspense throughout the film .
you should enjoy it .
Output: P
carla gugino graduates from high school and instead of staying in her small farming town , she goes to college in california .
there she meets the residential advisor pauly shore , who is a city boy .
when gugino goes back home for thanksgiving , she brings shore with her , and her parents ( lane smith and cindy pickett ) are less than thrilled .
dan gauthier , gugino 's boyfriend from high school , proposes to gugino .
gugino is n't ready for anything like this
so she makes up the story that she is engaged to shore .
she and shore have to make it look like they are engaged while her parents try to make it end .
forget jurassic park , cliffhanger , the firm and last action hero , son - in - law is the film to see this summer .
son - in - law is a great romantic comedy that should please the viewers , especially fans of the wiez .
when son - in - law is long gone and forgotten , the blockbuster summer films will still be playing and you will have a chance to see them then .
this film could also make great video fare for those that are leery of spending seven dollars on it .
nothing will be lost by watching it on a television screen .
although the basic story line has been done many , many times before , the film is still fun to watch .
the laughs are plentiful , especially when the wiez is around .
the way some of the jokes are done are new , even though some of the jokes are old .
there are also several new jokes that , at least , i have n't seen before .
still , when presented right , even old material can be funny still .
this film is just basically a light comedy that is great to see if you are in the right mood that does n't contain much violence or any nudity that is definitely worth full ticket price .
the cast for this film does an excellent job .
pauly shore ( encino man ) is the star attraction of this film .
he is great , and knows how to entertain the audience .
pauly shore just seems to take over the entire screen when he is on with expressions and comments that are hilarious .
this film would definitely not have been as good with anyone else in this role .
carla gugino
does a very good job as the farm girl gone city girl .
she makes her character believable , on some levels , yet interesting at the same time .
the person who played the grandfather ( mason adams , i believe ) also does a great job .
the way he delivered his lines kept me laughing throughout the time that he was on the screen .
patrick renna , who played gugino 's little brother , was a little annoying , but no where as near as macaulay culkin , and for only part of the time , so i can forgive him .
tiffani - amber thiessen ( a killer among friends , " saved by the bell " ) does a reasonably good job for the time that she is on screen .
she shows that she may have a potential in movies if she can get out of the corny young adults programming on television .
she was n't given overly much to do in the film , but what she had ,
she does a good job with .
Output: P
the only historical figure that has been written about more than william shakespeare is jesus christ , which explains why the bard 's materials are such a popular source for remakes , revisions , rewrites , inspiration , subtlety , credit , and dispute .
indeed , in recent years , american contemporary cinema has been swamped with a wash of shakespearean products . including this year 's upcoming a midsummer night 's dream , shakespeare 's material has been the cause for twenty - six big screen productions since 1990 .
but for a change of pace , mrs .
brown director john madden gives us a story of the bard himself in the wonderfully vibrant shakespeare in love .
marc norman and tom stoppard 's story is largely fantasy , although as the viewer soon learns , shakespeare in love is not a movie that takes itself seriously .
( will shakespeare of the 1590 's would 've been married to anne hathaway , and he would 've had a teenage daughter and two young sons ; here he is a bachelor played by joseph fiennes . )
will is a writer struggling to come up with a great play , and his current comedy in the works -- " romeo and ethel , the pirate 's daughter " -- just does n't quite seem right .
with the help of the great writer christopher marlowe ( rupert everett ) , and the inspiration of true love with noblewoman viola de lesseps ( gwyneth paltrow ) , he changes things around and writes one of his greatest tragedies , " romeo and juliet .
"
the love story between will and viola loosely parallels the story of romeo and juliet , to great effect .
fiennes and paltrow develop a sexy chemistry as the two lovers which gives the movie much momentum ; this momentum smoothes out the bumps in the unfinished and largely unsuccessful comedy .
the supporting roles are well filled out , from geoffrey rush as will 's worrisome agent , philip , to tom wilkinson as the producer hugh fennyman .
even ben affleck , leading the troupe of actors , manages to make a favorable impression ; and judi dench lends some brief moments of screen time as queen elizabeth i .
gwyneth paltrow is by far , however ,
the standout of the lot , creating a large percentage of the forementioned vibrance .
the story is well - crafted if nothing else , although it has dangerous moments where it flirts with the " let 's make a movie " -genre .
the dialogue is breezy and lighthearted , and certainly accessible by the audience 's lowest common denominator .
there 's something for everyone in this romantic comedy , making it prime date flick material .
although certainly not inspiring in any regard , it revels in a wholesome , well - rounded atmosphere that has been absent in many of 1998 's pictures ; the true - love story is one of the best around .
certainly recommendable when the traditional slew of indifferent year's - open releases is just around the corner .
Output: P
the start of this movie reminded me of parts from the movie stargate .
people are looking around in an egyptian temple reading about some dangerous thing that is going to destroy earth in the future .
after a sort of confusing bit involving fake - looking cyborg things , the movie jumps into the future and the movie improves by leaps and bounds .
the basic idea behind the movie is that every once in a while ( make that every 1000 years or so ) an evil force comes to destroy earth .
the things needed to defend against this menace are the four elements of nature plus the fifth element .
the plot in this movie really is n't that important to the thing though .
this movie has very good special effects , for the most part .
the techno - ish music in the background fits the mood very well .
bruce willis is an illegal taxi - cab driver in a futuristic new york city .
one day a lady draped with a few bandages drops down into his trunk .
this movie is about what happens .
the plot twists are interesting and the movie never fails to present the viewer with a variety of different locations .
also there is a fair bit of action in the film , particularly towards the end .
some characters are just plain strange including a highly - energetic deejay in drag .
bruce willis does his normal job of blowing things away like he always does .
the movie is definitely watchable and rarely slows down .
it is one of those sci - fi films where you 'll be saying " cool " followed by a " what the hell ? ! ? ! " .
i give the fifth element .
Output: P
well i 'll be damned .
.. the canadians can make a good movie .
the world is coming to an end .
we do n't know why or how , but apparently there is no way to stop it .
the world has had this information for months , as most of the rioting and other assorted chaos has passed and governments have shut down operations .
yet for a handful of toronto citizens , life goes on .
they are n't going crazy or attacking people in the streets .
instead they are simply preparing themselves for the end .
.. some engaging in activities they 've always wanted to do , some gathering with family and friends , and others just seeking to be alone .
these people 's lives however all intersect during their final six hours .
writer - director - star don mckellar has crafted a highly unique and emotional film .
all of the main characters are compelling as they try and do whatever it is they need to do on their last night on earth .
craig ( callum keith rennie ) tries to fulfill all his sexual fantasies , a gas company employee ( david cronenberg ) calls every customer letting them know the gas will be flowing until the very end and thanks them for their business , and patrick ( mckellar ) just wants to be by himself but is n't having much success .
even minor characters keep popping up where you least expect them to , tying everyone even closer .
things seemed a little hokey towards the beginning of the film , but ultimately everything comes together nicely
( although it 's not a happy film .
.. some moments are understandably gut - wrenching ) .
the story is enhanced by some unexpected humor and very realistic performances , particularly from sandra
oh , whose character is just trying to get home to her husband before
the end .
i have absolutely no problem that the reason for the end of the world is never given , nor does it bother me that the world is ending at exactly 12 midnight ( in toronto anyway ) .
but i do wonder why the sun never sets .
come midnight , the sun is still shining brightly .
maybe the sun is crashing into the earth .
.. who knows .
also , it 's comforting to know that in mankind 's final moments on the planet , people will still gang up on the street for the sheer purpose of pushing over a car or a bus ( that 's not a shot at this film mind you .
..
i know people are just stupid and truly would be out in the street tipping over cars ) .
last night is available on dvd from universal home video .
it contains the film in fullscreen format and includes the original theatrical trailer .
[ r ]
Output: P
niagara niagara ( r ) bob gosse 's niagara niagara follows a blueprint not unlike a lot of young - lovers - on - the - road movies .
wild marcy ( robin tunney ) and calm seth ( henry thomas )
meet cute , literally running into each other while shoplifting at a local store .
a mere couple of scenes later , the two embark on a journey to toronto from their small , unnamed american town in pursuit of a rare doll that marcy desperately wants . along the way , true love inevitably blossoms .
what sets niagara niagara apart , though , is that marcy is afflicted with tourette 's syndrome , a neurological disorder that causes sudden muscle and vocal tics .
tunney , displaying an acting range
not hinted at in the teenage witch thriller the craft , delivers an astonishing performance that won her the best actress prize at last year 's venice film festival .
to term her work
a tour - de - force is not to imply that she attacks the scenery ; tunney 's effectiveness lies in her modulation and vulnerability , which makes her depiction of marcy 's illness -- which often causes her to act violently -- that much more convincing and tragic .
she and the nicely subtle thomas develop a sweetly innocent and beguilingly off - kilter chemistry .
their journey hits a few rough spots creatively along the way , mostly the fault of writer matthew weiss .
a detour involving a kindly widower ( michael parks ) who takes the couple in brings the story to a screeching halt , and the key character of a trigger - happy pharmacist ( stephen lang ) is highly unbelievable .
but these missteps do not blunt the power of tunney 's bravura turn , which carries niagara niagara to a level of poignance it would not have otherwise achieved .
( opens march 20 )
"
i did n't know what to expect .
it 's like something you chase for so long , but then you do n't know how to react when you get it .
i still do n't know how to react .
"
--michael
jordan ,
on winning his first nba championship in 1991 .
..
or , my thoughts after meeting him on november 21 , 1997
Output: P