polsci/sentiment-polarity-dataset-v2.0 huggingface dataset:
i'll be the first to admit i didn't expect much from the emperor's new groove : more celine dion-esque song-and-dance numbers , cuddly characters that become cross-promotion devices in mcdonald's happy meals , and hollywood stars trying to gain credibility by adding a voice-over job to their resume . 
i was dead wrong about all of those things . 
the emperor's new groove is funny . 
damn funny . 
and the cute characters in the film are the dangerous ones . 
the script is fast and furious , with no singing and dancing . 
the animation is clean and would give walt a warm feeling all over . 
the humor is dry and aimed at both the cynicism and the goodness in all of us . 
the story is ridiculously weird and comes off as a strange acid trip involving talking , cross-dressing llamas and schizophrenia . 
here's the plot ; try to follow along . 
set in a mythical kingdom , the film follows the adventures of kuzco ( david spade ) , an arrogant and egocentric emperor . 
when kuzco fires his power-hungry advisor , yzma ( eartha kitt ) , she and her " assistant " kronk ( seinfeld's patrick warburton ) change him into a llama . 
kuzco then gets stranded in the jungle and must rely on pacha ( john goodman ) , a llama-herder whose home was to be replaced by kuzco's water world theme park , to save him . 
then the fun starts . 
for the next sixty minutes , the audience is treated to something unheard of in disney films these days : imagination . 
yzma , voiced by the talented singer eartha kitt , looks like a cross between norma desmond , joan crawford , and a really old vegas showgirl . 
the dialogue between her and her oblivious assistant kronk is quick , sharp , and feels like an episode of seinfeld ( which would make sense ) . 
david spade and john goodman's character interactions make you feel like you're watching an old hope/crosby film . 
spade is beyond dry with his humor and shoots below the belt on several occasions , and i laughed out loud several times . 
needless to say , that is an extremely rare thing in disney screenings these days . 
the best part about the emperor's new groove is how audacious the film is . 
the sheer weirdness factor is very high . 
cross-dressing , schizophrenia , duality of soul , people being turned into every animal on noah's boat , llama cpr , homoerotic tendencies , an emperor with his own theme song and singer , michael jackson dance moves , and a guy that can communicate with a squirrel are only a few of the oddities that make the film a true orginal . 
simply put , the emperor's new groove is one of the best children's films out for this holiday season . 
kids will enjoy the adventures , and parents will enjoy the story and dialogue . 
that's a tough thing to pull off in a single package , but this emperor manages to do it .
tbwp is probably the single most profitable film ever . 
not surprising , considering its tiny us$100 , 000 budget , to date it has earned in excess of us$130 million . 
that's a shocking 100 times profit ! 
rumours have it that a smart internet `marketing' ploy was so successful in gaining cult-like fanatics , by word of mouth coupled with strings of excellent reviews , the film just exploded in the box-office , raking in millions on its opening weekend . 
shot in 16mm and video ( i suspect . ) , the film chronicles the forays of 3 students who go in search for the legendary blair witch . 
audiences are put in the first-person perspective in the entire mis-adventure , often wobbly and blurry at times , it takes a bit of getting used to in the beginning . 
this is supposed to be the material they discovered in the woods where the 3 disappeared ; edited and put onto the screen for the benefit of our audiences . 
tbwp is simply smart . 
filmed to look as if it was really a stock-shoot by a bunch of students in search of the blair witch as a school project , one may suspect ( like yours truly ) that its simply a lazy but smart approach to film-making . 
simply amazing in that respect , i must say . 
talk about impact , oh yes , tbwp does have quite a bit , in fact most audience will find it deeply disturbing . 
i did , especially the last bit but i'm not revealing more . 
you have to see it for yourself . 
i can't help but feel a tad cheated after knowing how commercially successful this film has become . 
could it be that finally , an indie-film has unwittingly found a formula for commercial appeal ? 
or was it all simply a ploy by the big players right from the beginning ? 
well , i guess the fact stays ; tbwp is highly original , clever and will most definitely leave most with something dreadful to talk and think about for weeks prior to watching this film . 
no gore , no special effects , i just can't get over how terribly smart this film is !
don't let the following quirks of this review , fool you into believing that this movie is anything short of an ultimate labour of love . 
but one can see the humour of roberto benigni when you see that ? 
life is beautiful , even though i'm a short , ugly looking man with an obnoxious laugh . 
life is beautiful even though i haven't amounted to much in life , except working out the finer intricacies of waitering . 
i'm a lucky sort of a guy , especially when a beautiful woman strips away my venner of superficiality to find a new age , sensitive guy with the biggest heart in the entire world underneath - life is beautiful ! 
i'm a jew , but life can still be beautiful . 
the nazis put me in a concentration camp , but life is still beautiful . 
i love my son very much and that's what matters , and that's what makes life beautiful . 
my ability to entertain somehow convinces my son that living in a concentration camp is somewhat beautiful ? 
i get shot for my efforts and the woman i love , but hey that's life and that's still a beautiful thing - so by jove don't give me any crap about it ! 
by far the movie with the biggest heart this decade and well deserves every nomination and award that it has achieved . 
well done , there should be more film directors and actors like you roberto benigni .
steve soderbergh's " sex , lies , and videotape , " which won the grand prize at the cannes film festival in 1989 , arguably began the resurgence of independent films . 
made on a shoestring budget of $1 . 2 million , with then relatively unknown actors , it is a provocative , thoroughly original drama . 
the film mostly focuses on the four central characters , all in their late 20's-early 30's . 
ann ( andie macdowell ) , an unfulfilled housewife , is married to john ( peter gallagher ) , an insensitive lawyer , who , unbeknownst to her , is having an affair with her younger sister , cynthia ( laura san giacomo ) . 
complicating matters even worse is graham ( james spader , who won best actor at cannes ) , john's old college buddy , who comes to stay at their house . 
ann is absolutely won over by him , even though she clearly has stated that she has very little interest in sex . 
that is the set-up for the last hour of the picture , and since the film is entitled , " sex , lies , and videotape , " it is best to keep the rest of the story developments at bay so that they will come as a genuine surprise . 
director steven soderbergh has proven to be a wildly offbeat filmmaker , ranging from the independent , to the mainstream ( 1998's " out of sight " ) , to the downright kafkaesque ( 1997's " schizopolis " ) . 
he is the type of director who obviously takes a lot of chances , and believes in the work that he does , and , " sex , lies , and videotape , " is probably his most confident , and maybe even best , to date . 
the performances are superb from all four leads , but macdowell stands out in what is probably the main character . 
she is always a very winning actress , but this is probably her most three-dimensional role that she has had ( with a close second being altman's 1993 mosaic , " short cuts " ) . 
the other parts are perfectly cast as well , from spader's ominous graham , to gallagher's self-involved john , to giacomo's outspoken cynthia . 
the final act of the film , especially , comes right out of left field , and turns out to be both shocking and oddly touching , and it would be criminal to give away the film's secrets . 
suffice to say that , through one powerful sequence , ann is able to somewhat come out of her shell , and john learns a valuable lesson about honesty , as well as deception . 
the film has one fault , however . 
the characters are almost all emotionally cold and isolated from one another , and often unlikable . 
if there had been a few extra scenes with gallagher , it probably would have helped , since his relationship with macdowell isn't quite as explored as i would have liked . 
 " sex , lies , and videotape , " although minorly flawed , is still easily a brave and adult motion picture that is far more mature and honest about its subject matter than the usual film . 
soderbergh clearly knew what he was doing while he was making it , and the final product certainly proves this .
harmless , silly and fun comedy about dim-witted wrestling fans gordie and sean ( david arquette and scott caan ) who idolize current world championship wrestling heavyweight champion jimmy king ( oliver platt ) . 
when king is screwed out of his title by a corrupt promoter ( joe pantoliano ) , gordie and sean take it upon themselves to find their fallen hero and restore his glory . 
my biggest fear about ready to rumble was dispatched early on , as the filmmakers are quick to show that wresting is indeed choreographed ( but not fake , mind you ) . 
the hook of the movie is that gordie and sean are just too stupid to realize that . 
arquette and caan are suitably over the top with their performances , which is exactly what a movie like this requires , and oliver platt ( one of my favorite actors ) is a riot as the drunken washed-up ex-champion . 
many have scoffed at the idea that platt should be playing a heavyweight champion wrestler with an unbeaten record , but for me it just added to the " silly factor " of the film , thereby increasing my enjoyment of it . 
one casting complaint however : rose mcgowan as a sexy dancer ? 
please . . . 
if rose mcgowan is sexy then i'm marilyn manson . 
given the current state of the actual wcw , if oliver platt were appearing as jimmy king right now on wcw programming , he'd be the most popular guy they have . 
on a similar note , the " plot line " of the wresting portions of the film are more entertaining than anything the wcw writers have been able to come up with in the last two years . 
although one does have to ask . . . 
why would any wrestling promoter fire the head wrestler of a company who is both unbeaten and extremely popular with the fans ? 
director brian robbins ( you'll remember him as eric from tv's " head of the class " ) just knows how to make good dumb movies . 
this movie fits in nicely with his previous efforts good burger and varsity blues . 
and screenwriter steven brill ( the epic mighty ducks trilogy , late last night ) manages to keep things both sophomoric and clever at the same time , with almost all the jokes of the film getting a laugh out of me . 
the only exceptions to that were : 1 ) a scene involving a van full of singing nuns and 2 ) any scene involving the old woman wrestling fan . 
those moments made me cringe and/or groan . 
as an added bonus though , the audience is treated to outtakes from the film as the final credits roll . 
[pg-13]
metro i've seen san francisco in movies many times . 
there was 1994's interview with the vampire and most recently the rock . 
now , yet again , san francisco is the setting for this movie . 
eddie murphy stars as inspector scott roper of the sfpd . he is their top hostage negotiator , and the very best at what he does . 
when his best friend on the force is killed by joe ( michael wincott , in a terrific performance ) , a psychotic , demented jewel thief , roger makes it his mission to capture the guy before he strikes again . 
meanwhile , roper tries to rekindle a relationship with his british ex-girlfriend veronica , while helping to rear a new up and comer from swat who's an expert sniper and marksman ( michael rappaport ) . 
despite the obligatory cop movie scenes ( does every cop/new partner movie have to start the same way ? ) 
where the sgt . 
assigns roper a partner , roper confronts the sarge , etc . , this film is still one heck of an explosive ride . 
a scene involving a cable car has to be seen to be believed , and boasts some amazing car stunts . 
eddie murphy shines in this tailor-made role , and for once , his character shows depth and concern . 
when confronting joe in prison , you can feel the anger drip from every word . 
michael rappaport is basically throwaway . 
he serves no purpose , except to be buddy to murphy and get disabled in the final reel so that eddie can save the day . 
typical action escapist fare . 
michael wincott offers the best performance as the crazed killer and jewel thief joe . 
never before have i seen such a villian written like this where i could actually believe that he was serious and take him seriously . 
maybe i just thought that this role was different due to wincott's perfectly raspy voice . 
i don't know . 
what i do know , though , is that although metro is basically a typical action retread , it manages to cover new ground and shed new light on tired old cliches' . 
the film is a triumph , and an entertaining one at that . 
it doesn't meander or trail off from its main character . 
an enjoyable two hours , metro is enjoyable , witty , action-packed , and fun , and makes for a great action movie that's perfect for all of us that need an escape from reality .
susan granger's review of " hearts in atlantis " ( castle rock/warner bros . ) 
timing is everything , and the timing just seems right for this poignant psychological drama that combines the coming-of-age nostalgia of " stand by me " with the mystical power of " the green mile . " 
based on stephen king stories adapted by screenwriter william goldman and directed by scott hicks , it's set in 1960 in harwich , connecticut , where fatherless 11 year-old bobby garfield ( anton yelchin ) lives in a boarding house with his resentful , self-centered mother ( hope davis ) . 
he's devoted to his neighborhood friends ( mika boorem , will rothhaar ) but his pivotal relationship is with a strange , new tenant , ted brautigan ( anthony hopkins ) who opens the world of literature to him after his selfish mother refuses to buy him a birthday gift and hands him , instead , a library card . 
knowing he's longing for a schwinn bike , ted offers to pay him $1 a week to read him the local newspaper and keep his eyes peeled for signs of the malevolent , ominous low men who are chasing him to exploit his special powers . 
the story structure consists of one long flashback , framed by the present , featuring the adult bobby ( david morse ) , minimizing the supernatural elements while emphasizing the human drama hopkins' mysterious character is genteel , sensitive and benignly seductive . 
the only explanation is that he's a psychic who is wanted by the fbi to aid in their hunt for communists and even that seems appropriate , given the inexplicable state of the world right now . 
the production values and performances are solid , particularly hopkins - arguably the finest , most versatile actor of our era - and the children with whom he forges a firm bond . 
on the granger movie gauge of 1 to 10 , " hearts in atlantis " is a wistful , enigmatic 8 , evolving with subtle power to an emotionally effective catharsis .
eric rohmer's " pauline at the beach , " is one of those small , deliberately paced , but charming foreign films in which not much happens plot wise , but a lot happens to the characters emotionally . 
the film takes place during a few weeks of august at the normandy coast , and centers on six different characters , primarily pauline ( amanda langlet ) , a wise beyond her years 15-year-old who has come to stay for the summer with her older cousin , marion ( arielle dombasle ) . 
on the first day at the beach , marion runs into an old high school flame ( fedoore atkine ) , and although he wants to rekindle their relationship , she is more interested in an older , more seductive womanizer ( pascal greggory ) , who is also secretly having an affair with a candy vendor ( rosette ) . 
while pauline watches as an outsider at what is happening between all of the adults , she forms a relationship of her own with a young teenage boy ( simon de la brosse ) . 
 " pauline at the beach , " is not a film in which big dramatic things occur , and there is not a clear-cut , tidy conclusion to the story . 
instead , it is a picture that simply observes its characters in every day life , and the surprises come from little character details . the film is quite talky and slow moving , and so it is pretty safe to say it isn't for those who are only a fan of action movies , but is a treat for those viewers who often like to venture outside of the big-budget genre and see a good art film . 
this is the first film by acclaimed director eric rohmer ( 1969's " my night at mauds , " and 1971's " claire's knee " ) that i have seen , but his direction is assured and intelligent , as is the screenplay , which he also wrote . 
 " pauline at the beach , " is a film worth seeing .
as fairy tales go , cinderella has to be one of the most famous . 
almost everyone knows it , well at least in north america . 
so it is natural that someone will try to make a movie out of it . 
it has been done before with varying results . 
this version of the story is both similar to the original and different at the same time . 
the basic story remains unchanged but , one thing that seems to vanish with this version , and that is all the fantastical elements of the story . 
there is no fairy god mother or anything even remotely of that nature . 
after the fantastical elements are stripped away what is left is a realistic believable rendition of the cinderella story and an interesting love story at the least . 
 . 
unlike in the fairy tale , the prince plays a much larger part than just that of the masked ball at the end . 
the ? prince' , who happens to be the crown prince to the throne of france , meets 'cinderella' , known as danielle , on a few occasions , most coincidentally and he becomes smitten with her . 
although this seems to be a far cry from the traditional story it allows for the main plot to proceed with enough room for some imaginative story telling . . 
the story takes place in a renaissance setting ; in france , with leonardo da vinci providing some comic relief on more than one occasion . 
this addition of leonardo da vinci , was quite successful in that it added some color to the movie , since some of the roles are a bit stereotypical . 
for example the role that was scripted for the prince leaves a few things to be desired . 
for instance the character seems to be a bit too unstable and fickle , a crown prince should not be anything remotely like that . 
especially since he is portrayed to be in his mid twenties at the least and almost ready to take the throne . 
the characters of danielle ( cinderella ) played by drew barrymore , and that of the evil step mother , played by anjelica huston , are well developed and well played by the two women . 
although the part of danielle is a bit stretched it is not too unlikely and not totally unbelievable . 
the nuances of the character are brought out well by drew barrymore and from watching the movie it seems like she had fun making the movie . 
as a contrast the part of the evil step mother is clearly seen from the very beginning and is almost clique . 
but , anjelica huston seems to add a certain flair to the role that makes it suit the movie nearly perfectly . 
the actual story is fairly predictable since it is after all the basic story of cinderella , but there are more than enough twists in how the story is told to make it interesting and enjoyable . 
the acting is of high caliber and seems deserved of praise . 
all in all this movie takes you back into history , into a seemingly magical fairy land . 
but , don't get me wrong there is nothing but reality , it is just refreshing to watch a movie that is not based in a familiar setting with everyday familiar things happening . 
so although the story is basically familiar the world it is set in is not , and that adds a dimension to the film which in this humble reviewers opinion makes it worth seeing
this movie was one of the first american films done by director paul verhoeven . 
he has done films since then such as basic instict and starship troopers . 
all of his movies have one main thing in common- they don't skimp on the violence . 
in a verhoeven movie a guy doesn't get shot once in the chest- he gets shot many times all over the body . 
robocop takes place in detroit in the future . 
things are pretty bleak . 
the company ocp rules the city with an iron fist and is moving in on running the police force . 
peter weller plays a cop who goes on a mission with his partner , nancy allen . 
peter weller goes in an empty room alone and gets killed . 
meanwhile ocp has a failed demonstration of a ed-209 model robot crime fighter . 
someone comes up with the idea of having a cyborg robocop so they use any parts worth scalvaging from peter weller and make him into the robocop the movie is titled after . 
the plot of this movie generally runs at a decent pace . 
it drags a bit towards the end with robocop wanting to finish everybody off , but plot twists keep it exciting . 
the acting is bad from weller when he is human , but very good when he is robocop . 
nancy allen does a decent job . 
this movie doesn't leave itself open for a sequel exactly . 
but they made one anyway . 
enter . . . 
robocop 2 starring : peter weller and nancy allen directed by : irvin kershner 
detroit is in a more bleak state than it was in the first film . 
ocp is trying to develop an improved 'robocop 2' that will be more than a match for criminals . 
most of the police force is on strike due to ocp taking it over , leaving robocop to be the police force in the city . 
this film is pretty bizaare . 
it has a 13 year-old drug-lord who curses as much as eddie murphy , even more violence than the original , and some more humor . 
the plot of this movie is pretty large , almost too much so . 
there are three or four plot lines weaving around that don't really match up . 
the effects are still decent though . 
this sequel isn't more of the same really , just a darker version robocop dealing more with drugs than with armed criminals . 
if you liked the first one , watch this . 
but be dissapointed . 
so later comes . . . 
robocop 3 starring nancy allen and robert john burke 
ocp is now owned by a large japanese company . 
robocop joins a band of rebels to counter-attack the evil empire , i mean ocp . 
the japanese send a cyborg-ninja to deal with robocop . 
among other things . . . 
this movie is easier to follow than the last one . 
which means the plot isn't quite as crowded . 
this movie isn't anything special though . 
just more of robocop blasting things up in a more kid-friendly way . 
really not reccomended .
jamaica is a hot vacation spot . 
the exchange rate encourages delusions of wealth ( approximately 30 jamaican dollars to one american ) , the sea is a brilliant blue , the air is warm but lacks humidity . 
and as tourism is unfortunately jamaica's biggest trade , foreigners enter and leave with a sense of relaxation . 
life and debt takes a brassy look at life inside this impoverished country . 
while normal documentaries take the sally struthers approach of underlying scenes of starving children with tearful music , this film guides the viewer with a sarcastic voiceover that brings the troubles home without begging tears to the surface . 
the voiceover is written by acclaimed author jamaica kincaid . 
it guides the audience along a tourist's journey and the story of the native inhabitants . 
instead of telling you what you are already seeing on screen , it quips , " you don't see what happens after you flush the toilet . " 
this engages a viewer to see and think about devastation instead of merely being told it is there . 
this strong , sparse storytelling approach runs throughout the film . 
stephanie black is also intelligent in how she chooses to disclose the problems faced by the locals . 
this isn't just another talking head show of people moaning about their horrible lot in life . 
people are interviewed from all sectors of occupation , from field to factory , as well as social theorists and the banking organizations that continue to invest in the country . 
the variety of discussion perpetuates a compelling internal dialogue with any viewer , whether they are seeing jamaica for the first time or not . 
of course , as can be expected , the united states is slammed , owing to its involvement with the international monetary fund and the world bank . 
officials look moronic as they explain why their plans for jamaica's economy will help the country back on its feet , but only if they are willing to follow the advice word for word . 
the next moment we see why and how each of these initiatives has failed , usually due to imports being cheaper than local labor or whether or not the soil is appropriate for the next agricultural trend the u . s . is forcing on the citizens . 
admittedly , some of the back and forth between the business-minded organizations and the failures they produce gets repetitive , but it also drives home the impact ignorance can have on both sides of an international argument . 
but jamaica isn't against the united states , and this documentary does not accuse the u . s . of being the sole perpetrator of its grief . 
if anything , it begs for a better understanding of the nature of jamaican society before stepping in to change it based on foreign regulations .
the happy bastard's quick movie review 
me tarzan . . . you 
happy viewer . 
for a minute there , i thought i was going to be groaning over the release of disney's latest , another adaptation of a legend from the past . 
 ( remember the pathetic pocahontas ? 
yikes ! ) 
but guess what- disney , a company that's been on a roll lately with animated films , strikes again with another wonderful tale that pleases the eyes as well as the inner kid in you . 
the story is pretty basic- tarzan is left orphaned and a female gorilla who's lost her young adopts him into her group . 
as he matures into a much older man , tarzan still wonders just why he's so much different from the clan , and then arrives a hunter , a professor , and the professor's lovely daughter , jane- who meets tarzan rather quickly after getting in trouble with a group of feisty babboons . 
from there , tarzan faces tough choices- should he stay with the ones that he grew up with or go join his own kind in england ? 
the voicework here is pretty top-level . 
tony goldwyn is very convincing as the ape man ; minnie driver adds a delectable touch to the already-beautiful jane ; nigel hawthorne makes for a pretty nasty hunter voice ; rosie o' donnell keeps the laughs rolling as tarzan's best ape friend terk ; and wayne " newman " knight has his moments as a panicky elephant . 
the movie is superb throughout , mixing a great script with incredible computer-assisted visuals . 
when tarzan tree-surfs ( a twist that was added on top of the same ol' vine swinging- and a great one , i might add ) , the camera twists and turns , allowing the trees all around to come to life vividly . 
i couldn't believe my eyes- disney has come a long way since starting in a ballroom for beauty and the beast . 
and the music's not half bad , either . 
fortunately , there's no ridiculous singing characters here , just a great set of songs by phil collins that perfectly fit the mood . 
there's some great action sequences here as well , including a wonderfully done chase between tarzan , jane , and the aforementioned babboons . 
but , of course , it's not all action- there's a message here as well that has to do with family . 
this is easily one of disney's best animated films of the decade and it's one i can't wait to put in my home library . . . that 
is , if my vcr still works in the year 2000 .
one of the funniest carry on movies and the third with a medical setting . 
the main story is about dr . james nookey ( jim dale ) who is disliked by his superiors , frederick carver , head of the hospital ( kenneth williams ) , and dr . ernest stoppidge ( charles hawtrey ) who seems to dislike everyone . 
they attempt to cause him as much trouble in the hospital as possible and all the blame is laid on nookey . 
carver learns of a possible job opportunity from wealthy ellen moore ( joan sims ) on a distant tropical island and gets nookey trannsferred there . 
when nookey arrives at this island , he meets gladstone screwer ( sid james ) who has lived on the island just about all his life . 
screwer is in possession of a wonderful slimming drug made from natural ingredients . 
dr . nookey returns with the drug to england and sets up a new slimming business with ellen moore's financial backing . 
however , nookey and moore face opposition from screwer who goes to england to cash in on the drug , and carver and stoppidge who want to know the ingredients to create a rival drug . 
the performances are all very commendable . 
sid james has a slightly ambiguous character to play this time and he excels in his role . 
kenneth williams , as usual , plays the unpopular and cunning head of the hospital . 
joan sims is entertaining as the wealthy benefactor and jim dale should really head the cast with his excellent portrayal of bumbling nookey . 
charles hawtrey plays an 'out-of-character' role as dr . stoppidge , the nasty and evil practitioner who wants to knock nookey off his perch . 
some critics have said that this combination of hawtrey and stoppidge does not work well , but i think that it at least gives hawtrey a new part to play instead of the usual dimwit characters . 
as a matter of fact , hawtrey is suitably cunning in the part . 
other regulars in the movie include hattie jacques as the matron yet again ( but this part is probably her most boring 'matron' ) and barbara windsor as nookey's love interest and unofficial 'women's lib' campaigner , goldie locks . 
both jacques and windsor play their parts well . 
patsy rowlands appears briefly as miss fosdick , and there are very small cameos from wilfrid brambell ( from 'steptoe and son' fame ) and peter butterworth . 
the jokes are mostly very funny , the story is quite appealing , and the regulars seem interested in what they're doing . 
although it is another medical carry on movie and some of the jokes are borrowed from previous movies , it still comes out on top ( it is the best medical carry on ) because of the above factors . 
a must-see carry on movie .
errol morris , critically acclaimed director of the 1997 documentary fast , cheap and out of control , vaults to new heights with mr . 
death . 
this film , an examination of the life and work of controversial execution equipment designer and revisionist historian fred a . leuchter , jr . , is sure to draw audiences out of their malaise , stunning even the more jaded minds among us . 
don't let the film's cheesy dissuade you . 
following this sideshow of horror-lab special effects we are plunged quickly into a non-stop exploration of the weirdness that is leuchter's life and mind . 
morris follows the trail of leuchter's madness with appalling lucidity , revealing in a surprising and frightening way what most of us could have guessed to begin with : this leuchter guy is seriously messed up . 
virtually raised within the american penal system by a father who worked within prison walls , leuchter seems to have come somewhat naturally into his profession ; designing and maintaining execution equipment for state penitentiaries , in spite of his lack of credentials . 
after a moderately successful career making electric chairs and designing gas chambers and gallows , leuchter came to the attention of neo-nazi and revisionist historian ernst zundel , who was facing criminal charges in germany for publishing his `theory' that the holocaust never happened . 
morris's interviews are surprisingly congenial , drawing the subjects into a carefree banter that gives them more than enough rope with which to hang themselves . 
zundel speaks to the camera as though it were his mensch . 
leuchter seems completely at ease , sometimes jovial . 
part of this effect may be due to morris's new interviewing machine , called the interrotron , which is responsible for creating eye contact between the subject and the interviewer . 
this was the first time morris had used the device , and the results are startling . 
combine the irony of these interviews with leuchter's reenactments and reels of creepy stock footage of his trip to auschwitz and birkenau , not to mention a haunting clip of thomas edison electrocuting an elephant , and you've got one compelling and disturbing documentary . 
while this film isn't for the feeble-minded or weak-hearted , it is a valuable addition to the cultural landscape . 
aside from a few dragging minutes toward the end of the piece , morris has given us a fresh look at a dismal subject and i , for one , feel bettered by the experience .
in " magic town " , jimmy stewart is in peak form playing a pollster who heads to a " perfect " town to gauge their reactions on the sorts of issues that only poll-takers care about . 
however , as time progresses , and he finds himself falling in love with the town ( and a woman ) , he begins to see that what he's doing is wrong . 
the plot is standard stuff , but that's not important . 
in a film like this , it's the calibre of the actors that make or break it . 
obviously , since stewart stars , that's practically a non-issue . 
he's great in the film , as usual . 
there's just something about him that always manages to be endearing , even when he's deceiving the town folk . 
you're always on his side , and you desperately want to see all of his goals come to fruitition . 
the film was directed by a longtime frank capra script-writer , and it shows . 
this is the type of feel-good picture that capra is famous for . 
by the time " the end " shows up on screen , everything has been wrapped up very nicely . 
there are no loose ends , and virtually every character gets a happy ending ( those that deserve one , anyway ) . 
in this age of cynicism , it's refreshing to see a movie so upbeat . 
 " magic town " is a delightfully entertaining motion picture . 
if you believe all old movies are slow-paced , you'd be well-advised to check this one out .
us critic-type people are always shaking our heads and telling everyone that movies aren't thrill rides , but i think that " back to the future ii " is one of the few exceptions . 
if the original film had the spirit of the 1950s , then this has the spirit of the 80s : full of fights ; chase scenes ; cliff hangers ; special effects ; some detective work ; and of course the vision of the high-tech future . 
the film picks up exactly where the first film left off , with doc ( lloyd ) , marty ( fox ) , and jennifer ( elizabeth shue ) travelling 30 years into the future , because something bad is going to happen to marty and jennifer's kids . 
doc tells marty he must take his son's place at an incident that will cause a chain reaction if marty mcfly jr . says yes to griff ( wilson - in one of four different roles ) . 
whoever said history tends to repeat itself wasn't joking , especially when it comes to the movies . 
essentially the same chase scene that marty endured in the 50s takes place again in the year 2015 , but it's not as authentically exciting this time because it is so obviously a parody of itself . 
at the end of the situation marty has changed the course of history for the better , and it seems like everything's copasetic right ? 
wrong . 
since when do things go according to plan in the " back to the future " movies ? 
there are so many minor conflicts and details that effect the plot and the direction of the story i won't even bother to list them all . 
basically we get to see marty as an old man , his house , his family , etc . we also go back to an alternate 1985 , and then back again to 1955 , with everything happening so fast the film never stops to catch a breath . 
the films' best aspect is the fact that it actually goes back to the first movie and shows a lot of the action that occurred from another angle . 
it's difficult to convey the sense of wild and zany fun without describing every little detail . 
the only thing sacrificed in this film is the suspense . 
instead of a grand finale , we get lots of little victories . 
by the end everything is back to normal , but something happens that leads to yet another sequel , but it doesn't seem gratuitous . 
 " back to the future part ii " is a really great adventure movie . 
it certainly has more originality than other films but it lacks a certain charm that was dominate throughout its predecessor .
one year has passed since the last time we saw them , and but wayne campbell and garth algar are back but , they've moved out of their parents homes , and now have their own pad in an abandoned warehouse . 
wayne's still hopelessly infatuated with his girlfriend , cassandra , and of course garth is still having his own , personal growing pains . 
they guys are just finishing off one of their shows , and head off to an aerosmith concert where they run across cassandra and her new manager , a stereotypical industry slime not unlike the character rob lowe portrayed in the previous film . 
again , the promoter is not only after the money that cassandra's talent can bring in . 
the storyline quickly degrades to a parallel of the original , " guy loses chick , guy realizes mistake , and guy gets chick back . " 
fortunately , there is more to this movie than this somewhat sheer plot . 
the wit and humor in this film are surprisingly intelligent and fresh with many inside jokes on the film and music industries as well as just a lot of hilarious scenes of wayne and garth showing their true color . 
highlights of the movie include a spoof of jurassic park , garth's seduction by a married woman , a surprise appearance by charleton heston , a 1960's batman setup in the guy's pad , and some pretty groovy chats with jim morrison and some " naked indian guy , " an unexpected lip-sync of ymca ( you could see that one coming a mile away ) and of course a hilarious parody of those badly-dubbed kung-fu movies we love to laugh at . 
and if you've ever wondered why there's always boxes of watermelons , chickens , and people walking plate glass in the middle of streets , you'll find out here . 
this movie also explores wayne and garth a little more . 
garth has somewhat of a " coming of age " and wayne gets to learn a little about himself ( with a little help from our old friend , jim morrison ) . 
a few old jokes from the previous movie are explored here again , but this time with a few twists to keep them fresh , and luckily , few , if any of them are overused . 
overall , the movie has plenty of continuity flaws ( especially in the fight scent between garth and cassandra's dad ) , but these are easily overlooked as this is , after wayne's world . 
the plot is flimsy but manageable . 
there are a few special effects , but they are fairly seamless , and fill nicely into the plot . 
the acting is good , for this sort of movie , but there are some very bright spots . 
in the big picture , this movie is just plain fun . 
there is lots of intelligent humor that makes this film special . 
during the whole one hour and 40 minutes , i didn't even think about looking at my watch a single time . 
silly , but riotous at times , this is an excellent movie even better than the original .
john carpenter directed this stylish and gory vampire flick to which has it's good side and it's bad . 
it's held up by some good performances and dazzling special effects leading up to an ending that's pretty satisfying . 
james woods gives an outstanding performance that almost covers up the movie . 
the good side : some neat scenes of vampires and violence . 
the bad : no scares . 
yes that's right , even though being directed by one of horror's most cherished directors , 'vampires' is the least bit scary , if not at all . 
james woods stars as jack a vampire hunter out to stop the plans of the 'master' vampire valek played by thomas ian griffith whom wants vampires to walk in the daylight . 
daniel baldwin plays his sidekick montoya , a wise-cracking guy who really isn't that funny . 
in the opening scene jack along with montoya and the team of vampire hunters , find an abandoned house to which vampire occupy . 
of course we all know sunshine kills vampires , and that is just how they kill these vampires : hooking them to ropes and dragging them outside letting them burn to death . 
after throwing a party for what happened , the vampires that did not die come back to trash it . 
they kill almost all of jack's team , leaving only a few alive . 
sheryl lee plays a prostitute katrina who was bitten by valek , but not yet turned into a vampire . 
she is rescued by jack and ? flees with them on their search for valek . 
they have to fight they're way against vampires , leading up to a finale that is well-done with great special effects . 
'vampires' definately could have been done better . 
the make-up , special effects and story are first rate , but there is no scares or terror that the film could have had . 
it to me had more humor than horror , almost being compared to 'fright night' with the mix of violence and comedy . 
john carpenter does a great job of directing this film . 
he eases through some tough times and saves the flaws , which are noticeable but forgettable . 
the script is clever and funny , with many lines that make us laugh out loud . 
i much enjoyed 'vampires' with a few exceptions . 
it's one of those films you see but don't take to heart . 
you enjoy the time you spent and go on . 
the recently released 'psycho' is the same way , it's not as good as you'd hope but it is fun and entertaining . 
'vampires' is a good horror flick with no scares but plenty of other content to please the viewer .
at first glance , three kings looks to be just another war movie , the 90s version of all those favourite war movies with names i cannot remember . 
the 90s version , it definitely is , just another war movie ? 
not in your dreams ! 
imagine pulp fiction approach to saving private ryan , thats three kings for you . 
believe it or not , it bears the cool of the former and the stark humane meaning of the latter . 
the story brings us to the twilight of the gulf war , with the allied troops victorious . 
majpr archie gates ( clooney ) leads an enterprising bunch of grunts to a rather unorthodox post-war looting spree ; the millions in gold bars secretly stowed away by saddam in a desolate village in the desert . 
as the rest of the troops are celebrating their victory and getting ready to be shipped home , this `wild bunch goes awol on an armed hum-vee ( the vehicle of choice of the us army ) . 
they soon find out that they have much resistance , as they get tangled with the local rebellion against saddams forces . 
frequently switching their modes between looters and robin hoods merry men , they become consciously attacked by their own morals . 
as the film begins to roll , it seemed to have a rather `light mood to it . 
`special effects such as when gates describes to his men how a bullet can kill simply paves the way for a light-hearted funny action movie . 
three kings is much smarter than that . 
as the conflict becomes more and more complex , the audience will be trapped in a limbo , trying to stay focussed on that light-mood/serious-mood that the film seem to portray . 
i personally found this analogous to the same feelings of the main characters involved in the film ; trapped between their initial plan paved by greed and their own sense of humanity . 
this simply made the entire experience of watching three kings truly brilliant . 
action sequences are not shot as your old-fashioned war films nor anything like steven spielbergs in-your-face war violence . 
they are carefully built to generate tension with just the right tight close-ups and pauses , right before the action starts . 
not john woo for sure but more of sergio leones spaghetti western style ( tons of them starring clint eastwood ) . 
great performances by clooney and wahlberg but the brilliance have to lie in the conception of this film ; the screenwriter and the director . 
three kings ranks among the best films of the year , well , for me at least . 
highly recommended .
a miracle of filmmaking , " some like it hot " is a brilliant film , and maybe the foremost example of slapstick comedy brought to screen with clever sight gags and plot twists . 
it is the pinnacle of writer-director billy wilder's career , a stunning feat considering the vast catalogue of films he had helped make . 
jerry ( lemmon ) and joe ( curtis ) are two stage musicians who go from gig to gig , trying to earn enough money to feed themselves . 
one night , as they're playing at a banned prohibition speakeasy , the place is raided . 
as it turns out , the owner , spats columbo ( george raft ) was ratted out by toothpick charlie ( george e . stone ) . 
several weeks later , on valentine's day , jerry and joe go to a garage to pick up a car and end up witnessing a gangland murder of charlie by columbo in a parking garage . 
eager to escape , the duo are forced to take a job in florida with all expenses paid . 
the only catch . . its a girls band . 
so josephine ( curtis ) and daphne ( lemmon ) , make their way onto the train and go to florida . 
on the way there , they meet sugar kane ( monroe ) , a bombshell singer who is looking for love . 
jerry and joe immediately fall for the singer , but there's two problems : 1 ) they're in drag , and 2 ) millionaire osgood fielding ( joe e . brown ) falls madly in love with daphne . 
what follows in pure hysteria , still complicated further by the arrival of spats columbo to florida for the " italian opera lovers festival " . 
tony curtis is hysterical as joe/josephine , especially in his preposterous attempts to woo sugar . 
marilyn monroe , in a wonderfully comic performance , is sugar , providing incredible timing and sex appeal , along with true sincerity . 
the scenes , however , are all stolen by either brown or lemmon . 
lemmon is hysterical as daphne . 
cast as the less rational one , lemmon's performance is ridiculously crazy , it is disorder in the style all billy wilder's . 
brown is particularly hilarious as osgood , as we are treated to the finest kind of comedic irony . 
he manages to use lemmon's ingenious performance as a springboard for an even loonier performance as a completely eccentric millionaire . 
every set-piece is flawless , as wilder brilliantly changes settings constantly , and uses every comic trick in the book to make his picture . 
wilder's script is stunning , as he carefully combines gangsters , cross-dressing , romance , sex , music , gender roles , and social taboos in a riotous blend of wit and oddball craziness . 
wilder manages to create scenes of utter hysteria , so pitch-perfect that the audience is dying of laughter with the last comic piece , the final line of this absolutely incredible film . 
wilder's is dead wrong when he says nobody's perfect : billy wilder is , especially when he makes something this disastrously funny . 
nobody's perfect but billy wilder .