polsci/sentiment-polarity-dataset-v2.0 huggingface dataset:
saving private ryan ( dreamworks ) running time : 2 hours 48 minutes . 
starring tom hanks , edward burns , tom sizemore and matt damon directed by steven spielberg already being hailed as the 'greatest war movie ever made , ' saving private ryan is an harrowing , saddening and riveting movie . 
it may not be the greatest war movie in my opinion , but it's certainly one of the best war movies made , and one of the best of 1998 . 
tom hanks stars as a captain who's troop has to find private ryan ( damon ) who has a ticket home because his three brothers have been killed in action . 
action , drama and even some humour occur as the troop journeys through wartime france to find him . 
after the disappointing amistad ( 1997 ) spielberg has returned to form with this excellent movie . 
i'm not the war movie genre biggest fan , but i found this film to be gripping , and very scary , thanks to the excellent cast , direction and terrifying battle scenes . 
tom hanks is superb , straying away from his usually soppy dramatic roles , such as in forrest gump ( 1994 ) . 
this time , he plays the role with gritty realism , and is much better for it . 
occasionally he overacts the sentimentally , but he generally delivers a fine performance . 
edward burns , looking a lot like armageddon's ben affleck , also delivers a top notch performance , moving away from his roles in films such as she's the one ( 1996 ) tom sizemore makes less of an impact , but is still watchable , and matt damon reinforcing his position as one of the finest young actors working today . 
spielberg directs very well , putting the audience right in the heart of the action of the battle scenes . 
and what battle scenes they are ! 
they're truly terrifying , yet the audience cannot drag their eyes away from the screen . 
the battle scenes are filmed with a jerky hand-held camera , and the panic and confusion felt by the soldiers is emphasized by this technique . 
the gore and violence isn't spared either , which body parts flying , and blood spurting . 
this film is certainly not for kids and sensitive adults . 
other factors help saving private ryan be a masterpiece of 90's film making . 
the cinematography is excellent , and the music score by john william's is also superb . 
it is never intrusive , and adds to the drama on-screen . 
but while they are thousands of good things great about private ryan , there's one major flaw that detracts the genius of the film : the writing . 
it is unusually flat , with many of the speeches strangely weak . 
the film never really makes any profound statements . 
this is not a major gripe , as private ryan is a film of action , not words . 
still , the script could of been a lot better . 
thankfully , the actors help partly to rectify the situation with their great delivery of their lines . 
saving private ryan , in the end , is an excellent film , but not the 'greatest war movie' due to it's weak acting . 
this film should be viewed by everyone who has the stomach for it , as it's rewarding and extremely worthwhile . 
it really shouldn't be missed , and dreamworks skg has finally found it's first hit movie .
the trailers and the beginning of the move sum up this plot very easily . 
three filmmakers venture into the woods of maryland to track down the legend of the blair witch for a documentary they are making . 
they disappear and their footage is discovered a year later buried underneath the foundation of a one hundred year old house . 
from there , things become a little more complicated . 
i can say , with absolute assurance , that no film has ever had quite the impact that this little movie has had on me . 
although i know it was all a staged " mockumentary " , there's no denying the psychological impact this film will leave on you . 
i didn't feel much upon initially watching it . 
i just thought it was an interesting film with some pretty creepy parts . 
i never even dreamed that thirty minutes after the film had ended i would be frightened out of my mind just discussing it with a friend . 
i've gotten chills every time i've brought it up since then . 
this is not a movie that hits you right away . 
instead this is a movie that sits at the base of your spine , waits until you think everything is okay , then it slowly starts to creep it's way up into your mind . 
this is truly the most frightening movie i have ever had the pleasure to watch . 
the film is comprised of home video and 16mm camera footage that the documentarians supposedly shot for their blair witch film , so don't expect any steadi-cam shots or fancy camera work . 
this is as real as it gets folks . 
i don't recommend sitting too close to the theater screen though , because i guarantee you will get motion sickness from the constant movement of the camera . 
the performances of the three lead actors in the film are so real , you may find yourself questioning whether all of this has really happened or not . 
this is definitely a movie that warrants home video viewing , especially due to the fact that the bulk of the movie was shot with a standard home video camera . 
the reality of the images will strike frighteningly close to home when viewed as actual video instead of the tape-to-film transfer done for the big screen . 
word has it that a special edition dvd with boatloads of extras ( hours of deleted scenes , alternate endings , commentary , the sci-fi channel special , and others ) is being planned for release . 
i urge artisan entertainment to forge ahead with this plan and give us what could be the dvd to rival all dvd's . 
i know i'll be first in line to buy one . 
[r]
apocalypse now , based on the novel " hearts of darkness " , is an extremely striking , gripping , and horrifying depiction of the vietnam war from another angle . 
a long debate has surrounded this movie as if it is actually an anti-war film . 
in many ways , this debate could go either way . 
apocalypse now is probably one of the most memorable vietnam war films ever made . 
in addition , now film has gone to the extremes that this film does - a disturbing look at the corruption and terrifying effects of the most devastating war of recent years . 
apocalypse now follows the mission captain benjamin l . willard , played by martin sheen , to seek out and eliminate colonel walter e . kurtz , a green beret who is thought to have gone insane and set up his own militant base in cambodia . 
captain willard is ordered to assassinate kurtz with " extreme prejudice " because he has been deemed a murderer . 
willard accepts his mission , but not while pondering the accusation . 
accusing someone of murder in this situation is like " handing out speeding tickets at the indy 500 " , as he puts it . 
it doesn't make too much sense . 
escorting him on his mission are a group of men who operate a riverboat . 
the men are chef ( frederic forrest ) , chief ( albert hall ) , lance johnson ( sam bottoms ) and mr . clean ( a fifteen year-old laurence fishburne ) . 
willard is ordered not to let them know exactly what his mission is , but they all know it is something big . 
the men encounter many exciting , dangerous and bizarre situations . 
but no situation is more bizarre than the infamous napalm scene with a very eccentric robert duvall as lieutenant colonel kilgore . 
kilgore decides to attack and overtake a certain beach area so that his men can surf . 
surf . 
this is all inspired when kilgore is able to meet the famed california surfer lance johnson . 
duvall's portrayal as lieutenant colonel kilgore is terrific , and , he provides a number of memorable quotes . 
eventually , captain willard encounters colonel kurtz's frightening community full of strange things everywhere you look , especially his followers . 
one of his main followers is a freelance photographer ( dennis hopper ) who attempts to convey the situations to willard . 
but willard cannot understand the madness that encompasses the colony . 
kurtz is actually well aware of willard's mission , and refers to him as " an errand boy sent by grocery clerks to collect a bill " . 
yet willard is intent on completing his mission , no matter what shocking things kurtz does . 
apocalypse now , possibly one of the greatest films ever made , is a stunning vision into the madness that corresponds to the vietnam war . 
a movie that will hypnotize you with it's brilliant cinematography , apocalypse now is an outstanding epic drama about the controversial and horrifying ravages of war . 
definitely on the " do not miss " list . 
be prepared for a very memorable film .
earlier this year , the movie holy man opened to a meager box office receipt and to indifference from audiences and critics . 
a real charmer of a movie , it's possible that the subject matter was too hip or trendy to attract any real audience . 
now , at the end of 1998 , comes waking ned devine , a comedy which inspires the same vein of easygoing laughter . 
there's no substantial difference between the two other than a more refined atmosphere -- they strike all the same chords -- but still , ned devine is a movie worth seeing . 
the plot is interesting and robust : the latest lottery winner is ned devine ( jimmy keogh ) , of tullymore , ireland . 
ned's prize is over six million pounds , but the shock of winning killed the poor old man , and the check remains unclaimed . 
enter jackie o'shea ( ian bannen ) and michael o'sullivan ( david kelly ) , the only two residents who are aware the winner is in their village . 
the two men eventually find the ticket , and decide that if michael can convince the lotto authorities that he's actually ned , the entire town can reap the benefits ; their only adversary is an ancient old woman ( eileen dromey ) who sees more profit in reporting the fraud . 
ian bannen and david kelly truly shine as jackie and michael . 
jackie , stocky and large , is the brains behind the operation ; michael , scrawny and short , is the method man . 
the two contrast each other delightfully , and at the same time remain sympathetic to the audience . 
every viewer is sure to like both of them . 
there are other minor subplots included as well , such as an unlikely romance between a local girl and the town pig farmer . 
this appears quite inconsequential until the end , and even with a startling revelation it's a tad bit unnecessary . 
overall , waking ned devine has a predictable outcome , and plot twists are never really taken seriously . 
the ending , a very hilarious and very ironic twist of fate , somehow fits with the twisted sense of humor the movie exhibits throughout . 
the kirk jones script is indeed off-the-cuff . 
in a way , waking ned devine is exactly like the class of people it presents : warm , friendly , outgoing , and jovial . 
it's the perfect kind of comedy , a real gem of a tale that sets up a trivial plot outline by which to introduce a sympathetic cast of characters and a string of jokes . 
there's nothing remotely serious or grounded for more than a moment or two , because the spirit of ned devine is a lighthearted one . 
indeed , it's one of the year's best feel-good movies -- 91 minutes of unrestrained joy that no one should miss .
susan granger's review of " the perfect storm " ( warner bros . ) 
 " more people die on fishing boats , per capita , than working in any other job in the u . s . . 
every journey a fishing boat makes can be an all-or-nothing risk . 
it is life at its most exhilarating and its most terrifying , " says director wolfgang petersen ( " das boot " ) . 
and that's just what he captures in this true story of struggle and humanity aboard a swordfishing boat , the andrea gail , sailing out of gloucester , massachusetts , in late october , 1991 . 
early in bill wittliff's screenplay , based on sebastian junger's best-seller , we meet the crew of six . 
the veteran captain ( george clooney ) is frustrated because he can't find fish on the grand banks , yet a rival skipper ( mary elizabeth mastrantonio ) brings in huge hauls . 
his right-hand man ( mark walhberg ) needs money to build a new life with his girl-friend ( diane lane ) . 
there's a devoted dad ( john c . reilly ) with an estranged wife and son , a free-spirited jamaican ( allen payne ) , a lonely guy ( john hawkes ) , and a last-minute replacement with a bad attitude ( william fichtner ) . 
the skipper's convinced he can change his bad luck streak in remote flemish cap , and he does . 
but then trouble begins . 
there's a rogue wave , a man overboard and the ice machine breaks - with 60 , 000 lb . 
of fish that could spoil . 
but that's minor compared with a deadly monster storm approaching which a boston meteorologist describes as " a disaster of epic proportions " that also threatens the lives of a coast guard helicopter rescue team trying to save three people stranded on a sailboat on the high seas . 
it's formulaic and there are cliches , but the walls of water , created by fluid dynamics simulating real-life phenomena , are awesome . 
on the granger movie gauge of 1 to 10 , " the perfect storm " is a terrifying , suspenseful 8 . 
hang on for the white-knuckle thrill ride of the summer !
just in time for halloween and christmas , the reissue of the nightmare before christmas couldn't be more appropriate . 
with all of the attention thrown to " family films " in recent years , namely those starring pocket monsters and nickelodeon characters , it's high time we raised the intellectual level of children's fare as well as the animation achievements of the movie studios . 
with that in mind , it was refreshing to revisit an animation classic on the big screen that still retains the originality and freshness it had seven years ago . 
nightmare is the story of one man's quest to discover his true purpose in life -- to look beyond the accolades of his peers , the achievements of his years , and the praise of his ego . 
jack skellington , the pumpkin king of halloweentown , is the main dude behind the halloween holiday for kids everywhere . 
but during his reign as pumpkin king , jack has somehow lost his understanding of his place in the world and the magic he creates with his halloween holiday . 
after the completion of one particular halloween season , jack walks with a heavy heart and ends up discovering in the woods outside halloweentown a grove of trees with doors to all of the other holidays in the world . 
imagine his surprise to discover christmastown , a far more impressive and uplifting holiday than halloween , surrounded by happy elves making toys , and with good cheer all around . 
upon his return to halloweentown , jack decides to combine halloween and christmas together by kidnapping " sandy claws , " employing all the residents of halloweentown to build toys for children . 
he then aims to take over the role as primary joy-provider and gift-bearer to the children of the world , in the hopes of rediscovering the zest for life he once had . 
alas , the co-mingling of halloween and christmas creates disastrous results involving shrunken heads , psychotic wooden ducks , a sleigh pulled by a phantom dog with a lighted nose , and a large , sinister , singing bag named oogie boogie 
tim burton -- the man behind such great films as ed wood , beetlejuice , pee-wee's big adventure , and edward scissorhands -- is the creative force behind nightmare . 
originally , burton authored a poem that became the basis of the storyline , and he was jointly involved in the production design of the film ( though many mistakenly assume he directed the picture ) . 
the stamp of burton is clearly everywhere in the film -- with bold colors , imaginative character design , and it's simple yet compelling story . 
the direction of harry selick , who also directed james and the giant peach , is strong , offering intimate views of the strange collection of characters . 
also memorable are the songs in the film , written by former oingo boingo lead singer danny elfman , the next john williams of film composing . 
the nightmare before christmas is intended for both the kid and adult in everyone . 
it's not just child's play for the holidays ; it's a movie about how to be truly happy in a tough world , saying that all you need to do is just be exactly who you are , without compromise . 
what better message is there for christmas ?
in the grand scheme of mel gibson movies , payback was better than conspiracy theory , but not as good as braveheart or lethal weapon . 
in other words , it's a decent couple of hours of entertainment , but 20 years from now if a they compile a list of mel gibson's greatest hits , payback probably won't be on it . 
gibson plays a crook who gets double crossed by his partner after they heist a payroll . 
mel's partner needed the money to pay off a mob debt . 
so he puts a couple of bullets in mel , leaving him for dead , and goes on to pay off his creditors . 
but , mel isn't dead ( it would be a real short movie if he was ) and he certainly isn't happy . 
to make matters worse , he wants his money back and is willing to go to any lengths to accomplish this feat . 
his ex partner has already used it to pay off the mobsters , so mel goes after the mob to get it back . 
payback is often a very violent film . 
to its credit , there are a few scenes that could have been very graphic , but the director ( i'm not sure which one -- more about that in a second ) made the choice to let the audience use their imagination instead of subjecting us to the usual gratuitous gore found in many films . 
the film appears a bit disjointed in places , which is understandable considering producer / star gibson wasn't thrilled with how the film turned out and wanted parts of it re-shot . 
when the director refused , another one was brought in to do the re-shoot . 
so as a result while the final product is apparently better than the original ( although personally i would love to see the original version for comparisons sake ) it does get a bit of a choppy feel to it towards the end . 
it's always tough to make a film where the main character is a villain , unless that person has some redeeming qualities . 
in this case , gibson's character has few redeeming qualities . 
but hey , its mel , so even when he is killing people in cold blood we are still rooting for him . 
my guess is that if that you put some other johnny bananas actor in this role , the audience would not be quite as responsive . 
gibson is gibson , whether he is playing a suicidal cop or a stone cold killer , he does a good job . 
he almost guarantees that no matter what else happens in the rest of the movie at least the audience is going to get one good performance . 
this time out mel is surrounded by a good supporting cast , including maria bello ( as his love interest ) , william devane and kris kristofferson ( as mod bosses ) . 
the man who steals the show and unfortunately doesn't have a real big part is james coburn ( as yet another mobster ) . 
if i had one big disappointment in this film , it would be that coburn didn't have a bigger role . 
in the end , payback is a fairly solid action thriller , just not in quite the same league as some of mel gibson's other work .
barely scrapping by playing at a nyc piano bar , timothy hutton returns to his massachusetts hometown for a couple of weeks . 
on the surface , he's coming home for a high school reunion , but since this is a movie , you know that he's really looking for some major life decisions . 
a fairly " small " film , this sports an impressive ensemble cast including uma thurman , rosie o'donnell and a bunch of actors that you've seen before but can't quite place . 
commendable jobs all around ; they seem like real people . 
hutton arrives at his past and is greeted by his spirit-dead father , terminally goony brother and old high school chums . 
all of his old buddies are engaged in the snow removal business and most are in the midst of a relationship crisis . 
the perfect stuff for a comedy about people in the twenties angst . 
he meets and falls for the new next door neighbor : a beautiful intelligent lively girl who is obviously taken with him . 
the problem is that she is only 13 . 
unconsummated ( no , it's not _that_ type of movie ) , their relationship builds and neither knows what to do with it . 
star-crossed lovers with no where to go . 
so hutton is gaga over a barely-teen , one of his buddies is two-timing his girlfriend with a married old flame , another's girlfriend is sleeping with a meat cutter ( " and she's a vegetarian ! " ) . 
things are a mess . 
enter uma thurman . 
the beautiful stranger in town for a few days is both a delight in the film and one of its minor downfalls . 
her character is fun to watch . 
even more entertaining is observing the guys falling over themselves trying to impress her . 
like the lone ranger , before she leaves , she solves most of the problems and sets everyone onward with their lives . 
the ending is a bit too pat . 
everything is tied up with a neat little bow . 
rosie o'donnell is a stand-out in her limited screen time with her brash personality and " tell it like it is " pronouncements . 
structured somewhat like a " diner , a few years later " , this feel-good story is a good time , but ends a little too nice .
one of kyle mclachlan's earlier cinematic features , this movie has had an obvious influence on such films as the terminator ( 8/10 ) , species ( 7/10 ) and the more recent , fallen with denzel washington . 
plot : a science-fiction picture set in modern times , this thriller follows the exploits of an " entity " from outer space , who likes to inhabit human bodies , use them up until they are completely worn out , and then switch over to the next available receptacle . 
fbi agent ( mclachlan ) and local top cop ( nouri ) are charged with the capture of this " thing " before it's too late . 
critique : this fast-paced , urban equivalent of the thing ( 8/10 ) , checks in on all cylinders for ultra-violence ( god knows how many people died in this movie ) , action and an overall rock 'n roll attitude . 
then again , how can you go wrong with an " alien " that likes the ferraris , guns , heavy metal music and sexy girls ? ! 
granted , the plot isn't the most elaborate of tales ( alien bad , find alien , kill alien ) , but i can honestly say that i was never once bored during the viewing of this entire picture . 
i wouldn't recommend it to those who don't like car chases , murders , and bland acting , but for all the rest of you out there , those who enjoy putting away their brains every now and again , sitting back , slamming back some salsa'd nachos , and relishing in the cheeze some call film . . . 
have a blast ! ! 
two scenes to watch for are both within the first ten minutes of this gore-fest . 
the opening sequence is one of the most rockin' scenes to open any action movie , and the subsequent extra-terrestrial " transformation " is another eye-catcher . 
even the late 80's special effects were okay . 
followed by the hidden ii in 1994 . 
little known facts : this film was kyle maclachlan's first non-david lynch foray into the world of feature films . 
his first two movie appearances were in lynch's wretched dune ( 4/10 ) and the sensational blue velvet ( 8 . 5/10 )
this summer , one of the most racially charged novels in john grisham's series , a time to kill , was made into a major motion picture . 
on january 3 of this year , director rob reiner basically re-released the film under the title of ghosts of mississippi . 
based on the true story of 1963 civil rights leader medgar evars' assassination , ghosts of mississippi revolves around the 25-year legal battle faced by myrlie evars ( whoopi goldberg , sister act ) and her quest to have her husband's obvious assassin and racist byron de la beckwith ( james woods , casino ) jailed . 
so she turns to assistant district attorney and prosecutor bobby delaughter ( alec baldwin , heaven's prisoners ) to imprison the former kkk member . 
ghosts sets its tone with an opening montage of images from african-american history , from slave-ship miseries to life in the racist south of the 1960's . 
but all too soon , the white folks take over , intoning lines like " what's america got to do with anything ? 
this is mississippi ! " 
as beckwith , james woods , with his head larded with latex most of the time as an old man , teeters between portraying evil and its character . 
meanwhile , goldberg turns in a very serious and weepy performance as the wife who wouldn't let her husband's death rest until she got the conviction . 
both deserve serious oscar-consideration . 
this brings us to the dull performance of baldwin . 
let's face it , trying to match matthew mcconaughey's wonderful acting in a time to kill is basically impossible . 
and baldwin is living proof of this , as no emotions could be felt . 
it seemed as if he actually had to struggle to shed a single tear . 
either poor acting or poor directing , but something definitely went wrong . 
another strange mishap was the fact that goldberg's facial features didn't change , as she looked the same in the courtroom as she did holding her husband's dead body 25-years earlier . 
yet woods' was plastered with enough make up to make him look like goldberg's father . 
at least the make-up was realistic . 
with some emotional moments in the poorly written script , ghosts of mississippi lacked in heart , when its predecessor , a time to kill , brought tears to everyone's eyes . 
don't get me wrong , the movie wasn't all that bad , but if you've seen grisham's masterpiece , then don't expect this one to be an excellent film . 
 ,
towards the middle of " the sweet hereafter , " a crowded school bus skids on an icy road surface as it rounds a bend , careens through the steel guard rail , and disappears out of sight . 
then , in long shot , we see the vehicle slowly sliding across what looks like a snow-covered field . 
it pauses for a moment before the " field " cracks under the bus' weight and the bright yellow vehicle vanishes in an effortless moment , a single smooth second of time . 
compare that scene , if you will , to the last eighty minutes of " titanic , " when the behemoth sinks slowly and spectacularly to its watery demise , and you'll appreciate the futility of comparing greatness in films . 
the scene in " the sweet hereafter " epitomizes all that's right with independent canadian director atom egoyan's film . 
it's not sensational . 
we don't see the inside of the bus with its payload of screaming , terrified children being bloodied and battered about . 
the bus doesn't explode or break into a thousand tiny pieces . 
it simply leaves the road and silently slips beneath the surface of a frozen lake . 
it's a horrifying sequence made all the more so by calm and distance . 
using a non-linear approach to his narrative , egoyan shifts back and forward in time , connecting us with the inhabitants of the small british columbian town who have been severely affected by this tragedy . 
fourteen children died in the accident , leaving their parents and the town itself paralyzed with grief . 
the catalyst at the center of the film is ambulance chaser mitchell stephens ( a wonderfully moving performance by ian holm ) , who comes to sam dent to persuade the townsfolk to engage in a class action suit . 
stephens , who " doesn't believe in accidents , " functions as a concerned , involved observer , scribbling details in his notebook and providing the parents with an opportunity to reach some kind of closure in the harrowing aftermath . 
while stephens' initial drive may be financial ( one third of the total settlement if he wins ) , his involvement provides him more with an outlet to come to grips with his own loss . 
his self-destructive , drug-addicted daughter has been in and out of clinics , halfway houses and detox units for years . 
egoyan's attention to detail and ability to establish mood are so impeccable that even the sound of a kettle boiling resonates like a plaintive cry . 
mychael danna , who composed the shimmering music for " the ice storm , " contributes another memorable score that shivers and tingles . 
equally impressive is paul sarossy's cinematography , capturing the imposing canadian mountainsides and low-hanging fogs as splendidly as his shadowy interiors--in one scene a bright wall calendar serves to illuminate portions of a room . 
 " the sweet hereafter , " while undeniably grim , urges the viewer to grab onto life with both hands and not let go . 
it's a film of generous subtlety and emotion .
when i first heard that romeo & juliet had been " updated " i shuddered . 
i thought that yet another of shakespeare's classics had been destroyed . 
fortunately , i was wrong . 
baz luhrman has directed an " in your face " , and visually stunning piece with this film . 
it revolves around the two rival families , who in this version each run multi-million dollar enterprises . 
these rival companies/families are the capulet's and the montague's . 
the younger generation of these two families have formed gangs , who despise one another . 
as the storylines goes , romeo montague ( played by leonardo dicaprio ) and juliet capulet ( claire danes ) meet at a fancy dress party , and it is love at first site . 
i never believed love at first site was possible until i saw this film , the scene in which romeo's eyes meet juliet's through the fish tank is one of the most memorable . 
of course , they cannot publicly reveal their love , for their families are arch enemies . 
so they marry in secret , this is where things begin to go wrong . 
the story , as with all good shakespeare , ends in tragedy . 
the cinematography is spectacular to say the least , and the soundtrack provides the perfect atmosphere in which to " lay our scene " , as the film says . 
there is very little to criticise . 
the performances are convincing , and several of the film's younger stars may find that it provides a launch for their careers . 
the modernisation of the script is ingenious and clever . 
despite the well known storyline , this latest version still manages to cause tears among many members of the audience ( especially the younger generation ) , and this is certainly a great credit to the film .
krippendorf's tribe is a formula comedy . 
done poorly , formulaic comedies might seem to signify the downfall of american cinema . 
however , every now and then , one emerges , like krippendorf's tribe , that actually works . 
professor james krippendorf ( richard dreyfuss ) , the renowned anthropologist , is in trouble . 
his university gave him a hefty grant to discover a lost tribe in new guinea . 
however , he found . . . nothing . 
his wife has recently died , and he has spent the remainder of the grant money in raising his three kids : shelly ( natasha lyonne ) , mickey ( gregory smith ) and edmund ( carl michael lidner ) . 
tonight , he is expected to lecture on his newfound tribe . 
rather than break the news ( and face the consequences of misusing his funds ) , he invents a tribe : the shelmikedmu ( named after his kids ) . 
however , one lie begets another as he is not only required to deliver filmed proof of the shelmikedmu , but his research becomes a popular phenomenon . 
soon , professor krippendorf is caught up in an elaborate ruse in which he films mockumentary footage starring his children as the shelmikedmu tribal members . 
his efforts are hampered by the boasts of an over-eager colleague , veronica micelli ( jenna elfman ) , and the intense scrutiny of a rival anthropologist , ruth allen ( lily tomlin ) . 
krippendorf's tribe does seem to require a little suspension of disbelief . 
no one seems to question the way his field documentaries seem to be shot with multiple cameras , or that his newly discovered tribesmen have startlingly blue eyes . 
luckily , as the film builds momentum , that suspension of disbelief is easy to come by . 
though there's some mild humor in the krippendorf family trying to pass themselves off as a lost tribe , the real humor of the film is in how james gets trapped in his ever increasing snowball of lies . 
the double meanings to many of the shelmikedmu appearances are enjoyable , and the comic timing required for some of the film's latter scenes is superb . 
richard dreyfuss is terrific as the hapless professor who soon loses control of his own imaginary tribe . 
jenna elfman's position as a romantic lead seems a bit forced at times , but she plays the part with extreme affability . 
even the kids , who in films like this tend to be a bit on the precocious side , are endearing and humorous . 
yes , the film does veer occasionally into some rather lowbrow humor , but it has the best excuse of all : it's funny . 
it may not go down as an all-time classic , but it certainly delivers what you expect from a comedy : plenty of laughs .
not since 1996's shine , which starred geoffrey rush as pianist david helfgott , has a movie so defiantly laid bare the lives of world-class musicians . 
in fact , if one were to watch these films together , it would almost certainly stand as a convincing argument that a life of music naturally leads to all varieties of social ills . 
yet hilary and jackie , the sophomore effort from director anand tucker , has something more to say -- it softly but strongly explores the complex relationships of sibling rivalry and love in a very compelling tale . 
emily watson and rachel griffiths are the leads in this tale , playing the sisters du pr ? . 
both musicians from childhood , hilary ( griffiths ) is renowned flutist while jacqueline ( watson ) is easily as skilled on the cello . 
the two comepete for and win many honors as children and as young women , both together and seperate . 
their careers as musicians surpass and then bow to one another's , and although their lives take very different paths -- hilary settles down to marriage and a family while rachel skips across the globe on a world concert tour -- they are bound together by their deep family love . 
the performances of watson and griffiths are excellent in style and substance . 
they contrast each other wonderfully , and while watson's portrayal of jackie du pr ? is at times eccentric and perhaps unsympathetic , both characters are charged with emotion . 
the frank cottrell boyce script , which is based on the book by hilary and piers du pr ? , brings a great deal of depth to these characters as well . 
the script is also to be commended for its well-polished dual nature . 
cottrell boyce adopts a style which one might expect to see in a mystery thriller ( which was in fact the case with david koepp and robert towne's script for mission : impossible ) and skillfully molds it to the story of two rising musicians on different courses to fame . 
the latter parts of his script are controversial to say the least , and the rather depressing ending takes the wind out of an envigorating story . 
some will leave this movie feeling disenfranchised . 
nevertheless , hilary and jackie is a movie that reaches an upper echelon of contemporary cinema through solid fundamentals and is a decent watch all around .
the happy bastard's 30-second review 
notting hill 
a cute romantic comedy from the writer of the hit comedy four weddings and a funeral , notting hill stars julia roberts as anna scott , a very popular actress with a $15 million asking price for movies . 
one day she wanders into a travel book store owned by a simple london resident ( played by hugh grant ) , and sparks somehow begin to fly . 
sure , there are points of turmoil , such as putting up with grant's slightly disgusting ( but very hilarious ) roommate spike , anna's pesky ex-boyfriend ( alec baldwin in a humorous cameo ) , and , on top of all that , those damn press . 
it's a fresh sort of complexity to see in a romantic comedy , very different from , say , a stubborn father or " not the right time " like as seen in usual flicks . 
roberts is terrific as the astonishingly beautiful actress , and grant is surprisingly good as the straightforward guy still trying to get a hold of what has actually happened with this girl . 
in short , a sweet romantic comedy that has a lot of good laughs , particularly provided by spike . 
one tee-shirt really says it all about him . 
in an attempt to turn on a woman , he shows the front of the shirt , which says : " you are the most beautiful woman in the world . " 
on the back ? 
 " fancy a f * * k ? "
sick : the life and death of bob flanagan , supermasochist 
by fernando vallejo 
starring bob flanagan and sheree rose . 
interviews by kathe burkhart , kirby dick and rita valencia . 
produced and directed by kirby dick . 
running time : 90 mins . 
this film is not rated . 
the central themes of " sick : the life and death of bob flanagan , supermasochist " are pain and love , and its subsequent effect on a person's life . 
its protagonist , bob flanagan , who died at the age of 52 , suffered from cystic fibrosis , a mortal disease which debilitates the lungs by saturating them with thick coats of mucus , preventing him from normal breathing . 
the movie is about much more than recouperating ( or attempting to ) from this disease . 
an audacious , fabulously triumphant docudrama , " sick " chronicles the life of flanagan and his vicious , unthinkable acts of sadomasochism conducted with his mistress of 15 years , sheree rose , who amazingly provided much of the footage for the film . 
flanagan's idelogy crosses the realms of rebelliousness and becomes transcendental , similar to terry zwigoff's brilliant 1994 " crumb " , which also explored the dysfunction of an artist by painting not a sympathetic portrait , but a realistic one . 
both crumb and flanagan revelled in their defects . 
but flanagan was not only a man content on enduring the pain via lungs , he inflicted acts of pain on himself at a very young age , courageously defying god ( he was an irish catholic ) and turning his body into a work of art , which he unraveled in museums and lectures . 
behold these works of physical art . 
among them is a metal ball inserted inside his anus , and , --the most disturbing scene of the decade-- , nailing his penis to a board . 
flanagan was a man of great intelligence , wit and humor , as well as adopting a sense of candidness scarcely seen in modern filmmaking . 
not only did he approach his disease with humor , peforming burlesque acts in front of an audience , he was also revitalized by his approachment . 
most with cystic fibrosis do not make it past their earlier twenties ( there's also a subplot involving a female devotee who knew death was awaiting her . 
 ) 
but the most outstanding thing about " sick " is flanagan's relationship with sheree . 
brimming with honesty , sensual stimulation and unapologetically sad moments of pain , their powerful bond lifts " sick " into a rare cinematic high , where we forget we are in an auditorium and become a part of these people . 
the last scene , where we see the hero murmuring the last words to his wife in a hospital bed , as he struggles for his last moments of life , is raw , tender , hideous . 
it goes a step beyond cinematic intimacy .
james jones , one of the major novelists from the middle of the twentieth century , has written a number of fictional works about the effects of war on the individual . 
a veteran of world war ii , and a witness to the pearl harbor bombings , his novels are not only grounded in realism but poetic in nature . 
they are reminiscent of stephen crane in their blunt eloquence , a trait which lends itself to razor-sharp focus . 
but perhaps none matches the scope of his autobiographical novel , the thin red line ; now a cinematic masterpiece from director terrence malick . 
the book's principal cast , some thirty characters , has been trimmed down for this rendition , but it still retains its most endearing value . 
each of the roles has an everyman quality , emphasizing jones' examination of world war ii on the american soldier . 
there's a definitive chain of command present , and this also plays on the motivations of the cast . 
but most importantly , and perhaps intrinsic to the novel but not to the movie , a dynamic and effective voice-over is used . 
malick has several characters relating their thoughts , giving the viewer a greater perspective of the issues at stake . 
the issues at stake are many and one . 
told from a limited third-person perspective ( as opposed to a top-down , omniscient view ) , the movie entails the struggle of an american infantry company ( " c-for-charlie " ) to take a hill during the conflict at guadalcanal . 
the south pacific island is seen by the top brass as the key position for american armed forces to hold if they want to win the war . 
and want to win the war they do . 
in an excellent performance , nick nolte plays c-for-charlie's commanding officer , lt . col . gordon tall . 
he's an aging soldier who embodies the win-at-all-costs mentality , if only to impress his superior ( john travolta , in a questionable cameo ) . 
this philosophy is opposite that of captain bugger staros ( elias koteas ) , who dearly values the life of each and every one of the men under his command . 
at the front are the privates and corporals ( adrien brody , james caviezel , ben chaplin , et al ) , lead by 1st sgt . 
welsh ( sean penn ) , who must actually execute the suicide orders handed down to them . 
the thin red line is filled with intense , visual poetry , but it's nearly three hours long . 
although the interest level is high throughout the first two hours , the climax comes forty-five minutes before the end of the movie ; it goes without saying that the movie drags on the back end . 
the thin red line will doubtless be compared to 1998's other masterpiece of war , saving private ryan a countless number of times . 
but to do so is to belittle both films , for although similarities abound , so do differences . 
director malick has a story to tell , and for those interested in listening , this can be a very outstanding movie .
capsule : trippy , hyperspeed action machine from hong kong's accomplished tsui hark . 
van damme and rodman have nice chemistry , the stunts are eyepopping , and stuff gets blowed up real good ; what more do you want ? 
i admit i was all set to loathe double team ; it reeked of cheapjack timing-oriented marketing ( stick dennis rodman in a movie , quick , while he's hot , and do something about jean-claude van damme's flagging career while we're at it ! ) . 
surprise -- double team transcends its dumb roots and turns out to be a mess of fun . 
bring some friends , get some pretzels , and have a blast . 
van damme is jack quinn , an ex-agent who is brought back in for " one last mission " -- you'd think any spy worth his shoe phone would run like hell when he hears those words . 
but van damme's character has a pregnant wife who's also a sculptor , and some unpleasant pressure gets used to get him to come through on this mission . 
he's been assigned to take down an old enemy , a terrorist named stavros ( mickey rourke , looking oddly subdued ) , who may be back up to his old tricks . 
in the first showdown between quinn and stavros , the movie wears its ambitions proudly on its sleeve : nonstop action . 
an amusement park , a hospital , a private " retired spy " 's retreat , most of rome , various houses , planes , cars and other modes of transport , and the coliseum ( ! ) 
all become arenas for some of the most bone-rattling shoot-outs and punch-outs filmed . 
they are better seen than described and are reason enough to see the film : one jaw-dropping scene has van damme taking on a man who uses a switchblade with his * feet * . 
 ( van damme is a good , dextrous athlete and fighter , but he is often upstaged . ) 
there are other nice touches . 
stavros and quinn both want the same thing : to retire in peace with their families . 
that ambition ties them together in various ways , and also humanizes them a bit . 
one of the things about hk action movies is that there's always some form of human element , and that's carried over into this movie as well . 
it gives weight to scenes that would otherwise be forgettable . 
also good is dennis rodman , playing a weapons dealer named yaz -- a character who sticks out like a fistful of broken fingers and who is funny just standing there . 
rodman is natural on screen ; he's fun to watch , especially when slinging bad guys like basketballs , and deserves to get a movie of his own , based on what's seen here : a lightweight , fast-moving entertainment that showcases all of its pieces excellently .
the heartbreak kid ( reviewed on aug . 26th/1998 ) 
starring charles grodin , cybill sheppard , eddie albert 
in " the heartbreak kid " , charles grodin plays one of the most unbelievably obnoxious characters i've seen on screen in a long time . 
he's a guy who spends virtually the entire running time of the movie bullshitting his way from one situation to another . 
i doubt he ever expressed any genuine feeling at all during the film . 
as the film opens , he has just gotten married , and is on the way to miami beach for his honeymoon . 
halfway there , he begins to resent his bride . 
by the time he arrives at his hotel and has met the cybill sheppard character , he is ready to divorce his wife . 
as played by grodin , this character is the type of person that nothing will ever be good enough for him . 
the phrase " the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence " was practically written with him in mind . 
however , if he finds something he really wants , he will pursue it for as long as it takes . 
the only problem is , once he has it , he immediately loses interest . 
the end of " the heartbreak kid " is both hilarious and sad for that very reason . 
charles grodin is at his smarmy best here , and sheppard is quite appealing as the object of grodin's desire . 
however , the real scene stealer is jeannie berlin , daughter of director elaine may , as grodin's whiny bride . 
she owns every scene that she's in , and makes you almost want to root for what the grodin character is trying to do . 
 " the heartbreak kid " was written by neil simon and it shows . 
simon loves to deconstruct and analyze human relationships , and he's at the top of his game here . 
as maddeningly obnoxious as the grodin character is , he's the type of guy that everyone knows . 
the character of george costanza on " seinfeld " seems to have been modelled after him . 
the only problem with the film is that it's not that funny , and it's billed as a comedy . 
as much as i could see the realism in the characters , it would have been nice to have a chuckle here and there . 
 " the heartbreak kid " is not a date movie . 
it has an extremely negative view of relationships , so seeing it with a girlfriend/boyfriend , could be hazardus to your health .
it's a curious thing - i've found that when willis is not called on to carry the whole movie , he's much better and so is the movie . 
even though , in the sixth sense he is the " name " , he doesn't have the pivotal role . 
that honour goes to haley osment who plays cole sear ( cute pun , seer ) a 9 year old boy who can see ghosts . 
if osment was cute or precious , the director going for the maudlin , this would be nothing more than a movie-of-the-week , thankfully , osment is not only better than that , but in some instances , blows everyone else off the screen in a bravura performance . 
we get to see his fears , vulnerabilities , strengths and intelligence which makes the sixth sense one of the best movies i've seen this year . 
the whole cast matches him in quality , with willis giving a fairly low key performance that matches the subject matter . 
one thing about this movie , its target . 
this isn't a sfxfest like the haunting or a gorefest , this is more what i'd call a supernatural drama , more interested in characters than in dazzling you with makeup . 
one caveat : there's a lovely twist in the movie , something like the usual suspects , where you end up replaying the movie in your head rethinking what you have just seen . 
i was extremely lucky to see it as a sneak preview in toronto , before any hype or critical reviews were out , so i went in with no biases . 
if anyone want to talk to about the movie before you see it , don't let them . 
let the director explain on his own pace and you'll enjoy the movie vastly more .