instruction:
In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
question:
the bond series is an island in the film world ; where else would we look forward to cliches , and all of the other things that occur in most of these films ?
where else would pure escapism , a vulnerable hero , the " talking villains , " blatant product placement , predictable action sequences , and lots of promiscuity be hoped for instead of a significant change ?
i do n't understand it myself , but that 's what the bond series is based on .
for ( i think )
18 films , we 've mostly got the same thing over and over again , with some variation ( and a bit of change , most notably in the two dalton films ) .
but even i , a king of cynicism , ca n't bitch about it . and " tomorrow never dies , " the ( again , i think ) eighteenth bond film , and second brosnan bond film , is no exception .
thank god !
the plot , as in most of them , is pure balderdash , but seems to have a nice kind of edge to it .
instead of just plain billionaire psychotics , we get a rupert murdoch - esque media mogul / psychotic - elliot carver ( jonathan pryce , looking bitching with a white - haired cru cut , and always talking like he 's out of breath ) , who has the admittingly ingenius idea of getting ratings by creating a war .
no , this is not " wag the dog " - he wants a real war , between china and england , and is stupid enough to put the coverage out before anyone else discovered it . . .
in comes bond .
james is sent all around the world , trying to do research on carver , fighting with his men , and running into ( on more than one occasion ) a chinese secret agent like him : wai lin ( michelle yeoh , asian action star extraordinaire . . .
and co - star of " supercop , " nearly stealing the screen from jackie chan in that one ) .
the two eventually , and predictably of course , begin working together , and yes , there is some sexual tension between the two .
luckily , their relationship is never strained , and she never gives into his cassanova - ness until the finale .
thank god again .
in every bond film , james bags , on average , three women ( sometimes more , sometimes less - the latter being more potent towards the aids - cautionary dalton ) , and he does n't spoil this one ( though we never see them , of course - i mean , they need to stay around a pg-13 rating ) .
there 's always one at the beginning with some chick
we never see again , the big bond girl ( yeoh ) , and this time we have an almost - cameo by teri hatcher as carver 's wife , paris , who , it seems , was once one of the girls he bags at the beginning .
yes , teri 's very attractive , but she seems kind of dull .
of course , it 's not really her fault ; her part is under - written , and she 's only in a small part of it .
oh well .
and there are always the big henchmen , the guys who do the dirty work for the polished big villains .
this time we get a tall , arian - looking ( not to mention robert shaw in " from russia with love " -looking
) guy named stamper ( goetz otto ) , who is pretty awesome , although a bit stiff ( well , mostly his posture , really ) .
and for a bit of comedy , we get a cameo from vincent shiavelli as a german or austrian assassin who is ordered to do in bond at one point .
the government people have small parts , as usual , with q ( desmond llewelyn , looking near death , sadly ) getting only one scene ( in a more grouchy mood than usual ) , and m ( judi dench ) , getting more than m usually gets ( i mean , it is judi dench ) .
and for no reason whatsoever , except 'cause he was so good in " goldeneye , " joe don baker shows up again as wade , admitting he has no reason for being there , and is this time more annoying .
again , oh well .
the action sequences are not a let - down , although sometimes go on too long .
they pop up every now and then , mainly because they have to ( for the sake of the series ) , and some significant ones are the opening one , one in a garage with a bmw that runs on remote control , and a motorcylce chase ( on a bmw cycle , nonetheless ) through china streets ( or was it vietnam . . .
the plot 's not really essential ) .
they 're more high - tech , and feature much more laughs , which , yeah , i dig .
so what if they 're distracting ; they 're supposed to be !
the acting , from most around is great .
yeoh is , actually , one of the better bond girls , mainly because
she 's so unique .
the better bond girls are more independent , and have a certain wily - ness to them .
pussy galore , with her homoerotic undertones and all , is one of the best , and diana rigg , who married bond at the end of " on her majesty 's secret service " only to be killed , added some emotional depth .
yeoh is notable since she 's so active , and has great chemistry with brosnan .
pryce is an awesome villain , being slimy and lovable at the same time .
and brosnan is , once again ,
the mack daddy .
the bond series is built on cliches , mainly because they 're so fun and add to the escapism . if you can remember the dalton years , and they 're serious direction , you remember how unsuccessful they were , both financially and aesthetically .
the series would falter if bogged down with too much plot , too many themes , and too much characterization .
i do n't really understand it myself , yet i 'm one of the bigger fans of the series in the northeast united states .
having seen all of them more than once ( yes , i 've seen this twice already ) , you can tell i adore them .
while it 's not one of the best , like " goldfinger " or " from russia with love , " " tomorrow never dies " is nonetheless a truly awesome installment , even if not being as fully amazing as some of the better ones .
answer:
P

question:
of all the films i 've come to see this year ( 1997 ) , i think only chasing amy had as many " laugh - out - loud " moments
.
i 'm not saying that i was hysterically rolling on the floor while watching waiting for guffman , but my mouth burst open with at least a delighted guffaw at least every couple of minutes .
and i think i 'm the kind of person that laughs least at movies , even when i find them funny .
usually all you can get out of me is a warm smile , so to get me laughing out loud , and so frequently , is a really good sign .
waiting for guffman is the story of blaine , missouri , a town celebrating
it 's 150th anniversary , and the musical that is being put on for the big event .
the play is being directed by corky st .
clair ( christopher guest , who also wrote and directed this " mockumentary " as well as co - writing several original musical numbers ) , the effeminate broadway hopeful determined to make this production a smashing success .
teaming up with st .
clair are a handful of blaine residents : allan pearl ( eugene levy ) , a jewish dentist who spent his youth not as the class clown , but sitting right next to him and studying him , ron and sheila albertson ( fred willard and catherine o'hara respectively ) , a married couple setting their sights on hollywood , libby mae brown ( parker posey ) , the dense but fun queen of the dairy queen , and a few others .
everybody in this movie is brilliant , absolutely so , but levy particularly stands out .
these characters are portrayed with such saddening realism that you ca n't help but love them , as pathetic as they really are .
although levy stands out , guest , willard , o'hara , and posey are all wonderful and definitely should be commended for their performances ! if there was an oscar for an ensemble performance , this is the group that should sweep it .
some humor was a tad uneven from the rest of the film and , even after starting very humorously , they nearly lost me with the tad - too - long intros . as delightful as it was , it began to get monotonous .
thankfully , just as your about to say " ok , maybe i should run to the bathroom " , they finally get past the intros and onto the rehearsal scenes .
like a play , this film gives a very three - act feel , the intros ( funny , but almost too long ) , the rehearsals ( even funnier ) , and finally , the actual performance of the play ( excellent ! ) .
like i said , each character really shines , even when done with a subtle approach .
you ca n't really watch these people and not think they 're real people !
even they way they talk , with awkward pauses and stumbles that do n't feel staged at all , you feel like you 're watching a real , albeit funny , documentary .
and even with silly lyrics , the original songs when the play is finally put on , are absolutely wonderful !
as a word of note , despite it 's " r " rating , waiting for guffman is really quite clean .
this rating came from a brief , very brief use of the grand - daddy of all swear words .
even if that really bothers you , let me say that it 's not presented in a vulgar , cheap - laugh way .
it 's actually quite humorous and tastefully done !
it might be hard knowing what to expect with waiting for guffman .
it 's silly humor , but it 's also so dry , subtle , and intelligently done that you 're not insulted by it .
it 's always really nice to see a comedy that is n't all slapstick and vulgarity , and this film is one of the better ones of the better ones !
i 'd recommend seeing it !
answer:
P

question:
dead - bang , an action thriller starring don johnson , lives up to its dumb title , or at least to half of it .
although dead - bang is definitely dead , it is anything but a bang ; in fact , they should have called this one " dead bore .
" in the film , johnson plays .
. .
you guessed it . . .
a cop .
the role must have been really challenging for johnson since his character , jerry beck , is a gritty los angeles homicide detective , a real stretch from the slick vice detective johnson portrayed on " miami vice .
" a la mel gibson in lethal weapon , beck is an emotional wreck , complete with violent outbursts , unscrupulous police methods , and a bleak outlook on life .
beck 's wife has just divorced him , and she is cutting him off from their children .
she will not even allow him to wish them " merry christmas " by telephone .
but beck 's family and emotional problems take a back seat to the action and thrills in dead - bang .
beck is investigating the brutal murders of a shopkeeper and a cop .
his investigation starts in l . a . and finally culminates and climaxes in oklahoma , where he has a violent showdown with the killers at a white supremacist camp .
virtually every aspect of dead - bang is inept and ineffective .
the plot is incoherent and full of holes .
the movie depicts beck 's investigation so clumsily that you never see the connections between his clues and his conclusions .
the action sequences in dead - bang are strictly third - rate , and the movie has absolutely no momentum or suspense .
i certainly expected more from long - time director john frankenheimer who directed the classic political thriller , the manchurian candidate -- as well as black sunday , seven days in may , and the french connection ii .
in all fairness to frankenheimer , however , i should note that most of dead - bang 's shortcomings seem to stem from its shabby script rather than from the direction .
dead - bang tries to don a mask of social relevance by incorporating themes of racism and white supremacy , but its efforts are nothing more than token gestures and nothing less than insulting .
according to the movie 's production notes , dead - bang is based on the real - life experiences of still - active detective jerry beck .
you would never guess this from watching dead - bang , however , since the film totally lacks credibility ; it is utterly unconvincing and unbelievable .
most of the characters in dead - bang are either atrociously acted , underdeveloped , superfluous , or all of the above .
william forsythe , for example , is painfully bad as arthur kressler , a wholesome by - the - book fbi agent who 's offended by beck 's foul language and unorthodox methods .
forsythe 's lame performance and corny dialogue makes his character unbearable
.
dead - bang marks the motion picture debut of tim reid ( " wkrp in cincinnati " and " frank 's place " ) , but his talents are completely wasted in a cliched and contrived role ; he plays the chief officer of a squadron of black cops who help beck to nail the villains .
the sole function of penelope ann miller 's character is to give dead - bang an excuse to include a gratuitous love scene between characters about whom you could not care less .
i guess the film 's title refers to this love scene since
it 's definitely a dead bang .
the only real virtue of dead - bang , believe it or not , is don johnson , who tries to overcome the limitations of the movie 's pitiful script .
johnson succeeds in giving his character a sarcastic sense of humor and a hint of depth , and his pessimistic wisecracks occasionally bring the film to life .
and i must admit that dead - bang does have one or two amusing moments .
the funniest scene has johnson throwing - up all over a criminal as he interrogates him .
but when barf is the highlight of a movie , you know the movie 's in trouble .
the other amusing scene involves a psychological examination of beck , in which he ca n't keep a straight face because the psychiatrist resembles woody allen .
but two funny scenes and a couple good wisecracks do not a movie make .
answer:
N