random opening

You notice we review lots of horror movies - that is true, my brother an I tend to favor that genre. However, we have seen plenty of the classics, romantic comedies, sci-fi, action, biographies, foreign films, indie films, anime, and westerns, to boot.



Look around end enjoy. Leave comments or email us.


Monday, February 27, 2012

Bob's Quick Look: The Woman in Black (2012)


In this film, based on the novel by Susan Hill, Daniel Radcliffe stars as a young lawyer who finds himself entangled in the conflict between a small England village and a vengeful ghost.

 *Spoiler Alert* Arthur Kipps is assigned by his law firm to oversee the sale of a large manor in a small English village. Right from the start he is met with cold shoulders and recommendations that he return home and drop the sale. But being determined to accomplish his task, and keep his job, Kipps moves ahead with the paperwork. While he is there, several of the children in the village die of seemingly self-inflicted ailments (such as drinking lye) which Kipps is blamed for. In his research, Kipps finds out the lady of the house had a sister who hanged herself after her son, who was under the care of the lady of the house, drowned in the marsh while his aunt and uncle did nothing to save him. Since that time, anytime a person enters the house, one of the children in the village sees the ghost and takes their own life. Kipps’ task quickly goes from a real estate venture to personal mystery to ghost hunting. To say this is your basic ghost story is both true and missing the point. Sure, some who see the movie are going to point out that there are elements similar to “The Ring” and “The Blair Witch Project” (story wise, not style.) But focusing on this aspect of the film draws too much attention away from what makes a movie good or bad. When I saw “Titanic,” for example, I was able to point out numerous similarities to “The Posieden Adventure” and “The Towering Inferno,” but I didn’t let that get in the way of my viewing the film for story, acting, and ambiance. The first scene of the film does an excellent job of pulling the viewer in, and it never lets us go. The film has a tension all the way through that keeps us alert, yet does not fully prepare us for the frightening moments of the film. The story is well written and well executed on screen (I am looking forward now to reading the book.) The ambiance was beautifully chilling and set the mood very well for the piece. It was also nice to see Daniel Radcliffe branch away from his Harry Potter character, and he does a nice job in his role as Kipps. A nice little winter break from all the films cramming it in to try to win an Oscar, this film will satisfy fans horror fans and moviegoers who are willing to give it a fair chance.

Happy Birthday: Adam Baldwin and Liz Taylor

Adam Baldwin - no relation to the 4 Baldwin brothers, best known for his roles in Full Metal Jacket, and Serenity

Liz Taylor - celebrated beauty in her day, maybe best know for role as Cleopatra, and being married 8 times

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Oscar night, and thoughts on awards for films

With Academy Awards upon us and other awards already presented for the movies of 2012, I personally think it is time to rethink how movies, actors, directors, etc. could be awarded.  I honestly have no prediction for any of this years nominees, as there often seems to be no rhyme or reason as to why some film or some person wins the award over another.
Getting an Oscar is a very prestigious honor, and it is recognizing the supposed best of the best in the created categories.  But how many of the movies that are up for awards have you actually seen by the time the award show rolls around? I think that is why I have a little more respect for People's Choice (type) awards, as well as the Screen Actors Guild and Writers Guild awards (the latter two being peer chosen awards).

If I was running an awards show it would go something like this:
Movies should be placed into respective categories; drama (could include or be split into historical fiction, crime drama, mystery, thriller, suspense, etc..), comedy (can include romantic comedies, stand up features, etc..), horror, science fiction/fantasy, documentary and independent.  Foreign films can be placed/submitted into each of these, as well.  Nods for great cinematography, production, and soundtracks will need to acknowledged.
Starting from January of the new year, every 2 months (so the actual voting would begin at the end of Feb.) a group of submissions will be made in each category.  There will be a viewers choice nominee, and an actor/director/producer nominee.  At the end of the year there will 12 winners, 6 viewers choice, 6 industry side in each category.  Then it will be like a "best in show" vote off. Final awards will then given.
My thinking is this: all categories of movies are well represented.  Sci-fi and horror are often ignored except for special effects at major awards shows.  Movies throughout the year are well represented (think how many summer blockbusters are ever awarded?).  Are there flaws here?  Sure.  There will be tons of nominees, but they will quickly whittle down, and there are easy tweaks to this process.  Maybe change every 2 months, to Jan through June, and July through December.  But this is my awards show, so I can do what I want :)


http://oscar.go.com/

http://www.sag.org/

Happy Birthday: Bill Duke and Johnny Cash

Bill Duke - actor and director, his best roles were in Predator and Commando

Johnny Cash - singer and songwriter

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Review: Stand By Me (1986)

People in the Movie:  Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O’Connell, Keifer Sutherland
Director:  Rob Reiner
Pigeonhole:  Drama / Coming of Age

The Basics: Set in 1959 and based on the novella “The Body” by Stephen King, the movie follows 4 friends on a journey to see the dead body of local boy from their town who was accidentally struck by a train.  The mood slowly shifts through the timeline from a fun adventure to a somber reckoning while the main characters all are coming to terms with issues in their own lives, and a “final” confrontation with a gang of local hoods.  The film is highlighted by a great soundtrack, and subsequently named from Ben E King’s hit song. 

Recommendation:  I highly recommend this film.  Great acting, great direction, and great soundtrack have all come together.  I could argue this is River Phoenix’s best on screen performance.  ‘R’ rating is for language.


My Take:  I am approximately the same age as the 4 lead characters, so the mannerisms and behaviors of the characters on screen seemed very believable to me when I first saw this movie in the summer of 1986.  While I have not watched this film dozens of times as I have with many of my favorite films, this one seems imbedded in my mind, and I consider it one of the top 100 films I have ever watched.
**spoiler alert** The film opens with Gordie Lachance (Richard Dreyfuss) reading a newspaper article about a lawyer named Chris Chambers who was recently killed trying to break up a fight.  (Older) Gordie then proceeds to detail a story about him and his friends over Labor Day weekend in 1959, on a journey to see a dead body.
Young Gordie (Wheaton), Chris Chambers (Phoenix), Teddy Duchamp (Haim), and Vern Tessio (O’Connell) we learn are all “misfits”.  Gordie is a shy, bookish sort, who has a talent for writing stories.  Gordie’s older brother Denny had been recently killed in a car accident and his parents now essentially ignore him.  Chris comes from a family of criminals, and although he has done nothing criminal himself, the townsfolk look down on him.  Teddy’s dad is a World War II vet, and although it is not specifically stated, his dad is suffering from PTSD, and injured Teddy at some point in the past (he held his ear to a stove, and it is now deformed).  Vern is the picked on “fat kid” of the group.
The weekend begins with Vern telling the other 3 at their clubhouse that earlier that day he overheard his older brother Billy and Billy’s friend Charlie talking about seeing the dead body of a missing local boy named Ray Brower.  Billy and Charlie do not want to report seeing the body to the local police because they were dumping a stolen car at the time, and would therefore have had no other reason to be out that far where the body is.  Gordie, Chris, Teddy and Vern decide to go see the body, then report it to police to become “heroes”. 
The atmosphere starts off in a light, jovial manner.  In a somewhat comical scene the boys have a run in with the local junkyard owner whose dog Chopper is rumored to attack with the command “sick balls”.  The 4 soon make their way to the railroad tracks, singing along to the top songs on the local radio station played from a handheld transistor radio, telling stories, and talking about TV shows they like and girls.  The highlights of the day are a train dodge by Gordie and Vern, and finally the evening ending with the story of a pie eating contest that Gordie had written.
The film takes a darker tone the closer they get to the body.  The friends question why they are really going to see Ray Brower.  Chris tearfully questions to Gordie why he cannot seem to escape the stigma of being from a “trashy” family.  Gordie later breaks down, convinced that his father hates him and that his father wished it was Gordie who died in the accident instead of Denny.  While taking a short cut through the woods, the group falls into a swamp and end up covered in leeches.  Chris and Teddy argue about continuing down the tracks, which Gordie angrily says they “are not going back.”
In the background of the 4 main character’s story, we learn about Billy and Charlie’s friends who are part of a hoodlum gang led by “Ace” Merrill (Sutherland).  Chris’ older brother “Eyeball” Chambers seems to be the #2 guy.  The hoods learn about Ray Brower’s location from Billy and Charlie, and begin their drive towards the body so they can gain the “hero” recognition of finding it for themselves.
In the final standoff Ace pulls a switchblade out and is about to slash Chris’ throat over “possession” of the body, but Gordie fires a warning shot into the air from a gun which had been brought along, and forcing the older boys off.  The scene really came off almost scary because no one, including Ace’s friends really seemed to initially think he was being serious and would have cut Chris’ throat, but the fact is his character was truly a sociopath and at that very moment of realization he would have killed Chris over this matter, is when the shot rang out.  Gordie states to everyone that they are leaving Ray Brower there.  The audience is told that later an anonymous call is made to the police about the location of his body, so neither group got recognition.
Older Gordie ties off the story about how Chris, Vern, and Teddy had turned out, but remembering that weekend with the fondness of both an adult and adolescent, and what having friends is all about.
 
Final Thought/Extras/For Fun: The movie is a well paced 89 minutes… “Stand By Me” came back into the Billboard charts in 1986… The book of short stories by Stephen King that “The Body” came from included two other stories that would become movies: The Shawshank Redemption and Apt Pupil… This is Jerry O’Connell debut in film… 

Quick Look: Toy Soliders (1991)

This is a somewhat overlooked decent little action film from the early 90's starring Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, and Louis Gossestt, Jr.  The bulk of the movie takes place at a private boys boarding school called the Regis School, where the main characters are the students.  The boys are all from rich, influential families, and many of them have been kicked out of multiple other private schools for discipline problems.
A group of Colombian terrorists led by Andrew Divoff take over the school to kidnap a judge's son to force the judge to release Divoff's father who is currently in custody.  Explosions and gunfire pave the way for excitement as the terrorists are taken down, but not without losses for the good guys.  The FBI and the Army show up, but it is ultimately the boys defiantly rising up against their powerful captors that wins the day.
The movie is fairly predictable, and has a typical "underdogs vs. ____ " tone to it.  You will have to reach a little with the believability factor, but the action sequences and acting of the students keeps it entertaining.  Plus it is always fun to go back and see Wil Wheaton and Sean Astin in the early parts of their careers.  It's worth an afternoon viewing.  'R' rating is for violence and language.

Movie Trivia: The Goonies (1985)

One-Eyed Willie's ship, The Inferno, was entirely real, and took 2 and 1/2 months to construct.

Happy Birthday: to a Hobbit, a Beatle, a Marx, a Slayer, and twins

Oliver and James Phelps - better known as Fred and George Weasley from the Harry Potter movies

Sean Astin - best roles in The Goonies and Lord of the Rings, but also had a decent part in Toy Soldiers

Alexis Denisof - better known for TV roles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel

George Harrison - singer, songwriter of Beatles fame

Zeppo Marx - of Marx brothers fame

Friday, February 24, 2012

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Happy Birthday: Crocs, Lambs, Borg, and more

Jonathon Demme - director of Silence of Lambs, Philadelphia, and the reboot of the Manchurian Candidate

Drew Barrymore - did anyone else like the "bad girl" persona she had for awhile? Great roles in Poison Ivy, Donnie Darko, and the Wedding Singer

Steve Irwin - the Croc Hunter, animal conservationist and educator.

Kyle MacLachlan - best roles were in Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks

Jeri Ryan - mostly a TV actor, best know as 7 of 9 from Star Trek Voyager

Thomas Janes - best roles in The Sweetest Thing and The Punisher (2004 version). Also is the star of the recent HBO show Hung.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Awesome movie quotes: American Psycho (2000)

"Try getting a reservation at Dorsia now you f&%king stupid bastard!!"

Happy Birthday: to 5, young and old, good guys and bad

Alan Rickman- best roles in Die Hard, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and the Harry Potter series

Ellen Page-  best roles in Hard Candy and Inception

Billy Baldwin- best role was in Backdraft

William Petersen- great roles in Manhunter and To Live and Die in LA

Jennifer Love Hewitt- my favorite role was I Know What You Did Last Summer

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Happy Birthday: Jeff Daniels & Benicio Del Toro

Jeff - best roles in Dumb & Dumber, and Speed

Benicio - great roles in Usual Suspects and 21 Grams.  Highly underrated actor.

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Happy Birthday: disco dancing, days off, and 16 ...

John Hughes - writer director of some the best films of the 80's: Sixteen Candles, Ferris Buellers Day Off, and the Breakfast Club

Molly Ringwald - star of one of said Hughes films, Sixteen Candles

John Travolta - best roles were in Saturday Night Fever, Pulp Fiction, and Swordfish (yes, I actually liked this movie)

Friday, February 17, 2012

Happy Birthday: to 4, Git R Dunn

Denise Richards - best role was in Wild Things

Lou Diamond Phillips - best role was as Richie Valens in La Bamba

Jerry O'Connell - best know as Vern from Stand by Me, great role in Scream 2, also

Larry the Cable Guy - comedian

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Happy Birthday: LeVar Burton & Ice-T

LeVar - best know as Geordi La Forge in Star Trek: Next Generation and related movies

Ice-T - whose real is name is Tracy Marrow, had a great role in New Jack City

Fun movie trivia: True Romance (1993), answers

Brad Pitt's character name was Floyd.
He was Michael Rapaport's stoner roomate.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Awesome movie quote: The Usual Suspects (1995)

"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."

Monday, February 13, 2012

A movie for Valentines Day: Bob's picks

Valentines Day is upon us again.  It is a time for love, chocolate, jewelery, cards...

Alright, so Valentines Day isn't exactly my favorite holiday, but I am here to serve.  In selecting a movie to watch while curled up with your significant other, there are some criteria I would suggest upon as to round out your Valentines Day.  It's pretty simple really.  The obvious point is to view a love story, but I would also pay attention to the genre and/or style of the film.  Go with a genre that brings you together; he likes science fiction, she likes art house, but they both love comedy.  There you go.

My last suggestion is find a movie with a happy ending.  A downer of an ending can bring a downer of a Valentines.  On this day, I would think you would want to see the guy and gal live happily ever after.  So Romeo and Juliet, while a classic story, is a bad idea because at the end of it, they're both dead.  Downer.

Here's a few suggestions.

The Kiss - A 30 second film shot by Thomas Edison of a man and woman sharing a moment.  You should be able to find it on Youtube.

Mallrats - Of all of Kevin Smith's movies, this one fits my criteria the closest.

Dirty Dancing - Dancing and love, a great combination

Legend - For those who like a romantic fairy tale.

Desperado - For fans of action/western.

Shaun of the Dead - The perfect movie for zombie fans, of which there is many.

Sixteen Candles - The 80s, what a good time.

Robin Hood - The Errol Flynn version or Prince of Thieves works well.  The new version by Ridley Scott is awesome, but not really for Valentines Day.

Grumpy Old Men - For our more...mature movie buffs.

My Bloody Valentine - Alright, it doesn't fit the criteria, but I had to include it.  Watch the original before watching the remake.

There are millions of more out there that will do nicely.  Remember: love story, happy ending. Avoid "Titanic"

Happy Valentines Day. 

Happy Birthday: hodge podge

Mark Patton - only role of note was Jesse in Nightmare on Elm St 2

Jerry Springer - TV host and former mayor of Cincy

Mena Suvari - best roles were in American Beauty and American Pie

Henry Rollins - lead singer of Rollins band and roles in Jackass and Heat

Stockard Channing - best role as Rizzo in Grease the movie

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Quick Look: The Bodyguard (1992)

A romantic thriller starring Whitney Houston as Rachel Marron, as an award nominated music superstar who is being stalked.  She hires former Secret Service agent turned personal bodyguard, Frank Farmer, who is played by Kevin Costner.
Spoiler alert: At first Frank is the consummate professional and successfully protects Rachel from an attempt on Rachel's life.  This inevitably leads Rachel to fall in love with Frank, and later into a sexual encounter, which Frank realizes will ultimately put Rachel in danger, so he breaks off the affair.  She is upset by this, and begins breaking the "rules" set down by Frank to keep her safe, which turns out to not be a good idea.
The movie climaxes with Frank "taking a bullet" for Rachel at a prestigious awards show, which he survives.  This is after finding out the stalker, and the man trying to kill Rachel are 2 different people. Rachel's sister hired a hitman to kill Rachel.  Ahh, family dynamics... 
There are no shocking surprises, and no unexpected thrills, and it does slow down in a few parts, but the roles play out well on the big screen for an entertaining 2 hours.

Whitney Houston had a big soundtrack hit singing the Dolly Parton song "I Will Always Love You".  The movie had a very large gross - over 400 million, and the soundtrack sold over 45 million copies worldwide.

Interesting fact: The screenplay was written in the 70's as a film vehicle for Steve McQueen and Diana Ross.


Nice link on BrowBeat about Corrupt Movie Cops

Nice link on BrowBeat about Corrupt Movie Cops :


http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2012/02/10/woody_harrelson_in_rampart_is_this_really_hollywood_s_most_corrupt_cop_.html?wpisrc=twitter_socialflow

Happy Birthday: to 4

Michael Ironside - highly underrated actor who has been hundreds of roles in film and TV.  My favorites are Top Gun and Starship Troopers

Josh Brolin - great roles in The Goonies, American Gangster, and No Country for Old Men

Maud Adams - best know as Octopussy in the Bond film

Christina Ricci - great roles in Sleepy Hollow, Cursed, and Monster

(more than a) Quick Look: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2010)


I must start off by noting that as of today, I have not seen all of the prior films, so I cannot speak to this film's place in the total mythology of the Planet of the Apes.  As a standalone, this movie succeeds such much so that if you never seen any of the previous films, you can still really enjoy this.  This is great example of science fiction in which a good or noble "idea" goes horribly wrong.
Will Rodman (James Franco) plays a scientist conducting studies in biotechnology to develop a cure for Alzheimer's disease, as it is soon revealed his dad, Charles (John Lithgow) suffers from it.  Some chimps who are being used a test subjects are to responding to the drug Will is working on, appearing to even reach human levels of intelligence, until a female chimp goes on a rampage killing several people.  Will's boss orders all the chimps destroyed and for Will to "start over" with his drug and testing.  Will discovers that the female chimp was not reacting to the drug, but instead maternally protecting her newborn chimp, which was hidden away from Will and his team.  Will decides to adopt the baby chimp and names him Caesar, meanwhile Will continues his work on the drug "in secret".  Caesar quickly develops high intelligence, like his mother, as it seems it was passed to him genetically.
Charles' mental functions begin to slip, so Will makes the decision to give his father the drug, which improves him, but only temporarily.  Caesar meanwhile seems to be caught between the world of humans with his brain functions, and the world of animals with his primal instincts.  This changes for the latter as one afternoon Charles whose state has deteriorated again, gets into the neighbor's running car and wrecks it, attempting to drive away.  The neighbor, confronting a confused Charles, is then attacked by Caesar who was attempting to defend his "family".  Caesar, as punishment by the authorities, is ordered to now live at a primate shelter.  Realizing he is not part of the human world, Caesar decides to bring all the rest of the primates at the shelter under his leadership to revolt against their captivity.
The story is good, the acting is very good, and the special effects really make this an entertaining film to watch.
Interesting fact:  Caesar is "portryed" by Andy Serkis, digitally, who also brought to life the character Gollum in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

RIP Whitney Houston

Rather than passing judgments about her lifestyle, or speculating about her cause of death, I will say that The Bodyguard and The Preacher's Wife were entertaining movies, and as a huge fan of 80's music, she has a great voice and a playlist that will not be forgotten.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Happy Birthday: to 3

Leslie Nielsen - my favorites of his are Airplane and Naked Gun

Burt Reynolds - of Boogie Nights, and Smoky and the Bandit fame

Taylor Lautner - aka Jacob of the Twilight series

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Bob's Full Review: Valhalla Rising (2009)


Principal Cast:  Mads Mikkelson, Alexander Mortan, Stewart Porter
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Genre: Adventure, drama. 

The Basics
Circa 1000 A.D., a one-eyed Viking slave kills his captors and escapes with the aid of a young slave boy.  In their flight for freedom, they come across a small group “Christian Viking” knights preparing to join the crusade to retake Jerusalem.  One-eye and Are agree to travel with them and they set sail.  Once at sea, the ship enters a dense fog that leaves the travelers lost and losing their faith.  Once the fog clears, the group find themselves on the shores of a primitive and exotic land, where they are forced to face their inner demons and what is it they truly believe. 

Recommendation
Let me be clear here: This is an art house movie.  Fans of that style of cinema should appreciate this movie.  Filmgoers who are looking for something to the tune of Braveheart, Conan, Lord of the Rings, or Kingdom of Heaven are going to be disappointed.  There is some action, and it does get bloody, but there are no huge battle sequences or gratuitous displays of masculinity.

My take
*Spoiler Alert* Refn has said in interviews that he deliberately neglected historical contexts when making this film.  He also described this movie as being a “cinematic acid trip” 
I personally like these kind of movies.  They force you to open your mind and think about what you are seeing and what it could possibly mean, and what you see in the film is based as much on what you bring with you to the piece as what you are seeing on the screen. 
At the heart of it, each character suffers a crisis of faith and deal with it in different ways.  When they are lost in the fog, a few interpret it as a curse brought on by the young Viking boy and try to kill him, which leads to their death at the hands of One-eye.  When they come to shore, some believe they are in Hell while the general believes he has found an opportunity to create a new holy land.  But in their pursuit of faith, they all meet their end.  The only one who survives is Are, who is too young to understand what commitment faith can command. 
The character of One-eye is something of an enigma.  For one thing, he never speaks a word throughout the entire movie.  He is also somewhat clairvoyant as he is able to see visions of death from both the past and future.  One could say he is a Christ figure.  All the characters who abandon their faith and go against him die violently.  Of the two that follow, one finds peace in death (going to be with his sons who fell in battle) and the boy who followed him survives after One-eye drops his axe and submits himself to the primitives for execution.  Also through his visions, One-eye knows the path that will bring him death, but he follows it anyway and submits to his fate in sacrifice to those that follow his way.  I like the irony of this relationship between a Christ figure and a group of Christians, and I thought Refn did a good job separating faith from cause. 
The location of the primitive land, like the other elements of the movie, is open to interpretation.  In the context of the main story, it probably doesn’t matter.  But, I personally could not ignore the fact that the “primitives” closely resembled native Americans, implying that somehow the group had sailed from Scandinavia to North America.  As I said earlier, Refn makes no historical reference in the film, so theoretically, the mysterious land could be anywhere.  But in movies like this, a lot of what we see comes from what we bring with us to the piece.  So if this place is, in fact, America, the implication could be that this where faith in the masses dies and salvation is lost.  Whether or not this is the case, this is something I personally got out of the movie.  
I’ll be 100% in saying that this movie is not for everyone.  In my opinion, this is one of the best films I’ve seen in the last few years, but art house films the defy convention and tradition are something I am into.  It does move slowly at some points, and at times it can get a little confusing.  But it is visually stunning as well as thought provoking and deeply emotional.  

Interesting note: There are only 120 lines of dialogue spoken throughout the film. 

Statistics

Cast Performance: Excellent.  The actors in this film are somewhat know in the art house circles, but not so much in Hollywood, which is good.  Not that I have anything against Hollywood actors (well, not most of them anyway) but having a Hollywood cast would have diminished the impact of the film.

Violence: Intense.  Like I said, the violence in this movie is 100% contextual with the story.  It comes in patches here and there, mostly in the beginning, but when it does come, it is intense and gory.

Nudity: Brief.  There is one scene.  When One-eye meets the group of Christian Vikings, they are holding a group of women captive, and they are naked.  They are seated, so you’re not going to see much, but like I said, the context to the story is what in important.  Anything more would have taken away from the piece. 

Ambiance/Music: Excellent.  I wish I could have see this one in the theaters.  The Scandinavian setting was bleak and grey, the fog was completely claustrophobic, and the primitive land was beautiful and rich with color.  The music is minimalist and sparse throughout the film, which is perfect. 

Overall Rating: 4.8/5.0 

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Fun movie trivia: "killed by..." answers

Bill Paxton

Terminator
Predator
Aliens

Happy Birthday: to 5

James Spader - my favorite roles of his are in Crash, Stargate, and Less Than Zero

Pete Postlethwaithe - great parts in The Town and The Usual Suspects

Ashton Kutcher - uh, Dude,Where's my Car? Also a good role in the Butterfly Effect

Miguel Ferrer - always a supporting actor, but has been in many movies and TV shows, my favorite was on Twin Peaks

Charles Dickens - countless big screen adaptions of his writings are out there, the biggest being A Christmas Carol

Monday, February 6, 2012

Review: Romy & Michele's High School Reunion (1997)

People in the Movie:  Lisa Kudrow, Mira Sorvino, Janeane Garofalo
Director:  David Mirkin
Pigeonhole:  Comedy

The Basics: A light comedy involving 2 “airhead’ girls, best friends Romy (Sorvino) and Michele (Kudrow), currently living in Venice Beach, California, who find out it is time for their 10 year high school reunion in Tucson, Arizona.  Realizing that their current lives would not appear impressive to their former classmates, the 2 decide to fabricate appearances for themselves as successful businesswomen.  Hilarity ensues as Romy and Michele attempt interact with some girls who used to bully them, the “A-Group”, as well as various other peers.     

Recommendation:  I really enjoy this film which highlights the comedic talents of the 3 leads, above, with a fun, quick pace.   And really, what better setting for humorous exploits than a high school reunion?  It has a great soundtrack with plenty of 80’s favorites.  ‘R’ rating is for language: minus Garofalo slinging about 3 insults this is easily a PG-13 rating.


My Take:  Romy and Michele’s dialogues are classic back and forths matching any duo’s in a comedy I have watched.  Kudrow looks right at home in this movie as Michele; she very much resembles her character on Friends.  Sorvino was the real surprise playing Romy, as she really carries the movie, in my opinion, with her lovable naivety and almost goofy sounding dialect.  Garofalo rounds out the humor with her now typical cutting sarcasm as Heather Mooney, an ex-classmate of the two.  
**spoiler alert** Through a series of flashbacks the audience sees Romy and Michele in high school being the butt of jokes at the hands of the “A-Group” led by cheerleader Christy Masters (Julia Campbell).  Romy has a crush on Christy’s boyfriend Billy (Vincent Ventresca), the pretty boy quarterback, and Romy’s feelings are later used against her at the senior prom in yet another prank devised by Christy.  We also witness the crush that geek Sandy Frink (Alan Cumming) has on Michele which is otherwise ignored, all the while Heather has a noticeable crush on Sandy, which is equally unnoticed… ahh, the dynamics of high school. 
So Romy and Michele, in an effort to seem more remarkable for their reunion, concoct a story that they invented Post-it notes, dress themselves in sporty looking suits, and buy a cell phone (remember this is 1997).  The Post-it farce quickly crumbles in the middle of the reunion festivities as Heather reports that she personally knew the inventor of the Post-it, Art Fry.  Even in the throws of embarrassment, Romy and Michele rise to the occasion showing their former classmates how they “really” dress and act, as fun, hip California singles.  Lisa Luder (Elaine Hendrix) a former member of the A-Group, and now editor at Vogue magazine, reports to everyone at the reunion that Romy and Michele are, in fact, great clothing designers (Romy and Michele wore self designed clothing throughout the movie).  It is feel good Hollywood ending with the former geeks coming out on top, and with Romy and Michele now running their own clothing boutique.
 
Final Thought/Extras/For Fun:  The Romy and Michele characters originated in stage play called Ladies Room, which Kudrow played Michele… 

Fun movie trivia: "killed by..."

Name the actor killed on the big screen by a:
Terminator
Predator
(an) Alien

Bonus: name each specific movie of said series
Answer coming soon

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Awesome movie quote: Valhala Rising (2009)

"Endless warfare; it makes more tramps than heroes."

Happy Birthday: Patrick and George

Patrick Bergin - best know for his role as the abusive husband in Sleeping with the Enemy

George Romero - the godfather of zombie movies: director of Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead

RIP Ben Gazzara

Passed away at the age of 81... Greats roles in Road House and the Big Lebowski

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Awesome movie quotes: Groundhog Day (1993)

"Like the groundhog, Phil."

"He's gotta be stopped."

"Sweet vermouth, on the rocks, with a twist."