Hitchcock - 9 stars out of 10
I have such a deep love and respect for the work of Alfred Hitchcock that this homage to his life and vision is very moving. WARNING: You must NOT see this film before you see the original “Psycho!” As this film explores the making of “Psycho,” all of the story's jaw-dropping surprises are revealed and this is essentially the ultimate spoiler for one of the most unpredictable stories in cinematic history. The script is incredibly well written, interspersing the drama of the production with the drama of Hitchcock's marriage. The famous scenes come to life in new ways by revealing the controversies and filming challenges to help "Psycho" get past the censors. Although Anthony Hopkins' make-up isn't perfect, his acting transforms him into the titular character with perfection. Dark and witty, he carries this entire film on his shoulders as his frustrations and insecurities motivate him to create a masterpiece. Scarlett Johansson was lovely as Janet Leigh and Danny Huston was perfectly cast as the sneaky Whitfield Cook. The surprise of the film (though I shouldn't have been surprised) was Helen Mirren as Hitchcock's wife, Alma. She is always a fantastic actress but her passionate monologue in the middle of the film stole the show. If anybody deserved an Oscar nomination for this film, it was her. The chemistry of this cast (Hopkins-Mirren, Hopkins-Johansson, Mirren-Huston) is top notch and the combination of storytelling technique, humor, and incredible acting make this a moment in history that has been captured so that we can watch it over and over again.
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Friday, May 31, 2013
Overboard - 7 stars out of 10
Overboard - 7 stars out of 10
What could be better than watching Kurt Russell be mean to Goldie Hawn for an extended period of time? "Overboard" may sound cheesy and stereotypical (and it is for the first hour), but it is hilarious! It starts off as a screwball comedy but ends up being an incredibly heartwarming film. Hawn's emotionless acting at the beginning of this film made me wonder if I would make it to the end, but it was the perfect compliment to her alter ego. Russell makes such a great instigator and his immaturity eventually makes way for success. The film was probably a bit too long but the script energizes the story each time that it begins to drag, particularly with some of the dialogue from the kids' mouths (particularly that line about the Brady Bunch) is hysterical. The film features an uncharacteristic score by Alan Sylvestri, transforming from playful Leave It To Beaver-esque music to stereotypical 80's montage music to a Romanticized theme that rips off the piano part from the end of "Layla" by Cream, and then back again. Despite a few odd moments (particularly the aforementioned music and all of the acting by Edward Herrmann), "Overboard" is a great family film with plenty of laughs and a predictably perfect ending.
What could be better than watching Kurt Russell be mean to Goldie Hawn for an extended period of time? "Overboard" may sound cheesy and stereotypical (and it is for the first hour), but it is hilarious! It starts off as a screwball comedy but ends up being an incredibly heartwarming film. Hawn's emotionless acting at the beginning of this film made me wonder if I would make it to the end, but it was the perfect compliment to her alter ego. Russell makes such a great instigator and his immaturity eventually makes way for success. The film was probably a bit too long but the script energizes the story each time that it begins to drag, particularly with some of the dialogue from the kids' mouths (particularly that line about the Brady Bunch) is hysterical. The film features an uncharacteristic score by Alan Sylvestri, transforming from playful Leave It To Beaver-esque music to stereotypical 80's montage music to a Romanticized theme that rips off the piano part from the end of "Layla" by Cream, and then back again. Despite a few odd moments (particularly the aforementioned music and all of the acting by Edward Herrmann), "Overboard" is a great family film with plenty of laughs and a predictably perfect ending.
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
First Knight - 4 stars out of 10
First Knight - 4 stars out of 10
"First Knight" is an interesting telling of the Lancelot legend but, in spite of good acting and an interesting story, something seems to be missing. No voice is more regal and appropriate for the character of King Arthur than that of Sean Connery. He was well cast but I did not feel that the chemistry ever developed between him and Julia Ormond. It is appropriate since Guinevere wants to be with someone else... but in the context of the movie, it just killed several of their scenes together. That being said, Ormond was lovely and a wonderful choice for Guinevere. Richard Gere surprisingly makes a very good Lancelot, particularly in his opening swordfight scene and then again in the gauntlet scene (and all of the love scenes). Maybe the film needed more action, maybe it needed better chemistry, but whatever it is, "First Knight" is an epic story that could've used some of Merlin's magic in post-production.
"First Knight" is an interesting telling of the Lancelot legend but, in spite of good acting and an interesting story, something seems to be missing. No voice is more regal and appropriate for the character of King Arthur than that of Sean Connery. He was well cast but I did not feel that the chemistry ever developed between him and Julia Ormond. It is appropriate since Guinevere wants to be with someone else... but in the context of the movie, it just killed several of their scenes together. That being said, Ormond was lovely and a wonderful choice for Guinevere. Richard Gere surprisingly makes a very good Lancelot, particularly in his opening swordfight scene and then again in the gauntlet scene (and all of the love scenes). Maybe the film needed more action, maybe it needed better chemistry, but whatever it is, "First Knight" is an epic story that could've used some of Merlin's magic in post-production.
Control (2004) - 7 stars out of 10
Control (2004) - 7 stars out of 10
"Control" was a pleasant direct-to-video surprise! With Willem Dafoe and Ray Liotta giving raw, realistic performances, it was easy for this story to develop with intensity and intrigue. The world of lab testing is unknown to the general populous and this film questions the risks that are likely taken to determine the success of a new medication. The key to this film is Liotta who is a VERY bad guy but, through his transformation, becomes and instant hero. Not only will you be pulling for him to succeed, the writers successfully create a lot of frustration when all characters assume that he is up to no good. The action is great and the story takes some interesting turns, making it hard to believe that this film went straight to video; in fact, it gives this film a pleasant surprise factor because you have to assume the worst with direct-to-video films.
"Control" was a pleasant direct-to-video surprise! With Willem Dafoe and Ray Liotta giving raw, realistic performances, it was easy for this story to develop with intensity and intrigue. The world of lab testing is unknown to the general populous and this film questions the risks that are likely taken to determine the success of a new medication. The key to this film is Liotta who is a VERY bad guy but, through his transformation, becomes and instant hero. Not only will you be pulling for him to succeed, the writers successfully create a lot of frustration when all characters assume that he is up to no good. The action is great and the story takes some interesting turns, making it hard to believe that this film went straight to video; in fact, it gives this film a pleasant surprise factor because you have to assume the worst with direct-to-video films.
Monday, May 27, 2013
Star Wars: Holiday Special - 1 star out of 10
Star Wars: Holiday Special - 1 star out of 10
“Star Wars: Holiday Special” is an infamously awful television special in which all of the Star Wars characters (played by the original actors) celebrate Life Day. Don’t get too excited: it gets much worse. This tv special can only be viewed on YouTube (thanks to a few dedicated Star Wars fans that recorded it and posted it online decades later). It was only aired once and was never released on video (for good reason). Audience’s must have realized how horrific this experience would be after it opened with 9-minute sequence of Chewbacca’s father, wife, and son all communicating with a single word of dialogue, just awkward grunting noises (and no subtitles) overtop of a cheesy flute accompaniment. Yes, this is for real. Then they talk to Luke Skywalker for 3minutes so that we get some semblance of a story, but it is still incredibly painful to watch. How can a film as amazing as “Star Wars”… spawn something like THIS!?!?!? Things get worse as the special guests begin to appear, particularly Harvey Korman as a cooking show host. My goodness, what does this have to do with Star Wars? After a trip inside of a Kaleidoscope and the equivalent of space pornography from a galaxy far, far away, there is a song by Diahann Carroll that really have NOTHING to do with the special. Just when you think that the story is beginning to have some consistency, enter Jefferson Starship!!! This is about when I wanted to give up on the film but forced myself to endure every last minute for the sake of this movie review. The most random part of this holiday special comes in the form of an animated cartoon (a la Yellow Submarine) of the Star Wars characters. This random cartoon (that has nothing to do with the Life Day story) looks nothing like the actual characters and is probably one more way of fooling the audience into thinking that they’re watching the original Star Wars actors, when in reality they are each in the special for less than 5 minutes total. The SINGLE redemptive moment of this special is when Bea Arthur appears as the bartender. Her attitude is amazing and she gets to interact with all of the aliens (including the Cantina Band), but even that drags on for too long. The film’s fate is sealed… well, it was sealed about 15 times prior to that, but it is truly sealed as the Wookiees walk through space to the Tree of Life where Princess Leia sings a song (poorly) and Chewie recounts the events of the first film. Chewie’s thought bubble is the first thing that has to do with the Star Wars story but now it has nothing to do with the Life Day story. There is nothing special about this tv special. The author of What Were They Thinking?: The 100 Dumbest Events in Television History actually calls it “the worst two hours of television ever.” In the end, I would rather suffer Darth Vadar’s death grip than sit through another minute of this.
P.S. 5 minutes of this tv special and you’ll realize that it really CAN get worse than “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”!!!! This is the true meaning of pain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCNGjKnTzaQ
“Star Wars: Holiday Special” is an infamously awful television special in which all of the Star Wars characters (played by the original actors) celebrate Life Day. Don’t get too excited: it gets much worse. This tv special can only be viewed on YouTube (thanks to a few dedicated Star Wars fans that recorded it and posted it online decades later). It was only aired once and was never released on video (for good reason). Audience’s must have realized how horrific this experience would be after it opened with 9-minute sequence of Chewbacca’s father, wife, and son all communicating with a single word of dialogue, just awkward grunting noises (and no subtitles) overtop of a cheesy flute accompaniment. Yes, this is for real. Then they talk to Luke Skywalker for 3minutes so that we get some semblance of a story, but it is still incredibly painful to watch. How can a film as amazing as “Star Wars”… spawn something like THIS!?!?!? Things get worse as the special guests begin to appear, particularly Harvey Korman as a cooking show host. My goodness, what does this have to do with Star Wars? After a trip inside of a Kaleidoscope and the equivalent of space pornography from a galaxy far, far away, there is a song by Diahann Carroll that really have NOTHING to do with the special. Just when you think that the story is beginning to have some consistency, enter Jefferson Starship!!! This is about when I wanted to give up on the film but forced myself to endure every last minute for the sake of this movie review. The most random part of this holiday special comes in the form of an animated cartoon (a la Yellow Submarine) of the Star Wars characters. This random cartoon (that has nothing to do with the Life Day story) looks nothing like the actual characters and is probably one more way of fooling the audience into thinking that they’re watching the original Star Wars actors, when in reality they are each in the special for less than 5 minutes total. The SINGLE redemptive moment of this special is when Bea Arthur appears as the bartender. Her attitude is amazing and she gets to interact with all of the aliens (including the Cantina Band), but even that drags on for too long. The film’s fate is sealed… well, it was sealed about 15 times prior to that, but it is truly sealed as the Wookiees walk through space to the Tree of Life where Princess Leia sings a song (poorly) and Chewie recounts the events of the first film. Chewie’s thought bubble is the first thing that has to do with the Star Wars story but now it has nothing to do with the Life Day story. There is nothing special about this tv special. The author of What Were They Thinking?: The 100 Dumbest Events in Television History actually calls it “the worst two hours of television ever.” In the end, I would rather suffer Darth Vadar’s death grip than sit through another minute of this.
P.S. 5 minutes of this tv special and you’ll realize that it really CAN get worse than “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”!!!! This is the true meaning of pain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCNGjKnTzaQ
Sunday, May 26, 2013
The Bells of St. Mary's - 5 stars out of 10
The Bells of St. Mary's - 5 stars out of 10
"The Bells of St. Mary's" is a classic but it didn't really grab my attention. It is a good movie but by today's standards, I don't think that it was worthy of 8 Oscar nominations, especially Best Picture. Ingrid Bergman was wonderful as Sister Benedict and absolutely earned her nomination. But I didn't see much in Bing Crosby (especially since he had already won an Oscar for that role in a previous film). The characters were well-written and the story was interesting, but moments like that awkward Christmas pageant detract from the quality of the film. It was very interesting to see Henry Travers (Clarence from "It's A Wonderful Life") playing a bad guy, although I was glad that he still have a few of those lovable dimwitted moments. The fighting lesson was heartwarming and the ending is unexpected (in a great way). "The Bells of St. Mary's" isn't a bad film but it is just sort of average.
"The Bells of St. Mary's" is a classic but it didn't really grab my attention. It is a good movie but by today's standards, I don't think that it was worthy of 8 Oscar nominations, especially Best Picture. Ingrid Bergman was wonderful as Sister Benedict and absolutely earned her nomination. But I didn't see much in Bing Crosby (especially since he had already won an Oscar for that role in a previous film). The characters were well-written and the story was interesting, but moments like that awkward Christmas pageant detract from the quality of the film. It was very interesting to see Henry Travers (Clarence from "It's A Wonderful Life") playing a bad guy, although I was glad that he still have a few of those lovable dimwitted moments. The fighting lesson was heartwarming and the ending is unexpected (in a great way). "The Bells of St. Mary's" isn't a bad film but it is just sort of average.
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