Movie Reviews
The Paper
I thought I had seen most of the movies Ron Howard has directed, but this one must have sneaked by me, sandwiched between Far and Away and Apollo 13. Most of it struck me as pretty routine, which is not to say un-enjoyable. Michael Keaton is the sort of work-driven man who should never marry and have a family, ... Read more »
Fury
There is little in this world that warms the cockles of my heart (whatever those are) than seeing a fucking SS Nazi pig getting disemboweled, cut in half by a machine gun, or having his head blown off. SS men were by far the most evil enemies our troops ever faced. Very few of the G.I.s struggling through the fields of France and Germany had the least interest in taking a fucking SS Nazi ... Read more »
Horns
This was made from a novel by Joe Hill, which is the name Stephen King’s oldest son writes under. Just thought I’d get that out of the way at the beginning. I respect him for not playing the “son-of” card until he had already established himself.
If the last twenty minutes or so were rewritten, this could have been a good scary movie. Daniel Radcliffe is in a living hell. His ... Read more »
Carry On Cabbie
I had heard of the “Carry On” series of British comedy films for a long time, but had never seen one until this one came on TCM. Then I looked into it and was surprised to learn that there were thirty-one of them, plus stage and television versions. I had thought no more than a dozen, sort of like the legendary Ealing comedies. It is the longest-running film franchise in British history. ... Read more »
The Perils of Pauline
Betty Hutton was sort of the female equivalent of Danny Kaye (or vice versa), both of them known for comic songs and athletic performances. Here she is playing Pearl White. Pearl began in a shirt factory, but always dreamed of being on the stage. Delivering costumes to a traveling troupe, she was given a chance to audition, and even though her acting was terrible, she got the job. She ... Read more »
Demolition Man
Every once in a great while a movie really, really surprises me. The only reason I watched this was that I was in the mood for a little brainless action. And I got it … but right in the middle of all that noise and flash something unexpected broke out: About two-thirds of a really good movie!
It’s the distant future of 1996, and Sylvester Stallone is one of those cops who goes ... Read more »
Chapter Two
Neil Simon got his start with lightweight stage plays, then gradually moved into more serious fare, though there were always those trademark Simon one-liners and other sparkling dialogue. The stories were often autobiographical to one degree or another. This one is frankly taken from his own life, and segues from his usual sharp comedy in the first act into much more emotional fare before ... Read more »
Barry Lyndon
How does one describe Barry Lyndon? How does one describe every painting in a large museum of masterworks? There is no question that this is the most beautiful movie ever made. Not only that, but I can think of no other movie where every frame is perfectly composed. There are outdoor scenes where he must have waited hours for the ... Read more »
Out Cold
John Lithgow and Bruce McGill were army buddies who opened a butcher shop in San Pedro. Now it’s ten years later. John is the worker bee nerd, Bruce is lazy, married to Terri Garr, and unfaithful (so is she, with a real estate agent hiding under the bed). They both loved her ten years ago. She chose badly. He hits her, and keeps a tight rein on the purse-strings.
She hires the ... Read more »
The Two Faces of January
Quite a strange little movie, taken from a book by Patricia Highsmith, who was known for unusual protagonists and plotting. Viggo Mortensen is a fugitive financier who bilked some of the wrong people, such as Mafia guys, but thinks he has gotten away with it and is relaxing in Athens with his wife, Kirsten Dunst. They encounter an ex-pat American tour guide/street hustler, Oscar Isaac, and ... Read more »