The Duchess

What did I tell you? Mount a period production like this, with good actors and a decent script, and you are guaranteed a nomination in one of these categories: Art Direction, or Costume Design. This one got both. Academy members have very little imagination. How hard is it to open history book and see what the useless upper class was wearing and what sort of obscene piles of rock they were ... Read more »

Drumline

I admit to a lot of prejudice in favor of this one. I was in the high school band, and it was the best part of my education. So I love marching bands. Having said that, there was a lot of difference between the white school and the black school styles of marching and playing. (I grew up in the segregated South, in Texas.) My band would not, could not, have done the sort of things they do ... Read more »

The Driver

I had been hearing about this movie for years. It was dumped by the studio, no publicity, but it has gained a cult following, like Vanishing Point, which it somewhat resembles. It is minimalist cinema, neo-noir (which, I think, means a noir sensibility but in color), and a heckuva lot of fun. What it’s about is cars going very fast through improbable Los Angeles ... Read more »

Drive

There were parts of this I liked a lot, and parts that frustrated me. On the good side, the car chases avoided the usual clichés. In the first one, we never go outside the car. It’s a cat-and-mouse game with the cops, mostly at slow speed, hiding here and there. You can see the driver thinking, planning his next move smoothly. The others chases are good, as well. Ryan Gosling plays The ... Read more »

Dreamgirls

I was trying to remember when was the last time I heard an audience applaud at the end of a movie. Lee thinks it was Do the Right Thing, which we saw with a heavily black audience, and she may be right. I might have heard some scattered applause after one of the Lord of the Rings movies, but I’m not sure. But this afternoon we ... Read more »

The Dreamers

We waited almost a year to see this DVD, for a strange reason. It was originally released with the killer NC-17 rating, because it was Bertolucci. Then the DVD came out in two versions, one 3 minutes shorter, rated R. Hollywood Video didn’t carry the NC-17! This is a reversal of the usual DVD story, where expanded, non-censored versions of theatrical releases dominate.

Read more »

Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story

During the opening credits, Lee said “Big music.” I knew exactly what she meant. It was sweeping, grand, inspirational, all played over fantastic views of the Kentucky countryside. Which meant we were about to see either a grand, inspirational story … or a cliché movie that had to fall back on the sound track to jerk your tears. I had a pretty good idea which it would ... Read more »

Dreamcatcher

A wretched movie from what is probably Stephen King’s worst book. What a stupid waste of time. It has a script by William Goldman, the best in the business, and I can only wonder why he took the job.

Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soapbox

Does anyone remember Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap? Actually, it’s still around, so it’s possible you use it. Back in my hippie days everyone bought it. Bronner claimed that you could use it for practically anything. Wash the dishes, wash your hair, wash your body in the shower, brush your teeth, wash your car, your dog … anything that needed washing. We always had ... Read more »

The Dreams of Sparrows

I have a multiple choice quiz for you:

The decision to invade Iraq was:

(A) A master stroke in the war on terrorism.
(B) The worst military decision since Hitler invaded Russia.
(C) A great boon to the Iraqi people.
(D) The Vietnam War, Part Two.
(E) What is Iraq?

In other words, no matter what you think about the war in Iraq, unless you ... Read more »