Movie Reviews
A Day at the Races
This was the second movie the Marx Brothers made at MGM. For me, it falls somewhere in the midrange of their films, though it was one of Groucho’s favorites. My own favorite is Duck Soup. I guess it’s a matter of taste. What I like most about the Marxes is what’s called “anarchic comedy.” They existed in a world of their own, and anyone and anything was a target ... Read more »
The Changeling
Aside from innovative masterpieces like The Haunting, which eschewed all the horror movie clichés, my feeling is that one haunted house story is pretty much like the next. Which is to say, ho-hum, even when you have George C. Scott starring. This was no exception.
The Day After Tomorrow
If you ignore the fact that it is relentlessly stupid, poorly written, scientifically laughable, and totally predictable … it’s actually kind of good. By that I mean that sometimes I’m in the mood for a big, mindless adventure on the big, big, big screen, and today I was in that mood. This is a throwback to the old days of the big “disaster” movie, which was begun by ... Read more »
Cellular
A good thriller is hard to find in these over-the-top days. That’s why I really treasure movies like The Bourne Identity and sequel, The Italian Job (both versions), and this little gem. I’m not saying you can believe any of these films, the real world doesn’t operate like that, but they don’t insult your ... Read more »
The Personal History, Adventures, Experience, & Observation of David Copperfield the Younger
This is a book so massive, so full of plot, that it cries out for a 4-part miniseries, like Lonesome Dove. Here we get slightly over two hours and, though everyone involved gives it his or her best, it feels severely abbreviated. There are many, many scenes that last 15 seconds or less before a rapid blackout. Much plot is eliminated. The few characters who are given enough screen time ... Read more »
The Celebration
In 1995 Danish filmmakers Lars von [sic] Trier and Thomas Vinterberg announced the formation of something called the Dogme 95 Collective. Ostensibly a rebellion against big-budget artificiality, it had (I’m not making this up) a “Vow of Chastity,” 10 rules that prospective members had to agree to abide by. These are the rules [from Wikipedia]:
1. Filming must be done on location. ... Read more »
David Copperfield
This is a book so massive, so full of plot, that it cries out for a 4-part miniseries, like Lonesome Dove. Here we get slightly over two hours and, though everyone involved gives it his or her best, it feels severely abbreviated. There are many, many scenes that last 15 seconds or less before a rapid blackout. Much plot is eliminated. The few characters who are given enough screen time ... Read more »
Darwin’s Nightmare
Oh, Africa. What in the world is to become of you? For hundreds of years the white man fought over you and plundered you for everything from slaves to ivory to diamonds. Europeans drew lines on maps with total disregard to tribal enmities, either unable to understand that Africans can be as different as Italians and Lapps, or Portuguese and Bulgarians, and can hate each other as much as ... Read more »
Brooklyn Castle
Here’s a little documentary that will probably make you as furious as it makes me … and maybe at the same time give you some hope for the Facebook, smart phone, short-attention-span generation. I.S. 318 (and I’ve never understood why New York City schools can’t be named after people or neighborhoods like they do everywhere else) is a good intermediate school (what we would have called a ... Read more »
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
I wanted to see this because a re-make just opened, with Ben Stiller in the title role. I’m a big Danny Kaye fan … but I have found that some of his movies stand up better than others. With this one, the story was good, with Danny daydreaming his various heroic fantasies (a good running gag has something going “pocketa-pocketa-pocketa” in every scenario) until getting caught up in a real ... Read more »