Recommended DVDs noted with *. Underline titles are links to reviews.
Kiss the Sky 01/30/04 (F)
* Big Night 01/26/04 (B)
Johnny English 01/26/04
Clockwatchers 01/23/04 (C+)
* The Moderns 01/15/04 (B)
* 13 Conversations About One Thing 01/15/04 (B)
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind 01/12/04 (C)
* Sling Blade 01/09/04 (A)
* Catch-22 01/08/04 (A)
* About Schmidt 01/06/04 (A-)
* Seabiscuit 01/02/04 (A-)
11/11/11
1/31/2004
1/15/2004
13 Conversations About One Thing (2001)
These are interwoven stories of isolated people whose lives intersect in little ways as they each search for happiness despite the complexities of life, luck, and unpredictability.
Gene (Alan Arkin) is an insurance company middle-manager who suffers in quiet desperation over his lot in life. His sadness comes from his career drive which ultimately lead to a profound breach with his troubled son and his own divorce many years before.
A hot shot young lawyer (Matthew McConaughey) makes a bad mistake one night and is deeply haunted by his sudden loss of happiness. His physical transformation and expressions powerfully and profoundly reflect his angst.
Bea (Clea DuVall) is an innocent and spiritual young woman who is seriously damaged in an accident. A physics professor (John Torturro) and his wife (Amy Irving) deal with infidelity.
Written by sisters Karen Sprecher and Jill Sprecher; directed by Karen Sprecher.
Rated R for language and brief drug use.
My personal rating: B
Gene (Alan Arkin) is an insurance company middle-manager who suffers in quiet desperation over his lot in life. His sadness comes from his career drive which ultimately lead to a profound breach with his troubled son and his own divorce many years before.
A hot shot young lawyer (Matthew McConaughey) makes a bad mistake one night and is deeply haunted by his sudden loss of happiness. His physical transformation and expressions powerfully and profoundly reflect his angst.
Bea (Clea DuVall) is an innocent and spiritual young woman who is seriously damaged in an accident. A physics professor (John Torturro) and his wife (Amy Irving) deal with infidelity.
Written by sisters Karen Sprecher and Jill Sprecher; directed by Karen Sprecher.
Rated R for language and brief drug use.
My personal rating: B
The Moderns (1988)
 | Sweet But Devious |
1920s. Paris. Cafè society. Looney cocktail parties. Sex. Corruption. Art. All this and more in a wry love triangle comedy.
Nick Hart (Keith Carradine) is an expatriate American painter with a talent for forging art by Cezanne, Modigliani, and Matisse. When he arrives in Paris, he connects with his former lover Rachel (Linda Fiorentino), who has a drinking problem mostly due to her marriage to the ruthless and wealthy art collector Bertram Stone (the exotic John Lone).
Nick spends most of his time hanging out at cafès (watch for Ernest Hemingway writing at the end of the bar) and hobnobbing with Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklais at cocktail parties with his gossipy friend Oiseu (Wallace Shawn).
But when his art dealer (Geneviève Bujold) commissions Nick to replicate coveted modern art that are purchased by Bertram Stone, the love triangle takes a new twist.
Wallace Shawn has some juicy comedic bits -- especially when he dresses in drag to observe what is supposed to be his own funeral -- and he plays them with aplomb
Directed by Alan Rudolph.
Terrific sexy soundtrack!
Geneviève Bujold won the 1988 Los Angeles Film Critic's Association Best Supporting Actress Award for this performance. Mark Isham also won for Best Music -- and I heard why!
Unrated by MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America).
1/11/2004
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind () NEEDS COMPLETION
Well, a dangerous mind? How about a severely drugged mind?
This film alternately felt like what I imagine a bad acid trip must be like
George Clooney, in his directorial debut, seemed a tad scattered at first,but in the end, much of his vision seemed to pull together to weave the tale. I enjoyed his homage to his auntie, Rosemary Clooney.
I very much enjoyed Drew Barrymore's character and thought she played it with real understanding. Apparently it's a role she aggressively campaigned for even before Clooney won the property. She was, perhaps, the only thread of sanity in the whole story.
I'd be curious if the interspersed statements by Dick Clark, Jaye P. Morgan,Gene Gene the Dancing Machine, and others were their real thoughts or were scripted. Certainly they all thought Chuck Barris odd but seemed to have some real empathy for him. But then I wouldn't expected otherwise because of how this movie was crafted with great imput from Barris himself.
Would I recommend this film? Hmmmm...very cautiously and only to certain people. Would I see it again? Probably not in the near future. Maybe in a few years.
Don't know what is is about Barris, but ever since I first saw him I alternated between a great disgust for him and a real curiosity about him. Apparently he's had that affect on a lot of people.
Run time:
Rating:
My personal rating: C+
This film alternately felt like what I imagine a bad acid trip must be like
and a poignant view at a strange man.
Bottom line, I'm not really sure if I liked it or not. It was...different.
George Clooney, in his directorial debut, seemed a tad scattered at first,but in the end, much of his vision seemed to pull together to weave the tale. I enjoyed his homage to his auntie, Rosemary Clooney.
I very much enjoyed Drew Barrymore's character and thought she played it with real understanding. Apparently it's a role she aggressively campaigned for even before Clooney won the property. She was, perhaps, the only thread of sanity in the whole story.
I'd be curious if the interspersed statements by Dick Clark, Jaye P. Morgan,Gene Gene the Dancing Machine, and others were their real thoughts or were scripted. Certainly they all thought Chuck Barris odd but seemed to have some real empathy for him. But then I wouldn't expected otherwise because of how this movie was crafted with great imput from Barris himself.
Would I recommend this film? Hmmmm...very cautiously and only to certain people. Would I see it again? Probably not in the near future. Maybe in a few years.
Don't know what is is about Barris, but ever since I first saw him I alternated between a great disgust for him and a real curiosity about him. Apparently he's had that affect on a lot of people.
Run time:
Rating:
My personal rating: C+
1/08/2004
Catch-22 (1970)
.
Paddling to Norway
A pilot is trying desperately to be certified insane during World War II, so he can stop flying missions.
There really very little I can say about this masterpiece except SEE IT! To give away too much of the story might ruin it. It's to be experienced.
The stunning acting ensemble includes: Alan Arkin, Martin Balsam, Bob Newhart, Art Garfunkel, Bob Balaban, Martin Sheen, Charles Grodin, Anthony Perkins, Richard Benjamin, Jon Voight, Orson Welles, Buck Henry, Jack Gifford, Peter Bonerz, Paula Prentiss, and Norman Fell.
Based on a novel by Joseph Heller with screenplay by Buck Henry. Directed by Mike Nichols.
My personal rating: A
1/06/2004
About Schmidt (2002)
I really don't know why I was drawn to a Jack Nicholson film again. He drives me bonkers. But he just has that magnetic pull in some films. He's such an enigma. Not that enigmas scare/anger/upset me so much, but he's just so far beyond my capacity to figure out. I don't usually get into stuff like that -- but with Nicholson, I can't seem to help it.
Is Jack Nicholson the characters he portrays or are the characters he portrays Jack Nicholson? Has he built up all this "attitude"that he displays off-screen because he's trying to live up to the caricatures of characters he plays?
I really never got the whole fascination with As Good As It Gets. I thought Nicholson was just playing himself and it irritated me that he won an AcademyAward for it. Of course, Helen Hunt was just playing herself, too, and I will never forgive the Academy for granting her an Oscar over Dame Judi's portrayal of Mrs. Brown.
But back to Schmidt.
It shocked me that I loved this move so much! I'm not really sure how and why a film like this gets called a comedy. It's just so poignant. It isn't really a drama. There's certainly humor but the term comedy just doesn't fit for me in reference to this and other films of similar ilk. Anyhow...
I felt great compassion for Nicholson's character and I felt he excelled in actually acting. After watching it once, I was compelled to replay some scenes because I just wanted to relish his performance a little longer.
Of course, I was more than a little green with envy over his RV and the opportunity he'd had to take off traveling. That is my dream --but I seriously doubt I'll ever do it.
I didn't care for some of the extra material on the DVD, but I did thoroughly enjoy the several scenes that had been edited out of the film, complete with explanations about why they weren't included. Gave lots of insight into the director's mind.
I suspect this is one of those movies that either strikes a chord with a viewer or not. For me, it struck several chords and really made me stop and think about my own situation in life.
Jack Nicholson, Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, Kathy Bates.
Directed by Alexander Payne.
My personal rating: A-
Is Jack Nicholson the characters he portrays or are the characters he portrays Jack Nicholson? Has he built up all this "attitude"that he displays off-screen because he's trying to live up to the caricatures of characters he plays?
I really never got the whole fascination with As Good As It Gets. I thought Nicholson was just playing himself and it irritated me that he won an AcademyAward for it. Of course, Helen Hunt was just playing herself, too, and I will never forgive the Academy for granting her an Oscar over Dame Judi's portrayal of Mrs. Brown.
But back to Schmidt.
It shocked me that I loved this move so much! I'm not really sure how and why a film like this gets called a comedy. It's just so poignant. It isn't really a drama. There's certainly humor but the term comedy just doesn't fit for me in reference to this and other films of similar ilk. Anyhow...
I felt great compassion for Nicholson's character and I felt he excelled in actually acting. After watching it once, I was compelled to replay some scenes because I just wanted to relish his performance a little longer.
Of course, I was more than a little green with envy over his RV and the opportunity he'd had to take off traveling. That is my dream --but I seriously doubt I'll ever do it.
I didn't care for some of the extra material on the DVD, but I did thoroughly enjoy the several scenes that had been edited out of the film, complete with explanations about why they weren't included. Gave lots of insight into the director's mind.
I suspect this is one of those movies that either strikes a chord with a viewer or not. For me, it struck several chords and really made me stop and think about my own situation in life.
Jack Nicholson, Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, Kathy Bates.
Directed by Alexander Payne.
My personal rating: A-
1/02/2004
Seabiscuit (2002)
Had I not read the book, I probably would have loved the film enormously, but as so often happens, I found the book superior. Granted, the book is huge in its scope and I can appreciate that the filmmaker couldn't possibly fit it all in, but there were certain things I was looking for specifically that weren't included so I felt a little let down about that.
For one, there was no mention of the jockey's nurse-turned-girlfriend-turned-wife which may have left viewers with the impression that he was a complete loner in life. There was also not enough coverage of the fact that the Seabiscuit/War Admiral duel had to be cancelled several times because of problems with Team Seabiscuit -- injuries to both horse and rider, and weather conditions that caused Team Seabiscuit to cancel races at the last moment. Knowing of this from the book added sigificant tension to the whole story.
But as a film, I think it was overall better than average -- especially for a horse lover like me.
Jeff Bridges did a fine job as Seabiscuit's benevolent owner, Charles Howard, who always showed respect for the trainer, jockey, and the horse. He had a few scenes that brought tears to my eyes. The only fault I find with that character in both the book and the film is that absolutely no warts were exposed. Perhaps the real Charles Howard had no warts. Certainly no one has stepped forward to reveal them -- but I just get this feelingthere were things untold.
Toby McGuire was satisfactory as the jockey Red Pollard, though I was left hankering a bit for some other actor. I don't know who exactly, but I guess that means I didn't feel McGuire was the very best choice for the role. There was just something a tad missing in his portrayal.
I think perhaps I was most impressed with Chris Cooper's portrayal of the trainer. Tom Smith. He spoke more than I expected (based on descriptions of him inthe book) but he was sort of that invisible soul who blended into the background and yet had an important impact on that incredible horse's success -- and the whole Team Seabiscuit experience.
William H. Macy's Tick-Tock McGlaughlin character, a total contrivence, was needed for transitions in the film, but somehow he annoyed the crackers out of me.
Though Randy Newman's musical score was a tad more than gushy in some places, it had an overall endearing quality. And there were a few haunting musical phrases that I could hear over and over again.
Maybe the biggest attractions for me were the lush cinematography, the panoramic racetrack views, the outstanding costuming of huge numbers of people, and the continuity. Though I know 15 different horses were used for Seabiscuit, I simply couldn't discern a difference in the beasts; their sizes, conformation, and other features were so perfectly matched.
Based on the book by Laura Hillenbrand. Directed by Gary Ross.
For one, there was no mention of the jockey's nurse-turned-girlfriend-turned-wife which may have left viewers with the impression that he was a complete loner in life. There was also not enough coverage of the fact that the Seabiscuit/War Admiral duel had to be cancelled several times because of problems with Team Seabiscuit -- injuries to both horse and rider, and weather conditions that caused Team Seabiscuit to cancel races at the last moment. Knowing of this from the book added sigificant tension to the whole story.
But as a film, I think it was overall better than average -- especially for a horse lover like me.
Jeff Bridges did a fine job as Seabiscuit's benevolent owner, Charles Howard, who always showed respect for the trainer, jockey, and the horse. He had a few scenes that brought tears to my eyes. The only fault I find with that character in both the book and the film is that absolutely no warts were exposed. Perhaps the real Charles Howard had no warts. Certainly no one has stepped forward to reveal them -- but I just get this feelingthere were things untold.
Toby McGuire was satisfactory as the jockey Red Pollard, though I was left hankering a bit for some other actor. I don't know who exactly, but I guess that means I didn't feel McGuire was the very best choice for the role. There was just something a tad missing in his portrayal.
I think perhaps I was most impressed with Chris Cooper's portrayal of the trainer. Tom Smith. He spoke more than I expected (based on descriptions of him inthe book) but he was sort of that invisible soul who blended into the background and yet had an important impact on that incredible horse's success -- and the whole Team Seabiscuit experience.
William H. Macy's Tick-Tock McGlaughlin character, a total contrivence, was needed for transitions in the film, but somehow he annoyed the crackers out of me.
Though Randy Newman's musical score was a tad more than gushy in some places, it had an overall endearing quality. And there were a few haunting musical phrases that I could hear over and over again.
Maybe the biggest attractions for me were the lush cinematography, the panoramic racetrack views, the outstanding costuming of huge numbers of people, and the continuity. Though I know 15 different horses were used for Seabiscuit, I simply couldn't discern a difference in the beasts; their sizes, conformation, and other features were so perfectly matched.
Based on the book by Laura Hillenbrand. Directed by Gary Ross.
Rated PG-13 for some sexual situations and violent sports-related images.
My personal rating: A-
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