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From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: THE CASTLE Date: 01 May 1999 14:23:34 -0600 (MDT) THE CASTLE (Miramax) Starring: Michael Caton, Anne Tenney, Stephen Curry, Sophie Lee, Anthony Simcoe, Charles "Bud" Tingwell. Screenplay: Rob Sitch, Jane Kennedy, Tom Gleisner and Santo Cilauro. Producer: Debra Choate. Director: Rob Sitch. MPAA Rating: R (profanity) Running Time: 82 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. THE CASTLE is the kind of comedy that never could have been made in Hollywood. Scratch that -- it could have been made in Hollywood, but it would have been a disaster. The use of a voice-over narrator would have turned into a crutch instead of a source of inspired brilliance. The working class characters might have been either salt-of-the-earth or grotesque, but never the perfect blend of both. The tale of a little guy fighting the system would have been wrapped up by a wildly cheering courtroom gallery, instead of a delightfully profane two-word summation. And the neat and tidy 82-minute running time would have been bloated by another 15 or 20 minutes. Thank the gods of cinema that THE CASTLE was made in Australia, where director/co-screenwriter Rob Sitch has turned the 1997 Aussie smash into the brightest, most raucous comedy to hit America in 1999. The protagonist of THE CASTLE is Darryl Kerrigan (Michael Caton), tow truck driver and proud owner of a house at 3 Highview Crescent on the outskirts of Melbourne with his wife Sal (Anne Tenney) and sons Steve (Anthony Simcoe) and Dale (Stephen Curry). It matters little to Darryl that the house is built on landfill next to the airport -- it's his home, his pride and joy, his castle. He's appalled to discover that the government plans a forced relocation of the Kerrigans and their neighbors to make way for an airport expansion. Darryl, however, isn't going to give up his castle without a fight, and launches a challenge -- legal and otherwise -- that goes all the way to the Australian Supreme Court. It's no small task to laugh _with_ a collection of characters and laugh _at_ them at the same time, but that's exactly what Sitch and his three co-writers have accomplished. In America, the Kerrigans would be referred to as "white trash" -- dog pens in the back yard, a huge aerial antenna on the roof, unsightly additions cobbled together when time permits, a son (Wayne Hope) in jail. Sitch turns the smiling bad taste of the Kerrigans into perfectly-pitched comedy. Making idal use of Stephen Curry's flat narration as Dale, the film-makers show us a family of simple people who think they're living a life of royalty where beer steins are high art and a meat loaf is a meal fit for a king. Yet it is exactly that skewed perspective that makes THE CASTLE so endearing even as it sends you rolling on the floor with laughter. Michael Caton's pitch-perfect performance as Darryl is a portrait of brighter-side-looking that re-defines the term. There's a beautiful sincerity to the way he looks with awe on the combination hose/scrub brush created by "idea man" Steve, to his love for the family's pre-fabricated vacation home at a less-than-picturesque lake, to his simple speech at his daughter's wedding. It's a performance so warm that anyone who might look condescendingly at the Kerrigans should feel ashamed. A man's love for what he has -- rather than envy of what he doesn't have -- has rarely felt this genuine. Of course THE CASTLE is also a David vs. Goliath story, pitting Darryl against the Big Corporation assisted first by a small-time attorney (Tiriel Mora), then by a veteran barrister (Charles "Bud" Tingwell) moved by Darryl's plight. Yet the film is never really about that battle in the way that you'd expect. There are some marvelous comic moments as Darryl takes on his adversaries, but the richness of THE CASTLE comes from the fact that his victory is one of perspective even before a verdict is read. Sure, in some ways it's a one-joke film, and perhaps some viewers will grow weary of that one joke. It just happens to be a joke told with the kind of skill we just don't see very often. An audience trained what to expect from comedies by Hollywood will find expectations in this Down Under comedy turned -- most appropriately -- upside-down. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 home sweet homes: 9. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: maillist@moviejuice.com Subject: [MV] MovieJuice! - ENTRAPMENT - A-Cute Connorrhea Date: 01 May 1999 16:42:50 -0400 (EDT) COMING SOONà MovieJuice! interviews Catherine Zeta-Jones in RealAudio. Who would have known she would be so attracted to me. Stay tuned! ******************** ENTRAPMENT - A-CUTE CONNORRHEA by Mark Ramsey http://www.moviejuice.com May 1, 1999 You know you're in trouble when your eyes roll the minute a movie starts and the words "New York - 16 Days to the Millennium" flash on screen. Oh jeez. I'm O.K., you're O.K., Y2K, what the hey. Forget Y2K. Personally, I'm looking forward to Y3K and the headline: "Star Wars buzz finally subsides!" Entrapment stars Sean Connery, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and - truth be told - Catherine's fine, squirmy ass. So slithery was this superior posterior, no highway cone was left un-serpentined. I'd give this ass two big thumbs up, but that just doesn't sound right. The sight of this rare derriere so impressed Simpsons creator Matt Groening, he now plans a new Fox animated series in tribute: Assarama! Special guest stars: Val Kilmer and Dustin Hoffman. As Catherine tai-chis and ballets, doing the laser beam limbo, in a tight black leather catsuit, her gourmet-quality, British-engineered butt shouts "look at me" like Sean's gun-blazing Aston-Martin DB5 or Whitney Houston at a Bobby Brown pre-trial hearing. I can't wait to test the inflection points on the action figure! My bun-tressed Princess Leia doll's been waiting for a same-sex partner for years - any way to escape the "Debbie Reynolds mother-in-law" doll who's still yearns for the "Eddie Fisher two-timer" doll and rants about the "That White Diamonds Bitch Elizabeth Taylor" doll. Why does Entrapment suck? I'm not sure, but I know somehow that Marilyn Manson, Rammstein, Doom, Howard Stern, and The Basketball Diaries are to blame, not the movie itself. As venerable Entertainment Weekly says, "The script is an unmellifluous hash of the prosaically obvious and the woodenly flip." Uh, exactly! And don't forget the ass! Cathy and Sean play "Gin and Mac," which is one happy meal you won't find at Mickey D's any time soon. Sean is king of the crooks and Cathy's the queen of the capers, the princess of purloins (with the accent on "loins"). Naturally, they fall head over heels for each other - or, in Sean's case, walker over curb. Yes, it's like Tracy and Hepburn's ass or Bogart and Bacall's ass. Just pretend that Tracy or Bogart are old enough to be ass's long dead ancestor. Cathy, you see, was born the year man first set foot on the moon, while Sean was born the year the expression "Tippicanoe and Tyler Too" was in vogue. Fortunately, Lucky Sean earned a berth on Noah's Ark thanks to his possession of a unique species: Impossibly jet-black eyebrows. Just listen to this exchange: Cathy: Sean, what's the 4-1-1 on that new Nas track? Sean: Er, you mean music? Actually, I'm partial to Cab Calloway and the DeFranco family. And those Cowsills! Damn! When they strike up the band the dames really shake their tootsies. In my day, Puff Daddy was a fine Cuban Cigar. Have you seen that new flick "Goodbye Mr. Chips"? Jolly good fun, except for the script which is an unmellifluous hash of the prosaically obvious and the woodenly flip. For the most part, this pair's all business. To prep for their crime, Sean trains Cathy like Burgess Meredith trained Rocky. "Crawl around on the floor blindfolded and undulate your ass, Rock!" Together, Sean and Cathy plan and execute a daring heist, or at least a heist with some daring modern dance movements. Their goal: Steal the ugliest priceless artifact known to the art world. Will they succeed? Will the feds catch up to them before the cellulite does? Will they rob $8 Billion from the International Blue-Screen Bank before the first tick of Y2K? Will they live happily ever after or will Cathy live forever after Sean? I don't know about you, but my 20:20 hindsight is all derriere. Copyright 1999 Mark Ramsey. All rights reserved. NO PORTION MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR. ******************** DONÆT FORGET TO VISIT MOVIEJUICE.COM! Hey, kids, don't forget to visit the MovieJuice! Site at http://www.moviejuice.com. The pictures are half the fun (and sometimes more than half the laughs)! ******************** TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS LIST: DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL! Just go to http://www.moviejuice.com and follow the directions at the top of the left frame. It's very easy. NOTE: YOUR NAME CANNOT BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST UNLESS YOU UNSUBSCRIBE USING THE EMAIL ADDRESS YOU REGISTERED WITH). And don't write me lots of mean-spirited crap. I won't read it. ******************** IF YOUR LINES AREN'T WRAPPINGà Your browser and/or email client (why DO they call it that?) has a setting called "Wrap Long Lines." Select it! [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/02/99 Date: 02 May 1999 00:46:37 -0600 "Shakespeare in Love" was named Best Film, but "Elizabeth" won the most prizes -- five -- at Sunday's 51st British Academy Film awards. "Elizabeth"'s bountiful collection included a Best Actress prize for Cate Blanchett. "Shakespeare" won four awards. "The Truman Show" was compensated for its Oscar shutout, picking up three awards, including one for Best Director Peter Weir and one for Andrew Niccol for Best Original Screenplay. Roberto Benigni, who told the crowd he was full of joy, "like a watermelon," beat hometown favorite Michael ("Little Voice") Caine as Best Actor (for "Life is Beautiful"), but Brazil's "Central Station" won over "Life is Beautiful" for Best Foreign-Language Film. "Saving Private Ryan" went home with only two technical prizes, for sound and visual effects. -=> * <=- * Elizabeth Taylor received the evening's only standing ovation when she was awarded a fellowship by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. "I don't think of myself as an actress, and I didn't think any of you did -- quite rightly too," she told the audience. "But it makes me want to act again." -=> * <=- PARIS (AP) - David Lynch, whose "Wild at Heart" won the 1990 Golden Palm, will be among the many well-known directors seeking glory at the 52nd annual Cannes Film Festival. His "The Straight Story," one of four American films in the lineup announced Thursday, faces competition from films by Atom Egoyan, Jim Jarmusch, Pedro Almodovar, Chen Kaige and Tim Robbins, among others. The festival runs from May 12-23. Egoyan, the Canadian whose mournful film "The Sweet Hereafter" won the runner-up prize in 1997, is entered with "Felicia's Journey." The celebrated Spanish director Almodovar will be showing "Todo Sobre Mi Madre," or "All About My Mother," his first time in Cannes competition. -=> * <=- LOS ANGELES (AP) - The eye-popping science fiction adventure "The Matrix" remained No. 1 at the box office with $22.2 million and spring break crowds gave Drew Barrymore's back-to-school film "Never Been Kissed" a strong $11.7 million opening, estimates showed Sunday. "The Matrix" starring Keanu Reeves as a computer hacker who finds out reality isn't what it seems, has emerged as the year's second breakout hit after "Analyze This," grossing $72.9 million in just two weeks. It slipped only 20% last weekend. "Never Been Kissed" opened in second place. "The Out-Of-Towners" with $5.3 million was third at the box office. "10 Things I Hate About You" was fourth with $5.2 million and "Analyze This" was in fifth place with $5.1 million. -=> * <=- LONDON (AP) - Elizabethan England ruled the day at the 51st British Academy Film Awards Sunday, with five prizes going to "Elizabeth" and four to last month's leading Oscar-winner, "Shakespeare in Love." But it was Elizabeth Taylor who got the evening's biggest applause as she haltingly stepped to the podium to receive a lifetime achievement award from the British Academy. "It makes me want to act again," said Taylor, 67, who was born in London but has long lived in the U.S. "But nobody will have me." Oscar-winning Italian actor Roberto Benigni triumphed as well, winning another prize for best actor. Cate Blanchett was named best actress for the title role in "Elizabeth," which won four other awards including outstanding British film of the year. -=> * <=- HOLLYWOOD (AP) - You might say motion pictures got started with a sneeze. Audiences chorused "God bless you" when they saw Thomas Edison's grainy, black-and-white film of his employee, Fred Ott, sneezing. Or was it a kiss that really got movies going? A film short, "The Kiss Between May Irvin and John C. Rice," intrigued many, but one writer found the first celluloid smooch loathsome, "magnified to gargantuan proportions and repeated thrice." Some credit New York's Latham brothers and their films of boxing matches. Others point to the basement screening room in Paris where the Lumiere brothers first showed that moving images, even silly ones of people falling off horses, could be projected on a screen to draw thousands curious enough to pay a franc. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/03/99 Date: 03 May 1999 11:58:42 -0600 LOS ANGELES (AP) - Powered by sexual chemistry, exotic locations and Sean Connery's roguish charm, the cat-burglar thriller "Entrapment" nabbed the top spot at the weekend box office with $20.7 million. The film, starring Catherine Zeta-Jones as an insurance investigator who seduces a high-class art thief played by Connery, knocked "The Matrix" down to No. 2 with $8.7 million, industry estimates showed Sunday. Comedies dominated the rest of the top 10, with the Eddie Murphy-Martin Lawrence prison movie "Life" earning $6.4 million for third place. The Drew Barrymore high school comedy "Never Been Kissed" continued to do well but dropped to fourth place with $4.2 million, while the mobster-in-therapy movie "Analyze This" fell to fifth with $2.2 million. -=> * <=- LONDON (AP) - Oliver Reed, the feisty, hard-drinking British actor who was as well known for his antics off-screen as he was for his performances on-screen, died Sunday in Malta. He was 61. Reed, who was on the Mediterranean island filming a movie called "The Gladiator," died on the way to the hospital about 15 minutes after taking ill in a bar in Valetta, Malta police said. An autopsy will be performed Monday, but Reed's death is not considered suspicious, police said. Among Reed's 53 films were "Women in Love," "The Devils," and "Tommy," all directed by the eccentric Englishman Ken Russell. Born Feb. 13, 1938 in Wimbledon, south London, Reed was known as a rascal whose drinking bouts were well publicized. -=> * <=- NEW YORK (AP) - The Force is with "Star Wars" fans and it's telling them to hit the toy stores early and spend, spend, spend. The most-hyped line of movie-theme merchandise in history for the still unreleased "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace" is finally going on sale on a studio-imposed schedule and fans and retailers aren't wasting a minute. In an unprecedented move, Toys R Us stores around the country decided to open their doors at 12:01 a.m. Monday for an all-night selling marathon of toys based on the movie. Some FAO Schwarz stores planned to open from midnight to 2 a.m. Wal-Mart and Kmart called in extra staff for their 24-hour stores to handle the post-midnight crowds. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 04 May 1999 07:36:25 -0700 Going into this movie I was expecting bad things. This is always a great way to see a movie because even if it's mediocre then it seems like much more! Entrapment was quite entertaining. I am a sucker for 'break in' movies (as opposed to breakin' movies) and this really satisfied my thirst with plenty of breaking in and funky gadgets and whatzits. Connery is plenty of fun playing Connery and Catherine Zeta has her first big hit of the year (last year's was Zorro and later this year - The House on Haunted Hill). So I reccomend going into the movie thinking that it will suck and totally disregard the fact that I'm giving it a 78%. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mike Wagner <mwagner@up.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 04 May 1999 08:52:32 -0400 To Jason Cormier, My wife's maiden name was Cormier. What was your fathers name and where are you from.. I have been working on a family tree and this name might help us. We are from Michigan.. All for now, Thanks, Mike Wagner e mail-- mwagner@up.net Jason Cormier wrote: > Going into this movie I was expecting bad things. This is always a great > way to see a movie because even if it's mediocre then it seems like much > more! Entrapment was quite entertaining. I am a sucker for 'break in' > movies (as opposed to breakin' movies) and this really satisfied my thirst > with plenty of breaking in and funky gadgets and whatzits. Connery is > plenty of fun playing Connery and Catherine Zeta has her first big hit of > the year (last year's was Zorro and later this year - The House on Haunted > Hill). So I reccomend going into the movie thinking that it will suck and > totally disregard the fact that I'm giving it a 78%. > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: ELECTION Date: 04 May 1999 09:50:33 -0600 (MDT) ELECTION (Paramount) Starring: Matthew Broderick, Reese Witherspoon, Chris Klein, Jessica Campbell, Mark Harelik, Molly Hagan, Delaney Driscoll. Screenplay: Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, based on the novel by Tom Perrotta. Producers: Albert Berger, Ron Yerxa, David Gale and Keith Samples. Director: Alexander Payne. MPAA Rating: R (profanity, adult themes, sexual situations, drug use) Running Time: 101 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. This is how I know I'm dealing with a film of uncommon intelligence: ELECTION resists the tidy summations in which most films are all-too-eager to wrap themselves. Like many recent films, it is a comedy set in a high school, but it's more than just the latest high school comedy. It deals with a student body election, but it's not really _about_ a student body election. It's a film in which characters narrate much of the story, but it doesn't use that narration in a conventional way. Like director Alexander Payne's previous film CITIZEN RUTH -- if to a somewhat less successful degree -- ELECTION is a satirical scalpel that refuses to let you know exactly when or whom it's going to cut. It's spring at Omaha, Nebraska's Carver High School as ELECTION begins, which means it's time for elections for the next year's student body officers. The prime candidate -- and apparently _only_ candidate -- for student body president is Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon), an extracurricular machine who sees the office as her destiny. Seeing things a bit differently is Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick), a civics teacher and student government advisor that Tracy rubs the wrong way. In an attempt to make the election less of a foregone conclusion, McAllister convinces injured football hero Paul Metzler (Chris Klein) to mount a challenge, which in turn generates the "third party" candidacy of Paul's alienated younger sister Tammy. It would have been easy enough for ELECTION to turn into a broad comedy about adolescent peer politics, and it _still_ would have been more insightful than most teen comedies. Payne and co-writer Jim Taylor, working from Tom Perrotta's novel, have bigger targets in mind. They use the Carver High election as a microcosm not just of high school life, but of politics on a much grander scale. Tracy Flick's campaign casts her as a political cousin of our current president, seeking election as a "you really like me" validation rathern than out of a desire to serve; even her nomination speech parrots the naming-of-names, I-feel-your-pain personal touch. Tammy, meanwhile, rallies the disenfranchised minority behind the idea that nothing changes but the names in conventional governance. Even the ridiculous posters, filled with little more than sloganeering, seem disturbingly similar to national election campaigning. It's savvy, cynical, and very funny. Even more effective is Payne's use of that old literary device the "unreliable narrator" as counterpoint to his direction. McAllister, Tracy, Paul and Tammy take turns explaining their take on the events of the film, each one mouthing words that don't quite match their his or her actions. McAllister describes his personal and professional contentment as he sifts through a trunk full of pornography; sexually-confused Tammy explains that "I'm not a lesbian, I'm attracted to the _person_. It's just that all the people I've been attracted to have been girls;" Tracy describes her mother's actions on her behalf in a way that shows she's being programmed for greatness. Only Paul, perhaps too dense to be duplicitous, seems pure of heart. As he did in CITIZEN RUTH, Payne explores the way we convince ourselves that our motivations are pure, even when we don't really understand what our motivations are. If Payne stumbles anywhere, it's in his choice to focus much of the film's second half on McAllister's domestic troubles. Tammy's character in particular is abandoned by this choice, letting the school administration's reaction to her unconventional candidacy off the hook too easily. But ELECTION is too smart to be derailed by this problem, too clear-eyed in its study of good intentions muddled by psychological baggage. With surprising sympathy towards all his flawed characters, Alexander Payne creates a furiously funny film in which his surrealistic directing touches keep the audience off-guard. He understands that in a world where people can't even summarize themselves in a neat-and-tidy sentence, we can't expect to summarize the movies about them that way. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 electile dysfunctions: 8. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/04/99 Date: 04 May 1999 12:16:36 -0600 LOS ANGELES (AP) - Hundreds of silent-movie classics including "The Phantom of the Opera," "The King of Kings" and rare footage of W.C. Fields are heading to the auction block. The prints of more than 1,500 films come from the Silent Movie Showcase in Hollywood, the country's only movie theater dedicated to silent films, which closed in January 1997 after a gunman killed the theater's owner, Lawrence Austin. Other titles expected to be up for auction include "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and a collection of Laurel and Hardy films including "Two Tars" and "Dr. Jack." Many of the 16mm and 35mm silent films were given to the theater's original owner by Charlie Chaplin, D.W. Griffith and Cecil B. DeMille. The sale was scheduled for May 23-24 by the auction house Butterfield & Butterfield. -=> * <=- NEW YORK (AP) - A personal computer and an Internet connection will get you into the movie premiere of "Dead Broke," a dark comedy starring Paul Sorvino. The film is believed to be the first to debut simultaneously on the Internet and the big screen. The Tribeca Film Center will download the feed and route it through a digital projector, USA Today reported Monday. The Edward Vilga-directed "Dead Broke" is the first of a four-film series that iFilm Network, in conjunction with Globix, Microsoft and the Tribeca Film Center, will premiere on the Internet. PC users will need an ultrafast T-1 connection to watch the movie "seamlessly," but iFilm founder Rodger Raderman said a fast connection will provide decent images and sound. -=> * <=- LOS ANGELES (AP) - Sluggish stock, weak earnings and the prospect of a bleak summer movie season hound the Walt Disney Co. as chairman Michael Eisner prepares to testify in what may be the most dramatic Disney tale of the year: a high-profile legal fight with the company's former studio chief, Jeffrey Katzenberg. Eisner is scheduled to take the stand Tuesday in a trial to determine how much money Disney must pay Katzenberg for projects he coordinated during a decade at Disney before quitting in an angry huff over Eisner's refusal to promote him. The trial is expected to reveal details about Eisner's souring relationship with one of his top lieutenants. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 04 May 1999 19:09:59 -0400 At 07.36 AM 04/05/99 -0700, Jason Cormier wrote: >Going into this movie I was expecting bad things. This is always a great >way to see a movie because even if it's mediocre then it seems like much >more! Good philosophy. The reason I was disappointed in Pleasantville is that it *looked* so good. I *expected* a great movie, and it wasn't. And Waterboy, I heard it was sooooo funny, and maybe laughed three times. Meanwhile, I actually enjoyed Dead Man on Campus and Night at the Roxbury, not because they were great movies, but rather because they weren't as bad as I expected. The unexpected laughter at those movies was more of a pleasure than the lack of expected laughter at Waterboy. Perhaps our mantra should be Star Wars Sucks. It will make the viewing experience even better:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: Re: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 04 May 1999 23:58:27 -0700 My father's name is Alan Wilfred Cormier and his Dad's name is Wilfred Cormier. We live in Ontario (me-Hamilton, Dad - Kitchener, Grandpa - grave in Brantford). I really don't know anyone else in my family before that. I have been interested recently in family trees so if you find out anything interesting then please let me know! Good luck! >To Jason Cormier, > My wife's maiden name was Cormier. What was your fathers name >and where are you from.. I have been working on a family tree and this >name might help us. We are from Michigan.. >All for now, >Thanks, >Mike Wagner >e mail-- mwagner@up.net > >Jason Cormier wrote: > >> Going into this movie I was expecting bad things. This is always a great >> way to see a movie because even if it's mediocre then it seems like much >> more! Entrapment was quite entertaining. I am a sucker for 'break in' >> movies (as opposed to breakin' movies) and this really satisfied my thirst >> with plenty of breaking in and funky gadgets and whatzits. Connery is >> plenty of fun playing Connery and Catherine Zeta has her first big hit of >> the year (last year's was Zorro and later this year - The House on Haunted >> Hill). So I reccomend going into the movie thinking that it will suck and >> totally disregard the fact that I'm giving it a 78%. >> >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: Re: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 05 May 1999 00:16:11 -0700 >Good philosophy. The reason I was disappointed in Pleasantville is that it >*looked* so good. I *expected* a great movie, and it wasn't. And >Waterboy, I heard it was sooooo funny, and maybe laughed three times. I hear ya on that one....Pleasantville was merely watchable instead of amazing like it seemed it should have been. >Perhaps our mantra should be Star Wars Sucks. It will make the viewing >experience even better:-) If only we could...it's tough to think that Menace will be anything but superb (but then again all I have to do is think about Jar Jar and it gets easier!) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 05 May 1999 06:23:38 -0600 Could you guys do the rest of us a favor and send these emails directly to each other, rather than including the rest of the list in this genealogical discussion? Personally my father was a projectionist and my mother was a ticket taker, and I was born in the lobby of a movie theater, therefore I only care about movies. So let's get back to the movies. (Christi, that was a joke.) Thank you, James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Wednesday, May 05, 1999 12:58 AM My father's name is Alan Wilfred Cormier and his Dad's name is Wilfred Cormier. We live in Ontario (me-Hamilton, Dad - Kitchener, Grandpa - grave in Brantford). I really don't know anyone else in my family before that. I have been interested recently in family trees so if you find out anything interesting then please let me know! Good luck! >To Jason Cormier, > My wife's maiden name was Cormier. What was your fathers name >and where are you from.. I have been working on a family tree and this >name might help us. We are from Michigan.. >All for now, >Thanks, >Mike Wagner >e mail-- mwagner@up.net > >Jason Cormier wrote: > >> Going into this movie I was expecting bad things. This is always a great >> way to see a movie because even if it's mediocre then it seems like much >> more! Entrapment was quite entertaining. I am a sucker for 'break in' >> movies (as opposed to breakin' movies) and this really satisfied my thirst >> with plenty of breaking in and funky gadgets and whatzits. Connery is >> plenty of fun playing Connery and Catherine Zeta has her first big hit of >> the year (last year's was Zorro and later this year - The House on Haunted >> Hill). So I reccomend going into the movie thinking that it will suck and >> totally disregard the fact that I'm giving it a 78%. >> >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: THE MUMMY (1999) Date: 05 May 1999 15:27:48 -0600 (MDT) THE MUMMY (1999) (Universal) Starring: Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Arnold Vosloo, Kevin J. O'Connor, Oded Fehr. Screenplay: Stephen Sommers. Producers: James Jacks and Sean Daniel. Director: Stephen Sommers. MPAA Rating: PG-13 (violence, adult themes, profanity) Running Time: 127 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. I am reminded of a favorite line from the Coen brothers' 1991 film BARTON FINK in this era of the wildly over-produced blockbuster. Barton Fink, an intellectual writer who has come to Hollywood in the early 1940s, reports to his studio boss that he's having trouble getting started on his first assignment, a wrestling film starring Wallace Beery. The baffled mogul responds, "Wallace Beery, wrestling picture...what do you need, a road map?" When it comes to genre film-making, there's an easy way to get the audience to respond the way you want them to respond, and there's the way writer/director Stephen Sommers chooses to craft his remake of THE MUMMY. Rarely has a film exterted so much narrative effort to say so little. That narrative begins in 1719 B.C., where the Egyptian high priest Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo), after an affair with the Pharaoh's mistress, is buried alive to carry a curse on the world should he ever be awakened. Flash forward to 1923, where soldier of fortune Nick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) discovers the lost city of Hamunaptra, legendary site of untold treasure and -- unbeknownst to anyone -- Imhotep's tomb. Flash forward again three years, where Egyptologist/librarian Evelyn (Rachel Weisz) and her ne'er-do-well brother Jonathan (John Hannah) learn that the jailed O'Connell knows the location of Hamunaptra, and win his freedom in exchange for his aid. Thus begins a journey to the lost city which results in the release of Imhotep, who emerges into the 20th century with a mission, an attitude and a whole lot of nasty supernatural powers. Unlike the 1932 original, this version is more action-adventure than horror, focusing on derring-do over scaring-do. It certainly delivers its share of fight sequences; some of them are even fairly rousing, combining unique visual effects with narrow escapes and a dose of visual humor. The echoes of RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK are obvious, but THE MUMMY may actually owe an equal debt to Sam Raimi's ARMY OF DARKNESS in its attempts at supernatural slapstick. Though nowhere near the level of the "Indiana Jones" films -- and indeed, not even necessarily at the level of ARMY OF DARKNESS -- THE MUMMY at times manages to deliver the goods. The goals of a film like THE MUMMY should be fairly simple, yet Sommers manages to miss the point entirely over and over again. The plot summary above doesn't do remote justice to the sacks of exposition, extraneous plot threads and go-nowhere characters with which THE MUMMY is burdened. The film takes forever to set up the premise, with the exploration party finally reaching Hamunaptra at about the one hour mark. Unnecessary complications ensue with the inclusion of a rival team of explorers guided by a sniveling former colleague of O'Connell's (Kevin J. O'Connor), increasing the body count in the least efficient manner possible. The danger to Evelyn -- targeted by Imhotep as part of his plan to resurrect his former love -- is buried beneath the ten plagues of Egypt, which Imhotep conveniently controls to allow for some more cool special effects. There's no economy to THE MUMMY, no understanding of how to create a solid hero, a solid villain and a solid conflict and let the action roll. It would be easy enough to snipe at the dopey dialogue and silly performances in THE MUMMY -- I'm still waiting for someone to convince me that Brendan Fraser has leading-man charm -- especially since it would deserve every snipe. There are a few clever touches, but mostly Sommers seems to show the typical blockbuster disdain for characters and situations which do anything more than set up the next effects shot. Yet such complaints miss the point that THE MUMMY isn't even a good brainless action film with its lumbering pacing. All the jaw-dropping visual trickery in the world doesn't help if a film wanders around in circles before pulling out its "A" material. Groan if you must, but THE MUMMY needed to be wrapped up much more tightly. The Mummy, horror picture...what do you need, a road map? On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 plagues of Egypt: 4. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: Re: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 05 May 1999 18:50:09 -0700 Sorry bout that one - I accidentally pressed send. Anyone else see the irony that The Mummy is being released on Mother's Day weekend?!:-) -----Original Message----- >Could you guys do the rest of us a favor and send these emails directly to >each other, rather than including the rest of the list in this genealogical >discussion? > >Personally my father was a projectionist and my mother was a ticket taker, >and I was born in the lobby of a movie theater, therefore I only care about >movies. So let's get back to the movies. (Christi, that was a joke.) > >Thank you, > >James K. Rudy > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Jason Cormier [mailto:movieman@netcom.ca] >Sent: Wednesday, May 05, 1999 12:58 AM >To: movies@lists.xmission.com >Subject: Re: [MV] Entrapment Review > > > > >My father's name is Alan Wilfred Cormier and his Dad's name is Wilfred >Cormier. We live in Ontario (me-Hamilton, Dad - Kitchener, Grandpa - grave >in Brantford). I really don't know anyone else in my family before that. I >have been interested recently in family trees so if you find out anything >interesting then please let me know! Good luck! > > >>To Jason Cormier, >> My wife's maiden name was Cormier. What was your fathers name >>and where are you from.. I have been working on a family tree and this >>name might help us. We are from Michigan.. >>All for now, >>Thanks, >>Mike Wagner >>e mail-- mwagner@up.net >> >>Jason Cormier wrote: >> >>> Going into this movie I was expecting bad things. This is always a great >>> way to see a movie because even if it's mediocre then it seems like much >>> more! Entrapment was quite entertaining. I am a sucker for 'break in' >>> movies (as opposed to breakin' movies) and this really satisfied my >thirst >>> with plenty of breaking in and funky gadgets and whatzits. Connery is >>> plenty of fun playing Connery and Catherine Zeta has her first big hit of >>> the year (last year's was Zorro and later this year - The House on >Haunted >>> Hill). So I reccomend going into the movie thinking that it will suck >and >>> totally disregard the fact that I'm giving it a 78%. >>> >>> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >>> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] >> >> >>[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >>[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] >> > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: ANDREA_BAUMAN <ANDREA_BAUMAN@prodigy.net> Subject: [MV] Re: movies-digest V2 #184 Date: 06 May 1999 13:00:18 -0700 At the end of the movie "Never Been Kissed" there are pictures of all of the actors when they were kids. Does anyone know any other movies where they do the same thing with the subtitles in the end? I would be grateful if someonewould answer me yes or no. Thanks, Andrea Bauman [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Wade Snider <wsnider@brazoselectric.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Re: movies-digest V2 #184 Date: 06 May 1999 14:53:42 +0100 It's not just the cast, it's also the main production credits, such as the director, writers, etc...... at the end of that movie.. The only other one I remember was also at the end of "Nine Months." There may be more. Wade > At the end of the movie "Never Been Kissed" there are pictures of all of > the actors when they were kids. Does anyone know any other movies where > they do the same thing with the subtitles in the end? I would be grateful > if someonewould answer me yes or no. > Thanks, > Andrea Bauman > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] Re: movies-digest V2 #184 Date: 06 May 1999 13:23:43 -0700 they added pictures of the entire cast and crew at the end of Lethal Weapon 4 - which was pretty neat and a remarkable feat... > -----Original Message----- > From: ANDREA_BAUMAN [SMTP:ANDREA_BAUMAN@prodigy.net] > Sent: Thursday, May 06, 1999 1:00 PM > To: movies-digest@lists.xmission.com > Subject: [MV] Re: movies-digest V2 #184 > > At the end of the movie "Never Been Kissed" there are pictures of all of > the actors when they were kids. Does anyone know any other movies where > they do the same thing with the subtitles in the end? I would be grateful > if someonewould answer me yes or no. > Thanks, > Andrea Bauman > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Al <dunal599@student.otago.ac.nz> Subject: RE: [MV] Re: movies-digest V2 #184 Date: 07 May 1999 12:00:09 +1300 What about the end of Schindlers List [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Michael Dequina <michael_jordan@geocities.com> Subject: [MV] The Movie Report#189, 5/6/99 Date: 06 May 1999 18:49:02 -0700 T H E M O V I E R E P O R T #189 MAY 6, 1999 Nine days until my 23rd... You can help support the MR and Mr. Brown's Movie Site by purchasing videos and DVDs from Reel.com. Please visit: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-reel.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dwelcome.htm= l Thank you very much. =3D>T H I S W E E K<=3D M O V I E S -_The_Mummy_ -_William_Shakespeare's_A_Midsummer_Night's_Dream_ -_The_Castle_ -_Three_Seasons_ -_A_Walk_on_the_Moon_ V I D E O -_Babe:_Pig_in_the_City_ -_You've_Got_Mail_ =3D>U P D A T E S<=3D @MR. BROWN'S MOVIE SITE -Awards Weekend 1999 section, featuring scans of Oscar night paraphernalia: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/oscars -Photos from the NAACP Image Awards and the _Forces_of_Nature_ premiere: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/celeb/40.html -Over 30 photos from the Screen Actors Guild Awards, starting at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/celeb/41.html For that, the best and worst of 1998, links to the official websites of all the current films, past reviews, exclusive Hollywood event photos, movie MIDI music, movie discussion board, a comprehensive link section, and more, visit: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown or http://welcome.to/mrbrown or http://mrbrown.webjump.com Please don't forget to sign the guestbook... If you are reading this on Usenet, you can subscribe to the MR at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/moviereport.html Select reviews are available at CompuServe Hollywood Hotline: http://www.HollywoodHotline.com=20 ...and the Eyepiece Network at: http://www.eyepiece.com ...and Albany Online at: http://www.AlbanyOnline.com ...and Film Frenzy at: http://www.filmfrenzy.com I am always up for a good live chat. Feel free to message me on ICQ at #25289934 or on AOL Instant Messenger under the handle "MrBrown23." all movies graded out of four stars (****) ~~~ =3D>M O V I E S<=3D N E W R E L E A S E S _The_Mummy_ (PG-13) * 1/2 Well, it seemed like a good idea: a lavish, big-budget retelling of the 1932 horror classic _The_Mummy_. But after seeing the finished product as written and directed by Stephen Sommers (who last perpetrated the undersea howler _Deep_Rising_) one would be wise to heed one of its trailer's tag words: "Beware." To his credit, Sommers makes his _Mummy_ a different type of animal from its precursor. Instead of a traditional horror piece, this _Mummy_ is more of an adventure film, with our central trio--American adventurer Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser), British librarian Evelyn Carnarvon (Rachel Weisz), and her brother Jonathan (John Hannah)--trying to unlock the secrets of a legendary lost burial site in 1930s Egypt. Once there, they and a rival group of explorers--who are in the hunt for some buried treasure--end up uncovering something more than they bargained for: the awakened mummy of the ancient High-priest Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo), who is determined to bring himself and his lost love back to full life. What Sommers is clearly after is the rollicking roller coaster vibe of the _Indiana_Jones_ films, but one little detail is lost on him. While the _Indy_ flicks were in the light, jaunty vein of old serial films, Steven Spielberg knew that the tongue could and should not always be kept in cheek. The scary parts were indeed scary; the suspenseful moments were taken seriously. The same cannot be said of _The_Mummy_, which wears a silly, jokey attitude throughout and suffers for it. How can one truly be frightened or intimidated by Imhotep and his murderous rage when each would-be shock is blunted by an idiotic wisecrack (which _every_ character seems have ready) or slapsticky situation? It would also help if the creature's appearance were scary or at least creepy; unless you lose sleep over the Cryptkeeper from _Tales_from_the_Crypt_, likely the sight of the mummified Imhotep won't invade even a daydream. In fact, with the exception of some impressive visuals involving the movement of sand, the effects work in _The_Mummy_ is strangely unconvincing. The walking undead and deadly Scarab beetles look like they never left the computer screen, and the opening shot--showing a giant sphinx and pyramids as workers and others scurry by--is no more lifelike than the nearly identical opening shot of _The_Prince_of_Egypt_. Not that the flesh-and-blood actors are themselves give the film much life, either. Fraser has proven to be a terrific actor in small films as diverse as the romantic fantasy _Still_Breathing_ to last fall's Oscar-winning _Gods_and_Monsters_, but when it comes to big time popcorn films, he always falls flat, to say the least. First it was his painfully broad turn in the unwatchable _George_of_the_Jungle_; now it's this half-hearted attempt to channel Harrison Ford's roguish charm. More successful at evoking _Indiana_Jones_ is Weisz, but in the wrong way: her Evelyn is only a notch less shrill than Kate Capshaw's Willie Scott (_Indiana_Jones_and_the_Temple_of_Doom_), easily the worst heroine in the _Indy_ series. _The_Mummy_ definitely does not bore; it holds one's attention for its entire running time, and the millions of its megabudget do show up on screen. But shouldn't an adventure film at least offer something resembling excitement? Hollywood Hotline Featured Review _William_Shakespeare's_A_Midsummer_Night's_Dream_ (PG-13) *** The assembled talents of an all-star cast are exploited most delightfully in Michael Hoffman's adaptation of _William_Shakespeare's_A_Midsummer_Night's_Dream_. While as sunny and sweet as the Bard's original romantic comedy of errors, this update isn't always dreamy, but its classic romantic spell should leave moviegoers swooning. The "dream" of the title is actually one very real night in the forest where lovers are star-crossed, criss-crossed, or just plain made cross, thanks to the magical machinations of Oberon (Rupert Everett), the King of Fairies; and his impish right-hand sprite, Puck (Stanley Tucci). Into the forest that night come the hopelessly besotted Lysander (Dominic West) and Hermia (Anna Friel), the latter of whom is lovelessly betrothed to Demetrius (Christian Bale), who, in turn, is pursued, however clumsily, by the unloved-by-anyone Helena (Calista Flockhart). A few drops of a flower's magical juice later, and a bewildered Helena finds herself the object of desire for both Demetrius and Lysander, leaving Hermia by the wayside. The juice is indeed loose, for also falling under its power is Oberon's wife Titania (Michelle Pfeiffer), who becomes enamored of an ass--literally and figuratively. His apt name is Nick Bottom (Kevin Kline), a pompous ham of an actor who is transformed into a half-man/half-donkey monstrosity by a playful Puck. This section, being the part that gives the play its title, is the focal point of the play and the film, but, strangely enough, it's also the part that works the least well in the film. Of course, it has nothing to do with the parent text; Shakespeare's timeless barbs (mostly delivered by a comically cruel Lysander to a disbelieving Hermia) would never lose their edge in any translation. Neither are the actors at fault; they are all up to the Shakespearean task. The biggest revelation is Flockhart, who displays exquisite comic timing as the very un-Ally Helena. What is at fault, is Hoffman's staging, or, rather, his stage. This entire second act was filmed on a soundstage, and it shows: the backdrops are flat; the same tree sets are recycled over and over again; and--most distracting of all--it's ridiculously overlit (it may be midsummer, but it still is _night_). A certain level of unreality should be brought to this section--we are dealing with fairies and man-asses here--but it's one thing to be unreal (as in a fantasy) and entirely another to appear artificial (as in synthetic). Hoffman has better luck with other directorial choices. Most notable is his change of setting from ancient Greece to 19th Century Italy, and this adds a fresh new dimension to the material: fresh locations, fresh costumes (no tights!), and, most notably, the advent of the bicycle, which adds some needed movement to static scenes. Hoffman also doesn't force fake British accents upon his non-Brit stars (Pfeiffer, Flockhart, Kline, Tucci, David Strathairn, and Sophie Marceau), sparing them and the audience a Kevin Costner-as-Robin Hood-type embarrassment that would only distract from the poetry of Shakespeare's words. It is the timeless appeal of those words, the impassioned performances, and a bring-down-the-house third act (in which Bottom and his inept troupe of actors put on a hilariously disastrous play) that make this high-spirited, if a bit overlong (115 minutes), production live up to its title: a dream indeed--not without its fuzzy areas, but on the whole "a most rare vision." (opens May 14) IN BRIEF _The_Castle_ (R) *** Although Roger Ebert has called it "this year's _Full_Monty_," I'm not entirely certain that this Australian import will connect with American audiences like that flashy British sensation of two summers ago. In fact, the comparison is entirely unfair, for this lower-key, character-driven comedy is, for my money, better than that overrated fluke Best Picture nominee. The castle in question is the Kerrigan house, a modest abode situated next to the runway of an airport and underneath a bundle of power lines. When a proposed airport expansion threatens to claim his happy home and those of his neighbors, patriarch Darryl (Michael Caton) dares to take his case to court. To be honest, this simple and straightforward "little guy versus the system" tale does not pack too many gutbusting laughs. In their place are smaller but ultimately more rewarding delights: a consistent stream of giggle-worthy lines and situations and, best of all, a wide variety of sharply defined personalities. Proud and loving Darryl is indeed the main character (played without a single false note by Caton), but the rest of the Kerrigan family and the other peripheral characters are allowed to carve out their own memorably quirky niches. Making the strongest impressions are Darryl's trading post-obsessed, "ideas man" middle son Steve (Anthony Simcoe) and Darryl's incompetent lawyer (Tiriel Mora). _The_Castle_ is as light and disposable as it appears to be, but there's no denying how efficient (the film runs a scant 89 minutes), crowdpleasing, and heartwarming an entertainment director Rob Sitch and writing collaborators Santo Cilauro, Tom Cleisner, and Jane Kennedy have created. _Three_Seasons_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 For the most part, Tony Bui's gorgeous Sundance favorite is a fascinating look at life in modern-day Vietnam, seen through the eyes of a number of characters leading different lives in and around Ho Chi Minh City: a young woman (Nguyen Ngoc Hiep) who strikes up an unlikely friendship with the old, ailing owner (Tran Manh Cuong) of the lotus farm at which she works; a cyclo driver (Don Duong) who falls for a prostitute (Zoe Bui); and a very young street vendor (Nguyen Huu Duoc) whose case of merchandise is stolen. = =20 If only Bui and co-writer Timothy Linh Bui had left it at that: three storylines to match the three seasons of the title. But in a blatant concession to the film's Western production roots, also added to the mix is an unnecessary storyline about a GI (Harvey Keitel) who is searching for the daughter he left behind. Although this thread briefly intersects with the others (as they all do), it could not be more far removed in terms of style, mood, and execution; while the other stories feel true to life, this one feels like manufactured melodrama, and it is rather stiffly acted by Keitel (with the exception of one emotional wordless scene). Thankfully, though, his storyline is given the least amount of screen time, never becoming so obtrusive as to dilute the simple power of the other plots or the uniting poetry of Lisa Rinzler's breathtaking cinematography. I N C U R R E N T R E L E A S E _A_Walk_on_the_Moon_ (R) ** 1/2 In the Woodstock summer of '69, a bored young housewife and mother (Diane Lane) undergoes a sexual and emotional awakening at the hands of a mysterious travelling "blouse man" (Viggo Mortensen). If this sounds like romance novel material, that's because it is, albeit it gussied up in a handsome, well-made package. As is the case with many actors-turned-directors, first-time helmer Tony Goldwyn coaxes fine work from his cast, in particular Lane, Liev Schreiber (as the husband), and Anna Paquin, an actress who is slowly growing on me (as their rebellious daughter). Despite their efforts, though, the synthetic, formulaic nature of Pamela Gray's script keeps this drama decidedly earthbound. (full reviews of the following in past MRs and at the listed URLs) -_Analyze_This_ (R) *** <MR#180, 3/4/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt46.html#analyze =20 -_Cookie's_Fortune_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#185, 4/7/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#cookie -_Doug's_1st_Movie_ (G) ** <MR#184, 4/1/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#doug -_The_Dreamlife_of_Angels_(La_Vie_R=EAv=E9e_des_Anges)_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#dreamlife -_Election_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#election -_Entrapment_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#entrapment -_eXistenZ_ (R) *** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#existenz -_Foolish_ (R) no stars <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#foolish -_Forces_of_Nature_ (PG-13) ** 1/2 <MR#182, 3/18/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt46.html#forces -_Friends_&_Lovers_ no stars <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#friends -_Get_Real_ (R) *** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#real -_Go_ (R) **** <MR#185, 4/7/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#go -_Goodbye_Lover_ (R) *** <MR#179, 2/25/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt45.html#goodbye -_Hideous_Kinky_ (R) *** <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#hideous -_Idle_Hands_ (R) ** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#hands -_The_King_and_I_ (G) 1/2* <MR#184, 4/1/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#king -_Life_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#life -_Life_Is_Beautiful_(La_Vita_E_Bella)_ (PG-13) **** <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#vitabella -_Lock,_Stock_and_Two_Smoking_Barrels_ (R) *** <MR#180, 3/4/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt46.html#lockstock -_Lost_&_Found_ (PG-13) ** <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#lost -_The_Matrix_ (R) **** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#matrix -_Metroland_ ** <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#metroland -_Mighty_Peking_Man_ no stars; **** for camp value <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#peking -_Never_Been_Kissed_ (PG-13) *** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#never -_The_Out-of-Towners_ (PG-13) ** <MR#184, 4/1/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#out -_Pushing_Tin_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#tin -_Shakespeare_in_Love_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#171, 12/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#shakespeare -_SLC_Punk!_ (R) *** <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#slc -_10_Things_I_Hate_About_You_ (PG-13) ** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#10 O N T H E H O R I Z O N FRIDAY _The_Castle_ (R) *** <see above review> Enjoyable light comedy about an Australian patriarch's (Michael Caton) fight to keep his home. _The_Empty_Mirror_ Drama that speculates about what Adolf Hitler's (Norman Rodway) life would have been like had he lived beyond World War II. _The_Mummy_ (PG-13) * 1/2 <see above review> Cheesy revival of the 1932 horror classic, starring an ill-cast Brendan Fraser. _Tequila_Body_Shots_ (R) This "supernatural suspense-comedy" about three L.A. guys who go south of the border for "Dia de los Muertos" celebrations stars Joey Lawrence. 'Nuff said. _This_Is_My_Father_ (R) The fraternal filmmaking team of writer-director Paul Quinn, cinematographer Declan Quinn, and actor Aidan Quinn made this drama about a Chicago teacher (James Caan) who searches for his father in Ireland. ~~~ =3D>V I D E O<=3D N E W T H I S W E E K _Babe:_Pig_in_the_City_ (G) ** 1/2 Full review in MR#169, 12/3/98; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#babe Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44140 While this sequel to the beloved 1995 Best Picture nominee shows remarkable visual invention (inexplicably denied an Oscar nod for Art Direction), it was no surprise that it ended up one of last year's most notorious flops. As had been fussed over, George Miller's film, following the perky porker (voice of E.G. Daily) as he hits the big city, is much darker than Chris Noonan's sunny original--so dark and often creepy as to unsettle children and offend their parents. The film's ardent supporters have defended it as a film for adults; if that's the case, then why exactly was it pitched directly to the youngsters? (Universal Studios Home Video; DVD also available) _You've_Got_Mail_ (PG) **** Full review in MR#171, 12/16/98; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#mail Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44362 I am a sucker for a good romantic comedy, and I was completely won over by this enchanting confection from the _Sleepless_in_Seattle_ team of writer-director Nora Ephron and stars Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Hanks and Ryan absolutely combust as rival New York bookstore owners who unwittingly carry out an anonymous romance via e-mail. Available at a low sell-through price on VHS and DVD, the latter of which is packed with a lot of extra features accessible on a DVD player and, of course, DVD-ROM-equipped computers. (Warner Home Video; DVD also available) R E C E N T R E L E A S E S (full reviews of the following in past MRs and at the listed URLs) -_Apt_Pupil_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#161, 10/8/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#pupil Buy VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43652 -_At_First_Sight_ (PG-13) ** 1/2 <MR#174, 1/21/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt44.html#sight Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44152 -_Belly_ (R) ** <MR#165, 11/6/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#belly Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43967 -_A_Bug's_Life_ (G) *** 1/2 <MR#167, 11/20/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#bugs Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44093 -_Elizabeth_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#elizabeth Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43968 -_Happiness_ **** <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#happiness Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43618 -_Meet_Joe_Black_ (PG-13) *** <MR#167, 11/20/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#joe Buy VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43908 -_A_Night_at_the_Roxbury_ (PG-13) 1/2* <MR#160, 10/5/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#roxbury Buy VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43552 -_The_Siege_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#164, 10/29/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#siege Buy VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43725 -_Simon_Birch_ (PG) ** 1/2 <MR#157, 9/6/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt39.html#simon Buy VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43338 -_Stepmom_ (PG-13) *** <MR#170, 12/11/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#stepmom Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44390 ~~~ =3D>N E X T W E E K<=3D On Tuesday, more reviews, including: -_Star_Wars:_Episode_I--The_Phantom_Menace_ 'til then...=20 __________________________________________________________ Michael Dequina Chat Forum Host, The Official Michael Jordan Web Site http://jordan.sportsline.com mj23@michaeljordanfan.com | jordan_host@sportsmail.com michael_jordan@geocities.com | mrbrown@iname.com >My personal WWW sites< Mr. Brown's Movie Site: http://welcome.to/mrbrown Michael Jordan Beyond the Court: http://fly.to/michaeljordan A Michael Jordan Fan's Heartbreak: http://fly.to/mj23 Personal Page: http://welcome.to/w3md >Other WWW sites I work on< CompuServe Hollywood Hotline: http://www.HollywoodHotline.com Albany Online: http://www.AlbanyOnline.com Eyepiece Network: http://www.eyepiece.com Film Frenzy: http://www.filmfrenzy.com "Life is knowing the toughest competition you ever face is yourself." --Michael Jordan __________________________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Wade Snider <wsnider@brazoselectric.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Re: movies-digest V2 #184 Date: 07 May 1999 08:17:29 +0100 I thought the original question was about credits that showed kid pictures of the cast & crew. > -----Original Message----- > From: Al [SMTP:dunal599@student.otago.ac.nz] > Sent: Thursday, May 06, 1999 6:00 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: RE: [MV] Re: movies-digest V2 #184 > > What about the end of Schindlers List > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/07/99 Date: 07 May 1999 14:00:46 -0600 LOS ANGELES (AP) - Now that a few people have actually seen the new "Star Wars" movie in special screenings, the hype has yielded to the buzz. And the buzz is ... well, don't expect a masterpiece, just a really good movie with cool special effects. In other words, a certain summer blockbuster. "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace" was screened Tuesday night in eight North American cities for movie theater executives, their families, and - apparently - a bundle of "Star Wars" fans who somehow finagled some of the prized tickets. Almost immediately, early reviews hit cyberspace, followed by the reactions to the reviews, then the reactions to the reactions, along with all manner of claims, counterclaims, insults and soul-searching over the film, which opens nationwide May 19. -=> * <=- SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Citizen action, not government regulation, is the way to force Hollywood to curb violence in its products, Tipper Gore said Thursday. "I think they're only going to respond if they hear from the larger community," the wife of Vice President Al Gore said. "If we decrease our appetite for this violence ... and if we say no, that is kind of voting with your pocketbook." Mrs. Gore, author of the 1987 book "Raising PG Kids in an X-Rated Society," pressed the music industry to label sexually explicit records in the 1980s. The industry began voluntary labeling in 1990. Violent video games and movies are only part of a "toxic culture." Easy access to guns and lack of structured activities for young people play a role in that culture, she said. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Sci-Fi Movie News - 05/07/99 Date: 07 May 1999 14:14:02 -0600 MovieFone said that it will begin selling tickets to Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace at 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May 12. That's a reversal of LucasFilm's earlier policy prohibiting advance ticket sales for Star Wars during the film's first three week's of release. In an effort to curb scalping--which has been LucasFilm's chief concern about advance sales--MovieFone said that individual moviegoers can buy a maximum of 12 tickets. Fans can place their orders by calling 777-FILM or by visiting MovieFone's Web site. -=> * <=- The SCI FI Channel plans to air a one-hour Star Wars special on May 17 at 9 p.m. ET that's so secret the channel can barely talk about it. SCI FI said the "uncensored investigation" will delve into the mystery and uber-fandom surrounding George Lucas' epic saga, but that it couldn't release any further details due to the iron control LucasFilm maintains over Star Wars. "We cannot comment at this time about the program," said Bonnie Hammer, the senior vice president of SCI FI programming and USA Networks original production. "Fans will have to remain on the dark side until the May 17 premiere of our SCI FI special--but we'll definitely have the inside scoop!" -=> * <=- After losing the No. 1 position at the box office to the Eddie Murphy comedy Life, The Matrix is once again in the top spot. Variety reported that The Matrix led ticket sales for the weekend of April 23 with a $12.9 million take. That brings the Warner Bros. film's total earnings up to a healthy $117.4 million through its first four weeks of release. Warner is predicting the flick will finish its domestic run with more than $160 million in sales. -=> * <=- Regent Entertainment bought the worldwide rights to Free Enterprise, an independent film starring William Shatner. The movie is a spoof that follows two would-be filmmakers and science fiction fans who get to meet Shatner, their TV idol, only to learn that he's a hard-drinking woman chaser. Free Enterprise earned awards for best picture and best screenplay at the 1998 AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival. It is scheduled to play at the Cannes Film Festival on May 15 before opening in Los Angeles on June 4. -=> * <=- Star Wars: Episode I headliner Natalie Portman is in talks to play a pregnant teenager in the film adaptation of Billie Letts' best-selling novel Where The Heart Is. -=> * <=- Actors Christine Baranski, Bill Irwin and Mindy Sterling have joined the cast of the Jim Carrey film Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: eXistenZ Date: 09 May 1999 09:34:20 -0600 (MDT) eXistenZ (Dimension) Starring: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jude Law, Ian Holm, Willem Dafoe. Screenplay: David Cronenberg. Producers: Robert Lantos, Andras Hamori and David Cronenberg. Director: David Cronenberg. MPAA Rating: R (violence, adult themes, profanity) Running Time: 97 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. David Cronenberg's eXistenZ may be as thematically dense a film as we'll see all year. It touches on the nature of reality, and the ways we seek to escape it and embrace it at the same time. It addresses issues of violence in the media, as well as the nature of constructing a work of fiction. It's a cautionary tale, and a caution against excessive caution. It's a social satire, and even a self-satire. It's also, ultimately, a sinkhole for narrative and characterization. Cronenberg has created an emotionally weightless intellectual exercise that's fun to parse but little fun to watch. eXistenZ begins with what amounts to a preview screening for a new cutting edge virtual reality game called eXistenZ, designed by reclusive gaming genius Allegra Geller (Jennifer Jason Leigh). Before she can begin the first demonstration, however, Allegra is the target of an assassination attempt by a radical anti-virtual reality terrorist. Accompanied by Ted Pikul (Jude Law), the game company's marketing intern, as her impromptu bodyguard, Allegra heads into the countryside to see if her eXistenZ prototype game module -- damaged in the assassination attempt -- can be saved. The only way to test that, of course, is to play the game, leading Allegra and Ted to discover a world almost too similar to the "real world" to tell the difference. If you know your Cronenberg (VIDEODROME, THE FLY, CRASH) at all, you know that you're entering a decidedly freaky realm. The world of eXistenZ includes pseudo-organic game pods that plug into the users' spines through a "bio-port" and a big umbilical cord; it features a pistol made of flesh and bone that fires human teeth (all the better to escape detection). Those who got off on the head-trippy kinkiness of CRASH will find themselves quite comfortable with a film in which characters get frisky with the holes in each other's backs, and where a meal in a Chinese restaurant consists of mutant amphibians sucked right off the skeleton. Those same viewers may also find themselves wrapped up in deconstructing Cronenberg's various messages. The design of the game pods -- which none-too-subtly resemble a compilation of erogenous zones -- turns into a poke at the masturbatory nature of video games, while Allegra's writhing response to "plugging in" adds drug addiction to the metaphorical layering. The story treats us to characters who commit violence in the real world while thinking they're still in a game world -- a creepy, timely commentary on the influence of pop culture violence -- then takes a swipe at the actions of the neo-Luddite anti-game faction. Perhaps most amusingly, eXistenZ plays with how characters behave in a fictional world, extending by implication to the plot-advancing conventions in film itself. There's enough sub-text in eXistenZ to keep a viewer well-occupied for its 97 minutes. If only Cronenberg had bothered to bring along any actual text to flesh out that subtext. eXistenZ plays out like a scholarly analysis of itself, a cinematic Cliff's Notes for a novel that doesn't actually exist. Leigh and Law are as purely functional in their roles as their characters are in their game-roles, and while Cronenberg may find that little meta-joke amusing, for a viewer it's merely distracting. By the time the plot of eXistenZ starts folding in on itself (leading to a revelation that's not at all revelatory if you've been paying attention), you may find yourself wondering why you should care about any of it. Cronenberg is as stylistically distinctive a film-maker as we have in this cookie-cutter era, but he's locked himself into a rut of message-filled visions with no human connection. eXistenZ plays out like a hallucinatory letter to the editor. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 eXistenZial angsts: 5. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 09 May 1999 13:42:54 -0700 Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam thank you mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go into this movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too seriously. Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and there seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one is finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's learn about Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - it is done in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather once in a while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last year's Deep Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. btw - Happy Mummy's day. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: kwhite <kwhite@iwic.net> Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 09 May 1999 14:30:43 -0500 Jason, I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked it. We sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome however, found the special effects the only good thing about it. While watching it, I couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, they tried to hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story line. Even the music was horrible. Jason Cormier wrote: > Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam thank you > mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go into this > movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too seriously. > Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and there > seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one is > finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's learn about > Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - it is done > in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather once in a > while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last year's Deep > Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. > > btw - Happy Mummy's day. > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: maillist@moviejuice.com Subject: [MV] MovieJuice! - THE MUMMY - Fez Dispenser Date: 09 May 1999 16:33:01 -0400 (EDT) SPECIAL THANKS THIS WEEKà. A belated thanks to online film critic Michael Dequina who conveyed a verbal thumbs-up for MovieJuice from "Clerks" and "Chasing Amy" filmmaker Kevin Smith, who accused me of being "cool" and having a "great tone." I can't speak for the former, but I'm off to the gym to guarantee the latter. Thanks Michael and Kevin. Thanks to New York Magazine for a writeup I just caught up with praising MovieJuice for "hysterical film criticism," something David Denby never specialized in, from what I understand. Thank you! Finally, thanks to Netscape's Netcenter for plugging MovieJuice as "the funniest place to read about movies online." Damn you people for raising the bar! ******************** CATHERINE ZETA-JONES SPEAKS! New this week at MovieJuice.com: I interview Catherine Zeta-Jones and damn if she isn't trying to come on to me! Beware an utter lack of context. Check out the RealAudio interview at: http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/zetajones.htm ******************** THE MUMMY - FEZ DISPENSER by Mark Ramsey http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/mummy.htm May 9, 1999 What a shocker, when we first lay eyes on The Mummy, or, as Disney's Mike Eisner calls him, "that little Egyptian Midget." No, I'm not talking about the movie, I'm talking about Cher on VH-1 Divas Live! I happened to be watching the show with direct descendents of ancient Egyptian high-priests who, between shifts at 7-11, explained to me that Cher has all the telltale signs of a good mummification. There's the dress-like gauze wrapping used to draw attention and ridicule during Oscar telecasts, the Celine Dionic hats loud enough to wake the ancient dead, the skin so tight Cher's facials are like drum solos and every wink is a rim-shot, the canoptic jars brimming with makeup and various vital organs. There's the evidence of scrambled, nose-extracted brains shown in the relentless repetition of insipid lyrics, and finally, there's the obvious lip-synching to The Mummy anthem: "Do You Believe in Life after Death after Love." The high point of The Mummy occurs within the first five minutes when Pharaoh's hot-hot babe Anck-Su-Namun comes vamping down the hall undressed in super-shear twine designed by Cher's clothier, King Tut-BobMackie the First. You see, she's having a fling with high-priest Imhotep, thus explaining the derivation of the word "ho." Bad Imhotep! That little high-priest midget! No wonder everybody gets gets cursed and buried alive with hundreds of cartoon scarab beetles, only to be freed centuries later by foolish archeologists, intrepid explorers, and record industry execs seeking to relaunch Cher's career. The Mummy is one of the rare movies that would actually be better with less dialogue. "Sons of the Pharaohs!" curses the Brit librarian's boss at the Museum of Antiquities. Was it just me, or did comic-book bubble-quotes appear over everybody's head whenever they opened their mouths? The plot-line - "rescue the damsel in distress, kill the bad guy, save the world" - sounds like Universal just unwrapped an ancient mummy oddly resembling the edge-worn VHS of Raiders of the Lost Ark down at Blockbuster Video. What can you say about a movie that cribs dialogue from Linda Carter and Lyle Waggoner in Wonder Woman? Breathless Brits translating hieroglyphics in the nick of time and oozing Bazooka Joe bullet-points. Just add Angela Lansbury and a flying bed and you've got Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Tally-ho, Imhotep! So the overzealous Americans discover a box with this warning: "Death will come on swift wings to whosoever opens this chest." Pamela Lee's surgeon encountered that same warning but proceeded vigorously and, I'm told, with great enthusiasm anyway. A plague of locusts on you, doctor! Brendan Fraser plays a swashbuckling character almost exactly like Errol Flynn, except he prefers chicks old enough to drive and doesn't notice that boy mummies have cute butts. Somebody must have spiked my popcorn with psychedelics because I could swear Brendan went to Bewitched general practitioner Dr. Bombay for help in battling the Mummy! This situation, of course, was even more dire than the time Samantha spoke in rhyme and Darrin was turned into a bedpan. That little warlock midget, Bombay! When the good Doctor smirks "Oh well, back to the airfield! Hoo-hoo!" I felt like I was swinging with Serena at the Cosmos Cotillion to the groovy tunes of Boyce and Hart. To quote Brendan, "Dr. Bombay, come right away!" Groovy, baby. So macho hero Brendan - that little Gods and Monsters midget - faces-off against a brigade of mummies who look less like ancient dead and more like action-toy Terminators and C3POs. Brendan's option was to wake them from the dead or wait in line with 2,000 other fanatics at FAO Schwarz at midnight to be the first to buy them. Where's Sinbad the Sailor when you need him? Or at least Ed Furlong? Bring on Elmer Fudd with his wifle to kiww these wascawy weinvigowated walking dead. All that said, you've gotta respect any long dead high-priest who wants to bring his dead girlfriend back to life, just like Wes Craven did to Kristy Swanson in Deadly Friend, but without the whole high school angle. As B-movies go, gang, The Mummy is the gold-standard. Yum, yum. It's the sweetest junk food of the Spring. Copyright 1999 Mark Ramsey. All rights reserved. NO PORTION MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR. ******************** DONÆT FORGET TO VISIT MOVIEJUICE.COM! Hey, kids, don't forget to visit the MovieJuice! Site at http://www.moviejuice.com. The pictures are half the fun (and sometimes more than half the laughs)! ******************** TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS LIST: DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL! Just go to http://www.moviejuice.com and follow the directions at the top of the left frame. It's very easy. NOTE: YOUR NAME CANNOT BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST UNLESS YOU UNSUBSCRIBE USING THE EMAIL ADDRESS YOU REGISTERED WITH). And don't write me lots of mean-spirited crap. I won't read it. ******************** IF YOUR LINES AREN'T WRAPPINGà Your browser and/or email client (why DO they call it that?) has a setting called "Wrap Long Lines." Select it! [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Howe <mrmagoo@iinc.com> Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 09 May 1999 19:25:27 -0400 I am going to have to agree and disagree here. YES, this movie did lack a feasible plot, or storyline if you will...BUT I will have to quote JASON by saying "Everything here is just for fun" I think that sums it up PERFECTLY. I had alot of FUN watching this movie!!! kwhite wrote: > Jason, > > I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked it. We > sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome however, > found the special effects the only good thing about it. While watching it, I > couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, they tried to > hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story line. > Even the music was horrible. > > Jason Cormier wrote: > > > Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam thank you > > mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go into this > > movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too seriously. > > Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and there > > seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one is > > finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's learn about > > Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - it is done > > in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather once in a > > while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last year's Deep > > Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. > > > > btw - Happy Mummy's day. > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] -- God Bless!!!! Tim ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wanna Join Any E-Mail groups Owned By Yours Truly? DVDTALK-The discussion of ALL things DVD related! (138) MINIDISC-The discussion of anything MINIDISC related! (40) SIMPSONSFANS-The discussion of america's favorite animated family...THE SIMPSONS! (56) KINGOFTHEHILLFANS-The discussion of the cartoon KING OF THE HILL! (16) COUNTRYBUMPKINS-The discussion of the best stlye of music around...COUNTRY! 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[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 09 May 1999 23:52:19 -0700 Yeah - I hear ya! You won't find I bigger Indy fan around other than me - I am honestly wearing an Indiana Jones T-Shirt right now. So I was hoping it wouldn't disgust me with all the rip offs. However - right away we see that the movie isn't taking itself too seriously (with the female lead balancing on the ladder and knocking over all the books - pretty stupid but it set the tone). If it played out like Stargate did - which was very serious - then it falls flat (imho) and it becomes easy to pick out all the bad components of the film. I was lucky that I was in the right mood and I enjoyed the ride though I understand where you're coming from. I often dislike movies that the general poplace enjoys (take Stargate or Independence Day for examples!) -----Original Message----- >Jason, > >I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked it. We >sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome however, >found the special effects the only good thing about it. While watching it, I >couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, they tried to >hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story line. >Even the music was horrible. > >Jason Cormier wrote: > >> Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam thank you >> mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go into this >> movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too seriously. >> Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and there >> seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one is >> finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's learn about >> Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - it is done >> in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather once in a >> while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last year's Deep >> Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. >> >> btw - Happy Mummy's day. >> >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Tonya =)" <scoobygirl@bedford.heartland.net> Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 09 May 1999 23:48:42 -0500 I just went to see this movie tonight. I loved it. I had expected a lot less. I thought it was scary, but I also found myself lauging quite a bit throughout the 2 hours. It was very enjoyable. I would definitely go back and see it again if I had to. Tonya [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: EDGE OF SEVENTEEN Date: 10 May 1999 08:08:46 -0600 (MDT) EDGE OF SEVENTEEN (Strand) Starring: Chris Stafford, Tina Holmes, Andersen Gabrych, Stephanie McVay, Lea DeLaria. Screenplay: Todd Stephens. Producers: David Moreton and Todd Stephens. Director: David Moreton. MPAA Rating: R (profanity, sexual situations, adult themes) Running Time: 100 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. Perhaps it's an indication of how far we have come, but gay coming-of-age films are becoming as formula-bound and potentially trite as straight coming-of-age films. Confused younger protagonist, experienced older object of desire, confrontations with friends and/or family who just don't understand...we have been there, and we have done that. To paraphrase my colleague Mike D'Angelo, we have to ask ourselves whether we would care about the people or the situation if the central romantic entaglements were heterosexual, and often the answer is no. Gay or straight, "I was never the same after that summer" films often go nowhere new or interesting. EDGE OF SEVENTEEN does try to take us somewhere new, exploring an angle most gay-themed films only view as an afterthought: how friends and family respond to a startling coming-out. Writer Todd Stephens' semi-autobiographical story centers on Eric Hunter (Chris Stafford), approaching his senior year of high school in Sandusky, Ohio circa 1984 with only the typical 17-year-old concerns: working a summer job (here at a lakeside amusement park), figuring out college plans, deciding which skinny tie goes with his dyed hair, and hanging out with his best female friend Maggie (Tina Holmes). Then an amusement park co-worker named Rod (Andersen Gabrych) catches Eric's eye in an unexpected way, turning his simple Middle American life upside-down. In some ways, EDGE OF SEVENTEEN is quite a conventional independent film examining gay subject matter. The narrative eventually spends a lot of time in Sandusky's only gay bar as Eric begins hanging out with the friends of his lesbian amusement park supervisor (comic Lea DeLaria), with the predictable exchanges of catty barbs ensuing. Fortunately, even those scenes are sparked by the unaffected, appealing work of Stafford in the lead role. His goofy innocence and teen-Jim Carrey grin generate surprising sympathy in Eric's predicament as he begins exploring his sexuality in secret. The technical credits may be predictably shaky and the supporting performances uneven (Gabrych is somewhat wooden as Eric's first love), but EDGE OF SEVENTEEN manages to hold some interest in its story even when it's not revolutionary...and it is amusing to hear the Bronski Beat again. The really good news in EDGE OF SEVENTEEN also turns out, ultimately, to be the bad news. The film's best two best performances emerge when Stafford and director David Moreton begin to address the confusion of those who don't know how to react when a loved one announces that he's gay. Stephanie McVay has one marvelous scene as Eric's mother, trying to reconcile her feelings about "gay people" with the notion that her son is one. Even better is Tina Holmes as Maggie, whose tries to support Eric even as she deals with her own unrequited crush on him. As sensitively as the filmmakers handle Eric's various experimentations, none of them bear quite the emotional impact of the responses of these two women to Eric's sexual orientation. In general, EDGE OF SEVENTEEN feels neither revelatory nor redundant, merely unfolding with a simple honesty that makes it feel blandly familiar. The strength of two young performers -- particularly Holmes, an actress to watch for -- elevates the film a bit above its like-themed kin, but not as much as a different focus might have done. Perhaps Stephens was too close to the experience of his own coming-out to recognize that the strength of his story was on the periphery. If he had run with that unique angle, he might have been on to a really good film instead of a slightly-above-average story of how someone was never the same after that summer. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 Sandusky nights: 6. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] STAR WARS: EPISODE I coverage Date: 10 May 1999 09:13:01 -0600 (MDT) Subscribers, Due to the Lucasfilm-imposed blackout on online media, I will not be able to attend a preview screening of STAR WARS: EPISODE I to provide pre-release coverage. I will make every effort to provide the earliest possible review, but the unique nature of this release may make attendance difficult. Thank you in advance for your patience. Scott Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/10/99 Date: 10 May 1999 09:35:22 -0600 LOS ANGELES (AP) - Defying analysts, critics and The Force, "The Mummy" bagged this year's biggest opening weekend at the box office with $44.6 million to kick off the blockbuster movie season. The cat-burglar caper "Entrapment" slipped to second place with $12.2 million and the cyberspace adventure "The Matrix" fell to third with $6 million, estimates showed Sunday. With lukewarm reviews, many expected "The Mummy," a special effects-filled story of an ancient Egyptian priest who returns from the dead, to do mediocre business before dropping out of sight when the "Star Wars" prequel opens on May 19. "Actually, it probably did three times as much business as people were expecting," said Robert Bucksbaum, a movie analyst with Reel Source Inc. -=> * <=- NEW YORK (AP) - He describes himself as an independent filmmaker from San Francisco simply out to make a movie for kids. And Cecil B. DeMille made a little Bible story. The man is George Lucas and his movie "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace," which opens later this month, already has fans camping out in anticipation. "We tried very hard to not let the film be overhyped," Lucas insisted Sunday at a New York press conference. "It kind of got out of control and got overhyped anyway. There's not much you can do about that." Lucas said a backlash by the critics is inevitable. -=> * <=- LONDON (AP) - Sir Dirk Bogarde, the British actor who starred in more than 70 films and captured the hearts of many women in the 1950s, died Saturday, his nephew said. He was 78. The British film star, who achieved his greatest fame in "Death in Venice," died of a heart attack at his London home, said Brock Van den Bogaerde. He suffered a damaging stroke in 1996 and had been under 24-hour nursing care since last May. "He was extremely happy and looking forward to events like his 80th birthday and many plans for the future," his nephew said. "I'm sure there is not a better way to go." Born in London on March 28, 1921, Dirk Niven Van den Bogaerde was the son of a former actress and a photograph editor of The Times. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 10 May 1999 12:48:20 -0700 I thought it was a hoot! The effects were a bit wanting, the story extremely pat and convenient, but damn! Didn't Brandon look beautiful? > -----Original Message----- > From: Jason Cormier [SMTP:movieman@netcom.ca] > Sent: Sunday, May 09, 1999 11:52 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > Yeah - I hear ya! You won't find I bigger Indy fan around other than me - > I > am honestly wearing an Indiana Jones T-Shirt right now. So I was hoping > it > wouldn't disgust me with all the rip offs. However - right away we see > that > the movie isn't taking itself too seriously (with the female lead > balancing > on the ladder and knocking over all the books - pretty stupid but it set > the > tone). If it played out like Stargate did - which was very serious - then > it falls flat (imho) and it becomes easy to pick out all the bad > components > of the film. I was lucky that I was in the right mood and I enjoyed the > ride though I understand where you're coming from. I often dislike movies > that the general poplace enjoys (take Stargate or Independence Day for > examples!) > > -----Original Message----- > From: kwhite <kwhite@iwic.net> > To: movies@lists.xmission.com <movies@lists.xmission.com> > Date: Sunday, May 09, 1999 12:28 PM > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > > >Jason, > > > >I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked it. > We > >sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome > however, > >found the special effects the only good thing about it. While watching > it, > I > >couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, they > tried to > >hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story > line. > >Even the music was horrible. > > > >Jason Cormier wrote: > > > >> Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam thank > you > >> mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go into > this > >> movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too seriously. > >> Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and > there > >> seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one is > >> finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's learn > about > >> Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - it is > done > >> in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather once in > a > >> while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last year's > Deep > >> Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. > >> > >> btw - Happy Mummy's day. > >> > >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Chris Culligan" <culligan@gate.net> Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 10 May 1999 22:02:39 -0400 I was disappointed. It wasn't scary. Every time it looked like it might get scary some one made a stupid wisecrack that lightened the mood. The effects were good, but that doesn't mean what it did five years ago. I was expecting a horror film. Instead I got an Indiana Jones movie with bad timing on the comic elements (Indiana Jones didn't have that problem). CHRIS ----- Original Message ----- Sent: Monday, May 10, 1999 2:52 AM > Yeah - I hear ya! You won't find I bigger Indy fan around other than me - I > am honestly wearing an Indiana Jones T-Shirt right now. So I was hoping it > wouldn't disgust me with all the rip offs. However - right away we see that > the movie isn't taking itself too seriously (with the female lead balancing > on the ladder and knocking over all the books - pretty stupid but it set the > tone). If it played out like Stargate did - which was very serious - then > it falls flat (imho) and it becomes easy to pick out all the bad components > of the film. I was lucky that I was in the right mood and I enjoyed the > ride though I understand where you're coming from. I often dislike movies > that the general poplace enjoys (take Stargate or Independence Day for > examples!) > > -----Original Message----- > From: kwhite <kwhite@iwic.net> > To: movies@lists.xmission.com <movies@lists.xmission.com> > Date: Sunday, May 09, 1999 12:28 PM > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > > >Jason, > > > >I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked it. > We > >sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome however, > >found the special effects the only good thing about it. While watching it, > I > >couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, they > tried to > >hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story line. > >Even the music was horrible. > > > >Jason Cormier wrote: > > > >> Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam thank > you > >> mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go into > this > >> movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too seriously. > >> Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and there > >> seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one is > >> finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's learn > about > >> Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - it is > done > >> in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather once in a > >> while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last year's > Deep > >> Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. > >> > >> btw - Happy Mummy's day. > >> > >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Nicole M Monte <umontn00@umail.ucsb.edu> Subject: Re: [MV] Entrapment Review Date: 10 May 1999 20:59:01 -0700 (PDT) On Tue, 4 May 1999, Mel Eperthener wrote: > At 07.36 AM 04/05/99 -0700, Jason Cormier wrote: > >Going into this movie I was expecting bad things. This is always a great > >way to see a movie because even if it's mediocre then it seems like much > >more! > > Good philosophy. The reason I was disappointed in Pleasantville is that it > *looked* so good. I *expected* a great movie, and it wasn't. And > Waterboy, I heard it was sooooo funny, and maybe laughed three times. > > Meanwhile, I actually enjoyed Dead Man on Campus and Night at the Roxbury, > not because they were great movies, but rather because they weren't as bad > as I expected. The unexpected laughter at those movies was more of a > pleasure than the lack of expected laughter at Waterboy. > > Perhaps our mantra should be Star Wars Sucks. It will make the viewing > experience even better:-) > > Regards, > > --Mel > > > --Mel Eperthener > president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty > > email: bcassidy@usaor.net > gowanna@australiamail.com > > http://www.webz.com/gowanna > > 419 Butler Street > PO Box 95184 > Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 > (412) 781-6140 > (412) 781-6380 > 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE > (1-888-454-6926) > ____________________________________________ > "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for > two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" > > --Dana Scully > ______________________________________________ > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > I saw Dead Man On Campus and felt it was torture to get through. On the other hand I thought Pleasantville, while at times was a little too much, ended up being a really entertaining film. The entire idea of Pleasantville was so clever and the effects where so good that I loved it. On the other hand I thought Dead Man On Campus was a no brainer and worse yet a terrible no brainer. As for Entrappment, I could not get into a movie where a man who is almost seventy has a love interest who is not even thirty! -- Nicole M Monte umontn00@umail.ucsb.edu [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: ANDY <s07722@cc.ntnu.edu.tw> Subject: [MV] Re: Date: 11 May 1999 16:30:06 +0800 "Just Different." =BCg=B9D=A1G > unsubscribe movies > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: manuel morrens <mmorrens@minf.vub.ac.be> Subject: [MV] Re: eXistenZ Date: 11 May 1999 12:26:13 +0200 --------------FB6EF0D074DAA6EE9556D6B8 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Okay maybe some of you didn't/will not like it, but I thought it was brilliant> It was quite original and that's what really turns me on in movies. Cronenberg is just the kind of director you love or otherwise you hate him. But this picture was his best one so far. What I loved is that the SF-part in this movie is not really in the images (except for the bio-gun and the pods), but it's rather in the story. That's why I loved GATTACA so much, for example, one of the best movies from this decade. I taped VIDEODROME (the only other movie from Cronenberg he wrote himself) the other night and will see it one of these days, ...my expectations are very high..... --------------FB6EF0D074DAA6EE9556D6B8 Content-Type: text/html; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit <HTML> <PRE>Okay maybe some of you didn't/will not like it, but I thought it was brilliant></PRE> <PRE>It was quite original and that's what really turns me on in movies.</PRE> <PRE>Cronenberg is just the kind of director you love or otherwise you hate him. But this</PRE> <PRE>picture was his best one so far.</PRE> <PRE> What I loved is that the SF-part in this movie is not really in the images</PRE> <PRE>(except for the bio-gun and the pods), but it's rather in the story. That's why I loved GATTACA so much,</PRE> <PRE>for example, one of the best movies from this decade.</PRE> <PRE>I taped VIDEODROME (the only other movie from Cronenberg he wrote himself) the other night and will</PRE> <PRE>see it one of these days, ...my expectations are very high.....</PRE> </HTML> --------------FB6EF0D074DAA6EE9556D6B8-- [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Wade Snider <wsnider@brazoselectric.com> Subject: RE: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 11 May 1999 08:43:28 +0100 I agree with Jason's comments. I loved watching Indy growing up, and have lamented a lot of the attempts to copy it for the past 18 years. The Mummy steals a lot of this action subgenre cliches, as well as some of those from the old adventure serials of the 30s and 40s, and then it does have a weak story and some seriously CHEAP dialogue. All these characters somehow felt the need to make a corny wisecrack before or after every little action sequence. "This just keeps getting better and better." "We are in serious trouble."(repeated a few times in the movie) and you have a typical swashbuckling American, a klutzy educated female, a comical and shifty supporting character in the lead female's brother. You have a secret society of egyptians, bumbling yet forcefully brash competing Americans, and so on. Sure, you see just how good the Indiana Jones movies really were when compared to a movie like this. I don't think it is intended to be scary, and it isn't. There were still some funny moments here and there, and laughingly groaning at the cheap dialogue made the movie fun. One of my favorite throwaway lines was when the lead actress is investigating a noise in the museum and as she tip-toes through the room she calls out gently, "Abdul? Mohammed? Bob?" I laughed. Yeah, the movie is packed with cliches and ripoffs and corny lines, but even so I enjoyed it a lot. I don't think the producers were trying to make something original; and they probably knew the movie was corny and silly. But, it moved at a rapid pace and never really lagged. As Jason said, the movie never took itself too seriously, and if you sit back and relax, it is easy to enjoy. It's just simple fluffy candy, but it is quite fun. Add better dialogue and some original story lines, and this is how action-adventure movies should be. Wade > -----Original Message----- > From: Chris Culligan [SMTP:culligan@gate.net] > Sent: Monday, May 10, 1999 9:03 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > I was disappointed. It wasn't scary. Every time it looked like it might > get scary some one made a stupid wisecrack that lightened the mood. The > effects were good, but that doesn't mean what it did five years ago. I > was > expecting a horror film. Instead I got an Indiana Jones movie with bad > timing on the comic elements (Indiana Jones didn't have that problem). > > CHRIS > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Jason Cormier <movieman@netcom.ca> > To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> > Sent: Monday, May 10, 1999 2:52 AM > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > > > Yeah - I hear ya! You won't find I bigger Indy fan around other than me > - > I > > am honestly wearing an Indiana Jones T-Shirt right now. So I was hoping > it > > wouldn't disgust me with all the rip offs. However - right away we see > that > > the movie isn't taking itself too seriously (with the female lead > balancing > > on the ladder and knocking over all the books - pretty stupid but it set > the > > tone). If it played out like Stargate did - which was very serious - > then > > it falls flat (imho) and it becomes easy to pick out all the bad > components > > of the film. I was lucky that I was in the right mood and I enjoyed the > > ride though I understand where you're coming from. I often dislike > movies > > that the general poplace enjoys (take Stargate or Independence Day for > > examples!) > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: kwhite <kwhite@iwic.net> > > To: movies@lists.xmission.com <movies@lists.xmission.com> > > Date: Sunday, May 09, 1999 12:28 PM > > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > > > > > >Jason, > > > > > >I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked > it. > > We > > >sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome > however, > > >found the special effects the only good thing about it. While watching > it, > > I > > >couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, they > > tried to > > >hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story > line. > > >Even the music was horrible. > > > > > >Jason Cormier wrote: > > > > > >> Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam > thank > > you > > >> mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go into > > this > > >> movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too > seriously. > > >> Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and > there > > >> seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one is > > >> finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's learn > > about > > >> Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - it > is > > done > > >> in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather once > in > a > > >> while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last year's > > Deep > > >> Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. > > >> > > >> btw - Happy Mummy's day. > > >> > > >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > > > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Josh Pritchard <josh@flashpt.com> Subject: RE: [MV] The Mummy review (SPOILERS) Date: 11 May 1999 10:02:20 -0400 At 08:43 AM 5/11/99 +0100, you wrote: >I agree with Jason's comments. I loved watching Indy growing up, and have >lamented a lot of the attempts to copy it for the past 18 years. The Mummy >steals a lot of this action subgenre cliches, as well as some of those from >the old adventure serials of the 30s and 40s, and then it does have a weak >story and some seriously CHEAP dialogue. All these characters somehow felt >the need to make a corny wisecrack before or after every little action >sequence. "This just keeps getting better and better." "We are in serious >trouble."(repeated a few times in the movie) and you have a typical >swashbuckling American, a klutzy educated female, a comical and shifty >supporting character in the lead female's brother. You have a secret society >of egyptians, bumbling yet forcefully brash competing Americans, and so on. >Sure, you see just how good the Indiana Jones movies really were when >compared to a movie like this. I don't think it is intended to be scary, and >it isn't. There were still some funny moments here and there, and laughingly >groaning at the cheap dialogue made the movie fun. One of my favorite >throwaway lines was when the lead actress is investigating a noise in the >museum and as she tip-toes through the room she calls out gently, "Abdul? >Mohammed? Bob?" I laughed. > >Yeah, the movie is packed with cliches and ripoffs and corny lines, but even >so I enjoyed it a lot. I don't think the producers were trying to make >something original; and they probably knew the movie was corny and silly. >But, it moved at a rapid pace and never really lagged. As Jason said, the >movie never took itself too seriously, and if you sit back and relax, it is >easy to enjoy. It's just simple fluffy candy, but it is quite fun. Add >better dialogue and some original story lines, and this is how >action-adventure movies should be. > >Wade Just to throw in my own $.02 ... (And be warned that spoilers follow) I just saw THE MUMMY last night and I would have to agree with Jason and Wade. The movie was rather painful in parts - the digitized background in the opening sequence were particularly painful, especially when contrasted with some of the other special effects, ie. Imotep stepping out of the travelling sandspout - but the overall feel seemed to be that the directors/producers/actors were purposely making a movie that took shots and mocked/honored the old 30's and 40's adventure movies. The perfect example of this would be the scene where Evie has stolen the book of Dead ... "I don't think you should read that" "Oh, nothing bad comes from reading a book" *wind almost blows out fire in ominous foreshadowing moment* "That happens alot around here" It was a more tongue-in-cheek style but it follows a lot of recent movie releases - SCREAM, IDLE HANDS - where the characters know the rules of the type of movie that they are in. This was similar, but not recognized by the characters. The actors and director kept making little winks and nods to the audience ("rescue the damsel in distress, kill the bad guy and save the world", "little men like you always get their come-upance") to show that we were all in on the joke and the style. For the most part, it was cute ... and horribly, horribly long ... it would have been much better with about 20 mintues trimmed off. But on the whole, a fun movie that did what it set out to do ... mock and tribute a style and provide 2 hours of brain candy. Josh Pritchard Network Administrator, Flashpoint Inc. jpritchard@flashpt.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] The Mummy review Date: 11 May 1999 11:02:11 -0700 Did anyone else see the effect Sam Raimi had on the director? This guy must have LOVED Army of Darkness... > -----Original Message----- > From: Wade Snider [SMTP:wsnider@brazoselectric.com] > Sent: Tuesday, May 11, 1999 12:43 AM > To: 'movies@lists.xmission.com' > Subject: RE: [MV] The Mummy review > > I agree with Jason's comments. I loved watching Indy growing up, and have > lamented a lot of the attempts to copy it for the past 18 years. The Mummy > steals a lot of this action subgenre cliches, as well as some of those > from > the old adventure serials of the 30s and 40s, and then it does have a weak > story and some seriously CHEAP dialogue. All these characters somehow felt > the need to make a corny wisecrack before or after every little action > sequence. "This just keeps getting better and better." "We are in serious > trouble."(repeated a few times in the movie) and you have a typical > swashbuckling American, a klutzy educated female, a comical and shifty > supporting character in the lead female's brother. You have a secret > society > of egyptians, bumbling yet forcefully brash competing Americans, and so > on. > Sure, you see just how good the Indiana Jones movies really were when > compared to a movie like this. I don't think it is intended to be scary, > and > it isn't. There were still some funny moments here and there, and > laughingly > groaning at the cheap dialogue made the movie fun. One of my favorite > throwaway lines was when the lead actress is investigating a noise in the > museum and as she tip-toes through the room she calls out gently, "Abdul? > Mohammed? Bob?" I laughed. > > Yeah, the movie is packed with cliches and ripoffs and corny lines, but > even > so I enjoyed it a lot. I don't think the producers were trying to make > something original; and they probably knew the movie was corny and silly. > But, it moved at a rapid pace and never really lagged. As Jason said, the > movie never took itself too seriously, and if you sit back and relax, it > is > easy to enjoy. It's just simple fluffy candy, but it is quite fun. Add > better dialogue and some original story lines, and this is how > action-adventure movies should be. > > Wade > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Chris Culligan [SMTP:culligan@gate.net] > > Sent: Monday, May 10, 1999 9:03 PM > > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > > > I was disappointed. It wasn't scary. Every time it looked like it > might > > get scary some one made a stupid wisecrack that lightened the mood. The > > effects were good, but that doesn't mean what it did five years ago. I > > was > > expecting a horror film. Instead I got an Indiana Jones movie with bad > > timing on the comic elements (Indiana Jones didn't have that problem). > > > > CHRIS > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > > From: Jason Cormier <movieman@netcom.ca> > > To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> > > Sent: Monday, May 10, 1999 2:52 AM > > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > > > > > > Yeah - I hear ya! You won't find I bigger Indy fan around other than > me > > - > > I > > > am honestly wearing an Indiana Jones T-Shirt right now. So I was > hoping > > it > > > wouldn't disgust me with all the rip offs. However - right away we > see > > that > > > the movie isn't taking itself too seriously (with the female lead > > balancing > > > on the ladder and knocking over all the books - pretty stupid but it > set > > the > > > tone). If it played out like Stargate did - which was very serious - > > then > > > it falls flat (imho) and it becomes easy to pick out all the bad > > components > > > of the film. I was lucky that I was in the right mood and I enjoyed > the > > > ride though I understand where you're coming from. I often dislike > > movies > > > that the general poplace enjoys (take Stargate or Independence Day for > > > examples!) > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > > From: kwhite <kwhite@iwic.net> > > > To: movies@lists.xmission.com <movies@lists.xmission.com> > > > Date: Sunday, May 09, 1999 12:28 PM > > > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review > > > > > > > > > >Jason, > > > > > > > >I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked > > it. > > > We > > > >sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome > > however, > > > >found the special effects the only good thing about it. While > watching > > it, > > > I > > > >couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, > they > > > tried to > > > >hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story > > line. > > > >Even the music was horrible. > > > > > > > >Jason Cormier wrote: > > > > > > > >> Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam > > thank > > > you > > > >> mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go > into > > > this > > > >> movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too > > seriously. > > > >> Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and > > there > > > >> seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one > is > > > >> finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's > learn > > > about > > > >> Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - > it > > is > > > done > > > >> in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather > once > > in > > a > > > >> while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last > year's > > > Deep > > > >> Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. > > > >> > > > >> btw - Happy Mummy's day. > > > >> > > > >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > > >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > > > > > > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > > >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > > > > > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > > > > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/11/99 Date: 11 May 1999 13:25:08 -0600 LOS ANGELES (AP) - "The Mummy" burst into North American theaters with a record $43.4 million box office take, the largest non-summer opening in movie history and ninth among the top 10 all-time opening weekends. The success of the Universal Pictures remake of the 1932 Boris Karloff classic even caught studio executives by surprise. Universal Studios president Ron Meyer had expected something around $30 million. Starring Brendan Fraser and packed with special effects, "The Mummy" opening was Universal's third biggest after "The Lost World: Jurrasic Park" ($90.2 million) and "Jurassic Park" ($47 million). [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review & Sam Raimi Date: 12 May 1999 01:45:17 -0700 No kidding eh! Luckily I am a huge fan of Raimi - from his Evil Dead days to The Quick and the Dead to Darkman and finally to A Simple Plan - all of them were great fun. e has fun with his camera which is usually refreshing to watch! I alwas look forward to his movies - although his next one seems like a sell out - Kevin Costner - for the love of the game...urghhh -----Original Message----- >Did anyone else see the effect Sam Raimi had on the director? This guy must >have LOVED Army of Darkness... > >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Wade Snider [SMTP:wsnider@brazoselectric.com] >> Sent: Tuesday, May 11, 1999 12:43 AM >> To: 'movies@lists.xmission.com' >> Subject: RE: [MV] The Mummy review >> >> I agree with Jason's comments. I loved watching Indy growing up, and have >> lamented a lot of the attempts to copy it for the past 18 years. The Mummy >> steals a lot of this action subgenre cliches, as well as some of those >> from >> the old adventure serials of the 30s and 40s, and then it does have a weak >> story and some seriously CHEAP dialogue. All these characters somehow felt >> the need to make a corny wisecrack before or after every little action >> sequence. "This just keeps getting better and better." "We are in serious >> trouble."(repeated a few times in the movie) and you have a typical >> swashbuckling American, a klutzy educated female, a comical and shifty >> supporting character in the lead female's brother. You have a secret >> society >> of egyptians, bumbling yet forcefully brash competing Americans, and so >> on. >> Sure, you see just how good the Indiana Jones movies really were when >> compared to a movie like this. I don't think it is intended to be scary, >> and >> it isn't. There were still some funny moments here and there, and >> laughingly >> groaning at the cheap dialogue made the movie fun. One of my favorite >> throwaway lines was when the lead actress is investigating a noise in the >> museum and as she tip-toes through the room she calls out gently, "Abdul? >> Mohammed? Bob?" I laughed. >> >> Yeah, the movie is packed with cliches and ripoffs and corny lines, but >> even >> so I enjoyed it a lot. I don't think the producers were trying to make >> something original; and they probably knew the movie was corny and silly. >> But, it moved at a rapid pace and never really lagged. As Jason said, the >> movie never took itself too seriously, and if you sit back and relax, it >> is >> easy to enjoy. It's just simple fluffy candy, but it is quite fun. Add >> better dialogue and some original story lines, and this is how >> action-adventure movies should be. >> >> Wade >> >> > -----Original Message----- >> > From: Chris Culligan [SMTP:culligan@gate.net] >> > Sent: Monday, May 10, 1999 9:03 PM >> > To: movies@lists.xmission.com >> > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review >> > >> > I was disappointed. It wasn't scary. Every time it looked like it >> might >> > get scary some one made a stupid wisecrack that lightened the mood. The >> > effects were good, but that doesn't mean what it did five years ago. I >> > was >> > expecting a horror film. Instead I got an Indiana Jones movie with bad >> > timing on the comic elements (Indiana Jones didn't have that problem). >> > >> > CHRIS >> > >> > ----- Original Message ----- >> > From: Jason Cormier <movieman@netcom.ca> >> > To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> >> > Sent: Monday, May 10, 1999 2:52 AM >> > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review >> > >> > >> > > Yeah - I hear ya! You won't find I bigger Indy fan around other than >> me >> > - >> > I >> > > am honestly wearing an Indiana Jones T-Shirt right now. So I was >> hoping >> > it >> > > wouldn't disgust me with all the rip offs. However - right away we >> see >> > that >> > > the movie isn't taking itself too seriously (with the female lead >> > balancing >> > > on the ladder and knocking over all the books - pretty stupid but it >> set >> > the >> > > tone). If it played out like Stargate did - which was very serious - >> > then >> > > it falls flat (imho) and it becomes easy to pick out all the bad >> > components >> > > of the film. I was lucky that I was in the right mood and I enjoyed >> the >> > > ride though I understand where you're coming from. I often dislike >> > movies >> > > that the general poplace enjoys (take Stargate or Independence Day for >> > > examples!) >> > > >> > > -----Original Message----- >> > > From: kwhite <kwhite@iwic.net> >> > > To: movies@lists.xmission.com <movies@lists.xmission.com> >> > > Date: Sunday, May 09, 1999 12:28 PM >> > > Subject: Re: [MV] The Mummy review >> > > >> > > >> > > >Jason, >> > > > >> > > >I went to see this with some friends last night. I'm glad you liked >> > it. >> > > We >> > > >sure didn't. From the previews, I was expecting something awesome >> > however, >> > > >found the special effects the only good thing about it. While >> watching >> > it, >> > > I >> > > >couldn't help but wonder where Harrison Ford was. In my opinion, >> they >> > > tried to >> > > >hard to make this an Indiana Jones kind of movie without a good story >> > line. >> > > >Even the music was horrible. >> > > > >> > > >Jason Cormier wrote: >> > > > >> > > >> Wow! What a hoot! If you are looking for some of that slam-bam >> > thank >> > > you >> > > >> mam summer-time action- then you have found it in the Mummy. Go >> into >> > > this >> > > >> movie expecting to see a movie that does NOT take itself too >> > seriously. >> > > >> Everything here is just for fun. The action is very fast paced and >> > there >> > > >> seems to be a new action sequence starting right when the last one >> is >> > > >> finishing up. There are no lengthy romance sub plots or 'let's >> learn >> > > about >> > > >> Egyptian times' sub plots - although both of these things occur - >> it >> > is >> > > done >> > > >> in between all the action so that it is nice to have a breather >> once >> > in >> > a >> > > >> while! A great way to kick off the summer (as opposed to last >> year's >> > > Deep >> > > >> Impact or Twister the year before that). I give it a funky 80%. >> > > >> >> > > >> btw - Happy Mummy's day. >> > > >> >> > > >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> > > >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to @xmission.com ] >> > > > >> > > > >> > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> > > >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] >> > > > >> > > >> > > >> > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> > > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] >> > > >> > >> > >> > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] >> >> [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >> [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: [MV] Election review Date: 12 May 1999 01:55:50 -0700 Read this review! Good comedies are very rare. When I say good I mean comedies that give us more than just physical prat falls and bodily fluid references. Election, like it's high school comedy predecessor Rushmore, is one of those good comedies. Intricate characters and relationships, great comic timing fromt he actors, coherent plot, wacky musical score and a funny, funny script! This is not a movie for teenagers - it is definitely a movie for everyone who has ever been to high school! Reese Withspoon is fantastic as is all the other actors in this movie who seem to play against type when needed though some played as a parody of a stereotype which worked well too! For a cheesey finale I will say that "I vote for Election" as the funniest movie of the year! An hilarious 92%. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Gregory A. Swarthout" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Star Wars, Episode 1 (First Impressions) Date: 12 May 1999 10:23:18 -0600 Press screening was last night. The film is somewhere around "Return of the Jedi" in terms of quality and appeal. A lesser effort, but still great fun. Anakin Skywalker is given far too much screen time, an obvious attempt to appeal to a young audience. The pod race sequence wasn't as exciting as it should have been, and there was this funky medical explanation for why The Force is stronger is some rather than others. Darth Maul didn't have much of a personality and so wasn't a very compelling villain. Still, in all, the movie was a good time with some pretty cool effects. Don't have your expectations set too high and you won't be disappointed. I wasn't. Greg [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM Date: 12 May 1999 10:27:29 -0600 (MDT) WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM (Fox Searchlight) Starring: Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfeiffer, Rupert Everett, Stanley Tucci, Calista Flockhart, Anna Friel, Christian Bale, Dominic West, David Strathairn, Sophie Marceau. Screenplay: Michael Hoffman, based on the play by William Shakespeare. Producers: Leslie Urdang and Michael Hoffman. Director: Michael Hoffman. MPAA Rating: PG-13 (adult themes, brief nudity) Running Time: 115 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. The cinematic cynic in me suspects that the lofty, unwieldy title of WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM has as much to do with timely marketing as it does with a nod to literary fidelity. After all, when adults are flocking to the Oscar-winning SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE and teens are catching "The Taming of the Shrew" turned into 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, the Bard would seem to be riding a unique wave of cross-demographic hipness. Then again, Shakespeare has always been pitched both at the gallery and at the groundlings, mixing the matters of kings with the matters of clowns. To that extent, this MIDSUMMER NIGHT is truly William Shakespeare's in its mix of disparate elements, with all the delights and potential pitfalls that accompany them. Writer/director Michael Hoffman transports the tale from Greece to 19th century Tuscany, where many plotlines swirl around the impending wedding of Duke Theseus (David Strathairn) and Hippolyta (Sophie Marceau). Hermia (Anna Friel), the daughter of one of Theseus' courtiers, is forcefully engaged to marry Demetrius (Christian Bale), but Hermia instead shares a love with Lysander (Dominic West). Demetrius, meanwhile, is the object of affection of Hermia's childhood friend Helena (Calista Flockhart). Another thread finds a group of amateur actors, led by the weaver Nick Bottom (Kevin Kline), preparing a play to be performed for the Duke's wedding, perhaps to receive an award if it is well-liked. The paths of these characters all cross in the nearby forest, where complications ensue as the machinations of the Fairy King Oberon (Rupert Everett) and his mischievous servant Puck (Stanley Tucci) -- aided by a little love potion -- cause every romantic entaglement to become further entangled. At its most basic level, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM is a precursor to bedroom farce without the slamming doors (doors being hard to come by in the forest). As the enchanted lovers become a circle of frustration -- Lysander is made to love Helena, who still loves Demetrius, who still loves Hermia, who still loves Lysander -- saucy exchanges alternate with good old-fashioned female mud wrestling. It takes more than a little while for the film to find its pacing, hindered by the atypically awkward work of Strathairn, but once the pleasantly low-tech, stage-set world of the forest becomes the focus, the high and low comedy both begin working. The one major hindrance may be the clash of acting styles: while Bale, Friel and West go for pure Royal Shakespeare, Flockhart plays Helena as a neurotic mess fretting over her appearance a la Ally McBeal. It's an interesting interpretation, but one that doesn't always mesh with the other players. The other major sub-plot becomes both A MIDSUMMER NIGHT DREAM's high point and its source of greatest disappointment. Kevin Kline, turning in one of his better performances, plays Nick Bottom as a wonderfully tragi-comic sadsack, an unhappily married laborer with grand dreams of how the stage will offer him a chance at greatness. When he is simultaneously transformed into an ass and into the object of desire of the love potion-affected Fairy Queen Titania (Michelle Pfeiffer), it's touching to note how his moment of glory makes him oblivious to his physical state. Unfortunately, Hoffman doesn't exploit Kline's performance for all it can offer, never really delivering a satisfying resolution to the character he has set up. He does, however, build to a wonderfully comic climax as the actors finally perform their play within the play. The bumbling performance is pure slapstick -- malapropped lines, misaligned props, over-the-top acting and, to quote SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, a bit with a dog. The one nice twist comes as Flute (Sam Rockwell), the actor-in-drag performing the ingenue in the play, breaks from character to deliver an earnest paean to true love. It's a sweet note on which to end a play of sometimes discordant tones, perhaps making this DREAM seem less uneven that it should. The course of this tale about the course of true love never does run smooth; it merely offers a fanciful comedy deserving enough of the author's name. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 enchanted forests: 7. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: maillist@moviejuice.com Subject: [MV] MovieJuice! - ADVANCE - STAR WARS I: THE PHANTOM MENACE - Zen Hur Date: 12 May 1999 13:25:04 -0400 (EDT) SPECIAL THANKS THIS WEEKà. To Jami Bernard, film critic of the New York Daily News, who sent me a kind and complimentary note about MovieJuice! Thanks, Jami. Enjoy Cannes. ******************** STAR WARS I: THE PHANTOM MENACE - ZEN HUR by Mark Ramsey http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/starwars.htm May 12, 1999 Repeat after me: It's only a movie...It's only a movie. Welcome to the gloriously Ewok-free Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace, the second movie about chosen ones this Spring, but the first with computer-animated fart jokes. Damn, computers can do anything. Fasten your seatbelts, kids, it's Obi-Wan Toad's Wild Ride! A thunderous approval rang out in the theater at the first appearance of everyone's favorite droid, R2D2. Like it or not, we live in a world where R2D2 gets more applause than Elia Kazan. Then again, Elia never fixed a shield generator and R2 never turned tail on the Rebel Alliance or did his best work with Marlon the Hut. Every story has a beginning and every universe has its Jerry Lewis. Here it's the virtually unintelligible "Jar Jar Binks." Rasta rabbit, funny bunny, one part Chris Tucker and two parts Scooby Doo. Picture Chewbacca with A.D.D. and a gnawing propensity for pig-latin. Silly Binks, Trix are for kids! "Ex-squeeze Me," says Jar Jar Berle, as the Friars Club guffaws uncontrollably. Enter the fifth Teletubby. "Uh-Ohhhhhh!" Jar Jar Binks? Either some sorry soul at Lucasfilm posed the question: "What would it look like if a migraine headache could walk and talk?" or somebody's serving tainted shitake 'shrooms at the Lucas Ranch commissary. You guys, stop inhaling the hemp mousepads! Don't eat the brown trail mix! When Jar Jar opened his mouth to speak, my first thought was: "You're kidding. For the whole movie?!" How long can Liam Neeson stand it before he hauls off and slugs this guy? Is this why Bill Gates wanted to limit us all to 640K? "The force is strong with this one," says Liam, "the force of my Jedi fist in his rabbity face, that is. Here's your Scooby Snack!" Fuzzy wuzzy was a universe. There are five humans in this movie (four of them speaking in monotone - including Queen Amygdala and Mace Ventura) and about a million imaginative psychedelic bad-trip animation hallucinations. It's the "dark side" alright. The Dark Side of the Moon. And Liam is desperately searching out a bag of chips and some dip for epic noshing. "Fear is the path of the dark side," says Master Yoda, "and look how cool that fluorescent poster looks in the black light. Farrah's eyes are following me!" Check out the crazy wardrobe on the Queen's Banana Republican Guard! Is Natalie Portman Queen of the Streisand Fans? What are these guys fighting, Studio Fifty-War? "Look out for the blasters, boys! It's raining men!" What's with the frog-faced bad guys? They talk like Martin Short in Father of the Bride. "The Vedding needs to haff da Svans, and da Jedi haff escaped!" What's with the Tex Avery droids? There's so much animated madcap hilarity I expected to see coyotes dropping anvils on road runners. C3-Tom and R2-Jerry-2, where are you? Too many silly symphonies and merry melodies, if you ask me. What's with the fresh-faced but classically untrained kids? Is this the best that emotionally unfulfilled and vicarious-living stage mothers can offer nowadays? In this galaxy, the cartoons are better actors than the juveniles. Young Annakin is the leader of the Huggies Alliance. His job: Escape slavery, save the Universe, and - most importantly - learn to wear big boy underpants. Not necessarily in that order. Just when we thought we knew everything about the Star Wars universe, we learn about "mitichloreans" - tiny buggers inside every Jedi's cells that speak to you of the force. Equipped with gull-wing doors and familiar as time machines in the Back to the Future series, mitichloreans are "the God within you" baby. Plus they're cool on the road and help you meet chicks. Now don't get the wrong idea! This new chapter is a fitting introduction to that most epic of mythic space epics. The John Williams score is dynamite, the sound is brilliant, the pictures are richly detailed and ferociously eye-popping, the chariot...er...pod racing sequence is absolutely killer (although it has next to nothing to do with the plot) and the Darth Maul light saber scenes (featuring the Darth Maul Choir) are the most thrilling stuff George has put on film since Suzanne Somers in a white T-Bird (well before her days as a Jedi Thigh-master, I might add). Don't look for me to dis Mr. Lucas. That guy's a precious natural resource, even if the Criterion DVD of Radioland Murders isn't your cup of tea. And he'll have to sink to Star Wars 65 before he reaches the bottomless lows of crap like The Fifth Element. Although, come to think of it, more jugs jugs and less Jar Jar couldn't hurt, George, if you know what I mean. I'm not giving anything away to say the end of this movie is vaguely familiar. Just add a Monorail, a Main Street Electrical Parade, and a chorus of droids chiming in on "It's a Small World After All." All in all, George's toon-town does not disappoint. But don't let your ridiculous expectations (and they are, believe me) get the best of you. Remember, it's only a movie....It's only a movie. Copyright 1999 Mark Ramsey. All rights reserved. NO PORTION MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR. ******************** HAVE YOU SEEN THE MOVIEJUICE STAR WARS PARODY TRAILER? Available now, in glorious postage-stamp sized RealVideo, at: http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/starwars_trailer.htm ******************** CATHERINE ZETA-JONES SPEAKS! New this week at MovieJuice.com: I interview Catherine Zeta-Jones and damn if she isn't trying to come on to me! Beware an utter lack of context. Check out the RealAudio interview at: http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/zetajones.htm ******************** DONÆT FORGET TO VISIT MOVIEJUICE.COM! Hey, kids, don't forget to visit the MovieJuice! Site at http://www.moviejuice.com. The pictures are half the fun (and sometimes more than half the laughs)! ******************** TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS LIST: DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL! Just go to http://www.moviejuice.com and follow the directions at the top of the left frame. It's very easy. NOTE: YOUR NAME CANNOT BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST UNLESS YOU UNSUBSCRIBE USING THE EMAIL ADDRESS YOU REGISTERED WITH). And don't write me lots of mean-spirited crap. I won't read it. ******************** IF YOUR LINES AREN'T WRAPPINGà Your browser and/or email client (why DO they call it that?) has a setting called "Wrap Long Lines." Select it! [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/12/99 Date: 12 May 1999 11:52:34 -0600 CANNES, France (AP) - There should be plenty of stars ambling along the famed boardwalk at Cannes this year. But a few others will be sorely missed. Namely: Liam Neeson, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Neither the long-awaited new "Star Wars" movie nor "Eyes Wide Shut," Stanley Kubrick's final film, will be on the bill when the 52nd annual Film Festival kicks into gear on Wednesday. Not for lack of trying. Festival head Gilles Jacob asked for both films, but was turned down - a victim, he says, of Hollywood's desire to save its splashy openings for U.S. shores. -=> * <=- LOS ANGELES (AP) - You can buy the toys, hear the music, speculate about the plot, download the trailer, and starting Wednesday, you can even buy tickets for "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace," a movie premiere still a week away. For fans, distributor 20th Century Fox and theater operators, the start of advance ticket sales at 3 p.m. EDT Wednesday is an event nearly as big as the movie itself. Ticket sellers were gearing up for the onslaught by adding staff and equipment. MovieFone, the company that sells tickets over the telephone and Internet, boosted its Web capacity to enable 10 times more people than usual to use the service. The company also increased its telephone capacity by 30%. -=> * <=- LOS ANGELES (AP) - Elizabeth Taylor is planning a comeback. "I'm feeling better today than I have for years. Charity work and creating perfumes have been keeping me busy, but the positive reactions I've received from my recent public activities make me want to get back to work," the actress said Monday. The 67-year-old Oscar winner for "Butterfield 8" in 1960 and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" in 1966 has been beset with health problems, including a broken back last year and lengthy recuperation from hip surgeries. Taylor has appeared in a few projects in recent years but has spent much time raising money and awareness for AIDS causes and launching the fragrances White Diamonds and Passion. -=> * <=- PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Elizabeth Dole took a jab at the entertainment industry Tuesday, saying TV and movie executives should take into account the effect of sex and violence on young minds. "The Hollywood folks have got to realize with their First Amendment rights come responsibilities in terms of what is presented to our children, because kids tend to emulate what they see," the Republican presidential candidate told reporters after a speech to 1,500 people at the 15th annual Philadelphia Leadership Prayer Breakfast. "There's far too much violence and casual sex and all the rest today," she said. Dole's husband, former GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole, was a critic of the entertainment industry during the 1996 campaign. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 12 May 1999 15:05:44 -0400 I'm trying to keep this spoiler-free for Phantom Menace (unless you consider the acknowledgement of bad reviews spoilers), but will be mentioning some of the items from the other SW movies. First, hats off to Mr Ramsey. As usual, he is irrevelent and somewhat maddening in his review. Nearly fell off my chair:-) Second, need I remind everyone that "history is written by the winners". As many of the members of the online community weren't even born in 1977, please let me remind you of some facts that came before the legend. Star Wars did NOT have universal flattering reviews some (many??) of them were downright negative. As I said before, Lucas didn't even expect the first film to make any money. It even started off slowly. I do not recall people waiting for the opening (except for maybe the premiere at Mann's); they came later, after word of mouth of the masses caused a stirring. So fear not the negative reviews. Someone said this movie dragged in spots. Guess what?? So did the other three. There are parts of Star Wars where I know that I can go make a bathroom run or get a snack without missing anything cool. Parts of all of the movies drag, especially after the 200th viewing (easily). Hell, I think I even dozed off at the theatre, during the Special Edition, at one point. These movies are what they are. They are not originals. The dialogue and acting are not great. They are simple fairy tales, the battle of good vs evil. Lucas has even admitted as much. But they are wonderful in their simplicity. They are the mythology of our generation. And for all of their shortcomings, they are far and away some of the best filmmaking ever, full stop. So I will be there, no matter where it is playing (tickets here don't even go on sale until Tuesday noon), even at $12 a pop. And I WILL enjoy myself. Negative reviews will not bother me. Remember, even Shakespeare recieved some bad press in his time. And I still stand by my prediction: This will be the first film to crack $1 billion in domestic ticket sales. Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 12 May 1999 13:43:46 -0600 Well said, very well said. To all the "nay-sayers" I say, "Can you do better?" James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Wednesday, May 12, 1999 1:06 PM I'm trying to keep this spoiler-free for Phantom Menace (unless you consider the acknowledgement of bad reviews spoilers), but will be mentioning some of the items from the other SW movies. First, hats off to Mr Ramsey. As usual, he is irrevelent and somewhat maddening in his review. Nearly fell off my chair:-) Second, need I remind everyone that "history is written by the winners". As many of the members of the online community weren't even born in 1977, please let me remind you of some facts that came before the legend. Star Wars did NOT have universal flattering reviews some (many??) of them were downright negative. As I said before, Lucas didn't even expect the first film to make any money. It even started off slowly. I do not recall people waiting for the opening (except for maybe the premiere at Mann's); they came later, after word of mouth of the masses caused a stirring. So fear not the negative reviews. Someone said this movie dragged in spots. Guess what?? So did the other three. There are parts of Star Wars where I know that I can go make a bathroom run or get a snack without missing anything cool. Parts of all of the movies drag, especially after the 200th viewing (easily). Hell, I think I even dozed off at the theatre, during the Special Edition, at one point. These movies are what they are. They are not originals. The dialogue and acting are not great. They are simple fairy tales, the battle of good vs evil. Lucas has even admitted as much. But they are wonderful in their simplicity. They are the mythology of our generation. And for all of their shortcomings, they are far and away some of the best filmmaking ever, full stop. So I will be there, no matter where it is playing (tickets here don't even go on sale until Tuesday noon), even at $12 a pop. And I WILL enjoy myself. Negative reviews will not bother me. Remember, even Shakespeare recieved some bad press in his time. And I still stand by my prediction: This will be the first film to crack $1 billion in domestic ticket sales. Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: MrMovie008@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 12 May 1999 17:10:03 EDT I got my self some tickets today. I only had to stand in line for 3 1/2 hours. Which isn't to bad considering some people slept outside of theaters over night. Happy ticket sales to everyone, Mr. Movie MrMovie008@aol.com http://place-an-ad.com/MrMovie/ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 11:51:21 -0700 jkrudy wrote: > > Well said, very well said. To all the "nay-sayers" I say, "Can you do > better?" Give me that budget, and that cast, and yes. I would do better. In fact, give me half the budget, a cast of unknowns, and yes. I would still do better. Most of us would. At least the muppets in Jedi were real muppets, not CGI cartoons. People who say "it might not be great, but it's Star Wars, man" are like the people who say "The Mummy had no story, acting, believability... but I enjoyed myself." People, you can get that kind of feeling watching TV. We should expect more from movies. We're paying fat money to get in, we should be given something more than 'light entertainment'. For mine, just because it's Star Wars doesn't give it license to be crap, if anything there's a responsibility to the people who live, breath and eat the stuff, that it should be great. But then, The Waterboy made millions, as did Rush Hour and The Mummy... maybe people want sub-standard films after all. Booooooo Lucas. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: SkipyLlama@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 12 May 1999 22:03:31 EDT > But then, The Waterboy made millions, as did Rush Hour and The > Mummy... maybe people want sub-standard films after all. okay, first off, who's to say what's "sub-standard"? I mean, YOU might not enjoy a movie, and it might have more low-brow appeal than high-brow, but if it's enjoyable to people watching it, damnit, it's good. Secondly, I'm assuming you're not a martial arts movie fan...... If you were, you'd no doubt recognize Jackie Chan for what he is: the most creatvie martial arts movie star alive today. Rush hour was a very impressive movie, not just b/c the dubbing wasn't off (it was non-existent, actually). The fight scenes were the best since supercop, just b/c they were funny. Not that chan should stick to comedy, but it's a welcome break occasionally [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 12:27:07 -0700 SkipyLlama@aol.com wrote: > > Secondly, I'm > assuming you're not a martial arts movie fan...... If you were, you'd no > doubt recognize Jackie Chan for what he is: the most creatvie martial arts > movie star alive today. Au contraire, there would be few who are bigger martial arts movie fans than I. And that's one of the major reasons I didn't like Rush Hour. Chan (who you are correct in saying is a gifted martial arts actor) just completely re-used every fight sequence he's ever used before. Fighting with fridge doors? The whole fighting in chairs thing? The billiard cue bit? Come on, if you've seen three of his films before you've seen those sequences, and done a lot better. Not to mention that as far as racial stereotyping trying to pass as humour, only Lethal Weapon 4 has been worse. And the ending... yawn, what a stinker. > The fight scenes > were the best since supercop, just b/c they were funny. Not that chan should > stick to comedy, but it's a welcome break occasionally Comedy is almost all he does! Let's be serious, the guy's a clown/acrobat. If you want real martial arts expertise, you'd go no further than Jet Li. Rent Fist Of Legend and tell me Jackie Chan is even in the same stratosphere. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: SkipyLlama@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] Jackie Chan- (was, Phantom Tickets) Date: 12 May 1999 22:35:04 EDT > Comedy is almost all he does! Let's be serious, the guy's a > clown/acrobat. If you want real martial arts expertise, you'd go no > further than Jet Li. Rent Fist Of Legend and tell me Jackie Chan is > even in the same stratosphere. by "stick to comedy," I meant the completely ridiculous air that the fight scenes had. This movie, more so than most of his, had a "this isn't real, but it is REALLY cool and pretty funny, too" feel to it. Most of his movies that took themselves that unseriously usually REALLY suck (first strike, for instance.) but I was, as I said, pleasantly surprised by Rush Hour. I've seen fist of legend, and yes, jet li is probably the next Bruce Lee..... god, who knows, I wouldn't be surprised to see him surpass Lee (bruce, that is) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 00:40:31 -0400 At 11.51 AM 13/05/99 -0700, Oz wrote: >Give me that budget, and that cast, and yes. I would do better. >In fact, give me half the budget, a cast of unknowns, and yes. I >would still do better. A cast of unknowns?? You mean like, say, the original??:-) And as I said, the dialogue in the entire series, when you come down to it, is hokey. But this IS our mythology!! Anyone else notice that none of these movies have won anything other than technical Oscars?? In an environment when even the retelling of A Night to Remember won a bunch. >Booooooo Lucas. Now, Oz, tho I don't agree with you all of the time, I do respect your opinion. So please give me your honest answer to these three questions: Have you seen The Phantom Menace yet?? Did you like the original trilogy (or even just Star Wars)?? How does this honestly compare to that movie/series?? Perhaps this is crap. As I don't have any pull, I'll only get to see this movie next Wed morning (if I'm lucky), so I will reserve judgement until then. However, yes, it does get the benefit of the doubt until then, simply because it is the latest chapter of our mythology. (And as soon as I get around to it, my thoughts on the original, 22-year-old movie will be posted on the list in the sig file. Please feel free to subscribe or check out the web page, if you are interested. I had wanted the article done by 19 April (a month before the opening), and now will be lucky to finish before the movie opens. But I will keep plugging away. Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 15:00:01 -0700 Mel Eperthener wrote: > > A cast of unknowns?? You mean like, say, the original??:-) Exactly like the original. > >Booooooo Lucas. > > Now, Oz, tho I don't agree with you all of the time, I do respect your > opinion. So please give me your honest answer to these three questions: > Have you seen The Phantom Menace yet?? Yep. > Did you like the original trilogy (or even just Star Wars)?? Like everyone else, I oohed and aahed at the effects, and hey, it was the 70's, hokey dialogue was the norm, so yeah, I liked the original. Why? Because it was history in the making. You just knew that films would never be the same. But was that a good thing? In the same way that the phenomonal success of ABBA turned music into bubblegum pop, so too did the success of Star Wars take control of Hollywood away from the auteurs and put it firmly back into the basket of the money men. Star Wars was a milestone, and technically, just brilliant for it's time, but if you are to be really honest, it was the beginning of what would one day churn out Godzilla. > How does this honestly compare to that movie/series?? This does not compare at all to the original series. For all the problems and half assed scripting of the original three, at least it was characters and story that people had grown to love. Yes, I gave a shit if Han Solo was going to get out of the carbonite. Yes, I wanted to see an Ewok get splatted. And yes, I wanted to unfurl Leia's cinnamon buns. But this is cruddy. We're talking Godzilla, folks. The characters you love are absent. The effects you used to marvel at are overused and underdone. And the concept of goofy CGI characters present throughout the whole damn movie... well, no wonder Liam Neeson has retired. If it was just my opinion, I'd shut the hell up. But I got an email from someone who interviewed people leaving a screening two days ago, and here were the responses he got: │If they took out all of Jar-Jar and the cute stuff it might be watchable.▓ │I didn╣t hate it that much.▓ │There was no line in the women╣s bathroom.▓ │It was the worst Star Wars movie, but George Lucas can now say he╣s made both the best and the worst one.▓ │You knew you were fucked in the first ten minutes.▓ │Not a single character is mentioned in the crawl.▓ │I swear to god it╣s horrible. An abomination.▓ │The longest two hours of your life.▓ │This made the 5th Element look good.▓ │No, this made Dune look good.▓ │I loved the trailer, I loved the video on VH1, I loved everything but the movie itself.▓ │It╣s the disapointment of the millenium.▓ "It's official. I've wasted my life." I feel legitimised. > However, yes, it does get the benefit of the doubt until then, simply > because it is the latest chapter of our mythology. Nah, it's a new mythology. Give me a sequel to Jedi and I'll give it cred. But this is a new franchise, using the name of another. And it's just not a good movie. Sorry all you die-hards, but look at it this way. If you go in expecting shit and it's not that bad, then you'll have a much better time. Think I'll go see Matrix again. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Gregory A. Swarthout" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] [Fwd: BOUNCE movies@lists.xmission.com: Non-member submission from Date: 12 May 1999 23:16:45 -0600 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------D16D63B66802238D5C50DAA9 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit --------------D16D63B66802238D5C50DAA9 Content-Type: message/rfc822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline Envelope-to: gregorys@xmission.com Received: from [198.60.22.7] (helo=lists.xmission.com) by mail.xmission.com with esmtp (Exim 2.12 #1) id 10hmX9-0001DC-00 for gregorys@xmission.com; Wed, 12 May 1999 21:51:43 -0600 Received: from domo by lists.xmission.com with local (Exim 2.05 #1) id 10hmX8-0000W5-00 for gregorys@xmission.com; Wed, 12 May 1999 21:51:42 -0600 Message-Id: <E10hmX8-0000W5-00@lists.xmission.com> X-Mozilla-Status2: 00000000 >From cwtham@sibexlink.com.my Wed May 12 21:51:40 1999 Received: from [161.142.198.74] (helo=sibexlink.com.my) by lists.xmission.com with esmtp (Exim 2.05 #1) id 10hmWx-0000NC-00 for movies@lists.xmission.com; Wed, 12 May 1999 21:51:31 -0600 Received: from dial-up-server.sibexlink.com.my ([161.142.198.75]) by sibexlink.com.my with SMTP (1.37.109.16/16.2) id AA075168746; Thu, 13 May 1999 11:42:26 +0730 Received: from sibexlink.com.my (unverified [161.142.198.136]) by dial-up-server.sibexlink.com.my (EMWAC SMTPRS 0.83) with SMTP id <B0000269753@dial-up-server.sibexlink.com.my>; Thu, 13 May 1999 11:44:44 +0800 Message-Id: <373A4A8B.CCD39B5D@sibexlink.com.my> Organization: http://www.sibexlink.com Sibexlink - The Emerging Markets Data Center X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.5 [en] (Win95; I) X-Accept-Language: en Mime-Version: 1.0 References: <a422989b.246b9458@aol.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit SkipyLlama@aol.com wrote: > by "stick to comedy," I meant the completely ridiculous air that the fight > scenes had. This movie, more so than most of his, had a "this isn't real, > but it is REALLY cool and pretty funny, too" feel to it. Most of his movies > that took themselves that unseriously usually REALLY suck (first strike, for > instance.) but I was, as I said, pleasantly surprised by Rush Hour. I've > seen fist of legend, and yes, jet li is probably the next Bruce Lee..... god, > who knows, I wouldn't be surprised to see him surpass Lee (bruce, that is) Now now, we're comparing 2 different people from 2 different genre here. Jackie Chan had his martial arts training in the opera theatre, together with Samo Hung and (not as popular) Yuen Biao. So it's not really official martial arts training. Jet Li was trained in the Shaolin Temple, if I'm not mistaken and that gives vigourous training which MAKES you a fighter. Not in Jackie Chan's case. Jackie Chan is not as good a fighter as Jet Li. He is probably just a better choreographer (sp). :) But one thing is, he does his own stunts. And most of his movies at the end shows him bleeding and all. So that's one point up for him. Not sure but Jet Li doesn't come across as someone who's as capable as Jackie in that department. Jet Li is very fast with his moves. I guess that should be due to the many years of training. :) Hmm... I'm not too sure about him against Bruce Lee. Pretty arguable, wouldn't you say? I doubt Jackie is able to reach Jet Li's kind of speed in fights. Jet Li is more lithe and agile while Jackie is more brute force. Heh heh heh... And I have to say that humour in Jackie's shows are sort of a must. I can't imagine him in a serious show. Most, if not all, of his movies have humour and him being at the center of it. Now Jet Li is different at that too. He came across very good, in my opinion, in Lethal Weapon 4. Ooo... what a mean bad-ass. :) And I seldom see him really smile. Even in comic situations, he doesn't seem at all natural. It could be due to the character that he's potraying... I don't know... But hey, the whole Jackie Chan vs Jet Li thing is kinda difficult to judge coz I think they're good in their own department and lousy otherwise. Hmm.. that's a bit harsh, but you get the picture. :) Tham in South East Asia. cwtham@sibexlink.com.my http://www.sibexlink.com --------------D16D63B66802238D5C50DAA9-- [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Li vs Chan Date: 13 May 1999 15:19:12 -0700 "Gregory A. Swarthout" wrote: > > Jackie Chan is not as good a fighter as Jet Li. He is probably just a better > choreographer (sp). :) But one thing is, he does his own stunts. And most of his > movies at the end shows him bleeding and all. So that's one point up for him. Not > sure but Jet Li doesn't come across as someone who's as capable as Jackie in that > department. I'm not sure if that doesn't prove Li is smarter too. :) Wish Dan Aykroyd did his own stunts. I'd love to see him bleeding from the head in the credits of duds like Celtic Pride and Blues Brothers 2k. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: SkipyLlama@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] [Fwd: BOUNCE movies@lists.xmission.com: Non-member Date: 13 May 1999 01:22:14 EDT In a message dated 5/13/99 12:16:06 AM Central Daylight Time, gregorys@xmission.com writes: > Jet Li is very fast with his moves. I guess that should be due to the many > years > of training. :) Hmm... I'm not too sure about him against Bruce Lee. Pretty > arguable, wouldn't you say? I doubt Jackie is able to reach Jet Li's kind of > speed in fights. Jet Li is more lithe and agile while Jackie is more brute > force. > Heh heh heh... are you saying Chan is SLOW with his moves?? :-) Chan is just as much agility based as Li, but, as you said, chan is a better choreagrapher. Yes, in pure martial arts, I'd give li the edge in a second. But you can't discount jackie in that department, either. He's a great martial artist, too, but the difference between he and Li is sorta like the difference between John Belushi and Laurence Olivier..... [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 01:37:52 -0400 At 03.00 PM 13/05/99 -0700, Oz wrote: >Like everyone else, I oohed and aahed at the effects, and hey, it >was the 70's, hokey dialogue was the norm > >Star Wars was a milestone, and technically, just brilliant for it's >time, but if you are to be really honest, it was the beginning of >what would one day churn out Godzilla. > >> How does this honestly compare to that movie/series?? > >This does not compare at all to the original series. OK, now at least we can sense where you are coming from. Now, if I could ask another question, it would be WHEN did you see the original?? Remember, I experienced this milestone as a 10-year-old. People like me run our own companies. (People like me?? Hell, even I do that:-). This is why there is a hype about this. My compatriots are closing down for the day and taking their staff. They are acting like 10-year-old again. OK, let me qualify that. One associate of mine had just graduated from Uni when the original was released. He saw it in a small theatre in rural Pennsylvania. Imagine a 40-50 year old acting like a kid again. I HATE doing this, I hate coming down like some 60s reject, saying "You don't know what it was like, man. I was THERE!! Yeah, right over there when Kennedy was shot. And Woodstock?? Oh, you have no idea. It was the Summer of Love, man." I hate coming off like I have some insight because I was there. I watched the original commercials, saw the Star Destroyers. Hey, at first I didn't even want to see the movie. Hell, it was only the third movie I had ever seen!!! (I see three movies in a bad WEEK now:-). And it wasn't prepackaged like it is now. The phenomenon built up from nothing. And it was hokey. And it was hardly original. And it was effects driven. But it was AWESOME!! We had never seen anything like it before. OK, actually we had (Hidden Fortress, etc), but not in this spiffy new package. >> However, yes, it does get the benefit of the doubt until then, simply >> because it is the latest chapter of our mythology. > >Nah, it's a new mythology. Give me a sequel to Jedi and I'll give it >cred. But this is a new franchise, using the name of another. And >it's just not a good movie. I beg to differ. From the beginning (even before Splinter of the Mind's Eye), Lucas planned to do the trilogy, then go back and tackle where Vader came from. We didn't even know that Vader was Luke's father at the time, but we knew that we would go back to the beginning. So it might not compare to the original trilogy, but it was designed from the beginning to fit in. Not that it would be an excuse for being bad. But, as I said, we forget now the bad reviews that preceeded the Summer of 77. Just like EVERYONE in Pittsburgh (even those of us not born yet) was there when Maz (famous baseball player) hit the homerun to win the 1960 World Series, EVERYONE knew that Star Wars was going to be big. Bullshit. > >Sorry all you die-hards, but look at it this way. If you go in >expecting shit and it's not that bad, then you'll have a much better >time. Hey, where have I heard that before?? Yeah, wasn't that my argument??:-) Anyway, Oz, as I said, I do respect your opinion. Won't keep me from the theatre next week, tho. However, should I detest the movie, I will acknowledge that you said so. Then again, should this movie again change the cinematic landscape, I expect that you will stand by your scathing review (and I suspect that you have enough gumption to do just that:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Lillian Lepinath <q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 15:57:07 +1000 Oz wrote: > But this is cruddy. We're talking Godzilla, folks. The characters > you love are absent. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought that, since it's a prequel and all, this movie would be a backgrounder to the events that took/take place in the original three.... Luke, Han and Leia haven't been born yet... Chewie as well most likely (how long do Wookie's live for, anyway?) > If it was just my opinion, I'd shut the hell up. But I got an email > from someone who interviewed people leaving a screening two days > ago, and here were the responses he got: > Okay - negative responses, but what about the positive responses? Who comprised the sample audience? What exactly was the question? (Sorry - the journalism/cultural studies student is screaming to get out here) I mean, you can compile responses anyway you want... that's a wonderful thing about street surveys/vox pops... if you don't get a response you like, you ask another person... i mean - for all of those people who say they loved (sorry for mentioning this...) Titanic, there were people who said it was crap - who felt it was just another film in a genre... > > > However, yes, it does get the benefit of the doubt until then, simply > > because it is the latest chapter of our mythology. > > Nah, it's a new mythology. Give me a sequel to Jedi and I'll give it > cred. But this is a new franchise, using the name of another. And > it's just not a good movie. Perhaps the beginning of the mythology? Just a thought... TeckerDaze. -- __\/__ . / ^ _ \ . |\| (o)(o) |/| #----------------.OOOo--oo--oOOO.------------# # # #Si hoc legere scis numium eruditionis habes.# # # #_________________________Oooo.______________# .oooO ( ) ( ) ) / TeckerDaze \ ( (_/ q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au \_) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 15:59:17 -0700 Mel Eperthener wrote: > > At 03.00 PM 13/05/99 -0700, Oz wrote: > > OK, now at least we can sense where you are coming from. Now, if I could > ask another question, it would be WHEN did you see the original?? Same age as you, my friend. > But it was AWESOME!! We had never seen anything like it before. OK, > actually we had (Hidden Fortress, etc), but not in this spiffy new package. That's where this film falls over. The first was an effects breakthrough. It could have been Gumby playing Luke Skywalker, but the effects made it all watchable. We'd never seen that stuff before. Now we have. Too much. And better than this. What does that leave? Nostalgia and only nostalgia. Lucas has tried to be Mr Breakthrough again by using the world's first CGI character, blah blah, but it's a tough marketplace for technical marvels now. It's not a case of blowing up a model and making a hundred mill. You have to beat Matrix, you have to beat A Bug's Life. Or maybe, hey, why not throw in a good script? > Then again, should this movie again change > the cinematic landscape, I expect that you will stand by your scathing > review (and I suspect that you have enough gumption to do just that:-) If this movie hanges the cinematic landscape, I'll leave the bis and take a job packing groceries. It will sell many tickets. It will be around for a long time. It will not warrant another two episodes. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 02:25:16 -0400 At 03.59 PM 13/05/99 -0700, Oz wrote: >Same age as you, my friend. Gawd, we're getting old, aren't we??:-) Perhaps that is the problem:-) >That's where this film falls over. The first was an effects >breakthrough. It could have been Gumby playing Luke Skywalker, but >the effects made it all watchable. We'd never seen that stuff >before. I just saw something concerning the problems when revolutions (and revolutionaries) get old. One point is that a bureaucracy always replaces it. But there is a very valid point in that this is an extremely different world. In 1977, Vietnam was a very recent memory. In 1980, tho Reagan was preaching Morning in America, the Soviets were still the bogiemen, and many felt disenfranchised. And let's not forget the hostage drama. In 1983, we were just turning a corner, the market was just beginning its long climb, Michael Milken (sp) was a White Knight (now he's an ex-con with cancer), and we were just beginning to see cracks in the Soviet exoskeleton. Yuppies ruled, and in many cases were our parents. Now, much much too long after Jedi, Lucas is trying to do what he did then. Perhaps the problem is that he waited too long. The industry passed him by. Then again, perhaps the hype is because we are looking for a Fountain of Youth. We look to Lucas to bring back our childhood. This is why we WANT and NEED this movie to be a huge success. >What does that leave? Nostalgia and only nostalgia. You say that like it's a bad thing, Oz:-) >Or maybe, hey, why not throw in a good script? LOL!!! But then it wouldn't be Star Wars, would it?? >It will sell many tickets. It will be around for a long time. It >will not warrant another two episodes. Well, I think we are stuck with that. Looks very unlikely that the third trilogy will be made, tho. However, at least we will get a sense of closure. And, hey, if I feel too ill after seeing the movie, I can always pop in my DVD of The Big Chill:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "David F. Nolan" <DFN@alum.mit.edu> Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 01:38:35 -0700 OK, since everyone is talking about "Phantom Menace" I might as well chime in, too. I saw the original "Star Wars" at a special preview showing in '77 and thought it was way cool. I was 33 at the time. I liked the second one, too. Both would be in my top 15% of all movies I've seen (close to 1,000, counting videos) but neither would be in my top 20 movies of all time. The third one was a disappointment. To me, it came across as a more-expensive remake of the first one. Not awful, but a notch below the first two. I've seen the trailer for "Phantom Menace," and while it made me want to see the movie, it doesn't make me salivate. Special effects can carry a movie only so far, and it looks like "Phantom" is relying on 'em way too much. That, and the goodwill generated by the original series. I'm expecting an entertaining movie, but no more. Nothing mythic ... just a fun two hours. For that, I'll pay $7.50, but I won't wait in line for days; it'll be just as entertaining two weeks after the premiere as it is on opening day. (And there's no way it will gross $1B domestically, at least on first release. More like a half-bil. But we had that discussion already.) Dave Nolan [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Wade Snider <wsnider@brazoselectric.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 08:27:41 +0100 Even after reading past this part in the thread, I take umbrage at that comment. I don't feel that way about Phantom Menace, and the original Star Wars was a big part of my childhood. I saw the first movie at the old Six Flags Mall in Arlington,TX when I was 7 - the week it came out. I share in that aura of having been really growing up when Star Wars was a big deal. Back when most movies had repeated runs at theaters, say the next summer and then the next one, for years because vcrs weren't very common back then. Now, I did enjoy the Mummy. The dialogue was cheap, and the acting hammy. But, it was fun and managed to make me entertained for the most part. It steals mercilessly from other movies, but I liked it anyway. I don't rate it as great, but fluff that I enjoyed. BUT, just because I managed to relatively enjoy The Mummy, I do not fall into your easy stereotype. I do not have any high expectations for Phantom Menace. I am sick of the damn second trailer, and I am already cringing as the fast-food tie-ins have begun on television (if anyone else has seen the kfc-taco bell commercials with Col. Sanders _and_ the chiauaha, you know what I mean). Be very cautious in your labels, there. People always get worked up over issues on these lists, then make comments that aren't fully accurate or stereotypical and piss off others. > People who say "it might not be great, but it's Star Wars, man" are > like the people who say "The Mummy had no story, acting, > believability... but I enjoyed myself." > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Wade Snider <wsnider@brazoselectric.com> Subject: [MV] test Date: 13 May 1999 10:06:29 +0100 > Testing a moment [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: mgauvreau@mms.org Subject: RE: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 10:27:30 -0500 unsubscribe > ---------- > From: Oz > Reply To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Sent: Thursday, May 13, 1999 6:59 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets > > Mel Eperthener wrote: > > > > At 03.00 PM 13/05/99 -0700, Oz wrote: > > > > OK, now at least we can sense where you are coming from. Now, if I > could > > ask another question, it would be WHEN did you see the original?? > > Same age as you, my friend. > > > But it was AWESOME!! We had never seen anything like it before. OK, > > actually we had (Hidden Fortress, etc), but not in this spiffy new > package. > > That's where this film falls over. The first was an effects > breakthrough. It could have been Gumby playing Luke Skywalker, but > the effects made it all watchable. We'd never seen that stuff > before. > > Now we have. Too much. And better than this. > > What does that leave? Nostalgia and only nostalgia. > > Lucas has tried to be Mr Breakthrough again by using the world's > first CGI character, blah blah, but it's a tough marketplace for > technical marvels now. It's not a case of blowing up a model and > making a hundred mill. You have to beat Matrix, you have to beat A > Bug's Life. > > Or maybe, hey, why not throw in a good script? > > > Then again, should this movie again change > > the cinematic landscape, I expect that you will stand by your scathing > > review (and I suspect that you have enough gumption to do just that:-) > > If this movie hanges the cinematic landscape, I'll leave the bis and > take a job packing groceries. > > It will sell many tickets. It will be around for a long time. It > will not warrant another two episodes. > > ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- > ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- > ---------------------------------------------- > > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: mgauvreau@mms.org Subject: [MV] RE: unsubscribe Date: 13 May 1999 10:33:50 -0500 unsubscribe movies [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] Phantom Tickets Date: 13 May 1999 11:51:57 -0700 Lillian is right - the is a PREQUEL for those who truly love the myth and story of the Star Wars Saga - I don't expect to see any familiar characters until Episode III > -----Original Message----- > From: Lillian Lepinath [SMTP:q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au] > Sent: Wednesday, May 12, 1999 10:57 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets > > Oz wrote: > > > But this is cruddy. We're talking Godzilla, folks. The characters > > you love are absent. > > Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought that, since it's a > prequel and all, this movie would be a backgrounder to the events that > took/take place in the original three.... Luke, Han and Leia haven't > been born yet... Chewie as well most likely (how long do Wookie's live > for, anyway?) > > > > If it was just my opinion, I'd shut the hell up. But I got an email > > from someone who interviewed people leaving a screening two days > > ago, and here were the responses he got: > > > > Okay - negative responses, but what about the positive responses? Who > comprised the sample audience? What exactly was the question? (Sorry - > the journalism/cultural studies student is screaming to get out here) I > mean, you can compile responses anyway you want... that's a wonderful > thing about street surveys/vox pops... if you don't get a response you > like, you ask another person... i mean - for all of those people who > say they loved (sorry for mentioning this...) Titanic, there were people > who said it was crap - who felt it was just another film in a genre... > > > > > > However, yes, it does get the benefit of the doubt until then, simply > > > because it is the latest chapter of our mythology. > > > > Nah, it's a new mythology. Give me a sequel to Jedi and I'll give it > > cred. But this is a new franchise, using the name of another. And > > it's just not a good movie. > > Perhaps the beginning of the mythology? > > Just a thought... > > TeckerDaze. > -- > __\/__ > . / ^ _ \ . > |\| (o)(o) |/| > #----------------.OOOo--oo--oOOO.------------# > # # > #Si hoc legere scis numium eruditionis habes.# > # # > #_________________________Oooo.______________# > .oooO ( ) > ( ) ) / TeckerDaze > \ ( (_/ > q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au > \_) > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: [MV] RE:Jet Li Rocks Date: 13 May 1999 12:03:38 -0700 here here! I can't wait for The Black Mask and Romeo Must Die! > -----Original Message----- > From: Oz [SMTP:oz@filmink-online.com] > Sent: Thursday, May 13, 1999 12:27 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Tickets > > > > SkipyLlama@aol.com wrote: > > > > Secondly, I'm > > assuming you're not a martial arts movie fan...... If you were, you'd no > > doubt recognize Jackie Chan for what he is: the most creatvie martial > arts > > movie star alive today. > > Au contraire, there would be few who are bigger martial arts movie > fans than I. And that's one of the major reasons I didn't like Rush > Hour. Chan (who you are correct in saying is a gifted martial arts > actor) just completely re-used every fight sequence he's ever used > before. Fighting with fridge doors? The whole fighting in chairs > thing? The billiard cue bit? > Come on, if you've seen three of his films before you've seen those > sequences, and done a lot better. Not to mention that as far as > racial stereotyping trying to pass as humour, only Lethal Weapon 4 > has been worse. And the ending... yawn, what a stinker. > > > The fight scenes > > were the best since supercop, just b/c they were funny. Not that chan > should > > stick to comedy, but it's a welcome break occasionally > > Comedy is almost all he does! Let's be serious, the guy's a > clown/acrobat. If you want real martial arts expertise, you'd go no > further than Jet Li. Rent Fist Of Legend and tell me Jackie Chan is > even in the same stratosphere. > > ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- > ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- > ---------------------------------------------- > > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Cranky Critic <chuck@crankycritic.com> Subject: [MV] cranky critic: SW1:TPM Date: 14 May 1999 12:53:26 -0000 Cranky Critic - http://www.crankycritic.com George Lucas' people asked that I not post the Phantom Menace review until next week, but since all the "big names" put their disses online before us down in the gutter press got to see the last screening and since but no one said anything about the crankycritic.com mailing list, you're getting first look at what goes up as soon as I'm allowed. THERE ARE NO SPOILERS OR PLOT SECRETS REVEALED HEREIN. Enjoy, and thanks for using the site chuck schwartz crankycritic.com The Cranky Critic« Reviews: Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace Rated PG, 130 minutes Starring Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd, Samuel L. Jackson, Frank Oz, Pernilla August, Ray Park, Ahmed Best Written and Directed by George Lucas website: http://www.starwars.com IN SHORT: oog factor of 10. 30 years earlier than "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away . . ." Cranky's not sure what movie the film student mentality big name press critics were sitting in when they wrote their slams of Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace (aka EP1), and posted 'em on their websites. It sure wasn't the same movie I sat at. While it's policy not to compare to Source Material, I will allude to the original Star Wars trilogy from time to time, to make my point clear. No surprises in the story of this part will be revealed, I promise. Writer/director George Lucas' Episode One is a different animal from 1977's Star Wars (hereafter A New Hope or EP4). The Phantom Menace must achieve different ends, being the opening chapter of what will be a ten-hour long epic when all is said and done. It has to introduce a new set of characters for this trilogy and give us enough reasons to come back to see how it turns out for them ('cuz virtually everybody knows how it turns out for Anakin Skywalker). Basically: The planet Naboo is under attack from the greedy Galactic Trade Federation due to some kind of dispute over the taxation of trade routes. Naboo's Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman), a pacifist, will not give in to the Federation's demands, nor is she willing to wage War. Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson), a Jedi Master and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) are sent to Naboo to mediate the dispute. The Federation, in league with a shadowy villain calling himself Darth Sidious, has no intention of negotiation. Let us say you will see laser swords used in ways previously unimagined, and move on. On the surface of Naboo, the Jedis literally run into a clumsy native of the Gungan race, Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best). As the situation deteriorates, the Jedis, the Queen and her court, and Jar Jar flee for Coruscant, the planet wide Capital of the Republic, to plead their case before the Senate. Engine troubles force them to land on an obscure planet named Tatooine, where the Trade Federation has no hold, due to competition from a race of mobsters familiar to us all, the Hutts. While searching out replacement parts for his spaceship, Qui-Gon meets a nine year old slave boy named Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) and the Jedi feels something... We all know what that means. As Qui-Gon puts it, "nothing happens by coincidence." EP1 must set up the background for all that is to follow, in this trilogy and the next. That's a tremendous amount of weight to carry and it is born admirably. The Phantom Menace features the "return" of Jedi Master Yoda (Frank Oz); provides origins for the droids R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) and C-3P0 (Anthony Daniels). It introduces another Jedi Master, Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson), sole human on the Jedi Council who set the standards for Jedi conduct and determine who is to be trained in the Jedi way. We see glimpses of what Imperial society looked like before the Empire. We meet new characters such as Naboo's Senator Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), the shadowy Darth Sidious and his apprentice Darth Maul (Ray Park), who is trained in the Jedi way and sports red skin, Satanic horns and a double bladed laser sword. The net result, the duels are even more frenetic. Very cool beans. EP1's special effects are seamless integrated into live action. The most spectacular of them all is the digital creation of lead character Jar Jar Binks who looks and moves so realistically, you could believe he's real. Yes, there are actors in alien masks in this movie, but there are equal numbers of digital creations in almost every scene in the movie. Besides Jar Jar there is, of course, Jabba the Hutt; the entire Gungan race and its leader Boss Nass (Brian Blessed); the mosquito-like Watto, owner of Anakin Skywalker and his mother Shmi (Pernilla August); lots of animals and virtually all the spacecraft. The cityscapes created by ILM far surpass their work on The Mummy. The detail is impressive. The settings, including the underwater city inhabited by the Gungans, the city/planet of Coruscant and the Queen's royal palace are all beautiful and breathtaking. The space battles, underwater action sequences and centerpiece pod race on Tatooine are all impressive pieces of work, even more so considering that at no point do the effects call attention to themselves, thus diminishing the story that is being laid out. Liam Neeson moves like an aging Zen Master through his role. Ewan McGregor has Alec Guinness' voice patterns down pat. Natalie Portman works twice as hard as everybody else and Jake Lloyd, who was eight years old when this was filmed, doesn't drop the ball. Pernilla August, as Anakin's mother, provides a fine emotional tone that doesn't exist elsewhere in this picture, though her character does spout some nonsense when asked about Anakin's father. I'll leave that to you to discover. Ray Park, as Maul, is just plain scary to look at, though he doesn't radiate evil as Darth Vader will. The Phantom Menace's is just a shade difficult to grasp. The smallest of kidlets may gape open mouthed at the graphics and effects and action sequences on the screen but at its core, the story of taxation and war will be well over their heads. Could you discuss taxation, and what it means, with a ten year old? I didn't think so. What determines "Evil" in this flick is not as clear as it was in the original Trilogy. Politics will do that. You will need to ignore the premise, at least for this part of the saga. Cranky hasn't even mentioned Clones, the use of which add more layers of intrigue to this story, and the stories to come. Look closely. Clones are everywhere. If you were expecting the Second Coming, you will be disappointed. If you have a life, what Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace delivers, aside from an incredibly long title, are action sequences that will bring you back to see it again and again, as in EP4: A New Hope. For all the shades of gray that make up this flick, it stands on par with the original Star Wars for action, surpasses it for plot movement and falls a wee bit short in presenting clear cut good and evil. Gee, Cranky can write an awful lot of words when he tries hard not to give the story away <vbg>. On average, a first run movie ticket will run you Eight Bucks. Were Cranky able to set his own price to Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace, he would have paid... ... waitasec, I've got to catch my breath. That title gets me every time.... $8.00 For this fan, Empire is still the best, and Episodes One and Four come close behind. No doubt about it, I'll see it more than once. The setup now in place, everything you've (well, we've) been waiting for will start showing up in Episode Two: Empire Rising and Episode Three: Fall of the Jedi (all titles are rumors), to wit: The Clone Wars Anakin's courtship of the Queen (the kid likes older women. Go Ani, Go!) The rise of the Empire The fall of Anakin Skywalker The Destruction of the Jedi The Birth of the Twins The death of Obi-Wan Kenobi... ...or was Vader lying to Luke about that last one, in The Empire Strikes Back? Only time will tell. The Cranky Critic« is a Registered Trademark of, and Copyright ⌐ 1995-99 by, Chuck Schwartz. All Rights Reserved. ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to crankycritic-unsubscribe@listbot.com Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com/ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" Date: 14 May 1999 07:23:05 -0600 (MDT) Reasonable "Force" -- Putting the STAR WARS Phenomenon in Perspective In the weeks building up to the release of STAR WARS: EPISODE I - THE PHANTOM MENACE, the scorn was flying as fast and thick as a squadron of Tie Fighters. The line-ups of fans appearing at theaters around the country had become a news story; what's more -- and more depressing -- they had become a national punch line. Detroit Free Press sports columnist Mitch Albom wrote a diatribe against the line-standing "losers;" late night talk show monologues found much mirth in the favored stereotypes. Yes, indeed, we were all having a right jolly chuckle at the expense of those foolish folks who clearly had far too much time on their hands. The barbs, though not at all surprising, inspired a raising of my film-loving hackles. The taunting of a sports writer struck me as particularly misguided in its essential hypocrisy. In a routine featured in the upcoming documentary TREKKIES, comic Matt Weinhold notes: "A guy can walk into a store wearing the uniform of his favorite sports team and no one thinks anything of it, but if I walk into the store dressed like a Vulcan, I'm a big geek." Every year, students at Duke University camp out for days for the right to purchase season tickets to men's basketball games; Green Bay Packer games feature adult human beings wearing foam cheese wedges on their heads. We've come to accept irrational passions in one aspect of our national life -- sports -- as part of the social fabric. When those irrational passions migrate to a film or a television show, however, it somehow becomes reasonable to sniff, "Get a life." Those three grating words have become an inane, insulting shorthand for a kind of simple-minded intolerance. Let's be quite clear: when someone says "Get a life," what he really means is "Get _my_ life. Get the sort of life I can understand easily within my narrowly defined parameters of acceptable behavior. Conform to my expectations." Passionate, unconventional responses to popular art are nothing new. In 1841, devoted American readers of Charles Dickens' serialized novel _The Old Curiosity Shop_ waited at docks for the arrival from England of the installment which would reveal the fate of heroine Little Nell. The story goes that people read the installments on the spot, with wails of grief coursing through the masses as they learned of Nell's passing. Today, CNN and E! would have correspondents on those docks to report on the "phenomenon" with a smirk and practiced detachment. In a more contemporary context, there are people who have watched soap operas for fifteen years without ever missing an episode, or people who followed the Grateful Dead to hundreds of concerts, or "Trekkies" who faithfully attend conventions in full Starfleet regalia. Art, even mass-market art, can affect people in unique ways. Those who remain unaffected too often turn their lack of sympathy into haughty head-shaking. We live in a bitter, cynical time, and all too often we respond to expressions of joy with even more bitterness and cynicism. The idea that anything could touch people profoundly -- especially something so gauche as a science fiction film -- strikes others as not just absurd, but wrong. I visited a local theater at 7:00 a.m. on the morning of May 12, 1999, where nearly 2,000 individuals waited for STAR WARS tickets. I didn't see any "losers" deserving of my derision. I saw engineers and students, writers and programmers, fathers and sons, all of whom had embraced a myth and had turned the communal celebration of that myth into a grand party. It was a playoff game without the spilled beer and swearing, a superstar rock concert without the pot smoke and shoving. How much more deserving such joy is of envy than of scorn. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply Date: 14 May 1999 08:48:27 -0700 Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for a month does raise = the legitimate question whether somebody is in need of a life to get. =20 Of course that's just my geeky opinion. bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply Date: 14 May 1999 11:22:34 -0500 Also agreed. We also have to remember, though, that we're not talking about standing in line for some "one-time-only" event like a Pink Floyd concert or The Superbowl. We're talking about a movie that's going to be playing probably eight times a day for the next six months. All these "line lizards" are getting from their devotion is the chance to see the movie maybe 24 hours sooner than their more, shall we say, chemically balanced peers. I went down to my local megaplex around 5:30 on Wednesday. By then, the line had dissipated. Yes, all of the Wednesday shows were sold out, but I did get tickets for 7:20pm for the 20th, the next day. And you know what? My willingness to wait all of 24hours to see this movie means that I didn't have to lose my job or my sanity by sitting on a sidewalk for three weeks, and I'm going to be seeing the same movie they are. Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie on opening night? It's going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I saw the "Star Wars" special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd never do it again. When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a stampede that almost killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their seat, a couple of guys decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row directly in front of me. And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I literally could not hear the dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 minutes, even with a souped up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but I want to actually be able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. Scott, I agree with every word you said when you compared Star Wars mania to the dregs who don facepaint and foam cheese hats to "support their team". We still need to put this into a bit of perspective, though. Josh |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of |:| Bruce Bridges |:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 10:48 AM |:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply |:| |:| |:| Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for |:| a month does raise the legitimate question whether |:| somebody is in need of a life to get. |:| |:| Of course that's just my geeky opinion. |:| |:| bb |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply Date: 14 May 1999 10:48:09 -0700 Geeks with a life Unite! > -----Original Message----- > From: Bruce Bridges [SMTP:Bruce@ffww.com] > Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 8:48 AM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply > > Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for a month does raise > the legitimate question whether somebody is in need of a life to get. > > Of course that's just my geeky opinion. > > bb > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" Date: 14 May 1999 11:27:37 -0700 To me, the difference between standing in line for a ticket to a show that can NEVER BE REPEATED (sports) to a show that the same action EVERY TIME (movie) is pretty obvious. I will stand in line for days for Dodger tickets because you never know when Raul is going to out-bat the league. BUT, as much as I love the Star Wars saga, I have better things to do with my time than to camp out on the streets of Westwood with a bunch of Sega-playing, un-washed, pimply-faced geeks who's parents allowed them to miss school for tickets for a movie that will be playing all year... Of course, that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. Leti Romero ;) "The World Is Not Enough" P.S. T-shirts with team logos with a matching shorts and hat is an acceptable dress standard in our human society - Klingon war togs are not -- in the 80's maybe, but not anymore... > -----Original Message----- > From: Scott Renshaw [SMTP:renshaw@inconnect.com] > Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 6:23 AM > To: renshaw@inconnect.com > Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" > > Reasonable "Force" -- > Putting the STAR WARS Phenomenon in Perspective > > In the weeks building up to the release of STAR WARS: EPISODE I - THE > PHANTOM MENACE, the scorn was flying as fast and thick as a squadron of > Tie Fighters. The line-ups of fans appearing at theaters around the > country had become a news story; what's more -- and more depressing -- > they had become a national punch line. Detroit Free Press sports > columnist Mitch Albom wrote a diatribe against the line-standing "losers;" > late night talk show monologues found much mirth in the favored > stereotypes. Yes, indeed, we were all having a right jolly chuckle at the > expense of those foolish folks who clearly had far too much time on their > hands. > > The barbs, though not at all surprising, inspired a raising of my > film-loving hackles. The taunting of a sports writer struck me as > particularly misguided in its essential hypocrisy. In a routine featured > in the upcoming documentary TREKKIES, comic Matt Weinhold notes: "A guy > can walk into a store wearing the uniform of his favorite sports team and > no one thinks anything of it, but if I walk into the store dressed like a > Vulcan, I'm a big geek." Every year, students at Duke University camp out > for days for the right to purchase season tickets to men's basketball > games; Green Bay Packer games feature adult human beings wearing foam > cheese wedges on their heads. We've come to accept irrational passions in > one aspect of our national life -- sports -- as part of the social fabric. > When those irrational passions migrate to a film or a television show, > however, it somehow becomes reasonable to sniff, "Get a life." > > Those three grating words have become an inane, insulting shorthand > for a kind of simple-minded intolerance. Let's be quite clear: when > someone says "Get a life," what he really means is "Get _my_ life. Get > the sort of life I can understand easily within my narrowly defined > parameters of acceptable behavior. Conform to my expectations." > > Passionate, unconventional responses to popular art are nothing new. > In 1841, devoted American readers of Charles Dickens' serialized novel > _The Old Curiosity Shop_ waited at docks for the arrival from England of > the installment which would reveal the fate of heroine Little Nell. The > story goes that people read the installments on the spot, with wails of > grief coursing through the masses as they learned of Nell's passing. > Today, CNN and E! would have correspondents on those docks to report on > the "phenomenon" with a smirk and practiced detachment. In a more > contemporary context, there are people who have watched soap operas for > fifteen years without ever missing an episode, or people who followed the > Grateful Dead to hundreds of concerts, or "Trekkies" who faithfully > attend conventions in full Starfleet regalia. Art, even mass-market art, > can affect people in unique ways. Those who remain unaffected too often > turn their lack of sympathy into haughty head-shaking. > > We live in a bitter, cynical time, and all too often we respond to > expressions of joy with even more bitterness and cynicism. The idea that > anything could touch people profoundly -- especially something so gauche > as a science fiction film -- strikes others as not just absurd, but wrong. > I visited a local theater at 7:00 a.m. on the morning of May 12, 1999, > where nearly 2,000 individuals waited for STAR WARS tickets. I didn't see > any "losers" deserving of my derision. I saw engineers and students, > writers and programmers, fathers and sons, all of whom had embraced a myth > and had turned the communal celebration of that myth into a grand party. > It was a playoff game without the spilled beer and swearing, a superstar > rock concert without the pot smoke and shoving. How much more deserving > such joy is of envy than of scorn. > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room > http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ > *** > Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! > See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject > "Subscribe". > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 13:35:24 CDT Amen, brother. I hate it when I think of a reply to a well-written post such as Scott's, only to find that someone else said it much better than I had yet thought of!!!!!!!!!!! I kid but kudos on the comments, Josh (and Scott). I see no point in waiting three weeks in line to be in the first theater. I also question the folks who were paying 200 to 500 dollars for advance tickets about 2-3 weeks ago. Hanh???? i know that that was for charity, but I've read some posts on websites of people who actually paid that price to SEE the movie, not for any charitable reasons. Crazy. You could wait a couple of weeks and then still have money to buy your ticket and snacks for at least a couple of dozen more viewings, which i'm sure these guys will do anayway. Here in Waco, one theater started a line on Monday, the other theater wouldn't let people stay the night in front of it. Checking by telephone yesterday evening, there were still plenty of tickets for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday!!!!!! Way out of proportion. As Joshua says, it's not like a farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a Superbowl or even an All Star Game or sports champioship matchup. The movie will be played for months!!!!! I wouldn't be surprised to see it stay in the first run theaters through Thanksgiving. I'm not even going to see the movie next week unless there are no lines on the weekend. I can wait a few days. Sheesh. Wade >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 11:22:34 -0500 > > >Also agreed. We also have to remember, though, that we're not talking about >standing in line for some "one-time-only" event like a Pink Floyd concert >or >The Superbowl. We're talking about a movie that's going to be playing >probably eight times a day for the next six months. All these "line >lizards" >are getting from their devotion is the chance to see the movie maybe 24 >hours sooner than their more, shall we say, chemically balanced peers. I >went down to my local megaplex around 5:30 on Wednesday. By then, the line >had dissipated. Yes, all of the Wednesday shows were sold out, but I did >get >tickets for 7:20pm for the 20th, the next day. And you know what? My >willingness to wait all of 24hours to see this movie means that I didn't >have to lose my job or my sanity by sitting on a sidewalk for three weeks, >and I'm going to be seeing the same movie they are. > >Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie on opening night? It's >going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I saw the "Star Wars" >special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd never do it again. >When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a stampede that almost >killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their seat, a couple of guys >decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row directly in front of me. >And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I literally could not hear >the >dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 minutes, even with a souped >up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but I want to actually be >able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. > >Scott, I agree with every word you said when you compared Star Wars mania >to >the dregs who don facepaint and foam cheese hats to "support their team". >We >still need to put this into a bit of perspective, though. >Josh > >|:| -----Original Message----- >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of >|:| Bruce Bridges >|:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 10:48 AM >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply >|:| >|:| >|:| Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for >|:| a month does raise the legitimate question whether >|:| somebody is in need of a life to get. >|:| >|:| Of course that's just my geeky opinion. >|:| >|:| bb >|:| >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message >|:| "unsubscribe ] >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] >|:| > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 13:15:55 -0600 I can't take it any longer!!!!!!!!!!! I must tell you that I'm writing this email from my laptop in line for Wednesday's show. I was the 10th person in the entire state of Idaho to have my tickets for the show. You bet ya, I'm going to be at the 12:01 AM showing and for all you losers on the West coast that's a full hour before you, so there! And I'm going to have my pick of seats since I'm already in line for the show. Ya, I couldn't get the time off from work so I quit. But I can always get another job after I'm done seeing the movie a couple dozen times. I can't believe you guys. Who would want to go to a stupid football game anyway? I don't understand what they're doing on the field anyway...sorry, I had to go for a while my buddy in Phoenix just emailed in his next move. Ya we're playing a game of 3D Chess just like on Star Trek. I'm kicking his Klingon butt! Any who, back to what I was saying, why do you question our mentality. I mean, I've got a life, in fact this time in line has given me a lot of time to do some really creative and useful things. I taught myself Klingonese, I read the entire Star Wars Encyclopedia (it's really cool because it includes all the stuff from the books--I'm thinking of starting up a Mara Jade fan club, she's so hot), and I'm thinking of starting my own Jedi Academy right here in Boise. Since my wife has left me, and I don't have a job I'll have plenty of time to do something really meaningful like this. If you don't know what I'm talking about maybe you should question whether you have a life or not. This kind of devotion isn't easy. Ya, some teenagers came over and threw stuff at us last night, garbage and stuff, but it wasn't too bad since we haven't bathed in 12 days. That's kind of cool too, it's like Woodstock man, except the only tunes playing is those of John Williams, loud and proud. Anyway I gotta go, it's time for my afternoon JEDIULCAN meditation trance. You guessed it, I created it myself it's a hybrid of a Vulcan trance and a Jedi trance only better. I am a GOD!!!! May the Force be with you all, Jak'da'r Daag Ut (That's my name in Klingonese) -----Original Message----- Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 12:35 PM Amen, brother. I hate it when I think of a reply to a well-written post such as Scott's, only to find that someone else said it much better than I had yet thought of!!!!!!!!!!! I kid but kudos on the comments, Josh (and Scott). I see no point in waiting three weeks in line to be in the first theater. I also question the folks who were paying 200 to 500 dollars for advance tickets about 2-3 weeks ago. Hanh???? i know that that was for charity, but I've read some posts on websites of people who actually paid that price to SEE the movie, not for any charitable reasons. Crazy. You could wait a couple of weeks and then still have money to buy your ticket and snacks for at least a couple of dozen more viewings, which i'm sure these guys will do anayway. Here in Waco, one theater started a line on Monday, the other theater wouldn't let people stay the night in front of it. Checking by telephone yesterday evening, there were still plenty of tickets for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday!!!!!! Way out of proportion. As Joshua says, it's not like a farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a Superbowl or even an All Star Game or sports champioship matchup. The movie will be played for months!!!!! I wouldn't be surprised to see it stay in the first run theaters through Thanksgiving. I'm not even going to see the movie next week unless there are no lines on the weekend. I can wait a few days. Sheesh. Wade >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 11:22:34 -0500 > > >Also agreed. We also have to remember, though, that we're not talking about >standing in line for some "one-time-only" event like a Pink Floyd concert >or >The Superbowl. We're talking about a movie that's going to be playing >probably eight times a day for the next six months. All these "line >lizards" >are getting from their devotion is the chance to see the movie maybe 24 >hours sooner than their more, shall we say, chemically balanced peers. I >went down to my local megaplex around 5:30 on Wednesday. By then, the line >had dissipated. Yes, all of the Wednesday shows were sold out, but I did >get >tickets for 7:20pm for the 20th, the next day. And you know what? My >willingness to wait all of 24hours to see this movie means that I didn't >have to lose my job or my sanity by sitting on a sidewalk for three weeks, >and I'm going to be seeing the same movie they are. > >Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie on opening night? It's >going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I saw the "Star Wars" >special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd never do it again. >When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a stampede that almost >killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their seat, a couple of guys >decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row directly in front of me. >And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I literally could not hear >the >dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 minutes, even with a souped >up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but I want to actually be >able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. > >Scott, I agree with every word you said when you compared Star Wars mania >to >the dregs who don facepaint and foam cheese hats to "support their team". >We >still need to put this into a bit of perspective, though. >Josh > >|:| -----Original Message----- >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of >|:| Bruce Bridges >|:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 10:48 AM >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply >|:| >|:| >|:| Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for >|:| a month does raise the legitimate question whether >|:| somebody is in need of a life to get. >|:| >|:| Of course that's just my geeky opinion. >|:| >|:| bb >|:| >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message >|:| "unsubscribe ] >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] >|:| > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 14:21:55 -0500 Brilliant... |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of jkrudy |:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 2:16 PM |:| To: 'movies@lists.xmission.com' |:| Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable |:| |:| |:| I can't take it any longer!!!!!!!!!!! I must tell you |:| that I'm writing this |:| email from my laptop in line for Wednesday's show. I |:| was the 10th person in |:| the entire state of Idaho to have my tickets for the |:| show. You bet ya, I'm |:| going to be at the 12:01 AM showing and for all you |:| losers on the West coast |:| that's a full hour before you, so there! And I'm going |:| to have my pick of |:| seats since I'm already in line for the show. Ya, I |:| couldn't get the time |:| off from work so I quit. But I can always get another |:| job after I'm done |:| seeing the movie a couple dozen times. I can't believe |:| you guys. Who would |:| want to go to a stupid football game anyway? I don't |:| understand what |:| they're doing on the field anyway...sorry, I had to go |:| for a while my buddy |:| in Phoenix just emailed in his next move. Ya we're |:| playing a game of 3D |:| Chess just like on Star Trek. I'm kicking his Klingon |:| butt! Any who, back |:| to what I was saying, why do you question our |:| mentality. I mean, I've got a |:| life, in fact this time in line has given me a lot of |:| time to do some really |:| creative and useful things. I taught myself |:| Klingonese, I read the entire |:| Star Wars Encyclopedia (it's really cool because it |:| includes all the stuff |:| from the books--I'm thinking of starting up a Mara Jade |:| fan club, she's so |:| hot), and I'm thinking of starting my own Jedi Academy |:| right here in Boise. |:| Since my wife has left me, and I don't have a job I'll |:| have plenty of time |:| to do something really meaningful like this. If you |:| don't know what I'm |:| talking about maybe you should question whether you |:| have a life or not. |:| This kind of devotion isn't easy. Ya, some teenagers |:| came over and threw |:| stuff at us last night, garbage and stuff, but it |:| wasn't too bad since we |:| haven't bathed in 12 days. That's kind of cool too, |:| it's like Woodstock |:| man, except the only tunes playing is those of John |:| Williams, loud and |:| proud. Anyway I gotta go, it's time for my afternoon |:| JEDIULCAN meditation |:| trance. You guessed it, I created it myself it's a |:| hybrid of a Vulcan |:| trance and a Jedi trance only better. |:| |:| I am a GOD!!!! |:| |:| May the Force be with you all, |:| |:| Jak'da'r Daag Ut (That's my name in Klingonese) |:| |:| |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: Wade S. [mailto:wds9974@hotmail.com] |:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 12:35 PM |:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable |:| |:| |:| Amen, brother. I hate it when I think of a reply to a |:| well-written post such |:| |:| as Scott's, only to find that someone else said it much |:| better than I had |:| yet thought of!!!!!!!!!!! I kid but kudos on the |:| comments, Josh (and Scott). |:| |:| I see no point in waiting three weeks in line to be in |:| the first theater. I |:| also question the folks who were paying 200 to 500 |:| dollars for advance |:| tickets about 2-3 weeks ago. Hanh???? i know that that |:| was for charity, but |:| I've read some posts on websites of people who actually |:| paid that price to |:| SEE the movie, not for any charitable reasons. Crazy. |:| You could wait a |:| couple of weeks and then still have money to buy your |:| ticket and snacks for |:| at least a couple of dozen more viewings, which i'm |:| sure these guys will do |:| anayway. |:| |:| Here in Waco, one theater started a line on Monday, the |:| other theater |:| wouldn't let people stay the night in front of it. |:| Checking by telephone |:| yesterday evening, there were still plenty of tickets |:| for Thursday, Friday, |:| and Saturday!!!!!! Way out of proportion. As Joshua |:| says, it's not like a |:| farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a |:| Superbowl or even an All |:| Star Game or sports champioship matchup. The movie will |:| be played for |:| months!!!!! I wouldn't be surprised to see it stay in |:| the first run theaters |:| |:| through Thanksgiving. I'm not even going to see the |:| movie next week unless |:| there are no lines on the weekend. I can wait a few |:| days. Sheesh. |:| |:| Wade |:| |:| >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> |:| >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> |:| >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply |:| >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 11:22:34 -0500 |:| > |:| > |:| >Also agreed. We also have to remember, though, that |:| we're not talking about |:| >standing in line for some "one-time-only" event like a |:| Pink Floyd concert |:| >or |:| >The Superbowl. We're talking about a movie that's |:| going to be playing |:| >probably eight times a day for the next six months. |:| All these "line |:| >lizards" |:| >are getting from their devotion is the chance to see |:| the movie maybe 24 |:| >hours sooner than their more, shall we say, chemically |:| balanced peers. I |:| >went down to my local megaplex around 5:30 on |:| Wednesday. By then, the line |:| >had dissipated. Yes, all of the Wednesday shows were |:| sold out, but I did |:| >get |:| >tickets for 7:20pm for the 20th, the next day. And you |:| know what? My |:| >willingness to wait all of 24hours to see this movie |:| means that I didn't |:| >have to lose my job or my sanity by sitting on a |:| sidewalk for three weeks, |:| >and I'm going to be seeing the same movie they are. |:| > |:| >Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie |:| on opening night? It's |:| >going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I |:| saw the "Star Wars" |:| >special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd |:| never do it again. |:| >When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a |:| stampede that almost |:| >killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their |:| seat, a couple of guys |:| >decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row |:| directly in front of me. |:| >And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I |:| literally could not hear |:| >the |:| >dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 |:| minutes, even with a souped |:| >up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but |:| I want to actually be |:| >able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. |:| > |:| >Scott, I agree with every word you said when you |:| compared Star Wars mania |:| >to |:| >the dregs who don facepaint and foam cheese hats to |:| "support their team". |:| >We |:| >still need to put this into a bit of perspective, though. |:| >Josh |:| > |:| >|:| -----Original Message----- |:| >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of |:| >|:| Bruce Bridges |:| >|:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 10:48 AM |:| >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| >|:| Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply |:| >|:| |:| >|:| |:| >|:| Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for |:| >|:| a month does raise the legitimate question whether |:| >|:| somebody is in need of a life to get. |:| >|:| |:| >|:| Of course that's just my geeky opinion. |:| >|:| |:| >|:| bb |:| >|:| |:| >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| >|:| "unsubscribe ] |:| >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| >|:| |:| > |:| > |:| >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| >[ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| |:| |:| _______________________________________________________________ |:| Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 14:25:25 -0500 I have to correct you on one thing, Wade. I do not believe there will EVER be a farewell performance by The Rolling Stones. Alas. |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of Wade S. |:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 1:35 PM |:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable |:| |:| |:| Amen, brother. I hate it when I think of a reply to a |:| well-written post such |:| as Scott's, only to find that someone else said it much |:| better than I had |:| yet thought of!!!!!!!!!!! I kid but kudos on the |:| comments, Josh (and Scott). |:| |:| I see no point in waiting three weeks in line to be in |:| the first theater. I |:| also question the folks who were paying 200 to 500 |:| dollars for advance |:| tickets about 2-3 weeks ago. Hanh???? i know that that |:| was for charity, but |:| I've read some posts on websites of people who actually |:| paid that price to |:| SEE the movie, not for any charitable reasons. Crazy. |:| You could wait a |:| couple of weeks and then still have money to buy your |:| ticket and snacks for |:| at least a couple of dozen more viewings, which i'm |:| sure these guys will do |:| anayway. |:| |:| Here in Waco, one theater started a line on Monday, the |:| other theater |:| wouldn't let people stay the night in front of it. |:| Checking by telephone |:| yesterday evening, there were still plenty of tickets |:| for Thursday, Friday, |:| and Saturday!!!!!! Way out of proportion. As Joshua |:| says, it's not like a |:| farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a |:| Superbowl or even an All |:| Star Game or sports champioship matchup. The movie will |:| be played for |:| months!!!!! I wouldn't be surprised to see it stay in |:| the first run theaters |:| through Thanksgiving. I'm not even going to see the |:| movie next week unless |:| there are no lines on the weekend. I can wait a few |:| days. Sheesh. |:| |:| Wade |:| |:| >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> |:| >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> |:| >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply |:| >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 11:22:34 -0500 |:| > |:| > |:| >Also agreed. We also have to remember, though, that |:| we're not talking about |:| >standing in line for some "one-time-only" event like a |:| Pink Floyd concert |:| >or |:| >The Superbowl. We're talking about a movie that's |:| going to be playing |:| >probably eight times a day for the next six months. |:| All these "line |:| >lizards" |:| >are getting from their devotion is the chance to see |:| the movie maybe 24 |:| >hours sooner than their more, shall we say, chemically |:| balanced peers. I |:| >went down to my local megaplex around 5:30 on |:| Wednesday. By then, the line |:| >had dissipated. Yes, all of the Wednesday shows were |:| sold out, but I did |:| >get |:| >tickets for 7:20pm for the 20th, the next day. And you |:| know what? My |:| >willingness to wait all of 24hours to see this movie |:| means that I didn't |:| >have to lose my job or my sanity by sitting on a |:| sidewalk for three weeks, |:| >and I'm going to be seeing the same movie they are. |:| > |:| >Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie |:| on opening night? It's |:| >going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I |:| saw the "Star Wars" |:| >special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd |:| never do it again. |:| >When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a |:| stampede that almost |:| >killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their |:| seat, a couple of guys |:| >decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row |:| directly in front of me. |:| >And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I |:| literally could not hear |:| >the |:| >dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 |:| minutes, even with a souped |:| >up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but |:| I want to actually be |:| >able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. |:| > |:| >Scott, I agree with every word you said when you |:| compared Star Wars mania |:| >to |:| >the dregs who don facepaint and foam cheese hats to |:| "support their team". |:| >We |:| >still need to put this into a bit of perspective, though. |:| >Josh |:| > |:| >|:| -----Original Message----- |:| >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of |:| >|:| Bruce Bridges |:| >|:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 10:48 AM |:| >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| >|:| Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply |:| >|:| |:| >|:| |:| >|:| Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for |:| >|:| a month does raise the legitimate question whether |:| >|:| somebody is in need of a life to get. |:| >|:| |:| >|:| Of course that's just my geeky opinion. |:| >|:| |:| >|:| bb |:| >|:| |:| >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| >|:| "unsubscribe ] |:| >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| >|:| |:| > |:| > |:| >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| >[ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| |:| |:| _______________________________________________________________ |:| Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Danielle Conkle" <danyelli@hotmail.com> Subject: [MV] Do ya really wanna see Phantom on opening night??! (yes :) Date: 14 May 1999 12:12:23 PDT Actually I saw the re-releasings on opening night and I thought the crowd made it awesome. The excitement of everyone was all buzzing, and it made me more into what I was watching. Sure we were rowdy, and the movie attendents were having fun walking around with a microphone to get comments before the movie started, but I kind of liked it. Thankfully, we weren't so crazy that I couldn't hear the dialogue, as in your case, but the buzz was still going on. I'm a fan, but not quite extreme as some. I'll see it, but not on opening night...and I'm kind of sad I'll miss all that crazyness. >Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie on opening night? It's >going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I saw the "Star Wars" >special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd never do it again. >When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a stampede that almost >killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their seat, a couple of guys >decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row directly in front of me. >And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I literally could not hear >the >dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 minutes, even with a souped >up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but I want to actually be >able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 14:37:39 CDT :-) point well taken. Note that my first impulse was to say "The Who" but they have had at least 3 or 4 farewell performances so it's a no-win situation. >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 14:25:25 -0500 > > >I have to correct you on one thing, Wade. I do not believe there will EVER >be a farewell performance by The Rolling Stones. Alas. > >|:| -----Original Message----- >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of Wade S. >|:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 1:35 PM >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable >|:| >|:| >|:| Amen, brother. I hate it when I think of a reply to a >|:| well-written post such >|:| as Scott's, only to find that someone else said it much >|:| better than I had >|:| yet thought of!!!!!!!!!!! I kid but kudos on the >|:| comments, Josh (and Scott). >|:| >|:| I see no point in waiting three weeks in line to be in >|:| the first theater. I >|:| also question the folks who were paying 200 to 500 >|:| dollars for advance >|:| tickets about 2-3 weeks ago. Hanh???? i know that that >|:| was for charity, but >|:| I've read some posts on websites of people who actually >|:| paid that price to >|:| SEE the movie, not for any charitable reasons. Crazy. >|:| You could wait a >|:| couple of weeks and then still have money to buy your >|:| ticket and snacks for >|:| at least a couple of dozen more viewings, which i'm >|:| sure these guys will do >|:| anayway. >|:| >|:| Here in Waco, one theater started a line on Monday, the >|:| other theater >|:| wouldn't let people stay the night in front of it. >|:| Checking by telephone >|:| yesterday evening, there were still plenty of tickets >|:| for Thursday, Friday, >|:| and Saturday!!!!!! Way out of proportion. As Joshua >|:| says, it's not like a >|:| farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a >|:| Superbowl or even an All >|:| Star Game or sports champioship matchup. The movie will >|:| be played for >|:| months!!!!! I wouldn't be surprised to see it stay in >|:| the first run theaters >|:| through Thanksgiving. I'm not even going to see the >|:| movie next week unless >|:| there are no lines on the weekend. I can wait a few >|:| days. Sheesh. >|:| >|:| Wade >|:| >|:| >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> >|:| >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> >|:| >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply >|:| >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 11:22:34 -0500 >|:| > >|:| > >|:| >Also agreed. We also have to remember, though, that >|:| we're not talking about >|:| >standing in line for some "one-time-only" event like a >|:| Pink Floyd concert >|:| >or >|:| >The Superbowl. We're talking about a movie that's >|:| going to be playing >|:| >probably eight times a day for the next six months. >|:| All these "line >|:| >lizards" >|:| >are getting from their devotion is the chance to see >|:| the movie maybe 24 >|:| >hours sooner than their more, shall we say, chemically >|:| balanced peers. I >|:| >went down to my local megaplex around 5:30 on >|:| Wednesday. By then, the line >|:| >had dissipated. Yes, all of the Wednesday shows were >|:| sold out, but I did >|:| >get >|:| >tickets for 7:20pm for the 20th, the next day. And you >|:| know what? My >|:| >willingness to wait all of 24hours to see this movie >|:| means that I didn't >|:| >have to lose my job or my sanity by sitting on a >|:| sidewalk for three weeks, >|:| >and I'm going to be seeing the same movie they are. >|:| > >|:| >Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie >|:| on opening night? It's >|:| >going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I >|:| saw the "Star Wars" >|:| >special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd >|:| never do it again. >|:| >When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a >|:| stampede that almost >|:| >killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their >|:| seat, a couple of guys >|:| >decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row >|:| directly in front of me. >|:| >And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I >|:| literally could not hear >|:| >the >|:| >dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 >|:| minutes, even with a souped >|:| >up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but >|:| I want to actually be >|:| >able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. >|:| > >|:| >Scott, I agree with every word you said when you >|:| compared Star Wars mania >|:| >to >|:| >the dregs who don facepaint and foam cheese hats to >|:| "support their team". >|:| >We >|:| >still need to put this into a bit of perspective, though. >|:| >Josh >|:| > >|:| >|:| -----Original Message----- >|:| >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of >|:| >|:| Bruce Bridges >|:| >|:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 10:48 AM >|:| >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| >|:| Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply >|:| >|:| >|:| >|:| >|:| >|:| Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for >|:| >|:| a month does raise the legitimate question whether >|:| >|:| somebody is in need of a life to get. >|:| >|:| >|:| >|:| Of course that's just my geeky opinion. >|:| >|:| >|:| >|:| bb >|:| >|:| >|:| >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message >|:| >|:| "unsubscribe ] >|:| >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to >|:| >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] >|:| >|:| >|:| > >|:| > >|:| >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message >|:| "unsubscribe ] >|:| >[ movies" (without the quotes) to >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] >|:| >|:| >|:| _______________________________________________________________ >|:| Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com >|:| >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message >|:| "unsubscribe ] >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] >|:| > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Do ya really wanna see Phantom on opening night??! (yes :) Date: 14 May 1999 14:42:19 CDT I used to like opening shows, but recently it has gotten too obnoxious. When we saw ID4 on July 4, we were early, waited in line, and still had to sit in the fifth row ( I know some people like it that close, but my corneas must be fragile and unable to focus the pixels as well..) Then, the guy sitting next to us took his daughter to the toilet and through the start of the movie - people harrassed us for those seats, especially one particularly obnoxious usher, when the guy cam back 10 minutes later. But, on the good side, it made the rather cheesy and hokey movie quite enjoyable due to the applause, laughter and cheers in all the right places. Give and take. But, we did see Matrix when it opened, as well as Payback, and the about-two-thirds full audiences made it fun. It can be fun, but I wouldn't want to go through it for Phantom Menace. >From: "Danielle Conkle" <danyelli@hotmail.com> >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >To: movies@lists.xmission.com >Subject: [MV] Do ya really wanna see Phantom on opening night??! (yes :) >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 12:12:23 PDT > > Actually I saw the re-releasings on opening night and I thought the >crowd >made it awesome. The excitement of everyone was all buzzing, and it made >me >more into what I was watching. Sure we were rowdy, and the movie >attendents >were having fun walking around with a microphone to get comments before the >movie started, but I kind of liked it. Thankfully, we weren't so crazy >that >I couldn't hear the dialogue, as in your case, but the buzz was still going >on. I'm a fan, but not quite extreme as some. I'll see it, but not on >opening night...and I'm kind of sad I'll miss all that crazyness. > > >>Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie on opening night? >>It's >>going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I saw the "Star Wars" >>special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd never do it again. >>When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a stampede that >>almost >>killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their seat, a couple of >>guys >>decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row directly in front of me. >>And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I literally could not hear >>the >>dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 minutes, even with a souped >>up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but I want to actually >>be >>able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. > > >_______________________________________________________________ >Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 14:43:37 CDT Heehee..... >From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >To: "'movies@lists.xmission.com'" <movies@lists.xmission.com> >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 13:15:55 -0600 > >I can't take it any longer!!!!!!!!!!! I must tell you that I'm writing >this >email from my laptop in line for Wednesday's show. I was the 10th person >in >the entire state of Idaho to have my tickets for the show. You bet ya, I'm >going to be at the 12:01 AM showing and for all you losers on the West >coast >that's a full hour before you, so there! And I'm going to have my pick of >seats since I'm already in line for the show. Ya, I couldn't get the time >off from work so I quit. But I can always get another job after I'm done >seeing the movie a couple dozen times. I can't believe you guys. Who >would >want to go to a stupid football game anyway? I don't understand what >they're doing on the field anyway...sorry, I had to go for a while my buddy >in Phoenix just emailed in his next move. Ya we're playing a game of 3D >Chess just like on Star Trek. I'm kicking his Klingon butt! Any who, back >to what I was saying, why do you question our mentality. I mean, I've got >a >life, in fact this time in line has given me a lot of time to do some >really >creative and useful things. I taught myself Klingonese, I read the entire >Star Wars Encyclopedia (it's really cool because it includes all the stuff >from the books--I'm thinking of starting up a Mara Jade fan club, she's so >hot), and I'm thinking of starting my own Jedi Academy right here in Boise. >Since my wife has left me, and I don't have a job I'll have plenty of time >to do something really meaningful like this. If you don't know what I'm >talking about maybe you should question whether you have a life or not. >This kind of devotion isn't easy. Ya, some teenagers came over and threw >stuff at us last night, garbage and stuff, but it wasn't too bad since we >haven't bathed in 12 days. That's kind of cool too, it's like Woodstock >man, except the only tunes playing is those of John Williams, loud and >proud. Anyway I gotta go, it's time for my afternoon JEDIULCAN meditation >trance. You guessed it, I created it myself it's a hybrid of a Vulcan >trance and a Jedi trance only better. > >I am a GOD!!!! > >May the Force be with you all, > >Jak'da'r Daag Ut (That's my name in Klingonese) > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Wade S. [mailto:wds9974@hotmail.com] >Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 12:35 PM >To: movies@lists.xmission.com >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable > > >Amen, brother. I hate it when I think of a reply to a well-written post >such > >as Scott's, only to find that someone else said it much better than I had >yet thought of!!!!!!!!!!! I kid but kudos on the comments, Josh (and >Scott). > >I see no point in waiting three weeks in line to be in the first theater. I >also question the folks who were paying 200 to 500 dollars for advance >tickets about 2-3 weeks ago. Hanh???? i know that that was for charity, but >I've read some posts on websites of people who actually paid that price to >SEE the movie, not for any charitable reasons. Crazy. You could wait a >couple of weeks and then still have money to buy your ticket and snacks for >at least a couple of dozen more viewings, which i'm sure these guys will do >anayway. > >Here in Waco, one theater started a line on Monday, the other theater >wouldn't let people stay the night in front of it. Checking by telephone >yesterday evening, there were still plenty of tickets for Thursday, Friday, >and Saturday!!!!!! Way out of proportion. As Joshua says, it's not like a >farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a Superbowl or even an All >Star Game or sports champioship matchup. The movie will be played for >months!!!!! I wouldn't be surprised to see it stay in the first run >theaters > >through Thanksgiving. I'm not even going to see the movie next week unless >there are no lines on the weekend. I can wait a few days. Sheesh. > >Wade > > >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> > >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com > >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> > >Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply > >Date: Fri, 14 May 1999 11:22:34 -0500 > > > > > >Also agreed. We also have to remember, though, that we're not talking >about > >standing in line for some "one-time-only" event like a Pink Floyd concert > >or > >The Superbowl. We're talking about a movie that's going to be playing > >probably eight times a day for the next six months. All these "line > >lizards" > >are getting from their devotion is the chance to see the movie maybe 24 > >hours sooner than their more, shall we say, chemically balanced peers. I > >went down to my local megaplex around 5:30 on Wednesday. By then, the >line > >had dissipated. Yes, all of the Wednesday shows were sold out, but I did > >get > >tickets for 7:20pm for the 20th, the next day. And you know what? My > >willingness to wait all of 24hours to see this movie means that I didn't > >have to lose my job or my sanity by sitting on a sidewalk for three >weeks, > >and I'm going to be seeing the same movie they are. > > > >Besides, do any of you really WANT to see this movie on opening night? >It's > >going to be like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When I saw the "Star >Wars" > >special edition opening night 2 years ago, I swore I'd never do it again. > >When they opened the doors to the theater, there was a stampede that >almost > >killed people. Then, once everyone had claimed their seat, a couple of >guys > >decided to have a toy lightsaber fight in the row directly in front of >me. > >And the crowd was so obnoxious and rowdy that I literally could not hear > >the > >dialogue in the film for at least the first 20 minutes, even with a >souped > >up DTS sound system. I don't know about you guys, but I want to actually >be > >able to ENJOY this movie when I see it. > > > >Scott, I agree with every word you said when you compared Star Wars mania > >to > >the dregs who don facepaint and foam cheese hats to "support their team". > >We > >still need to put this into a bit of perspective, though. > >Josh > > > >|:| -----Original Message----- > >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com > >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of > >|:| Bruce Bridges > >|:| Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 10:48 AM > >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com > >|:| Subject: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" -Reply > >|:| > >|:| > >|:| Very well said Scott, but I think standing in line for > >|:| a month does raise the legitimate question whether > >|:| somebody is in need of a life to get. > >|:| > >|:| Of course that's just my geeky opinion. > >|:| > >|:| bb > >|:| > >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message > >|:| "unsubscribe ] > >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to > >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] > >|:| > > > > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > >_______________________________________________________________ >Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Do ya really wanna see Phantom on opening night??! Date: 14 May 1999 16:27:54 -0400 At 12.12 PM 14/05/99 PDT, Danielle Conkle wrote: > Actually I saw the re-releasings on opening night and I thought the crowd >made it awesome. The excitement of everyone was all buzzing, and it made me >more into what I was watching. This is the reason that I try to get to the opening nights of any Star Trek movie. I just like to see all of the weirdos (oops, sorry, I mean fans:-) going in all psyched. One thing that has always disappointed me about Pittsburgh is that they do not get outlandish enough, at least not at the theatre we go to. I always want to go and see the people decked out in full Klingon battle gear, and hell, I'm lucky to see someone in Spock ears. I see these fellows make the news (their 15 minutes of fame, I reckon), but never in the flesh. (Ugh, that could actually be a really horrendous image:-) As for Mr Rudy's (hopefully) parody, I gotta say that you remind me of my future brother-in-law (that is if I don't strangle him before the wedding). He works for me, which would be bad enough if not for his obsession over Phantom Menace (and seeing as he is much younger than I am, he does not have the same reasons for seeing it as my generation). He is attempting to ensure that he gets opening night tickets (and wants Tuesday off, which I cannot allow, as I plan to get my own tickets:-), and HAS to be at the midnight showing, so that at 1.00AM, when his friends get in to see the show (back in his native Missouri), he'll feel like he's watching it with them. That, and the Darth Vader mask that he plans to wear have me afraid. Very afraid.:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 16:17:52 -0400 Josh, wish I had thought of that. However, I can expand:-) This movie is EXACTLY like the farewell tour of Rolling Stones. The hype is overblown, it will be repeated over and over all year. And in two years, they will be back with the same character:-) However, the queue sitters are just like the Deadheads that used to follow Jerry and Co all over the place. They had/have no lives, dressed outlandishly, went to the same shows over and over again, and rarely bathed:-) The Dead used to play in Foxboro, Mass and Buffalo NY around the 4th of July week-end every year. I remember one 4th of July, I had to travel from Cape Cod to Buffalo. The Dead had played in Foxboro on the 3rd, and their Buffalo show was the 5th. I got to share the road with all of these 60s rejects and they Partridge-Family-style psychodelic schoolbuses. Best part was that tho the NY Thruway was lousy with Cops, I could travel as fast as I wanted. The cops were too busy pulling over the schoolbuses and VW combi-vans and searching them. Deadheads and drugs?? Never would have thought of it:-) Regards, --Mel At 02.25 PM 14/05/99 -0500, Joshua Crow wrote: > >I have to correct you on one thing, Wade. I do not believe there will EVER >be a farewell performance by The Rolling Stones. Alas. As Joshua >|:| says, it's not like a >|:| farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a >|:| Superbowl or even an All >|:| Star Game or sports champioship matchup. --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable "Force" Date: 14 May 1999 16:03:40 -0400 At 11.27 AM 14/05/99 -0700, Romero, Leticia wrote: >To me, the difference between standing in line for a ticket to a show that >can NEVER BE REPEATED (sports) to a show that the same action EVERY TIME >(movie) is pretty obvious. I will stand in line for days for Dodger tickets >because you never know when Raul is going to out-bat the league. Stand in line?? Hell, I wouldn't even take those for free!!:-) >P.S. T-shirts with team logos with a matching shorts and hat is an >acceptable dress standard in our human society - Klingon war togs are not -- >in the 80's maybe, but not anymore... Well, who would you want your children to look up to?? Captain Picard or Latrell Spreewell?? Just asking:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Do ya really wanna see Phantom on opening night??! (yes Date: 14 May 1999 15:10:54 -0600 Mel, Since there's a shadow of doubt that it wasn't a parody, let me reassure you that I'm at work. My loving wife just called and told me that she is anxiously awaiting when I get off work so we can be together, I bathed this morning, and yesterday morning, etc, I have read many of the Star Wars books, and although Mara Jade is described as a redhead I don't fantasize about her, I do have tickets to go to the show, but it's the 8 AM showing on the 19th which shouldn't be too crowded and does not jeopardize my job and the earliest me and my oldest son (age 7, the exact age I was when Star Wars came out and I went and saw it with my family) will arrive is around 7AM. Quite frankly your brother-in-law-to-be scares me, and you should have a serious talk with your sister. I completely subscribe to your theory of why this movie is so important to those of our generation. It wasn't just a movie, it was an event. My family made it an event and that's what I'm going to try to provide for my son. He's counting down the days, and he's so excited that we're going to it on opening day. We're going to the show, going to breakfast, and going to have fun. I've taken him to movies plenty of times, this time (despite whether the movie is academy awards material or not) it will be an event for both of us, and I'm looking forward to that. As far as the people in Klingon garb, let me tell an experience I had. It was a Halloween party at our church 5 years ago. At that time I was reading anything "Trek". Including the encyclopedia. I was becoming a huge fan and could not get enough. At this party there was a man (I found out from somebody else that he was 36) there dressed as a Klingon in a Starfleet uniform (and yes I knew enough about these things to know that he wore the rank of Commander on his lapel). Since this was a Halloween costume party I didn't think it was strange at all. I went and complimented him on his costume, and make up job. I mean it was great, he had a real professional make-up artist mask just like on the movies. I asked him if he did all of this just for this party and he replied, "Oh no. I am a Klingon. I'm the 1st officer on the USS KELLY." To which I replied in a very cautious voice, "Are there many starships in the Salt Lake Valley?" "Oh yes, there are currently 5 in this sector, but the Kelly is the flagship in this sector". Eventually I got him to drop the facade for a minute so he could tell me what the hell he was talking about. Apparently a bunch ("the USS KELLY currently as a crew of 150 people from 13 different species") of these people actually get together and go bowling and hold meetings and such and they never drop out of character if they're in uniform. He told me that I could join Starfleet, but would first (you guessed it) have to go to Starfleet Academy. I excused myself as quickly as I could after it occurred to me that this individual was serious. It really sent chills down my spine. I went home and threw my Encyclopedia away and vowed never to go down that route. It was truly scary. James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 2:28 PM (yes :) At 12.12 PM 14/05/99 PDT, Danielle Conkle wrote: > Actually I saw the re-releasings on opening night and I thought the crowd >made it awesome. The excitement of everyone was all buzzing, and it made me >more into what I was watching. This is the reason that I try to get to the opening nights of any Star Trek movie. I just like to see all of the weirdos (oops, sorry, I mean fans:-) going in all psyched. One thing that has always disappointed me about Pittsburgh is that they do not get outlandish enough, at least not at the theatre we go to. I always want to go and see the people decked out in full Klingon battle gear, and hell, I'm lucky to see someone in Spock ears. I see these fellows make the news (their 15 minutes of fame, I reckon), but never in the flesh. (Ugh, that could actually be a really horrendous image:-) As for Mr Rudy's (hopefully) parody, I gotta say that you remind me of my future brother-in-law (that is if I don't strangle him before the wedding). He works for me, which would be bad enough if not for his obsession over Phantom Menace (and seeing as he is much younger than I am, he does not have the same reasons for seeing it as my generation). He is attempting to ensure that he gets opening night tickets (and wants Tuesday off, which I cannot allow, as I plan to get my own tickets:-), and HAS to be at the midnight showing, so that at 1.00AM, when his friends get in to see the show (back in his native Missouri), he'll feel like he's watching it with them. That, and the Darth Vader mask that he plans to wear have me afraid. Very afraid.:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 16:18:35 -0500 |:| Josh, wish I had thought of that. However, I can expand:-) |:| |:| This movie is EXACTLY like the farewell tour of Rolling |:| Stones. The hype |:| is overblown, it will be repeated over and over all |:| year. And in two |:| years, they will be back with the same character:-) HA! Excellent point. Not to mention that C3PO and R2D2 have a lot in common with Mick Jagger and David Bowie, if you catch my drift. The difference between a live show and a movie, however, is that at least with a live show you have real people who tend to change things from night to night, with a lot of subtle nuances that are different every time. As a music enthusiast, I can tell you that there are bands that I will definitely see 2 or 3 times on the same tour, for that reason. In the case of the movie, though, we're talking about somebody in a projection booth pressing "play" on the same reel that's run earlier that day, and the day before that. |:| |:| However, the queue sitters are just like the Deadheads |:| that used to follow |:| Jerry and Co all over the place. They had/have no |:| lives, dressed |:| outlandishly, went to the same shows over and over |:| again, and rarely bathed:-) |:| |:| The Dead used to play in Foxboro, Mass and Buffalo NY |:| around the 4th of |:| July week-end every year. I remember one 4th of July, |:| I had to travel from |:| Cape Cod to Buffalo. The Dead had played in Foxboro on |:| the 3rd, and their |:| Buffalo show was the 5th. I got to share the road with |:| all of these 60s |:| rejects and they Partridge-Family-style psychodelic |:| schoolbuses. Best part |:| was that tho the NY Thruway was lousy with Cops, I |:| could travel as fast as |:| I wanted. The cops were too busy pulling over the |:| schoolbuses and VW |:| combi-vans and searching them. Deadheads and drugs?? |:| Never would have |:| thought of it:-) |:| |:| Regards, |:| |:| --Mel |:| |:| At 02.25 PM 14/05/99 -0500, Joshua Crow wrote: |:| > |:| >I have to correct you on one thing, Wade. I do not |:| believe there will EVER |:| >be a farewell performance by The Rolling Stones. Alas. |:| |:| As Joshua |:| >|:| says, it's not like a |:| >|:| farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a |:| >|:| Superbowl or even an All |:| >|:| Star Game or sports champioship matchup. |:| |:| |:| --Mel Eperthener |:| president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty |:| |:| Please support the endeavour |:| of a friend and fellow Australian. |:| |:| Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy |:| http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings |:| |:| ____________________________________________ |:| Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. |:| -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby |:| __________________________ |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 14 May 1999 15:30:51 -0600 Any event performed before a live audience from a movie to a Shakespeare play to an AC/DC concert will be eupherial, in that the entire experience will never be the same twice. Yes that effect is greatly amplified if the performance isn't static as it is with a movie, but the point is the same. The overall experience will be different. I remember seeing Space Balls in the theater. The opening scene where the ship was flying over and it was so incredibly huge, somebody yelled out "That's a big ship" 5 minutes later when the ship is still growing in size the humor of the scene was amplified by what the woman had said. During the opening scrolling words, when it says "If you can read this, you don't need glasses" an older gentlemen behind me asked his wife what that said to which she replied in a rather loud voice, "It says, you need glasses." Movie audiences in general are all the same. There's chatter as the beginning, things begin to calm down during the previews and then it's completely silent during the movie, except were you are suppose to laugh, etc. This is out of respect I suppose, but it's also so common that we seem to have taken the audience out of the equation, but in reality they can be a large part of it. I don't know about any of you but when Saving Private Ryan ended and nobody made a single sound, not even a peep as we filed out of the theater, that "shared-silence" made it more of an event for me. I knew that it hadn't just effected me, it had effected 499 other people. It went beyond a movie and became an experience. Yes, TPM the movie will be the same every single time and in time the crowds will calm down to the normal movie-going audiences, but until that time it might well be a different experience everytime it's seen. James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Friday, May 14, 1999 3:19 PM |:| Josh, wish I had thought of that. However, I can expand:-) |:| |:| This movie is EXACTLY like the farewell tour of Rolling |:| Stones. The hype |:| is overblown, it will be repeated over and over all |:| year. And in two |:| years, they will be back with the same character:-) HA! Excellent point. Not to mention that C3PO and R2D2 have a lot in common with Mick Jagger and David Bowie, if you catch my drift. The difference between a live show and a movie, however, is that at least with a live show you have real people who tend to change things from night to night, with a lot of subtle nuances that are different every time. As a music enthusiast, I can tell you that there are bands that I will definitely see 2 or 3 times on the same tour, for that reason. In the case of the movie, though, we're talking about somebody in a projection booth pressing "play" on the same reel that's run earlier that day, and the day before that. |:| |:| However, the queue sitters are just like the Deadheads |:| that used to follow |:| Jerry and Co all over the place. They had/have no |:| lives, dressed |:| outlandishly, went to the same shows over and over |:| again, and rarely bathed:-) |:| |:| The Dead used to play in Foxboro, Mass and Buffalo NY |:| around the 4th of |:| July week-end every year. I remember one 4th of July, |:| I had to travel from |:| Cape Cod to Buffalo. The Dead had played in Foxboro on |:| the 3rd, and their |:| Buffalo show was the 5th. I got to share the road with |:| all of these 60s |:| rejects and they Partridge-Family-style psychodelic |:| schoolbuses. Best part |:| was that tho the NY Thruway was lousy with Cops, I |:| could travel as fast as |:| I wanted. The cops were too busy pulling over the |:| schoolbuses and VW |:| combi-vans and searching them. Deadheads and drugs?? |:| Never would have |:| thought of it:-) |:| |:| Regards, |:| |:| --Mel |:| |:| At 02.25 PM 14/05/99 -0500, Joshua Crow wrote: |:| > |:| >I have to correct you on one thing, Wade. I do not |:| believe there will EVER |:| >be a farewell performance by The Rolling Stones. Alas. |:| |:| As Joshua |:| >|:| says, it's not like a |:| >|:| farewell performance by The Rolling Stones or a |:| >|:| Superbowl or even an All |:| >|:| Star Game or sports champioship matchup. |:| |:| |:| --Mel Eperthener |:| president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty |:| |:| Please support the endeavour |:| of a friend and fellow Australian. |:| |:| Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy |:| http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings |:| |:| ____________________________________________ |:| Traditionally, most of Australia's imports come from overseas. |:| -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppell (Kip) Enderby |:| __________________________ |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: RE: [MV] Do ya really wanna see Phantom on opening night??! Date: 14 May 1999 19:21:02 -0400 At 03.10 PM 14/05/99 -0600, jkrudy wrote: >Mel, > >Since there's a shadow of doubt that it wasn't a parody, let me reassure you >that I'm at work. My loving wife just called and told me that she is >anxiously awaiting when I get off work so we can be together, I bathed this >morning, and yesterday morning, etc, Oh, I was sure that you were funning us, but couldn't resist yanking the chain just a bit more:-) I have read many of the Star Wars >books, and although Mara Jade is described as a redhead I don't fantasize >about her, I do have tickets to go to the show, but it's the 8 AM showing on >the 19th which shouldn't be too crowded and does not jeopardize my job and >the earliest me and my oldest son (age 7, the exact age I was when Star Wars >came out and I went and saw it with my family) will arrive is around 7AM. Well, with my work schedule, it actaully makes sense for me to try to catch the midnight show (for any movie). That's why we went to the midnight showing of Titanic (Ugh:-) and The X-Files. I would really not have any problem waiting until midnight Wed/Thurs even, but if I don't get to the show sometime Wed, it will be Sunday before I have another chance (since we're rather short staffed right now). Obviously, not seeing this is hardly going to drive me to despair (at least I HOPE it's obvious:-), but it would be nice to see it earlier rather than later. As I have said, tickets are not even being sold until Noon Tuesday. Brother-in-law wants off from work to go get the tickets. I have two priorities every Tuesday. One is making sure the shop is open and the second is getting supplies (as this is the supply pick-up day). Getting tickets is, at best, third priority that day. >Quite frankly your brother-in-law-to-be scares me, and you should have a >serious talk with your sister. He scares you?? You don't know the half of it, mate:-) He brings his toys to work. OK, I know a lot of people our age (or anyone above the age of 10) might buy the toys (I have some collectables myself), but not that bring them to work, and have lightsabre battles on the back desk. And as for the people queueing up, well I know the Australian that organised the entire Mann's Chinese Theatre line (not well, tho:-), and I do have to respect them, esp as most of these publicity stunts have charity tie-ins. However, B-I-L looks up to these people as heroes. Does anyone else get The Daily Probe (news parody) from Top5?? Today's first article (about violence against video store clerks that will NOT SHUT UP about this movie) fits him to a T. And these are only his annoying habits that centre around Star Wars:-) >As far as the people in Klingon garb, let me tell an experience I had. It >was a Halloween party at our church 5 years ago. (snip story about asylum escapee that BELIEVED that he was a Klingon:-) He told me that I >could join Starfleet, but would first (you guessed it) have to go to >Starfleet Academy. I excused myself as quickly as I could after it occurred >to me that this individual was serious. It really sent chills down my >spine. I went home and threw my Encyclopedia away and vowed never to go >down that route. It was truly scary. I hear you, man:-) I always thought it would be neat to get one of those stickers for the back window of the car (like we have for our universities) that said Starfleet Academy, but am concerned about the type of response it would generate. To get back to the comparison to sports fans, there are a number of those guys that are over the top (for example, see the movie Celtic Pride, amongst others) and that scare me. And as I said before, I'd rather my kids look up to someone like Patrick Stewart or LaVar Burtan or even the characters they play than look up to Roger Clemens or the Dallas Cowboys. However, it is a matter of perspective, and it seems that these guys who obsess over movies are much less into reality than are your typical sports fans. Then again, you don't hear about some young kid shooting someone to get his Spock's ears, just his Air Jordans:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: [MV] Black Mask review Date: 15 May 1999 12:46:10 -0700 ughhh. Sorry to have to make you read this one - I reccomend deleting this message and we'll all pretend that this conversation (or this movie) never existed. It was pretty bad - very cliche, lots of stereotypes, everyday action plot, boring characters - and it was dubbed!! On the plus side it did have about 3 cool martial arts scenes - if you're into that kind of thing. Obviously this one is a fail. I apologize again for interrupting whatever it was you were doing!:-) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: SkipyLlama@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 15 May 1999 13:04:05 EDT In a message dated 5/14/99 2:38:45 PM Central Daylight Time, wds9974@hotmail.com writes: > :-) point well taken. > > Note that my first impulse was to say "The Who" but they have had at least 3 > or 4 farewell performances so it's a no-win situation. Okay, I could pass up the Rolling stones comment, but the Who!? As far as I'm concerned, Daltry and Pete could give a performance from their hospital beds, and I"d go see it........ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Roman G" <romang@mailcity.com> Subject: [MV] SW on TV Date: 15 May 1999 13:42:05 -0700 -- Star Wars was shown on TV yesterday. I had not seen it atleast 5yrs. This time I found it slow, boring, uneven, lacking in cohesion and FX. Most of the scenes take place inside the Death Star. So many laser shots and the good guys dont get hurt, how silly. Why did Ben Kenobi disappear in the middle of the saber fight with Darth Vader? Why do ships make sound in space? Why do laser shots produce explosions? How was princess Leia kidnapped? BTW, I did enjoy the Pinky and the Brain parody of it! Get your FREE Email at http://mailcity.lycos.com Get your PERSONALIZED START PAGE at http://my.lycos.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: TREKKIES Date: 15 May 1999 15:22:29 -0600 (MDT) TREKKIES (Paramount Classics) Featuring: Denise Crosby, Barbara Adams, Gabriel Koerner, Dennis Bourguignon. Producer: W. K. Border. Director: Roger Nygard. MPAA Rating: PG (adult themes) Running Time: 87 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. I'll be honest with you: the last thing I was expecting from the Paramount-distributed TREKKIES was a warts-n-all documentary about "Star Trek" fandom. Paramount, after all, was the corporate homeworld of the United Federation of Planets; how critical a look could the studio _really_ take at those who so proudly wore the milk moustaches from its most lucrative cash cow? Roger Nygard's TREKKIES, however, is about as far from an officially endorsed whitewash as one could imagine. In fact, though its character studies are at times undeniably amusing, it's almost too focused on turning its subjects into the oddballs everyone already suspects Trekkies of being. Narrated by actress Denise Crosby (who portrayed Tasha Yar on the syndicated "Star Trek: The Next Generation"), TREKKIES is essentially a loosely assembled collection of cast member anecdotes and portraits of the hardest of hard-core fans. Among the individuals profiled is Barbara Adams, a Little Rock, Arkansas bookbinder and "Commander" of a local fan organization who gained national attention when she served as a Whitewater trial juror in her full Starfleed uniform. Another tour guide is 14-year-old Gabriel Koerner from Bakersfield, California, who leads viewers through a typical "Star Trek" convention -- one of 28 he has attended -- complete with merchandise tables, auctions and guest appearances by cast members past and present. The bad news for many "Trek" fans expecting a sympathetic portrait is that those two characters are among the more mainstream folks in the film. TREKKIES doesn't hesitate to show us characters like the cross-dresser who performs "Trek"-inspired folk songs, or a woman whose obsession with Brent Spiner (the artificial life form Data on "The Next Generation") borders on stalking, or an engineer who travels the streets of Minneapolis in an enclosed wheelchair-like device modeled after a "Trek" prop. When the subject matter swerves into the pornographic fan fiction which has been created using "Trek" characters, it no longer feels like Nygard is just creating a comprehensive catalog of the manifestations of Trekkie-ism. There's an element of side show exploitation to these aspects of TREKKIES, a sense that Nygard is less interested in understanding the phenomenon of Trekkies than in turning their eccentricities into punch lines. That's truly a shame, because the "why's" of Trekkies could have been at least as fascinating as the "who's". In an utterly unique way, the universe created by Gene Roddenberry affected viewers as no other television program has in the history of the medium. There are moments of insight into the way "Star Trek" changed the lives of those involved in it forever, as in actor James Doohan's ("Scotty") emotional story about how he helped save the life of a suicidal woman. TREKKIES also touches on the impact of the show's positive portrayal of multi-ethnic integration, and on the optimism of its messages of inclusion and acceptance. Such ideas should have made it easier to see Trekkies as social outsiders who have embraced a mythology in which they are tolerated, and even celebrated. It's ironic -- and somewhat disappointing -- to watch the film turn them into social outsiders once again. There's no denying that TREKKIES is occasionally quite funny, whether in the answers of cast members to the strangest fan experiences they have had, or in the ways various Trekkies have integrated their love of "Trek" into their lives (like dentist Dennis Bourguignon's "Starbase Dental" office). It was only after I left the theater that I realized I had been laughing at these people more than I was laughing with them. Yes, there are comments about how intelligent most "Star Trek" fans are; it's too bad they feel like token gestures. Many Trekkies themselves seem to have embraced the film, but I'm not sure they should appreciate the way they are turned into exactly what the broader population generally thinks of them. There's not enough balance between the unusual things these people do and the love that inspires them to do those things. It was brave of Paramount to endorse a film like TREKKIES. It also seems like a bit of a betrayal. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 Trek meets: 5. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] REVIEW: TREKKIES Date: 15 May 1999 17:32:55 -0400 Man, could a review be any more timely:-) James, I wonder if your fellow Halloween-partier is in this film. Perhaps he wasn't oddball enough for this film. Be afraid, be very afraid. Regards, --Mel At 03.22 PM 15/05/99 -0600, Scott Renshaw wrote: >TREKKIES >(Paramount Classics) >Featuring: Denise Crosby, Barbara Adams, Gabriel Koerner, Dennis >Bourguignon. >Producer: W. K. Border. >Director: Roger Nygard. >MPAA Rating: PG (adult themes) >Running Time: 87 minutes. >Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. > > I'll be honest with you: the last thing I was expecting from the >Paramount-distributed TREKKIES was a warts-n-all documentary about "Star >Trek" fandom. Paramount, after all, was the corporate homeworld of the >United Federation of Planets; how critical a look could the studio >_really_ take at those who so proudly wore the milk moustaches from its >most lucrative cash cow? Roger Nygard's TREKKIES, however, is about as >far from an officially endorsed whitewash as one could imagine. In fact, >though its character studies are at times undeniably amusing, it's almost >too focused on turning its subjects into the oddballs everyone already >suspects Trekkies of being. > The bad news for many "Trek" fans expecting a sympathetic portrait is >that those two characters are among the more mainstream folks in the film. --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: THREE SEASONS Date: 16 May 1999 09:34:34 -0600 (MDT) THREE SEASONS (BA M`UA) (October) Starring: Don Duong, Nguyen Ngoc Hiep, Tran Manh Cuong, Harvey Keitel, Zoe Bui, Nguyen Huu Duoc. Screenplay: Tony Bui. Producers: Jason Kliot, Joana Vicente and Tony Bui. Director: Toni Bui. MPAA Rating: PG (adult themes) Running Time: 113 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. Perspective is a curious matter. Take the question of the Vietnam War, for example. The conventional wisdom runs that the United States lost the conflict when troops were withdrawn before the fall of Saigon. For those of you laboring under the misapprehension that that was the end of the story, Tony Bui's THREE SEASONS shows us a modern-day Saigon in the full bloom of capitalism; in the ideological long run, you might say the war was won after all. Sometimes, a thing is entirely how you look at it rather than the thing itself. Even in the mind, style can triumph over substance. There is an abundance of style on display in THREE SEASONS, enough to cloak its lapses in substance. The narrative consists of four largely independent stories of life in modern Saigon. In one, a young woman named Kien An (Nguyen Ngoc Hiep) goes to work at a lotus farm, and becomes intrigued with the reasons behind the reclusiveness of her employer (Tran Manh Cuong). Another finds cyclo-cab driver Hai (Don Duong) becoming infatuated with local prostitute Lan (Zoe Bui), and intent on serving as her knight in shining armor. The third involves a street urchin and trinket seller named Woody (Nguyen Huu Duoc) on a quest for the suitcase full of goods he lost in a bar. Meanwhile, American Vietnam War veteran James Hager (Harvey Keitel) searches for the daughter he left behind. Visually, THREE SEASONS is a remarkably assured piece of film-making, using the contrasts of ancient, war-time and modern Vietnam to perfection. In the picturesque countryside, delicate wooden bridges share the landscape with neon advertising signs; in the city, the war's terrible legacy has been turned into an opportunity for a theme bar (characters in the film frequent the "Apocalypse Now Cafe"). Cinematographer Lisa Rinzler captures flower-showered streets and lotus gardens with a warm glow, helping make THREE SEASONS an often enchanting tone poem on the conflicts inherent in introducing the contemporary into the conventional. As a narrative, it's considerably more inconsistent, as one might expect from the multiple independent story-lines. By far the most effective is the tale of cyclo driver Hai, given the strongest emotional and thematic pull by Don Duong's exceptional performance. At its core his is a tried-and-true hooker with a heart of gold story, yet something in Duong's manner makes the cliche more resonant, his attempts to "save" Lan more ennobling than predictable. Each of the other tales has its moments, but they come more sporadically. Keitel's American perspective feels particularly intrusive, almost like a sop to American audiences; what's more, it adds a title-confounding fourth story to the three seasons. Though THREE SEASONS rarely inspires seat-shifting, it's never as engaging as it is when the focus is on Hai. Still, the stories do ultimately come together as tales of healing, of reconciling Vietnam's troubled past with its challenging present and future. As the first American production shot in Vietnam since the war, it's also an often-compelling cultural document. There's little doubt that THREE SEASONS feels somehow more "significant" because it is so gracefully and beautifully composed, but that's hardly a cause for consternation. If it pushes plenty of the right aesthetic buttons, that only proves that glamour can change one's perspective, as it clearly has in a post-war Saigon where Coke adds life. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 Saigon falls: 7. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 17 May 1999 08:42:25 CDT No disregards to The Who, but what I was saying is that the Who broke up a number of times to get back together. We were saying that the tickets to SW is not the same as a final performance by someone important since you can see SW over and over for months. My joke was that a final performance by The Who may not be final really. Wade > >In a message dated 5/14/99 2:38:45 PM Central Daylight Time, >wds9974@hotmail.com writes: > > > :-) point well taken. > > > > Note that my first impulse was to say "The Who" but they have had at >least >3 > > or 4 farewell performances so it's a no-win situation. > >Okay, I could pass up the Rolling stones comment, but the Who!? As far as >I'm concerned, Daltry and Pete could give a performance from their hospital >beds, and I"d go see it........ > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "David F. Nolan" <DFN@alum.mit.edu> Subject: [MV] Another reason to miss the first day of SW:TPM Date: 17 May 1999 07:12:15 -0700 Once all those people who have waited in line for days to see "The Phantom Menace" actually get inside the theater, can you imagine what it's gonna SMELL like? [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: [MV] WHO are we kidding?? Date: 17 May 1999 12:43:03 -0400 At 08.42 AM 17/05/99 CDT, Wade S. wrote: >No disregards to The Who, but what I was saying is that the Who broke up a >number of times to get back together. We were saying that the tickets to SW >is not the same as a final performance by someone important since you can >see SW over and over for months. My joke was that a final performance by The >Who may not be final really. Don't worry, I think we all (including the Who fan that you were replying to, sorry that I can't remember your name) got the joke, Wade. And if anything, I think that the fan was just showing that it is all a matter of degree. Which brings us back to the film. After watching nearly two hours of hype (read: free press) about it yesterday, inculding Roger Ebert's missive about the entire phenomenon, I have come to a few realisations. One is that this series/industry is so big that it in some ways is imploding on itself. Why else would Lucas be working so hard to tone down the hype, and tell us that this is not that big of a deal?? What it comes down to is that you could film half an hour of Yoda taking a dump (Episode 1 - The Phantom Crap), and people would be lining up for it because, well, IT'S STAR WARS, MAN!!!! Meanwhile, Lucas could produce a work of art that easily surpasses both Citizen Kane AND Casablanca, and some people would pan it because, well, it's Star Wars, man. My fellow Australians on this list will recognise this as the "tall poppy" syndrome, that of having to bring the mighty down to your level. I think that we need to realise that this has moved beyond some images on moving celluiod (oh, like I should be expected to spell on a Monday). For some people (ie, those needing a life), it is a quasi-religion (yes, that is from Ebert's show), and for others it is the ultimate hype-machine. I think this is a movie that, like the rest of the series, will not be receiving glowing opening reviews (tho no one is willing to admit to panning the original when it was released in 1977), but there is a core of fans that will not be dissuaded (again, it's Monday, spellcheck is broken) from believing this is the Second Coming. The rest of us will pay our ten-spot (if we're lucky to get away with that price), and reserve judgement until later. On a similar, albeit from a different genre, note, there were some interesting articles in the local newspaper yesterday (some were national syndicates, so you may have seen them). One that really pissed me off is the local film critic found some way to blame Star Wars for the tragedy at Columnbine. Come on, this is definately getting out of hand!! Also, there was an article about The Shawshank Redemption, a movie that did terribly in the theatres, but has found a second life on video and telly. If you want to see a really powerful movie, this would be definately one that I would recommend. That, and The Usual Suspects. If you missed either one of these, what are you waiting for?? Whilst everyone else is fighting over Phantom Tickets, get yeself to a video store, and rent these fine pieces of film. Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: SkipyLlama@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] ESSAY: Reasonable Date: 17 May 1999 16:46:33 EDT In a message dated 5/17/99 8:45:06 AM Central Daylight Time, wds9974@hotmail.com writes: > No disregards to The Who, but what I was saying is that the Who broke up a > number of times to get back together. We were saying that the tickets to SW > is not the same as a final performance by someone important since you can > see SW over and over for months. My joke was that a final performance by The > > Who may not be final really. I know, I was responding in a mostly joking manner (even though I probably WOULD go see them in concer on their deathbeds ;-)...... [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Irish Boy" <rdoyle29@msn.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Another reason to miss the first day of SW:TPM Date: 17 May 1999 16:24:45 -0500 Except of course that the line up ended a week before the movie starts. R∩(c)hΣ(r)d J. ╨÷ lδ rdoyle29@msn.com ICQ: 27479510 "There are three roads to ruin; women, gambling and technicians. The most pleasant is with women, the quickest is with gambling, but the surest is with technicians." - Georges Pompidou -----Original Message----- [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com] On Behalf Of David F. Nolan Sent: Monday, May 17, 1999 9:12 AM Once all those people who have waited in line for days to see "The Phantom Menace" actually get inside the theater, can you imagine what it's gonna SMELL like? [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Ken D. Andrews" <kendrew@earthlink.net> Subject: [MV] The MUMMY! Date: 18 May 1999 10:12:53 -0700 Well. . . I have to tell you guys. . .I am a movie goer is rarely ever unhappy. As long as I'm entertained, and it doesn't take much for mind to stay entertained. . .and you guessed it. . . BUT Was this movie supposed to be THE MUMMY or George of the Jungle goes to Egypt? Now please forgive me if you have already heard this same opinion...I didn't read most of the post regarding this movie because I wanted to see it first. The lines sounded like they were taken right out of a comic book, and since I love comic books(I told you it didn't take much to keep mind entertained), a very poor comic book at that. Since the mummy was deathly afraid of cats, each one of the guys who opened the "box" that contained the "book of death" could have just carried two cats around with them. . .end of movie. Or better yet have 'Pharoah's bodyguards" just kill one or all of the men who opened the box, burn their bodies, and he can't be restored. . .end of movie. The plot leaked like a collander. And yet. . .80 million bucks in two weeks. It's a box office smash. . . I need to start writing screen plays but alas the trick is getting someone who can actually say yes to a screenplay to read it. ken [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: [MV] The clock is ticking Date: 18 May 1999 12:21:09 -0600 Okay, Y2K may not be the Apocalypse and The Phantom Menace might not be the Second Coming, but just in case it's not all some big coincidence I've place my kitchen timer next to my Millennium count down clock, and the kitchen timer says there's 19 HRS 41 MIN and 32 SEC until the Second Coming of the Star Wars Saga!!!! At least there's that much time until I see it. I wonder what we're all going to be talking about tomorrow? I watched Rookie of the Year with my kids last night maybe we'll talk about that tomorrow. James K. Rudy [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "David F. Nolan" <DFN@alum.mit.edu> Subject: [MV] Fwd: FlickPicks Special Bulletin Date: 18 May 1999 14:18:50 -0700 "PHANTOM MENACE" IS UPON US -- PLEASE COMMENT! The movie the whole world has been waiting for (or so George Lucas would have us believe) will make its public debut in hours. Is it all it's been cracked up to be... or just an overblown special effects extravaganza, calculatedly designed to maximize tie-in revenue? If you're one of the fortunate few who's already seen it in a preview showing -- or one of the hardy souls who catch it on opening day -- please visit the FlickPicks RATE A FLICK page and weigh in with your rating and comments. Thousands of moviegoers are counting on you for guidance! And if you're one of those thousands, check our PEOPLE'S CHOICE page before you head out to see PHANTOM MENACE ... or any other movie. It's the quickest, easiest way to learn what other moviegoers are saying about current offerings. FlickPicks - http://www.flickpicks.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Da Sneaker" <rrdtbsop@hotmail.com> Subject: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 19 May 1999 13:47:48 CEST Does anybody know when or if George Lucas is planning to bring out the trilogy on DVD? Ralph ------------------------------ McMurphy: Is that crazy enough for ya'? Want me to take a shit on the floor? Jack Nicholson: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) ------------------------------ ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: [MV] Star Wars Date: 19 May 1999 09:25:51 -0700 FYI, if anyone cares, my office overlooks the Westwood theatre playing = Starwars and with my trusty binoculars I can see 5 Princes Lieas (sp?). = They seem to be giving each other a wide berth. bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Stubbs <toffeerapper@f-u-n.u-net.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 19 May 1999 19:37:09 +0100 At 01:47 PM 5/19/99 CEST, you wrote: >Does anybody know when or if George Lucas is planning to bring out the >trilogy on DVD? > >Ralph He says definitely "No." :-( Toffee > > ------------------------------ >McMurphy: Is that crazy enough for ya'? > Want me to take a shit on the floor? > >Jack Nicholson: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) > > ------------------------------ > > >______________________________________________________ >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 19 May 1999 13:41:22 -0500 Do you know why? |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of Tim Stubbs |:| Sent: Wednesday, May 19, 1999 1:37 PM |:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD |:| |:| |:| At 01:47 PM 5/19/99 CEST, you wrote: |:| >Does anybody know when or if George Lucas is planning |:| to bring out the |:| >trilogy on DVD? |:| > |:| >Ralph |:| |:| |:| He says definitely "No." |:| |:| :-( |:| |:| Toffee |:| |:| |:| |:| > |:| > ------------------------------ |:| >McMurphy: Is that crazy enough for ya'? |:| > Want me to take a shit on the floor? |:| > |:| >Jack Nicholson: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) |:| > |:| > ------------------------------ |:| > |:| > |:| >______________________________________________________ |:| >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com |:| > |:| >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| >[ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| > |:| > |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars Date: 19 May 1999 12:38:18 -0400 At 09.25 AM 19/05/99 -0700, Bruce Bridges wrote: >FYI, if anyone cares, my office overlooks the Westwood theatre playing Starwars and with my trusty binoculars I can see 5 Princes Lieas (sp?). They seem to be giving each other a wide berth. What, you mean that they're still wandering around??? The theatre we went to last night wasn't even sold out (that's why we went there, it almost never sells out. Plus they have just about the best sound system in the area. Too bad they'll probably close soon due to a lack of business). We did see one guy that came as Jabba the Hutt. Oh, wait, he wasn't in costume. (Don't worry, my wife already hit me for that comment:-) As for what I thought about the movie, well, it was very much like I expected. I thought it was very good for what it was. Yes, it dragged, and seemed longer than the 130 minutes it was (then again, as I have said, there are slow parts in the original trilogy). I thought it served the mythology of the characters well, establishing what we already know from the other movies, and adding some new twists (which I will not mention this time). There were a lot of inside jokes, references to things that we know will happen in 30 movie years (and happened nearly two decades ago for the audience), but that the characters don't. Some great foreshadowing. Definately for the fans. Non-fans might find it tedious and condesending. But, I should rephrase that, as it sounds like that's a bad thing:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mike Allen <dahrin@inna.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 19 May 1999 14:59:34 -0400 I heard that lucas was going to wait untill he finishes episodes 1-3 and then release all 6 on dvd as a set... which if that is true then thats a long wait just to see the original trilogy on dvd.. but hey.. i guess its better than never. -Mike Allen Joshua Crow wrote: > Do you know why? > > |:| -----Original Message----- > |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com > |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of Tim Stubbs > |:| Sent: Wednesday, May 19, 1999 1:37 PM > |:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com > |:| Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD > |:| > |:| > |:| At 01:47 PM 5/19/99 CEST, you wrote: > |:| >Does anybody know when or if George Lucas is planning > |:| to bring out the > |:| >trilogy on DVD? > |:| > > |:| >Ralph > |:| > |:| > |:| He says definitely "No." > |:| > |:| :-( > |:| > |:| Toffee > |:| > |:| > |:| > |:| > > |:| > ------------------------------ > |:| >McMurphy: Is that crazy enough for ya'? > |:| > Want me to take a shit on the floor? > |:| > > |:| >Jack Nicholson: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) > |:| > > |:| > ------------------------------ > |:| > > |:| > > |:| >______________________________________________________ > |:| >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com > |:| > > |:| >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message > |:| "unsubscribe ] > |:| >[ movies" (without the quotes) to > |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] > |:| > > |:| > > |:| > |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message > |:| "unsubscribe ] > |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to > |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] > |:| > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD -Reply Date: 19 May 1999 12:06:45 -0700 Call me stubborn but I just can not believe he will wait until episode = three has made its theater run to release the movies on dvd. As much as = he professes to champion the best in technology it would make no sense to = force the majority of people to have to continue to watch it on vhs. bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Stubbs <toffeerapper@f-u-n.u-net.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 19 May 1999 21:17:09 +0100 At 01:41 PM 5/19/99 -0500, you wrote: > >Do you know why? The last LD & VHS re-mastered releases were the last time the original 3 will appear. He has made his mind up and God knows he doesn't need the money. :-( Toffee > >|:| -----Original Message----- >|:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of Tim Stubbs >|:| Sent: Wednesday, May 19, 1999 1:37 PM >|:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com >|:| Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD >|:| >|:| >|:| At 01:47 PM 5/19/99 CEST, you wrote: >|:| >Does anybody know when or if George Lucas is planning >|:| to bring out the >|:| >trilogy on DVD? >|:| > >|:| >Ralph >|:| >|:| >|:| He says definitely "No." >|:| >|:| :-( >|:| >|:| Toffee >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Stubbs <toffeerapper@f-u-n.u-net.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD -Reply Date: 19 May 1999 21:19:21 +0100 At 12:06 PM 5/19/99 -0700, you wrote: >Call me stubborn but I just can not believe he will wait until episode three has made its theater run to release the movies on dvd. As much as he professes to champion the best in technology it would make no sense to force the majority of people to have to continue to watch it on vhs. > >bb There you go. They should have bought that beautiful LD box set. ;-) Toffee [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: STAR WARS: EPISODE I - THE PHANTOM MENACE Date: 19 May 1999 15:57:52 -0600 (MDT) STAR WARS: EPISODE I - THE PHANTOM MENACE (20th Century Fox) Starring: Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Jake Lloyd, Natalie Portman, Ian McDiarmid, Ray Park, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Frank Oz, Ahmet Best. Screenplay: George Lucas. Producer: Rick McCallum. Director: George Lucas. MPAA Rating: PG (violence) Running Time: 131 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. Contrary to conventional wisdom, The Force is not a mystical, all-encompassing power; it's what George Lucas must be feeling in the middle of his chest as he revives the STAR WARS saga after a 16-year hiatus. In one sense, of course, EPISODE I - THE PHANTOM MENACE is the ultimate can't-lose proposition. It's also the ultimate can't-win proposition, a monolith nearly impossible to separate from the ridiculous expectations. Curiously, critics face a similar predicament. A rave could be interpreted as succumbing to the hype, while a jeer could be viewed as anti-hype backlash. How do you talk about a film that virtually demands the creation of a new set of rules -- for the film-maker, for the media, for the audience? I can only explain my reaction to THE PHANTOM MENACE this way: when John Williams' now-iconic fanfare burst forth over the sound system, I was 9 years old again, shivering with anticipation at being transported by Lucas' singular mythology. And transported I was...into a hard drive. There's no other way to explain the chilly experience of THE PHANTOM MENACE, which opens with Jedi Knights Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) on a diplomatic mission to resolve a dispute between the Trade Federation and the planet Naboo. When it becomes clear that the Federation's trade blockade is part of a more sinister plan, the Jedis flee Naboo with the planet's Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman) and amphibian Gungan Jar-Jar Binks (Ahmet Best). A repair stop on the planet Tatooine introduces us to young Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd), a slave boy whom Qui-Gon believes is the Chosen One destined to bring balance to the Force. There are plenty of other plot fragments floating around in THE PHANTOM MENACE -- most of them involving political machinations -- but the ho-hum plotting may actually be the least of its flaws. Quite simply, this is a film devoid of personality, filled with characters who never inspire affection or close identification. STAR WARS, for all its dazzle, had three fundamentally solid characters at its core: conflicted hero-on-a-quest Luke; tough, no-nonsense Leia; and lovable rogue Han. THE PHANTOM MENACE counters with the stoic Qui-Gon, the slightly-less-stoic Obi-Wan, and the stoic-in-a-slightly-different-way Amidala. Meanwhile, young Jake Lloyd brings little gravity to the character which will become the crux of this universe, and Jar-Jar's brand of comic relief is intensely grating. It's almost funny to hear Qui-Gon described as rebellious, since he seems about as capable of a rash act as he is of cracking a smile. There may be heroes in THE PHANTOM MENACE, but there's really no one to like. And, for that matter, there's really no one to hate. Darth Sidious, the Sith who will be Emperor, is the primary villain of the piece, yet he only appears in the form of a jittery transmission, hardly the stuff of genuine menace. Darth Maul, meanwhile -- he of the marketing-friendly Day-Glo visage -- is effective considering his limited screen time, yet he's really a glorified henchman for all his double-bladed lightsaber tricks. THE PHANTOM MENACE is missing that unifying, ultimately hissable bad guy that makes for great archetypal conflict. What we do have is a triumph of art direction and technology which creates alien worlds like no film ever has before. The streets of a Tatooine town bustle with creatures both familiar and unfamiliar; the megalopolis of Coruscant, capital of the Republic, features eye-popping architecture and the kind of traffic flow of which civil engineering legends are made. Though the pacing of the opening hour is on the pokey side -- which places it in good company with the first STAR WARS -- Lucas eventually produces a few dynamic set pieces like the desert pod race. When THE PHANTOM MENACE goes for pure visual satisfaction, it usually delivers. Ultimately, though, there's a more basic satisfaction the film lacks. Its structure and imagery are reminiscent both of STAR WARS and RETURN OF THE JEDI -- particularly the latter in its three-ring climax -- but it doesn't even achieve JEDI's level of old-fashioned fantasy fulfillment. When Gungans and battle droids clash on the fields of Naboo, every last figure a digital concoction, you begin to sense the absence of a primally appealing human story in this blockbuster. It may be true that it will feel more complete a few years hence when its backstory has turned into relationships between Obi-Wan and Anakin, between Anakin and Amidala. For now, all that remains is spectacle without resonance, without magic, without even all that much fun if you happen to be over the age of 10. In this era of computer wizardry, Lucas has sapped his story of the thing that made it a phenomenon in the first place. The result is an adventure that feels...well, Forced. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 manic episodes: 5. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: MrMovie008@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 19 May 1999 20:41:40 EDT Not until the first three are complete, then he will release them all on DVD [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: THE LOVE LETTER Date: 19 May 1999 19:09:19 -0600 (MDT) THE LOVE LETTER (DreamWorks) Starring: Kate Capshaw, Tom Everett Scott, Tom Selleck, Ellen DeGeneres, Julianne Nicholson, Blythe Danner, Geraldine McEwan. Screenplay: Maria Maggenti, based on the novel by Cathleen Schine. Producers: Sarah Pilsbury, Midge Sanford and Kate Capshaw. Director: Peter Ho-sun Chan. MPAA Rating: PG-13 (profanity, adult themes, sexual situations) Running Time: 89 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. To your list of absolute cinematic oxymorons -- you know, like "Pauly Shore comedy" or "Keanu Reeves performance" -- please add the following: "bittersweet farce." That's the disastrous combination served up by THE LOVE LETTER, a film that fairly screams for a more frivolous treatment. The basic set-up is pure farce, with bookstore proprietor and recent divorcee Helen MacFarquahar (Kate Capshaw) of picturesque Loblolly by the Sea, Massachusetts discovering a beautifully poetic love letter between the cushions of a couch in her shop. Both the the writer and the addressee are anonymous, leading Helen to wonder if it might be for her. Her suspicions become stronger when her young summer employee Johnny (Tom Everett Scott) begins flirting with her, little realizing that Johnny has spotted the letter and believes, in turn, that it is from Helen to him. Thus begins a tale which initially appears headed towards a wild sequence of misunderstandings, as Helen's co-worker Janet (Ellen DeGeneres) also spies the letter and suspects it to be to her from hunky fireman George (Tom Selleck). That might have been a clever, breezy entertainment, something considerably less labored than the mess delivered by screenwriter Maria Maggenti (from Cathleen Schine's novel) and director Peter Ho-sun Chan. Their tale is intended, I suppose, to be a touching tale of a middle-aged woman trying to re-discover romance, a sensitively portrayed May-December relationship mixed with the star-crossed interactions of Helen and high school classmate George (who, it turns out, has carried a torch from afar for lo these twenty years). We should understand the way the letter affects Helen, the way it closes one door in her life and opens her up to the opportunities she has missed and the opportunities still to come. If Maggenti and Chan had offered some characters remotely resembling three-dimensional people, it might even have worked. THE LOVE LETTER makes no effort whatsoever to explain Johnny's interest in Helen, spends about thirty seconds establishing Janet as little more than comic relief before creating a blink-and-you'll-miss-it sub-plot regarding her jealousy of Helen, and wraps up with an out-of-left-field relationship between two characters about whom we know virtually nothing. Key relationships (like that between Helen and her absentee mother, played by Blythe Danner) materialize out of thin air, and supporting characters (like Helen's grandmother, played by TITANIC's Gloria Stuart) serve no purpose. Even Capshaw's Helen, the film's center, is an enigma. For a film that apparently wants you to care who ends up with whom, THE LOVE LETTER gives you none of the tools to do so. It's a whodunnit with no clues. Somehow, in the middle of this clumsy confection, one genuinely interesting character appears. As Jennifer, another employee of Helen's who dotes on unrequitedly on Johnny, Julianne Nicholson is wonderfully sweet and achingly self-conscious. Masking her insecurities behind her college course sociological analysis, she makes for a great character in a story of how romantic happiness can be thwarted both from without and within. The troublie is, she's the only character in the film who belongs in such a story. Everyone else plays the kind of functional, cardboard role you'd expect to find in...well, a farce about a love letter of unknown authorship changing hands indiscriminately. There's not a solid laugh to be found in this pretty to look at but ill-conceived romantic comedy, except at the idea that someone thought a bittersweet farce could work. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 dead letters: 3. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 19 May 1999 23:51:25 -0700 It was recently reported that he will not release any Star Wars movies on DVD until all 6 are ready....bad news - hang on to those laser disks! -----Original Message----- >Does anybody know when or if George Lucas is planning to bring out the >trilogy on DVD? > >Ralph > > ------------------------------ >McMurphy: Is that crazy enough for ya'? > Want me to take a shit on the floor? > >Jack Nicholson: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) > > ------------------------------ > > >______________________________________________________ >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Stubbs <toffeerapper@f-u-n.u-net.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 20 May 1999 07:53:08 +0100 At 08:41 PM 5/19/99 EDT, you wrote: >Not until the first three are complete, then he will release them all on DVD This sounds realistic. Anyone else figure the series is really Darth Vader's story, not Obi's, Luke's, or anyone else? Toffee [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 20 May 1999 17:40:06 -0700 Tim Stubbs wrote: > >Not until the first three are complete, then he will release them all on DVD > This sounds realistic. I don't think so. I'd like to know how many people seriously think DVD will still be the format of choice by the time Episode three has had it's run in theatres. MiniDisc? Internet movies? Video on Demand? DIVX? You just kinda know that someone is going to come up with something new in the next few years to make everyone ditch their DVD players, a la Laserdisc. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: cHriS <csothman@nwchiro.edu> Subject: [MV] STAR WARS: who's story is it? Date: 20 May 1999 08:22:02 -0600 Toffee mused: "Anyone else figure the series is really Darth Vader's story, not Obi's, Luke's, or anyone else?" Well, officially I think it's supposed to be Annikan/Vader's tale, but I think this whole saga revolves around...R2! Think about it: when all is said and done and the Star Wars saga finally finishes, who's the only character who will have been there for the whole ride? R2! He was there in Star Wars, delivering Leia's "only hope" message that united Luke and Obiwan; he was there in the X-wing that blew up the first Death Star; he was there with Yoda and Luke for the Jedi training; he was there in the Millennium Falcon, fixing the hyperdrive in the escape from Cloud City; he was there as part of the rescue team that infiltrated Jabba's underworld to save Han; he was there on Endor, opening doors to Imperial bunkers while under heavy gunfire. He's been shot by Jawas, shot by TIE fighters, eaten (and spit out) by Dagobah swamp monsters, shot by storm troopers, and even forced into bartender slavery serving drinks on the sand barge to Jabba's goons! And those are just examples from the previous films; due to SPOILER potentential, I won't go into what R2 does to merit heroic status from the Queen (and in the first hour, nonetheless!) in EPISODE 1. Yeah, this whole saga may be about Vader, but R2's the true hero. Prove me wrong! - cHriS [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD -Reply Date: 20 May 1999 08:41:40 -0700 I agree. I don't know the release schedule but I would expect the third = episode to not be in the theatres sooner that 6-7 years from now. Lucas = has been very clever and coy in his releases of the original series. for = instance, a year before the remastered and enhanced versions were released = they put the original series on sale with the announcement that it was the = last time it would be available. =20 I won't be surprised if Lucas and Fox don't have some similar creative = strategy up their sleeves. =20 Of course it depends on what the meaning of the word "is" is. =20 bb >>> Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> - 5/20/99 5:40 PM >>> Tim Stubbs wrote: > >Not until the first three are complete, then he will release them all = on DVD > This sounds realistic. I don't think so. I'd like to know how many people seriously think DVD will still be the format of choice by the time Episode three has had it's run in theatres. MiniDisc? Internet movies? Video on Demand? DIVX? You just kinda know that someone is going to come up with something new in the next few years to make everyone ditch their DVD players, a la Laserdisc. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=3Dh0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: [MV] undeliverable response Date: 20 May 1999 09:22:52 -0700 To whom it may concern, I have been getting Undeliverable messages wehn I send anything to the = list and it says the problem is with the address "vortexlst13@VORTEXPHIL.TZ= O.COM" Is this just a problem with me or anybody else? Thanks, bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] undeliverable response Date: 20 May 1999 10:24:02 -0600 I'm getting those also. It still sends the message that I send, but then it sends back that error. James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Thursday, May 20, 1999 10:23 AM To whom it may concern, I have been getting Undeliverable messages wehn I send anything to the list and it says the problem is with the address "vortexlst13@VORTEXPHIL.TZO.COM" Is this just a problem with me or anybody else? Thanks, bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 20 May 1999 12:27:01 -0400 At 07.53 AM 20/05/99 +0100, Tim Stubbs wrote: >Anyone else figure the series is really Darth Vader's story, not Obi's, >Luke's, or anyone else? Actually, the original idea was for the central characters to be the robots, C-3PO and R2-D2. When Lucas planned for nine movies (three trilogies), they were the only characters in all of them. However, since he has dropped plans for making the final trilogy, perhaps that has changed. There were even rumours that the droids wouldn't even be in the first movie, but of course... well, if you've seen it, you know what happens:-) There is some question about who's story this actually is. However, I feel it is unfair to look too deeply into this until everyone has had a chance to see the movie. Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ If people are worried about the whole Y2K thing, just wait until they try to get technical support the day "Phantom Menace" opens. __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: [MV] Star Wars: What's on the editing room floor? Date: 20 May 1999 10:59:37 -0600 ************ This may be interpreted as a spoiler so beware ************** First, I absolutely loved this movie. I can't wait to see it again, although I'm forcing myself to wait at least a month so I don't get accused of being too much of a freak by my co-workers. I'm wondering how much of this film was cut out. Does anyone know? The reason I ask is it seemed very rushed, especially at the very beginning. I was also extremely disappointed in how short the Light Saber duel was at the end. It seems like they must have cut a huge chunk of it out also. Now that I've seen the movie, I've started reading the book by Terry Brooks based on the Screenplay and story by George Lucas. It has many scenes in it that were not in the movie and I'm wondering if they were the imagination of Terry Brooks or were based on scenes from the movie that were cut. It also has a short history of the Sith which I found very interesting. Would it be too much to hope for that Lucas will eventually release a director's cut of this on Video (DVD or Laserdisc)? Any comments will be appreciated. James K. Rudy [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Da Sneaker" <rrdtbsop@hotmail.com> Subject: RE: [MV] undeliverable response Date: 20 May 1999 19:19:52 CEST I also get the messages. Don't know why, but I don't really enjoy getting them. R.Essers ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "David F. Nolan" <DFN@alum.mit.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] undeliverable response Date: 20 May 1999 10:29:46 -0700 >I'm getting those also. It still sends the message that I send, but then it >sends back that error. > >James K. Rudy Same here. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Stubbs <toffeerapper@f-u-n.u-net.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 20 May 1999 18:51:32 +0100 At 12:27 PM 5/20/99 -0400, you wrote: >At 07.53 AM 20/05/99 +0100, Tim Stubbs wrote: >>Anyone else figure the series is really Darth Vader's story, not Obi's, >>Luke's, or anyone else? > >Actually, the original idea was for the central characters to be the >robots, C-3PO and R2-D2. When Lucas planned for nine movies (three >trilogies), they were the only characters in all of them. However, since >he has dropped plans for making the final trilogy, perhaps that has >changed. There were even rumours that the droids wouldn't even be in the >first movie, but of course... well, if you've seen it, you know what >happens:-) > >There is some question about who's story this actually is. However, I feel >it is unfair to look too deeply into this until everyone has had a chance >to see the movie. > >Regards, > >--Mel Well, I'll explain my reasoning then..... The six part arc..... Annakin is a nice young boy who gets lured to the Dark Side, he becomes Darth Vader, but at the end he comes back to the good side again. The End. :-) Toffee [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Stubbs <toffeerapper@f-u-n.u-net.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD -Reply Date: 20 May 1999 19:10:07 +0100 Hi Oz! Hi bb! I couldn't tell for sure if you actually had DVD, it sounded like you might be holding out. I had been, until I saw the quality on my new PC with DVD. At 08:41 AM 5/20/99 -0700, you wrote: >I agree. I don't know the release schedule but I would expect the third episode to not be in the theatres sooner that 6-7 years from now. Lucas has been very clever and coy in his releases of the original series. for instance, a year before the remastered and enhanced versions were released they put the original series on sale with the announcement that it was the last time it would be available. > >I won't be surprised if Lucas and Fox don't have some similar creative strategy up their sleeves. > >Of course it depends on what the meaning of the word "is" is. > >bb > >>>> Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> - 5/20/99 5:40 PM >>> >Tim Stubbs wrote: >> >Not until the first three are complete, then he will release them all on DVD >> This sounds realistic. > >I don't think so. I'd like to know how many people seriously think >DVD will still be the format of choice by the time Episode three has >had it's run in theatres. > >MiniDisc? Huh? Limited market penetration as an audio format sure, but I see no indication it could become a replacement for DVD. Internet movies? No nice touchy-feely 'possession' experience. Video on Demand? Also no nice touchy-feely 'possession' experience. DIVX? Already dying out. > >You just kinda know that someone is going to come up with something >new in the next few years to make everyone ditch their DVD players, >a la Laserdisc. I have been buying LDs for nearly 20 years. VHS for about 25 years. There is no reason to think that a medium that basically does the job it's designed for will be easily replaced. You have to think 'why?' would people want a new system. DVD is replacing sell-thru VHS because it is TWICE as good for similar money, plus it has lots of cool features. If some of the folks on the list are not yet into DVD then I have NO hesitation in recommending they stop hesitating and jump right in and enjoy the best home cinema experience since popcorn. Toffee [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] STAR WARS: who's story is it? Date: 20 May 1999 11:27:33 -0700 I could only back you up, Chris! I remember when Star Wars first came out, George said in an interview that the story was actually 9 chapters long, and at the end it's R2 and 3P0 telling the story! > -----Original Message----- > From: cHriS [SMTP:csothman@nwchiro.edu] > Sent: Thursday, May 20, 1999 7:22 AM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: [MV] STAR WARS: who's story is it? > > > Toffee mused: > > "Anyone else figure the series is really Darth Vader's story, not > Obi's, Luke's, or anyone else?" > > > Well, officially I think it's supposed to be Annikan/Vader's tale, but I > think this whole saga revolves around...R2! > > Think about it: when all is said and done and the Star Wars saga finally > finishes, who's the only character who will have been there for the whole > ride? R2! He was there in Star Wars, delivering Leia's "only hope" message > that united Luke and Obiwan; he was there in the X-wing that blew up the > first Death Star; he was there with Yoda and Luke for the Jedi training; > he > was there in the Millennium Falcon, fixing the hyperdrive in the escape > from Cloud City; he was there as part of the rescue team that infiltrated > Jabba's underworld to save Han; he was there on Endor, opening doors to > Imperial bunkers while under heavy gunfire. He's been shot by Jawas, shot > by TIE fighters, eaten (and spit out) by Dagobah swamp monsters, shot by > storm troopers, and even forced into bartender slavery serving drinks on > the sand barge to Jabba's goons! > > And those are just examples from the previous films; due to SPOILER > potentential, I won't go into what R2 does to merit heroic status from the > Queen (and in the first hour, nonetheless!) in EPISODE 1. > > Yeah, this whole saga may be about Vader, but R2's the true hero. Prove me > wrong! > > - cHriS > > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: MrMovie008@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD -Reply Date: 20 May 1999 14:28:49 EDT In a message dated 5/20/99 11:42:04 AM Eastern Daylight Time, Bruce@ffww.com=20 writes: << I would expect the third episode to not be in the theatres sooner that 6-= 7=20 years from now. =20 bb >> The Second and Third Episodes are currently scheduled to be released on: May 22, 2002=20 =95Star Wars Prequel: Episode 2 =20 May 25, 2005=20 =95Star Wars Prequel: Episode 3 For more information on film release dates visit: Mr. Movie's Movie Guide=09=09http://place-an-ad.com/MrMovie/ =09Mr. Movie =09MrMovie008@aol.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] STAR WARS: who's story is it? Date: 20 May 1999 12:32:18 -0600 I remember that now. I had forgotten it, but yes, that's what he said at the time. Interesting since 3PO tells Luke in episode 4 that he's not very good at telling stories, yet he proves himself wrong in Jedi when he tells the Ewoks the story from Ep. 4 and 5. James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Thursday, May 20, 1999 12:28 PM I could only back you up, Chris! I remember when Star Wars first came out, George said in an interview that the story was actually 9 chapters long, and at the end it's R2 and 3P0 telling the story! > -----Original Message----- > From: cHriS [SMTP:csothman@nwchiro.edu] > Sent: Thursday, May 20, 1999 7:22 AM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: [MV] STAR WARS: who's story is it? > > > Toffee mused: > > "Anyone else figure the series is really Darth Vader's story, not > Obi's, Luke's, or anyone else?" > > > Well, officially I think it's supposed to be Annikan/Vader's tale, but I > think this whole saga revolves around...R2! > > Think about it: when all is said and done and the Star Wars saga finally > finishes, who's the only character who will have been there for the whole > ride? R2! He was there in Star Wars, delivering Leia's "only hope" message > that united Luke and Obiwan; he was there in the X-wing that blew up the > first Death Star; he was there with Yoda and Luke for the Jedi training; > he > was there in the Millennium Falcon, fixing the hyperdrive in the escape > from Cloud City; he was there as part of the rescue team that infiltrated > Jabba's underworld to save Han; he was there on Endor, opening doors to > Imperial bunkers while under heavy gunfire. He's been shot by Jawas, shot > by TIE fighters, eaten (and spit out) by Dagobah swamp monsters, shot by > storm troopers, and even forced into bartender slavery serving drinks on > the sand barge to Jabba's goons! > > And those are just examples from the previous films; due to SPOILER > potentential, I won't go into what R2 does to merit heroic status from the > Queen (and in the first hour, nonetheless!) in EPISODE 1. > > Yeah, this whole saga may be about Vader, but R2's the true hero. Prove me > wrong! > > - cHriS > > > > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars on DVD -Reply Date: 20 May 1999 11:35:00 -0700 no one is forcing you - and the laser discs are an excellent substitute until DVD... besides George is always talking about how technology is getting better, who KNOWS what will be added to the DVD - maybe some of those scenes James is sure was cut out... Leti Romero ;) "The World Is Not Enough" > -----Original Message----- > From: Bruce Bridges [SMTP:Bruce@ffww.com] > Sent: Wednesday, May 19, 1999 12:07 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD -Reply > > Call me stubborn but I just can not believe he will wait until episode > three has made its theater run to release the movies on dvd. As much as > he professes to champion the best in technology it would make no sense to > force the majority of people to have to continue to watch it on vhs. > > bb > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 20 May 1999 11:39:53 -0700 DEATH TO DIVX!!! > -----Original Message----- > From: Oz [SMTP:oz@filmink-online.com] > Sent: Thursday, May 20, 1999 5:40 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD > > Tim Stubbs wrote: > > >Not until the first three are complete, then he will release them all > on DVD > > This sounds realistic. > > I don't think so. I'd like to know how many people seriously think > DVD will still be the format of choice by the time Episode three has > had it's run in theatres. > > MiniDisc? Internet movies? Video on Demand? DIVX? > > You just kinda know that someone is going to come up with something > new in the next few years to make everyone ditch their DVD players, > a la Laserdisc. > > ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- > ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- > ---------------------------------------------- > > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars (****MAJOR SPOILERS****) Date: 20 May 1999 14:46:34 -0400 At 06.51 PM 20/05/99 +0100, Tim Stubbs wrote: >>There is some question about who's story this actually is. However, I feel >>it is unfair to look too deeply into this until everyone has had a chance >>to see the movie. >> >>--Mel > > >Well, I'll explain my reasoning then..... > >The six part arc..... > >Annakin is a nice young boy who gets lured to the Dark Side, he becomes >Darth Vader, but at the end he comes back to the good side again. The End. Yes, you are right. Anakin/Vader is definately a central character. However: S P O I L E R S P A C E It is also very religious. We have a virgin birth (Anakin). We also have the Immaculate Conception (the IC was actually the birth of Mary without sin, so that she could carry Jesus), as Anakin is the father of the actual saviour, Luke. Senator Palpatine/The Emperor/(the other character that he played in Episode 1, but I won't mention in case you haven't figured it out) is also a central figure. He leads Anakin to the Dark Side. So there are a number of characters that run throughout the series. Of course, if a third trilogy would be made, Anakin would not run throughout the entire series. R2 and 3PO are key, as they are the menial labourers and comic relief. Lucas has them as storytellers. So I guess at this point, we can consider this to be the story of Anakin, as told by the droids. (Did anyone else stay throughout the credits to hear James Earl Jones' voiceover??) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ If people are worried about the whole Y2K thing, just wait until they try to get technical support the day "Phantom Menace" opens. ___________ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars (****MAJOR SPOILERS****) Date: 20 May 1999 14:24:53 -0600 I'm afraid I didn't stay, what did he say in the voiceover? Or was it just a scene from 4, 5 or 6? James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Thursday, May 20, 1999 12:47 PM At 06.51 PM 20/05/99 +0100, Tim Stubbs wrote: >>There is some question about who's story this actually is. However, I feel >>it is unfair to look too deeply into this until everyone has had a chance >>to see the movie. >> >>--Mel > > >Well, I'll explain my reasoning then..... > >The six part arc..... > >Annakin is a nice young boy who gets lured to the Dark Side, he becomes >Darth Vader, but at the end he comes back to the good side again. The End. Yes, you are right. Anakin/Vader is definately a central character. However: S P O I L E R S P A C E It is also very religious. We have a virgin birth (Anakin). We also have the Immaculate Conception (the IC was actually the birth of Mary without sin, so that she could carry Jesus), as Anakin is the father of the actual saviour, Luke. Senator Palpatine/The Emperor/(the other character that he played in Episode 1, but I won't mention in case you haven't figured it out) is also a central figure. He leads Anakin to the Dark Side. So there are a number of characters that run throughout the series. Of course, if a third trilogy would be made, Anakin would not run throughout the entire series. R2 and 3PO are key, as they are the menial labourers and comic relief. Lucas has them as storytellers. So I guess at this point, we can consider this to be the story of Anakin, as told by the droids. (Did anyone else stay throughout the credits to hear James Earl Jones' voiceover??) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ If people are worried about the whole Y2K thing, just wait until they try to get technical support the day "Phantom Menace" opens. __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Michael Dequina <michael_jordan@geocities.com> Subject: [MV] The Movie Report#192, 5/20/99 Date: 20 May 1999 12:58:19 -0700 T H E M O V I E R E P O R T #192 MAY 20, 1999 You can help support the MR and Mr. Brown's Movie Site by purchasing videos and DVDs from Reel.com. Please visit: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-reel.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dwelcome.htm= l Thank you very much. =3D>T H I S W E E K<=3D M O V I E S -_Besieged_ -_The_Love_Letter_ V I D E O -_A_Cool,_Dry_Place_ -_Holy_Man_ -_The_Impostors_ -_Very_Bad_Things_ =3D>U P D A T E S<=3D @MR. BROWN'S MOVIE SITE -Movie Site Links has finally been updated: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movielinks.html For that, the best and worst of 1998, links to the official websites of all the current films, past reviews, exclusive Hollywood event photos, movie MIDI music, movie discussion board, and more, visit: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown or http://welcome.to/mrbrown or http://mrbrown.webjump.com Please don't forget to sign the guestbook... If you are reading this on Usenet, you can subscribe to the MR at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/moviereport.html Select reviews are available at CompuServe Hollywood Hotline: http://www.HollywoodHotline.com=20 ...and the Eyepiece Network at: http://www.eyepiece.com ...and Albany Online at: http://www.AlbanyOnline.com ...and Film Frenzy at: http://www.filmfrenzy.com I am always up for a good live chat. Feel free to message me on ICQ at #25289934 or on AOL Instant Messenger under the handle "MrBrown23." all movies graded out of four stars (****) ~~~ =3D>M O V I E S<=3D N E W R E L E A S E S IN BRIEF _Besieged_ (R) ** 1/2 Thandie Newton stars an African emigre studying for a medical degree in Rome while her husband remains imprisoned in her homeland. To make ends meet, she serves as live-in housekeeper to an eccentric British pianist (David Thewlis), who has fallen hopelessly in love with his married employee and makes noble, selfless sacrifices to make her happy. _Besieged_ is indeed a Bernardo Bertolucci film: it features enthralling location photography (done here by Fabio Cianchetti) and a fairly thin story (based on a short story by James Lasdun) set to a languid pace. That latter fact keeps this already-subdued love story at an arm's length emotionally. Despite a vividly expressive performance by Newton, the lack of urgency equates to a lack of intimacy. _The_Love_Letter_ (PG-13) * 1/2 A few nights ago I rewatched one of my favorite films released domestically last year, the Hong Kong import _Comrades:_Almost_a_Love_Story_, directed by Peter Ho-sun Chan. This exquisite romantic drama virtually swept the Hong Kong Film Awards in 1997, and it's easy to see why--it had every element required for a successful love story: sympathetic lead characters; well-cast lead actors with a palpable romantic chemistry; an engaging, believable story; a swoony musical score; and, crucially, an indefinable sense of magic. Chan's American debut, _The_Love_Letter_, has only one of these characteristics: an effective score (composed by Luis Bachalov, Oscar winner for _Il_Postino_). Everything else leaves a lot to be desired. The premise is one that Roger Ebert would classify under "idiot plot": a bookstore owner (a likable Kate Capshaw) in a tiny New England town finds an anonymous love letter, and she assumes it's from a much-younger employee (Tom Everett Scott, also likable)--who, in turn, sees the letter and assumes it's addressed to him from her. "Comical" hijinks ensue, and they're every bit as strained as one would expect. However, this May-December affair is not the central romance; the key relationship is between Capshaw's character and a lovelorn fireman (Tom Selleck), who were high school flames. To say that Capshaw and the bland Selleck's chemistry is tepid is to imply a slight hint of warmth that isn't there. Similarly, to call _The_Love_Letter_ "a romantic comedy-drama" is to imply an involving emotional core and a witty sense of humor that simply aren't= there. I N C U R R E N T R E L E A S E (full reviews of the following in past MRs and at the listed URLs) -_Analyze_This_ (R) *** <MR#180, 3/4/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt46.html#analyze =20 -_The_Castle_ (R) *** <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#castle -_Cookie's_Fortune_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#185, 4/7/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#cookie -_The_Dreamlife_of_Angels_(La_Vie_R=EAv=E9e_des_Anges)_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#dreamlife -_Election_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#election -_Endurance_ (G) ** <MR#191, 5/13/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#endurance -_Entrapment_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#entrapment -_eXistenZ_ (R) *** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#existenz -_Forces_of_Nature_ (PG-13) ** 1/2 <MR#182, 3/18/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt46.html#forces -_Get_Real_ (R) *** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#real -_Go_ (R) **** <MR#185, 4/7/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#go -_Idle_Hands_ (R) ** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#hands -_Life_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#life -_Life_Is_Beautiful_(La_Vita_E_Bella)_ (PG-13) **** <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#vitabella -_Lost_&_Found_ (PG-13) ** <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#lost -_Lovers_of_the_Arctic_Circle_(Los_Amantes_del_C=EDrculo_Polar)_ (R) *** <MR#190, 5/11/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#amantes -_The_Matrix_ (R) **** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#matrix -_The_Mummy_ (PG-13) * 1/2 <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#mummy -_Never_Been_Kissed_ (PG-13) *** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#never -_The_Out-of-Towners_ (PG-13) ** <MR#184, 4/1/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#out -_Pushing_Tin_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#tin -_Shakespeare_in_Love_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#171, 12/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#shakespeare -_SLC_Punk!_ (R) *** <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#slc -_Tea_with_Mussolini_ (PG) *** <MR#191, 5/13/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#mussolini -_10_Things_I_Hate_About_You_ (PG-13) ** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#10 -_Three_Seasons_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#3 -_A_Walk_on_the_Moon_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#walk -_William_Shakespeare's_A_Midsummer_Night's_Dream_ (PG-13) *** <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#midsummer -_Xiu_Xiu:_The_Sent-Down_Girl_ (R) **** <MR#191, 5/13/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#xiuxiu O N T H E H O R I Z O N OPENED WEDNESDAY _Star_Wars:_Episode_I--The_Phantom_Menace_ (PG) *** 1/2 Full review in MR#190, 5/11/99; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#phantom No synopsis is needed for this one. Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, and Jake Lloyd star for writer-director George Lucas. FRIDAY _Besieged_ (R) ** 1/2 <see above review> Visually handsome, emotionally aloof romantic drama about an African emigre (Thandie Newton) and the British musician (David Thewlis) for whom she works in Rome. _Frogs_for_Snakes_ (R) Dark comedy about actors who would literally kill for roles. Barbara Hershey stars. _The_King_of_Masks_ Period drama from Hong Kong about an old street performer who takes a young boy under his wing. _The_Love_Letter_ (PG-13) * 1/2 <see above review> Hong Kong director Peter Ho-sun Chan stumbles into the American market with this syrupy comedy about an anonymous love letter that disrupts the lives of the residents of a small town. Kate Capshaw, Ellen DeGeneres, Tom Everett Scott, and Tom Selleck star. _Trekkies_ (PG) Not to be ignored in the thick of _Star_Wars_ mania are the rabid fans of that other sci-fi pop culture phenomenon, _Star_Trek_, who are the subject of this documentary. ~~~ =3D>V I D E O<=3D N E W T H I S W E E K _A_Cool,_Dry_Place_ (PG-13) ** Full review in MR#176, 2/4/99; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt45.html#cooldry Buy at VHS at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44678 Fox's decision to give a brief, barely noticeable theatrical run to this drama about a single dad (Vince Vaughn, stretching admirably) torn between his estranged wife (Monica Potter) and a new love (Joey Lauren Adams) was hardly surprising: the film is as dry as a made-for-TV movie. Which makes for a strange paradox on video: the wan, simpleminded melodrama plays more comfortably on the small screen, yet the downsizing just underscores how similar the film is to an average flick for the tube. (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment) _Holy_Man_ (PG) * 1/2 Full review in MR#162, 10/16/98; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#holyman Buy at VHS and DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43614 After the inexplicable success of _Doctor_Dolittle_, Eddie Murphy stumbled again playing second fiddle to Jeff Goldblum in this extremely dull dramedy about a home shopping programmer (Goldblum) and the enigmatic spiritual guru (Murphy) who changes his life. (Touchstone Home Video; DVD also available) _The_Impostors_ (R) ** 1/2 Full review in MR#160, 10/5/98; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#impostors Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43530 Stanley Tucci's short-circuited screwball farce begins promisingly: during the Depression, two actors (Tucci and Oliver Platt) stow away on an oceanliner after being falsely accused of assault by another actor (Alfred Molina). But when the action shifts to the cruise ship, so does the focus, widening to include an array of eccentric passengers that only marginally hold any interest. Still, some inspired comic set pieces and performances make it a fairly safe rent. (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment; DVD also available) _Very_Bad_Things_ (R) **** Full review in MR#167, 11/20/98; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#bad Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44179 Peter Berg's controversial writing-directing debut is every bit as sick and twisted as it has been made out to be--and, for my money, as wildly hilarious as it is bloody. Christian Slater, Cameron Diaz, and Jon Favreau lead the terrific ensemble cast for this way-beyond-dark comedy about a bachelor party gone horribly awry--and its shocking repercussions. Already a cult favorite, its following should only grow on video. (PolyGram Video; DVD also available)=09 A L S O N E W T H I S W E E K _Bent_ (NC-17) Buy at VHS at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D40774 Adaptation of the award-winning play about two gay men (Lothaire Bluteau and Clive Owen) who fall in love while in a WWII concentration camp. Ian McKellen co-stars. (Orion Home Video) R E C E N T R E L E A S E S (full reviews of the following in past MRs and at the listed URLs) -_Another_Day_in_Paradise_ (R) ** <MR#173, 1/15/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt44.html#paradise Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44449 -_At_First_Sight_ (PG-13) ** 1/2 <MR#174, 1/21/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt44.html#sight Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44152 -_Babe:_Pig_in_the_City_ (G) ** 1/2 <MR#169, 12/3/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#babe Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44140 -_Elizabeth_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#elizabeth Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43968 -_Happiness_ **** <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#happiness Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43618 -_Orgazmo_ (NC-17) * 1/2 <MR#164, 10/29/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#orgazmo Buy at VHS at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43740 -_Stepmom_ (PG-13) *** <MR#170, 12/11/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#stepmom Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44390 -_Star_Trek:_Insurrection_ (PG) ** <MR#170, 12/11/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#insurrection Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44281 -_Velvet_Goldmine_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#165, 11/6/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#velvet Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43872 -_You've_Got_Mail_ (PG) **** <MR#171, 12/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#mail Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44362 ~~~ =3D>N E X T W E E K<=3D Back at full length, with more reviews, including: -_Black_Mask_ (postponed from this week) -_Notting_Hill_ 'til then...=20 __________________________________________________________ Michael Dequina Chat Forum Host, The Official Michael Jordan Web Site http://jordan.sportsline.com mj23@michaeljordanfan.com | jordan_host@sportsmail.com michael_jordan@geocities.com | mrbrown@iname.com >My personal WWW sites< Mr. Brown's Movie Site: http://welcome.to/mrbrown Michael Jordan Beyond the Court: http://fly.to/michaeljordan A Michael Jordan Fan's Heartbreak: http://fly.to/mj23 Personal Page: http://welcome.to/w3md >Other WWW sites I work on< CompuServe Hollywood Hotline: http://www.HollywoodHotline.com Albany Online: http://www.AlbanyOnline.com Eyepiece Network: http://www.eyepiece.com Film Frenzy: http://www.filmfrenzy.com "Life is knowing the toughest competition you ever face is yourself." --Michael Jordan __________________________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 20 May 1999 15:39:30 -0400 At 11.39 AM 20/05/99 -0700, Romero, Leticia wrote: >DEATH TO DIVX!!! THANK YOU for that.:-) Talk about technology being used for the side of evil. (Still working on my anti-DIVX rant:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: MrMovie008@aol.com Subject: [MV] Star Wars Opening Day Date: 20 May 1999 21:04:14 EDT What an opening day Star Wars had. For the midnight shows through 6:00am it grossed 7.5M All together for the whole day it had a gross of 28,542,349 For more Weekly and Daily box office listings visit <A HREF="http://place-an-ad.com/MrMovie/">Mr. Movie's Movie Guide</A> Mr. Movie MrMovie008@aol.com http://place-an-ad.com/MrMovie/ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars (****MAJOR SPOILERS****) Date: 20 May 1999 19:21:02 -0400 S P O I L E R S P A C E At 02.24 PM 20/05/99 -0600, you wrote: >I'm afraid I didn't stay, what did he say in the voiceover? Or was it just >a scene from 4, 5 or 6? At the very end, he just did the Vader breathing thing. There was a big deal about it at some of the Star Wars web sites. It was kinda cool, and I stayed for it that once, but I don't see myself sitting thru endless credits again. Nice thing about video and DVD is fast forward:-) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: SkipyLlama@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars (****MAJOR SPOILERS****) Date: 21 May 1999 00:52:16 EDT > Senator Palpatine/The Emperor/(the other character that he played in > Episode 1, but I won't mention in case you haven't figured it out) is also > a central figure. He leads Anakin to the Dark Side. I must have missed this one..... I'm going to see it agiain tomorrow, so I'll look then. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wilu" <s07722@cc.ntnu.edu.tw> Subject: [MV] =?big5?B?qPqu+K1xvlw=?= Date: 22 May 1999 02:30:02 +0800 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0049_01BEA3FA.FE9B61A0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="big5" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable =A7=DA=AA=BAE-MAIL=A1Gs07722@cc.ntnu.edu.tw =A7=DA=B7Q=A8=FA=AE=F8=ADq=BE\ =C1=C2=C1=C2=A7A=A1I ------=_NextPart_000_0049_01BEA3FA.FE9B61A0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="big5" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META content=3D"text/html; charset=3Dbig5" http-equiv=3DContent-Type> <META content=3D"MSHTML 5.00.2014.210" name=3DGENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff> <DIV><FONT size=3D2>=A7=DA=AA=BAE-MAIL=A1G<A=20 href=3D"mailto:s07722@cc.ntnu.edu.tw">s07722@cc.ntnu.edu.tw</A></FONT></D= IV> <DIV><FONT size=3D2>=A7=DA=B7Q=A8=FA=AE=F8=ADq=BE\</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=3D2>=C1=C2=C1=C2=A7A=A1I</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML> ------=_NextPart_000_0049_01BEA3FA.FE9B61A0-- [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: [MV] =?ISO-8859-1?B?W01WXSC/KqsqoXG/XCAtUmVwbHk=?= Date: 21 May 1999 11:37:09 -0700 V2hhdCB0aGUgoSqjoiq2qioquqoqtioqKioqqSoq5yoqKiq1Kioq+CoqqSBpcyB0aGF0IT8hPyE/ DQoNCj4+PiAiV2lsdSIgPHMwNzcyMkBjYy5udG51LmVkdS50dz4gLSA1LzIxLzk5IDExOjMwIEFN ID4+Pg0KPCFET0NUWVBFIEhUTUwgUFVCTElDICItLy9XM0MvL0RURCBIVE1MIDQuMCBUcmFuc2l0 aW9uYWwvL0VOIj4NCjxIVE1MPjxIRUFEPg0KPE1FVEEgY29udGVudD0idGV4dC9odG1sOyBjaGFy c2V0PWJpZzUiIGh0dHAtZXF1aXY9Q29udGVudC1UeXBlPg0KPE1FVEEgY29udGVudD0iTVNIVE1M IDUuMDAuMjAxNC4yMTAiIG5hbWU9R0VORVJBVE9SPg0KPFNUWUxFPjwvU1RZTEU+DQo8L0hFQUQ+ DQo8Qk9EWSBiZ0NvbG9yPSNmZmZmZmY+DQo8RElWPjxGT05UIHNpemU9Mj66vyq/RS1NQUlM7Udz MDc3MjJAY2MubnRudS5lZHUudHcNCrq/v1G/KqsqoXG/XA0Kv7+/v7pB7UkNCg0K [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Irish Boy" <rdoyle29@msn.com> Subject: [MV] =?iso-8859-1?B?UkU6IFtNVl0gW01WXSC/KqsqoXG/XCAtUmVwbHk=?= Date: 21 May 1999 13:36:31 -0500 The message was sent using a Chinese font. IE5 tried to install support for Chinese fonts before displaying it for me. R∩(c)hΣ(r)d J. ╨÷ lδ rdoyle29@msn.com ICQ: 27479510 "The really efficient laborer will be found not to crowd his day with work, but will saunter to his task surrounded by a wide halo of ease and leisure." - Henry David Thoreau -----Original Message----- [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Bruce Bridges Sent: Friday, May 21, 1999 1:37 PM What the í*úó*╢¬**║¬*╢*****(c)**τ****╡***°**(c) is that!?!?!? >>> "Wilu" <s07722@cc.ntnu.edu.tw> - 5/21/99 11:30 AM >>> <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META content="text/html; charset=big5" http-equiv=Content-Type> <META content="MSHTML 5.00.2014.210" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT size=2>║┐*┐E-MAILφGs07722@cc.ntnu.edu.tw ║┐┐Q┐*½*íq┐\ ┐┐┐┐║AφI Në^j≈¡...Θ¿3/4'¼(tm)¿Ñèx%è╦lzwm...Θ₧▓╞ zΘ∞╣╗(r)&▐ÜïΓz╠"╢.╢╪^¬Ω-z╦h(tm)¿Φ¡┌&úó▓╚¿¥╩& [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tim Howe <mrmagoo@iinc.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 21 May 1999 14:16:48 -0400 I can see your point OZ, but personally, I see DVD lasting just as long as VCR's....Now granted, in my opinion, for them to get THAT big, they will have to bring out RECORDABLE DVD machines (which i think they will EVENTUALLY), then I am positive it will have a VERY long ride at the top of the industry like VCR's did and for the most part...STILL DO.... Oz wrote: > Tim Stubbs wrote: > > >Not until the first three are complete, then he will release them all on DVD > > This sounds realistic. > > I don't think so. I'd like to know how many people seriously think > DVD will still be the format of choice by the time Episode three has > had it's run in theatres. > > MiniDisc? Internet movies? Video on Demand? DIVX? > > You just kinda know that someone is going to come up with something > new in the next few years to make everyone ditch their DVD players, > a la Laserdisc. > > ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- > ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- > ---------------------------------------------- > > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 > ---------------------------------------------------------------- > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] -- God Bless!!!! Tim ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wanna Join Any E-Mail groups Owned By Yours Truly? DVDTALK-The discussion of ALL things DVD related! (138) MINIDISC-The discussion of anything MINIDISC related! (40) SIMPSONSFANS-The discussion of america's favorite animated family...THE SIMPSONS! (56) KINGOFTHEHILLFANS-The discussion of the cartoon KING OF THE HILL! (16) COUNTRYBUMPKINS-The discussion of the best stlye of music around...COUNTRY! (66) GARTHBROOKS-The discussion of the greatest musical entertainer ever...GARTH BROOKS! 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What do you think about these three never being done? Did any of you know that the Saga takes 9 episodes to tell? Leti Romero ;) "The World Is Not Enough" [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] EPISODES 7,8,9 Date: 21 May 1999 16:09:50 -0600 I was always under the impression that, yes he originally wanted to take 9 episodes to tell the tale, but then he got the financing to do only one, so he filmed Ep 4 A New Hope. When it was such a success he decided he could make two more and so compressed the action of his original 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 into 5 and 6. In other words, the Emperor wasn't suppose to bite it until Episode 9. That's just what I've heard and the impression that I've gotten. Lucas has said since then that he has liked the way the books have been portraying what happens after Jedi so if you want to know what happens, read the books. The Truce at Bakura takes up the action the very next day after the destruction of the 2nd Death Star. James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Friday, May 21, 1999 2:08 PM How about it? What do you think about these three never being done? Did any of you know that the Saga takes 9 episodes to tell? Leti Romero ;) "The World Is Not Enough" [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Toffee Rapper <toffeerapper@f-u-n.u-net.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 22 May 1999 14:18:11 +0100 Hi Tim At 02:16 PM 5/21/99 -0400, you wrote: >I can see your point OZ, but personally, I see DVD lasting just as long as >VCR's....Now granted, in my opinion, for them to get THAT big, they will have to >bring out RECORDABLE DVD machines (which i think they will EVENTUALLY), then I am >positive it will have a VERY long ride at the top of the industry like VCR's did >and for the most part...STILL DO.... > This 'recording' thing is apparently a bit of a red herring. I was suprised to read a recent survey here in the UK found that 70% of UK VHS use is *playing* rented or sell-thru pre-recorded tapes! ie. only 30% of VHS use was for time shifting, etc. Yeh, I was suprised too, but I think it shows that DVD doesn't have to record, anymore than CDs have to. It would be nice, but it's not that important. Toffee [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Phoenix" <phoenix@fundy.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 22 May 1999 15:38:46 -0300 > >This 'recording' thing is apparently a bit of a red herring. I was suprised >to read a recent survey here in the UK found that 70% of UK VHS use is >*playing* rented or sell-thru pre-recorded tapes! ie. only 30% of VHS use >was for time shifting, etc. > >Yeh, I was suprised too, but I think it shows that DVD doesn't have to >record, anymore than CDs have to. It would be nice, but it's not that >important. > > >Toffee But the UK is significantly different from North America. I read somewhere in the last week or so that most people in the UK have little interest in cable or or the new direct broadcast satellites. Here in North America, the vast majority of people have cable. So with access to so many fewer channels in the UK, it's no wonder that VCR aren't used to record all that often. JPC [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: METROLAND Date: 22 May 1999 19:09:35 -0600 (MDT) METROLAND (Lions Gate) Starring: Christian Bale, Emily Watson, Lee Ross, Elsa Zylberstein. Screenplay: Adrian Hodges, based on the novel by Julian Barnes. Producer: Andrew Bender. Director: Philip Saville. MPAA Rating: R (sexual situations, nudity, adult themes, profanity, drug use) Running Time: 101 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. There are few central dramatic conflicts trickier to pull off -- or more potentially annoying -- than a mid-life crisis. The protagonist can easyily become unsympathetic, his introspection little more than self-indulgence. It's rare to find a character with the potential to turn a family man's grass-is-always-greener musings into something compelling, but that's exactly what we find in Chris Lloyd (Christian Bale), the central figure in METROLAND. What a shame that potential isn't remotely realized. METROLAND is a character study with huge chunks of context missing, a surface-level gloss on the clash between youthful idealism and adult responsibility. The story opens in 1977, where advertising man Chris is living with his wife Marion (Emily Watson) and infant daughter in the London suburb of Eastwood, a bedroom community dubbed "Metroland" for its dependence on rail commuters. Chris feels a vague discontent with his domestic life, a discontent that becomes more palpable with a visit from his childhood friend Toni (Lee Ross). An itinerant would-be writer still living free and easy, Toni inspires Chris to reflect on the path that led to his own domesticity. In flashback we see Chris first as a rebellious teen in 1963, then as an aspiring photographer living in Paris five years later. There he has a sexual affair with a French woman named Annick (Elsa Zylberstein), an affair that haunts him with thoughts of a life that might have been Plenty of things about Chris are intriguing conceptually. As a youth, and again as an adult, he is convinced by Toni that life in this "bourgeois" world is pathetic, a shabby substitute for a life of art and random affairs. What Chris finds hard to accept is that Metroland is actually the world he prefers. He drifts from Annick to Marion because he feels disconnected from the life he craves, then he drifts from Marion because he thinks he has sold out the bold dreams of his youth, even though he was never entirely committed to them. As mid-life crisis material goes, this is pretty unique stuff: a man who strays not so much because he's unhappy with what he has, but because he figures he's _supposed_ to be unhappy. Don't make the mistake of assuming director Philip Saville and screenwriter Adrian Hodges will flesh out those ideas. For all its flashing back, METROLAND never portrays Chris interacting with his family as a youth to provide background for his feelings about suburbia. It never spends enough time developing the friendship with Toni that will color Chris' entire life. It never explores Toni's character in any depth, relying on third-party psychoanalysis to explain his motivations. There's a consistent superficiality to METROLAND, a refusal to give the characters a depth that makes plot developments -- like a late revelation regarding Marion -- feel anything but arbitrary and exploitative. There's some nice atmosphere to METROLAND, particularly from Mark Knopfler's silky score and an effective period look, but it doesn't come close to making up for the narrative shortcomings. It doesn't help that Seville uses inefficient techniques like cross-cutting with 1977 Chris' pondering face throughout the 1968 flashbacks, or that Christian Bale's performance is most notable for his perpetual petulant pout. It's a film in which the only clarity comes from its most obvious observations. METROLAND is a missed opportunity to give thematic weight to a mid-life crisis, leaving yet another story of a horny husband trying to be 21 again. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 rail passes: 4. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "«}░Ω╕╬" <s07674@cc.ntnu.edu.tw> Subject: Re: [MV] RE: [MV] [MV] ┐*½*íq┐\ -Reply Date: 23 May 1999 09:43:24 +0800 p9q3Uaj6rvitcb5cLi4uLsHCwcIuLi4uDQogICAgIGUtbWFpbDpzMDc2NzRAY2MubnRudS5l ZHUudHcNCg== [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars on DVD Date: 23 May 1999 00:44:20 -0400 Man, talk about great timing!! Fits right into this thread. Today, I received not one but two surprises. First thing I heard was an industry source passed along that Lucas either will make or has made an announcement (supposedly on QVC!!) that the original trilogy will be coming out on DVD **soon** No timetable, but best guesses I have seen are sometime around Christmas (when DVD players should break the $200 floor). BUT... Then I was at Corona's movie site, and they have a report that Lucasfilm is making a SECOND Special Edition of the new trilogy. Rumours are that this second "remake" will have a limited run in the theatres, then be used as the stock for the DVD release. This raises some interesting questions. To wit: EITHER there is no way that the DVDs will be ready before the turn of the millennium... OR Lucas is working on these as we speak, and will have them in theatres soon (if they will be on DVD within seven months), which means that Lucas will just about control the release schedules and the theatres through the end of the year. Regards. --Mel The Phantom Rumourmonger --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: [MV] EPISODES 7,8,9-the truth Date: 23 May 1999 17:03:40 -0700 >>>I was always under the impression that, yes he originally wanted to take 9 >>>episodes to tell the tale, but then he got the financing to do only one, so >>>he filmed Ep 4 A New Hope. When it was such a success he decided he could >>>make two more and so compressed the action of his original 5, 6, 7, 8, and >>9 >>>into 5 and 6. In other words, the Emperor wasn't suppose to bite it until >>>Episode 9. He originally crafted a humungous script, that included everything - a massive battle with 'primitives' fighting it out, twins separated, father's identified, the whole bit. In otherwords, ANH, ESB and ROJ as one mutha script. In order to write this, he did a 'back story' , 19 pages of notes that told some of the origins of the characters. He decided to take the script and do the first third. Originally it was the Wookiees at the end who battled the Empire, but we'd already seen that Chewbaaca was sophisticated, so he made the Ewoks instead. The story about there being nine came from an interview he did, where someone asked him about the trilogy, and he talked about prequels. They then suggested he do a trilogy of sequels too, and he kinda seemed positive about it. He's EMPHATIC that he won't do another three, that there never were stories of the other three to begin with. Excellent indication of this is that they've licensed the story in book form to all the years AFTER ROJ, but none before. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 Date: 24 May 1999 08:58:36 -0700 On the spur of the moment I decided to try to catch Star Wars. I called a = friend and we agreed to meet at the theater one hour before the movie = started(he lives in a suburb outside LA and I thought that the theaters = would not be so crazy as in the city). Much to our surprise there was no = line at all and we had our pick of seats. Eventually the theater almost = filled but it wasn't the mad rush I expected. =20 So everybody I know that has seen the movie has prefaced their opinion of = this movie with some variation of "For what it is..." meaning that they = recognize the movie isn't the second coming and their expectations were = not that high. I went in with tempered expectations after all the hoopla = and responses like the above. =20 While I enjoyed some parts of the film I have to say the emperor has no = clothes. I don't want to get into spoiler territory here but this movie = sucked! The acting was horrible across the board, the story was rambling = and had no dramatic tension and the special effects were not as awe = inspiring as I expected. Basically the movie is just a more sophisticated= animated movie. I don't think real actors have anything to worry about. = And this Darth Maul? Big deal. Even this much anticipated character was = pretty ho hum. =20 And to tell you the truth I don't think I am alone in that opinion. You = can feel the energy in a theater and when Star Wars was finished there was = nothing more than scattered and polite applause. =20 I'm sure it will go on to make hundreds of millions of dollars but it sure = doesn't deserve it. =20 Finally, I am usually dubious at claims of racism around every corner but = I think this movie is due a big controversy around some racial typing. = Can anybody spot the greedy jew, the sneaky asians the simple minded = blacks? bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 Date: 25 May 1999 03:05:43 -0700 Bruce Bridges wrote: > > I'm sure it will go on to make hundreds of millions of dollars but it sure doesn't deserve it. I'd actually be interested in hearing from folks on whether they enjoyed themselves at Matrix more than Star Wars. Both seem to me to be heavily effects reliant, and both had rambling stories, slow second acts and crappy acting. So what's the pick? Star Wars Ep One or Matrix? > Finally, I am usually dubious at claims of racism around every corner but I think this movie is due a big controversy around some racial typing. Can anybody spot the greedy jew, the sneaky asians the simple minded blacks? After what people put up with from Lethal Weapon 4 and Rush Hour in the 'racism is funny' stakes, I'd be surprised if anyone gives a damn about SW's racial undertones. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 Date: 24 May 1999 14:12:49 -0500 |:| Finally, I am usually dubious at claims of racism |:| around every corner but I think this movie is due a big |:| controversy around some racial typing. Can anybody |:| spot the greedy jew, the sneaky asians the simple minded blacks? I think these kinds of remarks are what sparks controversy in the first place. People are always out to find something they can be offended by. I think racism accusations against this movie are pretty far flung. For example.. "The Greedy Jew" must be referring to Watto. Anybody feel free to correct me here, but the big mosquito had a French accent. So why exactly is he supposed to be Jewish. The big nose?? I refer you again to the fact that he was a big mosquito. "The Simple Minded Blacks". This obviously refers to the Gungans, who must be "black" because of their quasi Caribbean accents. Let us not forget the two other major characters in the film that truly WERE black. Mace Windu, on the Jedi Council, and Queen Amidala's right hand general guy. Neither were portrayed in a remotely negative light. "The Sneaky Asians". Yes, the Trade Federation characters had a very Japanese sounding accent, but I fail to find their actions to be all that stereotypical of Asians. Anybody can be a bad guy: white, black, asian, whatever. I think everybody needs to lighten up with this racism thing. No more witch hunts. Josh [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: SkipyLlama@aol.com Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 Date: 24 May 1999 15:21:21 EDT >I think these kinds of remarks are what sparks controversy in the first >place. People are always out to find something they can be offended by. I >think racism accusations against this movie are pretty far flung. For >example.. I tend to disagree.... putting obvious racial stereotypes is what sparks controversy. >"The Greedy Jew" must be referring to Watto. Anybody feel free to correct me >here, but the big mosquito had a French accent. So why exactly is he >supposed to be Jewish. The big nose?? I refer you again to the fact that he >was a big mosquito. he had a jewish/italian accent..... he's supposed to be jewish b/c that was a straight mockery of a jewish store in new york. >The Simple Minded Blacks". This obviously refers to the Gungans, who must >be "black" because of their quasi Caribbean accents. Let us not forget the >two other major characters in the film that truly WERE black. Mace Windu, on >the Jedi Council, and Queen Amidala's right hand general guy. Neither were >portrayed in a remotely negative light. but the fact is that the gungans were displayed as stupid carribeans who didn't know what the hell was going on. >"The Sneaky Asians". Yes, the Trade Federation characters had a very >Japanese sounding accent, but I fail to find their actions to be all that >stereotypical of Asians. Anybody can be a bad guy: white, black, asian, >whatever. Their actions show the stereotypical (though incorrect) view that Asians will do anything for money and power. THe words were obviously misdubbed to the mouths to further this portrayal. and the accents were more chinese, actually..... [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Gary Heidenreich <gheiden@ix.netcom.com>" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Episode I and racism Date: 24 May 1999 13:43:10 -0600 I have to agree with Josh on the whole racial issue. Sometimes we look a little too deeply into things. Does anyone remember the scene in Chasing Amy where they talk about Darth Vader as racist metaphor insinuating that at the heart of every strong, black man there is a crusty white guy? If you're looking for it, you can find a thousand hidden meanings and interpretations, but that's all they are, ultimately. Are lightsabers phallic? Does Queen Amidala wear white make-up because she's racist? Is that really supposed to be Humpty Dumpty whose pod blows up? Peter Heidenreich [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 Date: 24 May 1999 14:46:36 -0500 To sum up your fashionable, politically correct view point, why don't we just put it this way... If any character in any film, television program, book, or video game is to portray any kind of villainy or character flaw, then that character damn well better be a White Anglo-Saxon God-Fearing American with Blonde hair and blue eyes, because ANYTHING else will be interpreted as a racial and/or ethnic slur, including stupid computer generated aliens. I still say Watto sounded French. Apparently I did not want to be offended badly enough for me to interpret it as a Jewish/Italian accent. You say that he was Jewish because it was a takoff on a store in New York. I haven't heard that anywhere, but if it is true, then it is very likely meant to make fun of that particular store, and not the entire damn Jewish race. I think you are REALLY stretching it with the Gungans. I think using the Trade Federation's out of sync lip movements as evidence of their racial stereotyping is preposterous. They were puppets, for God's sake. |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of |:| SkipyLlama@aol.com |:| Sent: Monday, May 24, 1999 2:21 PM |:| To: movies@lists.xmission.com |:| Subject: Re: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 |:| |:| |:| >I think these kinds of remarks are what sparks |:| controversy in the first |:| >place. People are always out to find something they |:| can be offended by. I |:| >think racism accusations against this movie are pretty |:| far flung. For |:| >example.. |:| |:| I tend to disagree.... putting obvious racial |:| stereotypes is what sparks |:| controversy. |:| |:| >"The Greedy Jew" must be referring to Watto. Anybody |:| feel free to correct me |:| >here, but the big mosquito had a French accent. So why |:| exactly is he |:| >supposed to be Jewish. The big nose?? I refer you |:| again to the fact that he |:| >was a big mosquito. |:| |:| he had a jewish/italian accent..... he's supposed to be |:| jewish b/c that was a |:| straight mockery of a jewish store in new york. |:| |:| >The Simple Minded Blacks". This obviously refers to |:| the Gungans, who must |:| >be "black" because of their quasi Caribbean accents. |:| Let us not forget the |:| >two other major characters in the film that truly WERE |:| black. Mace Windu, on |:| >the Jedi Council, and Queen Amidala's right hand |:| general guy. Neither were |:| >portrayed in a remotely negative light. |:| |:| but the fact is that the gungans were displayed as |:| stupid carribeans who |:| didn't know what the hell was going on. |:| |:| >"The Sneaky Asians". Yes, the Trade Federation |:| characters had a very |:| >Japanese sounding accent, but I fail to find their |:| actions to be all that |:| >stereotypical of Asians. Anybody can be a bad guy: |:| white, black, asian, |:| >whatever. |:| |:| Their actions show the stereotypical (though incorrect) |:| view that Asians will |:| do anything for money and power. THe words were |:| obviously misdubbed to the |:| mouths to further this portrayal. and the accents were |:| more chinese, |:| actually..... |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Episode I and racism Date: 24 May 1999 14:56:07 -0500 Well put. And come to think of it, that one Jedi Council member's coned head kind of looked like a KKK hood. Darth Maul was OBVIOUSLY supposed to be Native American, what with his war paint and all. And Sebulba definitely portrayed camels in an offensive light. Hey, this is fun! |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of |:| Gary Heidenreich |:| <gheiden@ix.netcom.com> |:| Sent: Monday, May 24, 1999 2:43 PM |:| To: Movies Mailing List |:| Subject: [MV] Episode I and racism |:| |:| |:| I have to agree with Josh on the whole racial issue. |:| Sometimes we look |:| a little too deeply into things. Does anyone remember |:| the scene in |:| Chasing Amy where they talk about Darth Vader as racist |:| metaphor |:| insinuating that at the heart of every strong, black |:| man there is a |:| crusty white guy? If you're looking for it, you can |:| find a thousand |:| hidden meanings and interpretations, but that's all they are, |:| ultimately. Are lightsabers phallic? Does Queen Amidala |:| wear white |:| make-up because she's racist? Is that really supposed |:| to be Humpty |:| Dumpty whose pod blows up? |:| |:| Peter Heidenreich |:| |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: [MV] Phantom Menace review Date: 24 May 1999 16:10:04 -0700 A long time ago (actually just this weekend) in a galaxy far, far away (way over there in Kitchener) I saw the Phantom Menace. I didn't believe my Star Wars fanatic friend when he said that it is much better the second time around - how could the convoluted and boring trade plot improve, or the unbelievably annoying Jar Jar Binks improve, or the seemingly lack of action improve, or the terrible dialogue improve etc.... Well it did. I was surprised too. There seems to be this anxious hope that this film will be the be-all and end-all of all summer movies. Once you are unimpressed because it didn't live up to those expectations you can finally enjoy some slam bam summer mayhem. I will still stand in my point of view that this doesn't really work as a stand-alone movie. It is definitely the first of a trilogy in which many aspects of the Phantom menace will only make sense after the other two have been released. It is like watching a volleyball game where everyone is setting and no one is spiking. Jar Jar is still annoying - I do not understand why Lucas created a creature in which you cannot understand him?! Either make him speak better english or give him subtitles. Anywho - the movie gets a 75% for a decent summer movie. I will say that I am not gluing that number down - it may increase when it becomes part of the 6 pack. See it - but don't waist any more time waiting in lines!! [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Episode I and racism -Reply Date: 24 May 1999 13:39:56 -0700 It is hard to ignore stereotypes when you are being pounded over the head = by them. (I'm annoyed as much as the next person when I hear someone = complain of darkness being equated with evil. Everybody has been afraid = of the Dark.) The ones I mentioned are the ones that came screaming out at = me. I was not aware of any other discussion on this subject but obviously = I am not alone it noticing. =20 I think its a bad idea to pick out Jackson and the other guy as examples = of good portrayals of blacks. There's a word for that "token". the fact is that Lucas made some poor choices and somebody should have had = the cajones to tell him.=20 BTW, I believe false charges of racism only diminish the impact of = legitimate ones. Similarly, denying racial issues when they are so = obvious does the same. =20 bb=20 >>> "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> - 5/24/99 12:56 PM >>> Well put. And come to think of it, that one Jedi Council member's coned = head kind of looked like a KKK hood. Darth Maul was OBVIOUSLY supposed to be Native American, what with his war paint and all. And Sebulba definitely portrayed camels in an offensive light. Hey, this is fun! |:| -----Original Message----- |:| From: owner-movies@lists.xmission.com |:| [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com]On Behalf Of |:| Gary Heidenreich |:| <gheiden@ix.netcom.com> |:| Sent: Monday, May 24, 1999 2:43 PM |:| To: Movies Mailing List |:| Subject: [MV] Episode I and racism |:| |:| |:| I have to agree with Josh on the whole racial issue. |:| Sometimes we look |:| a little too deeply into things. Does anyone remember |:| the scene in |:| Chasing Amy where they talk about Darth Vader as racist |:| metaphor |:| insinuating that at the heart of every strong, black |:| man there is a |:| crusty white guy? If you're looking for it, you can |:| find a thousand |:| hidden meanings and interpretations, but that's all they are, |:| ultimately. Are lightsabers phallic? Does Queen Amidala |:| wear white |:| make-up because she's racist? Is that really supposed |:| to be Humpty |:| Dumpty whose pod blows up? |:| |:| Peter Heidenreich |:| |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: torq@mo.net Subject: Re: [MV] Phantom Menace review Date: 24 May 1999 15:45:18 -0500 At 04:10 PM 5/24/99 -0700, Jason Cormier wrote: >slam bam summer mayhem. I will still stand in my point of view that this >doesn't really work as a stand-alone movie. It is definitely the first of a >trilogy in which many aspects of the Phantom menace will only make sense >after the other two have been released. It is like watching a volleyball >game where everyone is setting and no one is spiking. Jar Jar is still i agree that episode i doesnt work on its own, but honestly, do ANY of the star wars movies work on their own? one might be able to say that episode iv works on it own, to some extent, but you are definitely left expecting more at the end of IV. and of course, no one can possibly say that empire can stand on its own - not only does the beginning of it rely on information from a new hope (ie. relationship between han and leia, han and luke, and luke and leia, how luke met obi-wan, etc.), but the ending is a cliffhanger - they literally say "well, we're gonna go find han now" when the bounty hunter takes han off to jabba, and then the movie ends. no individual movie would end like that. and although jedi does have a sufficient conclusion, again, the storyline for jedi is entirely reliant on what took place in episodes iv and v. this movie is no different, and, given the actual sequence of the stories, the way in which this movie was put together doesnt make a lot of sense story-wise (although it makse a lot of sense given the order in which the story has been told). what i mean is: in the new movie, various concepts integral to the story are not really explained, atleast not in the sort of detail that they are in a new hope - things like exactly what a jedi is, what the force is, dark side vs. good side, etc. obviously, the reason for this is because a new hope came out in 1977 and explained all this just fine, so it would be redudant for the points to be explained again in episode i. my point, though, is that if this was meant to be a stand-alone movie, since episode i is the first story in the 6-part series, it would ordinarily have to be the movie in which all of these details are brought out and explained. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Episode I and racism -Reply Date: 24 May 1999 16:15:05 CDT I think the person who brought that up just mentioned that they were not portrayed in a "negative light." I think the point is that the characters were who they were regardless of their skin color. They could have just as easily been white actors. They were cast for their acting ability. > >I think its a bad idea to pick out Jackson and the other guy as examples of >good portrayals of blacks. There's a word for that "token". > _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 Date: 24 May 1999 15:50:40 -0700 Gee, I would have just ignored Bruce's message and left it at that... > -----Original Message----- > From: Joshua Crow [SMTP:joshc@galaxy-inc.com] > Sent: Monday, May 24, 1999 12:13 PM > To: movies@lists.xmission.com > Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 > > |:| Finally, I am usually dubious at claims of racism > |:| around every corner but I think this movie is due a big > |:| controversy around some racial typing. Can anybody > |:| spot the greedy jew, the sneaky asians the simple minded blacks? > > I think these kinds of remarks are what sparks controversy in the first > place. People are always out to find something they can be offended by. I > think racism accusations against this movie are pretty far flung. For > example.. > > "The Greedy Jew" must be referring to Watto. Anybody feel free to correct > me > here, but the big mosquito had a French accent. So why exactly is he > supposed to be Jewish. The big nose?? I refer you again to the fact that > he > was a big mosquito. > > "The Simple Minded Blacks". This obviously refers to the Gungans, who must > be "black" because of their quasi Caribbean accents. Let us not forget the > two other major characters in the film that truly WERE black. Mace Windu, > on > the Jedi Council, and Queen Amidala's right hand general guy. Neither were > portrayed in a remotely negative light. > > "The Sneaky Asians". Yes, the Trade Federation characters had a very > Japanese sounding accent, but I fail to find their actions to be all that > stereotypical of Asians. Anybody can be a bad guy: white, black, asian, > whatever. > > I think everybody needs to lighten up with this racism thing. No more > witch > hunts. > > Josh > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] > [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars- episode 1 -Reply Date: 24 May 1999 16:14:41 -0700 I have to say that I find it interesting that people say my observations = are unfounded and then are able to easily pick out the examples and make = my case. In my original email I didn't say who I thought was portrayed as = what race. =20 Just a thought. bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - Tuesday, Date: 25 May 1999 10:43:42 -0600 LOS ANGELES (AP) - It's the kind of disappointment most studio executives would fall on their light sabers for: The "Star Wars" prequel failed to beat the opening-weekend record set by "The Lost World: Jurassic Park," figures showed Monday. "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace" amassed $64.8 million Friday through Sunday, short of the $72.1 million for Steven Spielberg's dinosaurs over the Memorial Day weekend in 1997. Otherwise, "Phantom" was flying high. It set records with a five-day gross of $105.7 million and with a $28.5 million opening day. It also became the fastest movie to break the $100 million barrier, in just five days. -=> * <=- LOS ANGELES (AP) - The entertainment industry has been very kind to Sen. Dianne Feinstein, donating more than $500,000 to the California Democrat's campaigns since 1991. And yet when she was faced with a proposal mandating a federal investigation into Hollywood's marketing practices for violent shows and games, Feinstein voted yes. The blood of Littleton, she decided, couldn't be ignored. "Isn't it time," she asked, "at the very least, that the manufacturers of video games, television programs, motion pictures and music acknowledge the impact on young people of the carnage they promulgate?" In the weeks since two students rampaged through a Colorado high school, killing 12 classmates and a teacher, Hollywood has been under siege by lawmakers - friends and foes alike. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Danielle Conkle" <danyelli@hotmail.com> Subject: [MV] Matrix vs. Star Wars ep. one Date: 25 May 1999 12:00:20 PDT >I'd actually be interested in hearing from folks on whether they >enjoyed themselves at Matrix more than Star Wars. Both seem to me to >be heavily effects reliant, and both had rambling stories, slow >second acts and crappy acting. So what's the pick? Star Wars Ep One >or Matrix? ...i'll admit it. I liked The Matrix over the new star wars. ;) BUT I didn't think star wars had crappy acting (and i didn't think the matrix's acting was that bad either.) I thought the star wars people did really well with what they had to work with. _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "David F. Nolan" <DFN@alum.mit.edu> Subject: Re: [MV] Matrix vs. Star Wars ep. one Date: 25 May 1999 13:22:28 -0000 For what it's worth, participants at FlickPicks (http://www.flickpicks.com) have given The Matrix a 4-star rating, and Star Wars: Phantom only 3.5 stars. (Both movies have been rated by more than 50 people). You can read comments from many of those who voted by going to the PEOPLE'S CHOICE page. (Feel free to chime in with a plug for HBS, Oz!) On a related note, industry pundits are now predicting domestic gross receipts on the order of $350 million for SW:PM ... a far cry from the $1 billion that some folks were predicting. (My guess was a half-bil, which is still possible after years of re-releases.) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Lillian Lepinath <q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au> Subject: Re: [MV] Matrix vs. Star Wars ep. one Date: 26 May 1999 10:28:27 +1000 "David F. Nolan" wrote: > > On a related note, industry pundits are now predicting domestic gross > receipts on the order of $350 million for SW:PM ... a far cry from the $1 > billion that some folks were predicting. (My guess was a half-bil, which > is still possible after years of re-releases.) > I thought they estimated $1 billion including merchandising? or does that $350 mil include that? Teck. -- __\/__ . / ^ _ \ . |\| (o)(o) |/| #----------------.OOOo--oo--oOOO.------------# # # # May the forces of evil become lost and # # confused on the way to your house. # # # #_________________________Oooo.______________# .oooO ( ) ( ) ) / TeckerDaze \ ( (_/ q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au \_) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Lillian Lepinath <q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au> Subject: [MV] Was the undeliverable mail problem solved? Date: 26 May 1999 10:44:00 +1000 Howdy all, I was just wondering if the problem with the undeliverable mail was solved... and if it was - what did you do? Or are we just ignoring these messages and hoping that they will go away? Just wondering. Teck. -- __\/__ . / ^ _ \ . |\| (o)(o) |/| #----------------.OOOo--oo--oOOO.------------# # # # May the forces of evil become lost and # # confused on the way to your house. # # # #_________________________Oooo.______________# .oooO ( ) ( ) ) / TeckerDaze \ ( (_/ q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au \_) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: torq@mo.net Subject: Re: [MV] Was the undeliverable mail problem solved? Date: 25 May 1999 20:34:14 -0500 At 10:44 AM 5/26/99 +1000, Lillian Lepinath wrote: >Howdy all, > >I was just wondering if the problem with the undeliverable mail was >solved... and if it was - what did you do? Or are we just ignoring >these messages and hoping that they will go away? this is not a problem that any list member can solve. it has to do with an errant e-mail address of some subscriber to the list. only the list moderator can fix the problem. in the meantime, we just have to deal with it. on a more related note: how can anyone anticipate star wars only making $350 million? it's made about $130 million thus far, in just 6 days of release. of course, it wont make $130 million every week, but after 6-8 weeks (the typical run for a popular movie, in my experience), it should be up around $600-$700 million. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Oz <oz@filmink-online.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Matrix vs. Star Wars ep. one Date: 26 May 1999 12:59:03 -0700 "David F. Nolan" wrote: > > For what it's worth, participants at FlickPicks have given The Matrix a 4-star rating, > and Star Wars: Phantom only 3.5 stars. (Both movies have been rated by more > than 50 people). > (Feel free to chime in with a plug for HBS, Oz!) Don't mind if I do. Hollywood Bitchslap (http://hollywoodbitchslap.com) users give Star Wars Ep One an average rating of 4.06 stars (out of 5), whereas The Matrix has the highest rating of any film currently in release, 4.56 stars (though some of the user comments indicate questionable taste - EG: "This is my second favorite movie behind Armageddon" - ew!) At the time of this posting, The Matrix has received 162 votes, and Star Wars has received 109 votes. Interview with Star Wars Producer Rick McCallum is now online. ----------------- {{{OZ}}} ------------------- ------- http://www.filmink-online.com -------- ---------------------------------------------- Want to earn money on your website? How does 17c a click sound? http://www.valueclick.com/cgi-bin/refer_host_signup?host=h0032965 [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: [MV] Star Wars Grosses Date: 25 May 1999 23:54:03 -0400 At 08.34 PM 25/05/99 -0500, torq@mo.net wrote: >on a more related note: how can anyone anticipate star wars only making >$350 million? it's made about $130 million thus far, in just 6 days of >release. of course, it wont make $130 million every week, but after 6-8 >weeks (the typical run for a popular movie, in my experience), it should be >up around $600-$700 million. There are a number of things to keep in mind. First of all, Lucasfilm purposely released the movie this week. Next week is the long (holiday) week-end in the US, and there are people that fully expect the movie to make MORE money in the second week of release. THEN schools start letting out. Plus the theatres are obliged to keep the movie on the same screens for up to eight weeks (and many theatres are showing it on three screens). Keep in mind that Titanic (the current champion) didn't start off very well (comparatively speaking, of course:-), but had what the industry calls "long legs". It was #1 for what, 8 maybe 12 weeks?? How long was the run?? Titanic basically got where it was with many many weeks of $20-30 million. Everything, and I mean everything is dependent on how many people see this movie again and again. And we won't even be able to begin to fathom how well that is for weeks yet. First of all, we have to see how long it holds onto the number one position. As for $350 million, well since international box office is usually twice domestic, that gives us $1 billion total (I know that's cheating, I said it might do $1 billion domestically:-). And $700 million should knock Titanic from the top spot. ALL bets are still on the table. I'll keep mine there, but don't expect me to raise:-) (Then again, in a pool, I guess the first week's grosses at $120 million, so I have been shooting high of the mark) Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ If people are worried about the whole Y2K thing, just wait until they try to get technical support the day "Phantom Menace" opens. __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Irish Boy" <rdoyle29@msn.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Was the undeliverable mail problem solved? Date: 25 May 1999 23:17:26 -0500 The problem is just that someone who was a subscriber to the list cancelled their email account without unsubscribing. It will go away eventually. R∩(c)hΣ(r)d J. ╨÷ lδ rdoyle29@msn.com ICQ: 27479510 "Government is not reason, it is not eloquence- it is force." - George Washington -----Original Message----- [mailto:owner-movies@lists.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Lillian Lepinath Sent: Tuesday, May 25, 1999 7:44 PM Howdy all, I was just wondering if the problem with the undeliverable mail was solved... and if it was - what did you do? Or are we just ignoring these messages and hoping that they will go away? Just wondering. Teck. -- __\/__ . / ^ _ \ . |\| (o)(o) |/| #----------------.OOOo--oo--oOOO.------------# # # # May the forces of evil become lost and # # confused on the way to your house. # # # #_________________________Oooo.______________# .oooO ( ) ( ) ) / TeckerDaze \ ( (_/ q9303210@topaz.cqu.edu.au \_) [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars Grosses Date: 26 May 1999 08:44:18 -0500 We need to remember though that sci fi movies historically have very sharp dropoffs in attendance in their second week. Granted, Star Wars has its own set of rules, but it remains to be seen how well it's going to do over time. If everybody sees it once then forgets about it, the movie is not going to do well at all. Keep in mind that when Godzilla opened last year, it's opening weekend suggested it would probably have a run that would total over $200 million domestically, but it dropped off VERY sharply because of poor word of mouth and lack of repeat business. A lot of people love Phantom Menace, but a lot of people hate it, too. It really remains to be seen whether or not this movie is really going to have long legs. On another note, where IS the moderator? Can't he just delete that rogue email address and be done with it, or is he off at Cannes or something? |:| There are a number of things to keep in mind. First of |:| all, Lucasfilm |:| purposely released the movie this week. Next week is |:| the long (holiday) |:| week-end in the US, and there are people that fully |:| expect the movie to |:| make MORE money in the second week of release. THEN |:| schools start letting |:| out. Plus the theatres are obliged to keep the movie |:| on the same screens |:| for up to eight weeks (and many theatres are showing it |:| on three screens). |:| |:| Keep in mind that Titanic (the current champion) didn't |:| start off very well |:| (comparatively speaking, of course:-), but had what the |:| industry calls |:| "long legs". It was #1 for what, 8 maybe 12 weeks?? |:| How long was the |:| run?? Titanic basically got where it was with many |:| many weeks of $20-30 |:| million. |:| |:| Everything, and I mean everything is dependent on how |:| many people see this |:| movie again and again. And we won't even be able to |:| begin to fathom how |:| well that is for weeks yet. First of all, we have to |:| see how long it holds |:| onto the number one position. |:| |:| As for $350 million, well since international box |:| office is usually twice |:| domestic, that gives us $1 billion total (I know |:| that's cheating, I said |:| it might do $1 billion domestically:-). And $700 |:| million should knock |:| Titanic from the top spot. |:| |:| ALL bets are still on the table. I'll keep mine there, |:| but don't expect me |:| to raise:-) |:| |:| (Then again, in a pool, I guess the first week's |:| grosses at $120 million, |:| so I have been shooting high of the mark) |:| |:| Regards, |:| |:| --Mel |:| |:| |:| --Mel Eperthener |:| president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty |:| |:| Please support the endeavour |:| of a friend and fellow Australian. |:| |:| Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy |:| http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings |:| |:| ____________________________________________ |:| If people are worried about the whole Y2K thing, |:| just wait until they try to get technical |:| support the day "Phantom Menace" opens. |:| __________________________ |:| |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message |:| "unsubscribe ] |:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to |:| majordomo@xmission.com ] |:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com> Subject: [MV] REVIEW: THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR Date: 26 May 1999 08:58:55 -0600 (MDT) THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR (Columbia) Starring: Craig Bierko, Gretchen Mol, Vincent D'Onofrio, Dennis Haysbert, Armin Mueller-Stahl. Screenplay: Josef Rusnak and Ravel Centeno-Rodriguez, based on the novel _Simulacron 3_ by Daniel Galouye. Producers: Roland Emmerich, Ute Emmerich and Marco Weber. Director: Josef Rusnak. MPAA Rating: R (violence, profanity, adult themes) Running Time: 99 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw. It would be easier -- and kinder -- to think of THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR as a simple case of bad timing. After all, this is the fourth film in three months in which characters begin to doubt the nature of their reality, following THE MATRIX, eXistenZ and OPEN YOUR EYES. That much head-tripping could be wearying under the best of circumstances, and THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR is far from the best of circumstances. This is genre film-making at its most superficially plot-driven, compounding its shallow characterizations with a ridiculous degree of self-importance. The story opens with the murder of Hannon Fuller (Armin Mueller-Stahl), a software engineer who has created a fully functional simulated computer world modeled after 1937 Los Angeles, complete with digital characters possessing a sense of self. One prime suspect is Fuller's partner Douglas Hall (Craig Bierko), who stands to profit most from Fuller's death and can't remember where he was at the time of the murder...or how bloody clothing ended up in his laundry. When he learns that Fuller left a message for him inside the simulation, Hall "jacks in" to the life of one of the simulation characters, and discovers that another one of the characters (Vincent D'Onfrio) has learned that his world isn't real. As Hall continues to investigate, he begins to suspect that there is more to his own reality than meets the eye. There's nothing remarkably innovative about the film's premise at this point, but director/co-writer Josef Rusnak can't be faulted for bringing up the rear of the virtual reality parade. He can certainly be faulted, however, for the way he approached that premise. THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR apparently wants Hall's existential crisis to matter, yet the film never gives us enough background to understand Hall, his friendship with Fuller, or any of his anxieties. It often appears that key scenes of character development have been edited out and replaced by expository dialogue, leaving little but essential plot-advancing events and Craig Bierko's dead-eyed performance. That makes it virtually impossible for the story to develop any depth, or for Hall's romance with a mysterious woman (Gretchen Mol) to be anything but functional. When the film's real "villain" shows up for the first time with about 15 minutes left, it's obvious that Rusnak's primary goal is moving the story, character development be hanged. A science-fiction thriller can work, of course, without much profound commentary on the human condition; heaven knows THE MATRIX wasn't out to score philosophical brownie points. THE MATRIX also didn't make the mistake of pretending to be anything more than it was, treating its subject matter with a playful, giddy energy. THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR is one of those bleak, somber exercises in which the gloom is meant to suggest significance but instead makes it even more impossible to enjoy the story. On only one occasion, involving the confusion of Fuller's simulation counterpart, does THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR aspire to some kind of understanding. Most of the time it's a plodding bore, grinding through the plot as though its themes were medicinally good for you instead of the stuff of paperback novels. I suppose it's praiseworthy that THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR does work at providing clues for its plot twists instead of dropping them in your lap. Mueller-Stahl and D'Onofrio are solid in their dual roles, almost making up for the blank attractiveness of Mol and Bierko. The film certainly achieves the atmosphere it's aiming for; unfortunately, that atmosphere provides neither entertainment nor insight. Even if you're prepared to overlook the inevitable head-scratching convolutions of plot, you're not likely to care about where they're taking you. I can imagine an alternate reality in which film-makers have figured out there's nothing more to say about alternate realities, at least for the time being. It must be a better place than this. On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 floor burns: 3. Visit Scott Renshaw's Screening Room http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/ *** Subscribe to receive new reviews directly by email! See the Screening Room for details, or reply to this message with subject "Subscribe". [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Was the undeliverable mail problem solved? -Reply Date: 26 May 1999 08:04:04 -0700 The critical issue for SWPM is the second weekend. I think that everybody = is now anticipating a more dramatic dropoff than originally thought. = Anybody want to guess what next weekend's take will be. 25%, 50%, 75%? = =20 bb >>> <torq@mo.net> - 5/25/99 6:34 PM >>> At 10:44 AM 5/26/99 +1000, Lillian Lepinath wrote: >Howdy all, > >I was just wondering if the problem with the undeliverable mail was >solved... and if it was - what did you do? Or are we just ignoring >these messages and hoping that they will go away? this is not a problem that any list member can solve. it has to do with = an errant e-mail address of some subscriber to the list. only the list moderator can fix the problem. in the meantime, we just have to deal with = it. on a more related note: how can anyone anticipate star wars only making $350 million? it's made about $130 million thus far, in just 6 days of release. of course, it wont make $130 million every week, but after 6-8 weeks (the typical run for a popular movie, in my experience), it should = be up around $600-$700 million. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Was the undeliverable mail problem solved? -Reply Date: 26 May 1999 08:14:21 -0700 Also, we know that Mann's refused to agree to the 8 week rule and instead = is only running Star Wars for four at the Chinese theater. There were a = few other rogue chains but I wonder if more will demand out of that 8 week = agreement if they see Austin Powers, Wild, Wild West or some sleeper as = being too good to pass up. Titantic came out at the end of the year and wasn't facing an onslaught of = summer blockbusters. It also didn't have the majority of its diehard fans = lining up to see it the first weekend. It built on word of mouth (not = from me) and I think SWPM will suffer from word of mouth. =20 I think SWPM will stall at $300 million domestically and eventually maybe = make it to $350. =20 bb [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Matrix vs. Star Wars ep. one Date: 26 May 1999 09:13:57 -0600 I hate to say it, but I felt that The Matrix was a superior movie in many ways and will probably be the best movie of the summer/year. However, I truly believe that Star Wars movies cannot be judged the same as other movies. They are above such trivial things. Phantom Menace was awesome and is right up there with the other 3 in my book. I enjoyed it much more the second time. Sounds weird, but it's true. James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Tuesday, May 25, 1999 1:00 PM >I'd actually be interested in hearing from folks on whether they >enjoyed themselves at Matrix more than Star Wars. Both seem to me to >be heavily effects reliant, and both had rambling stories, slow >second acts and crappy acting. So what's the pick? Star Wars Ep One >or Matrix? .....i'll admit it. I liked The Matrix over the new star wars. ;) BUT I didn't think star wars had crappy acting (and i didn't think the matrix's acting was that bad either.) I thought the star wars people did really well with what they had to work with. _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Chris Culligan" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Star Wars Date: 26 May 1999 11:04:35 -0600 I saw the original Star Wars back when I was 12 years old. I begged my = mom to take me to see it and she finally did - on my birthday. It was a = special night. I have to say, for me, a little of the magic returned = tonight when I went to see Star Wars Episode 1. =20 The movie was, to my surprise, very good. From the reviews I went in = not expecting much, maybe that's why I enjoyed myself so. The Phantom = Menace stayed true to the original series and in some ways was better. = For instance, I loved the story. A little more Sci-Fi then fantasy as = in the first three. The characters where great too. Who says you = couldn't relate to them or like them?? I felt attached to the mystical = ruggedness of the Jedi and his apprentice right off the bat. I thought = the queen was lovely and likable. And the action was non-stop (how = about that pod race??). Also - I can't think of another movie I've ever = seen with such a wonderful tapestry of SFX. I may go to it again just = to watch more closely at some of the backgrounds to see some of the SFX = I missed. Anyway, I'm sure not everyone will like it but I'm also not sure why = anybody wouldn't like it (from were I'm standing). I'm happy to say I = loved it and can't wait for the next two episodes to see what happens!! = For me, the magic and anticipation that I lost after episode six are = back!! CHRIS [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars Grosses Date: 26 May 1999 13:06:05 CDT I think the fact that this movie may appeal to young children may be an indication of its long legs. I've already heard of people who have already seen it twice and plan to do so again. I haven't seen it yet, but I very well may in the next week. I can understand why Godzilla would drop, as it is hard to imagine a lot of young kids wanting to see that mess over and over again. Godzilla may not be a good analogy, but then again, what is..... As for that rogue address, maybe we have been left to fend for ourselves..... a band of restless travelers haunted by the spirits of those who have left us, only ot be neglected by our authority powers.... Wade >From: "Joshua Crow" <joshc@galaxy-inc.com> >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> >Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars Grosses >Date: Wed, 26 May 1999 08:44:18 -0500 > > >We need to remember though that sci fi movies historically have very sharp >dropoffs in attendance in their second week. Granted, Star Wars has its own >set of rules, but it remains to be seen how well it's going to do over >time. >If everybody sees it once then forgets about it, the movie is not going to >do well at all. Keep in mind that when Godzilla opened last year, it's >opening weekend suggested it would probably have a run that would total >over >$200 million domestically, but it dropped off VERY sharply because of poor >word of mouth and lack of repeat business. A lot of people love Phantom >Menace, but a lot of people hate it, too. It really remains to be seen >whether or not this movie is really going to have long legs. > >On another note, where IS the moderator? Can't he just delete that rogue >email address and be done with it, or is he off at Cannes or something? > >|:| There are a number of things to keep in mind. First of >|:| all, Lucasfilm >|:| purposely released the movie this week. Next week is >|:| the long (holiday) >|:| week-end in the US, and there are people that fully >|:| expect the movie to >|:| make MORE money in the second week of release. THEN >|:| schools start letting >|:| out. Plus the theatres are obliged to keep the movie >|:| on the same screens >|:| for up to eight weeks (and many theatres are showing it >|:| on three screens). >|:| >|:| Keep in mind that Titanic (the current champion) didn't >|:| start off very well >|:| (comparatively speaking, of course:-), but had what the >|:| industry calls >|:| "long legs". It was #1 for what, 8 maybe 12 weeks?? >|:| How long was the >|:| run?? Titanic basically got where it was with many >|:| many weeks of $20-30 >|:| million. >|:| >|:| Everything, and I mean everything is dependent on how >|:| many people see this >|:| movie again and again. And we won't even be able to >|:| begin to fathom how >|:| well that is for weeks yet. First of all, we have to >|:| see how long it holds >|:| onto the number one position. >|:| >|:| As for $350 million, well since international box >|:| office is usually twice >|:| domestic, that gives us $1 billion total (I know >|:| that's cheating, I said >|:| it might do $1 billion domestically:-). And $700 >|:| million should knock >|:| Titanic from the top spot. >|:| >|:| ALL bets are still on the table. I'll keep mine there, >|:| but don't expect me >|:| to raise:-) >|:| >|:| (Then again, in a pool, I guess the first week's >|:| grosses at $120 million, >|:| so I have been shooting high of the mark) >|:| >|:| Regards, >|:| >|:| --Mel >|:| >|:| >|:| --Mel Eperthener >|:| president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty >|:| >|:| Please support the endeavour >|:| of a friend and fellow Australian. >|:| >|:| Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy >|:| http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings >|:| >|:| ____________________________________________ >|:| If people are worried about the whole Y2K thing, >|:| just wait until they try to get technical >|:| support the day "Phantom Menace" opens. >|:| __________________________ >|:| >|:| [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message >|:| "unsubscribe ] >|:| [ movies" (without the quotes) to >|:| majordomo@xmission.com ] >|:| > > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: [MV] Was the undeliverable mail problem solved? -Reply -Reply Date: 26 May 1999 13:15:03 CDT 300 Mil seems like a good number, but I would probably lean to the 350 Mil or more mark. I don't see what the big deal is with the 8 week rule though. I don't see why any theater would have a problem with it, with the exceptions of smaller theaters which may have had a harder time getting the movie to play there in the first place. Mann's was let out of this stipulation because of its own peculiar status. At the theaters in Waco, they are still showing movies that have been out for longer than 2 months, such as The Out of Towners, Forces of Nature, and October Sky. When you figure that many theaters, at least the two big ones here, have 10, 12 to 16 or more theaters, then the 8 week imposition may not be that big a deal. But, on the same account, theaters that don't show Star Wars may be able to rack up some money by showing other possible big movies, such as Austin Powers or the Will Smith doodoo.... >From: "Bruce Bridges" <Bruce@ffww.com> >Reply-To: movies@lists.xmission.com >To: <movies@lists.xmission.com> >Subject: Re: [MV] Was the undeliverable mail problem solved? -Reply -Reply >Date: Wed, 26 May 1999 08:14:21 -0700 > >Also, we know that Mann's refused to agree to the 8 week rule and instead >is only running Star Wars for four at the Chinese theater. There were a >few other rogue chains but I wonder if more will demand out of that 8 week >agreement if they see Austin Powers, Wild, Wild West or some sleeper as >being too good to pass up. > >Titantic came out at the end of the year and wasn't facing an onslaught of >summer blockbusters. It also didn't have the majority of its diehard fans >lining up to see it the first weekend. It built on word of mouth (not from >me) and I think SWPM will suffer from word of mouth. > >I think SWPM will stall at $300 million domestically and eventually maybe >make it to $350. > >bb > >[ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] >[ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "David F. Nolan" <DFN@alum.mit.edu> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars Grosses Date: 26 May 1999 11:22:48 -0000 >I think the fact that this movie may appeal to young children may be an >indication of its long legs. Yeah, but kiddie tickets typically cost about half as much as adult tickets, so lots of kid traffic won't boost gross revenues as fast. The average per-head is probably under $6, and it will drop as the movie eventually moves to the second-run theaters. (Of course kid appeal will probably push video sales thru the roof, but that's another story.) Reported Wednesday-thru-Sunday revenue for SW:PM was $105.7 million ... and that includes all the hard-core devotees who just had to see it right away. $300-$400 mil in 1999 sure sounds plasusible to me; later re-releases could eventually push it past $500 million. Can we talk about something else now? [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: RE: [MV] Star Wars Grosses Date: 26 May 1999 14:20:21 CDT Even so, I see how these sales could push the revenues up. All it takes is for one kid to see it twice to equal or slightly more than the ticket for one adult. And, then matinee tickets don't usually differentiate, at least down here they don't. I don't think the price of an under 12 ticket is all that much of a factor in the long run, when you consider repeat business from children or young teens. If you want to change the subject, whcih I would be glad to do, start another thread........ Wade >Yeah, but kiddie tickets typically cost about half as much as adult >tickets, so lots of kid traffic won't boost gross revenues as fast. The >average per-head is probably under $6, and it will drop as the movie >eventually moves to the second-run theaters. (Of course kid appeal will >probably push video sales thru the roof, but that's another story.) _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Sci-Fi Movie News - 05/26/99 Date: 26 May 1999 16:11:24 -0600 Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace took in $28,542,349 during its first day of release, setting a new record for the largest single-day box-office gross in history. The previous record was held by Jurassic Park: The Lost World, which earned $26.1 million on its opening day back in 1997. "We're thrilled and overwhelmed that so many people went to see Episode I yesterday and enjoyed the movie so much," Gordon Radley, the president of LucasFilm Ltd., said in a prepared statement. "As we've said before, whatever the box-office records, Star Wars is about having a great time at the movies with your friends and family." The Phantom Menace opened on May 19 in 2,970 theaters, and more than 2,000 of those began showing the film at 12:01 a.m. -=> * <=- Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace earned an estimated $7.5 million during its first six hours of release on May 19. Variety reported that Fox came up with that figure based on a sampling of the 2,011 theaters that showed advance screenings of the film from 12:01 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. on its opening day. -=> * <=- Patrick Stewart is finalizing a deal to play the role of Professor Xavier in Fox's upcoming film X-Men, according to Variety. Xavier, also known simply as Professor X, is the telepathic leader of a group of mutant superheroes called the X-Men. Although Xavier is confined to a wheelchair, his abilities as a telepath as well as his incredible intellect make him one of the most powerful men on Earth. Stewart will star opposite Ian McKellen, who will play the super-villain Magneto, Xavier's former friend and now arch enemy. Meanwhile, Entertainment Weekly is reporting that professional wrestler Tyler Mane will play the role of the evil mutant Sabretooth, the arch nemesis of the X-Men's Wolverine. The film, which is being directed by Bryan Singer, is scheduled to begin shooting on July 19 in Toronto, Canada. -=> * <=- Oscar nominee Sir Ian McKellen has agreed to play the role of super-villain Magneto in Bryan Singer's live-action film The X-Men, according to Variety. The Fox flick is based on Marvel's long-running comic series of the same name and is due to begin shooting in Toronto, Canada, this August. The X-Men are a group of outcast mutant superheroes led by the brilliant Professor Xavier, who hopes that mutants and humans will one day live in peace. Magneto, the Master of Magnetism, leads a rival cadre of evil mutants who want to conquer humanity and rule the planet by force. No other cast members have been signed. -=> * <=- Batman Forever headliner Val Kilmer is in final negotiations to star in the Warner Bros. film Mars, according to Variety. Kilmer would play an astronaut on the first manned mission to the Red Planet who becomes stranded on the Martian surface after an accident. As the astronaut tries to find a way out of his predicament, he learns some startling truths about his mission that make his rescue all the more important. The film, previously titled Alone, is being directed by Antony Hoffman from a script by Chuck Pfarrer and Jonathan Lemkin. The film is scheduled to begin shooting in late August or early September. -=> * <=- Last Action Hero director John McTiernan is in talks with United Artists to remake the 1975 SF classic film Rollerball, according to Variety. The original movie was based on the William Harrison novel Roller Ball Murders and featured James Caan as the star player of a violent, roller derby-like sport. McTiernan recently finished shooting the United Artists remake of The Thomas Crown Affair, and both sides are said to be pleased with the outcome. The Die Hard with a Vengeance director is also considering making a movie based on the Quiller series of mystery books. -=> * <=- City of Lost Children co-director Marc Caro has signed on to helm the SF adventure film Snark for Pathe Pictures, according to Variety. The film is loosely based on Lewis Carroll's poem "The Hunting of the Snark." -=> * <=- Camryn Manheim will star alongside Gary Shandling and Annette Bening in the SF comedy What Planet Are You From, according to Variety. The picture is about an alien equipped with a mechanical penis who is sent to mate with an Earthling in order to take over our planet. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: [MV] The Eight-Week Rule Date: 26 May 1999 15:44:05 -0400 At 01.15 PM 26/05/99 CDT, Wade S. wrote: >300 Mil seems like a good number, but I would probably lean to the 350 Mil >or more mark. I don't see what the big deal is with the 8 week rule though. >I don't see why any theater would have a problem with it, with the >exceptions of smaller theaters which may have had a harder time getting the >movie to play there in the first place It goes beyond that. The theatres were contracted to play the same number of copies for eight weeks on the same screens. For example, The Mummy was shown on two screens a lot of places, but dropped off to one by this week. Phantom Menace is to be held for those eight weeks. In other words, if your local multiplex has three copies, and put them on the three biggest screens to satisfy first week-end crowds, then on the 10th of July, it is supposed to still be on those same three screens. Again, I think that this movie can go in just about every direction right now. All that is guarenteed is that it break the $100 million mark (because it already did:-). I think this week-end, with the holiday crowd, is key. If it falters much at all, Lucas is in trouble. If the audience increases (and I still hear people making the argument that it might), then he's set. Of course, I can't think of anything coming out this week-end to threaten the movie's number one spot, so at this point, all we can do is wait and see. Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com> Subject: RE: [MV] The Eight-Week Rule Date: 26 May 1999 16:49:42 -0600 Even if Lucas ends up "in trouble" I wouldn't mind having those kind of problems. I don't think he'll go bankrupt and I'm sure the sequels to this prequel will be made regardless of the revenue it generates. Good hell, if we can have 4 or 5 Iron Eagle movies we can have more Star Wars movies. James K. Rudy -----Original Message----- Sent: Wednesday, May 26, 1999 1:44 PM At 01.15 PM 26/05/99 CDT, Wade S. wrote: >300 Mil seems like a good number, but I would probably lean to the 350 Mil >or more mark. I don't see what the big deal is with the 8 week rule though. >I don't see why any theater would have a problem with it, with the >exceptions of smaller theaters which may have had a harder time getting the >movie to play there in the first place It goes beyond that. The theatres were contracted to play the same number of copies for eight weeks on the same screens. For example, The Mummy was shown on two screens a lot of places, but dropped off to one by this week. Phantom Menace is to be held for those eight weeks. In other words, if your local multiplex has three copies, and put them on the three biggest screens to satisfy first week-end crowds, then on the 10th of July, it is supposed to still be on those same three screens. Again, I think that this movie can go in just about every direction right now. All that is guarenteed is that it break the $100 million mark (because it already did:-). I think this week-end, with the holiday crowd, is key. If it falters much at all, Lucas is in trouble. If the audience increases (and I still hear people making the argument that it might), then he's set. Of course, I can't think of anything coming out this week-end to threaten the movie's number one spot, so at this point, all we can do is wait and see. Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty email: bcassidy@usaor.net gowanna@australiamail.com http://www.webz.com/gowanna 419 Butler Street PO Box 95184 Pittsburgh, PA 15223-0184 (412) 781-6140 (412) 781-6380 1-888-45-GOWANNA -- TOLL FREE (1-888-454-6926) ____________________________________________ "Mulder, if you had to do without a cell phone for two minutes, you'd lapse into catatonic schizophrenia" --Dana Scully ______________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Phoenix" <phoenix@fundy.net> Subject: Re: [MV] The Eight-Week Rule Date: 26 May 1999 20:29:12 -0300 >Even if Lucas ends up "in trouble" I wouldn't mind having those kind of >problems. I don't think he'll go bankrupt and I'm sure the sequels to this >prequel will be made regardless of the revenue it generates. Good hell, if >we can have 4 or 5 Iron Eagle movies we can have more Star Wars movies. > >James K. Rudy > Poor George. He probably only pocketed $200-300 million in merchandising rights alone. And that was before the film even opened. Not to mention what he stands to make as a stockholder in Hasbro if the toys keep flying off the store shelves. If George's financial troubles keep up, we may have to organize some sort of benefit on his behalf to keep him out of the poorhouse. Of course, we all know George isn't in it for the money anyway. :) JPC [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: maillist@moviejuice.com Subject: [MV] MovieJuice! - ADVANCE - NOTTING HILL - Roberts Rules of Ardor Date: 26 May 1999 20:05:51 -0400 (EDT) FOR YOU INDUSTRY INSIDERSà One of the best and most dastardly things I've ever done is the phony (?) CAA page. And, as luck would have it, there's new stuff on the page! Don't miss the all-new Agent Web Cam! http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/caa.htm ******************** NOTTING HILL - ROBERTS RULES OF ARDOR by Mark Ramsey http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/nottinghill.htm May 26, 1999 This was one of those crowded-to-the-rafters previews brought to you by a radio station, a cable company, and a car dealer. What's with all the promotion? Just add Donny and Marie, some surviving Temptations, and some chickens and we'll open a State Fair. So crowded was the scene, the search for seats was financed by the Discovery Channel ("I can just make out the bow of Titanic...AND ONE EMPTY SEAT!"). Scores of shameless, teleprompterless TV anchor-folk strolled across the front of the theater expressing their big-fish-small-pond celebrity and vainly searching for a seat to be vain in. Hey, newscasters! There's "Consumer Bob" and "Mr. PC" and "Captain Mike." Where's the rest of the Justice League of America, you guys? Where's "The Incredible Schmuck"? Doesn't he do Traffic? Can Superman kick your asses, or are those kryptonite plates between your ears? Since Notting Hill is, by nature of its "Rom-Com" genre, a testosterone-challenged flick, I found myself surrounded by a room chocked full of Jewel contemporaries, each exposing more belly and more roots than the next. Ah, Southern California, where a jungle of Jewels is one wild animal kingdom! Where's my machete? Picture a Halloween party where every costume is Gretchen Mol - plus a couple Brides of Frankenstein for good measure. No candy tonight, girls, I'm workin'! Thanks to the throng, I was very nearly front and center. Wow, Julia Roberts' head is BIG! And I don't mean that in the Dustin Hoffman sense. Can those lashes swat biplanes atop the Empire State Building? Didn't Luke already blow this death star? Yes, Benjamin's Bratt Julia is the Obi-Wan Kenobi of Romantic Comedy. Feel the Force of her charisma! Damn, if the bewitching Julia doesn't do some of her very best work here! With that million-watt smile and those big brown Bambi eyes, I'm thinking: Forget the Star Wars trailer - download this! My favorite Julia flick will always be Mystic Pizza, but Notting Hill runs a surprisingly close second and - best of all - the pod race sequence happens off camera! Brought to you by the team that made Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill is Fewer Weddings, No Funerals, and No Jar Jar. It's the kind of clever, fairly fabulous romantic comedy we haven't seen since, well, Four Weddings and a Funeral. Kudos to the writer, Richard Curtis, who is so scary good, you wanna lay down your pen and surrender. Damn Redcoat! Whenever a movie quotes classic screen siren Rita Hayworth and peppers itself with Henry James jokes, you know three things: Adam Sandler doesn't star, Jerry Bruckheimer doesn't produce, and George Lucas sure as Hell didn't write the script. Big star Julia is type-cast as "the world's most famous star" (or at least the most famous one without an action figure) who meets quintessentially stammering Hugh Grant, "the Alec Guinness of awkwardness," in a bookstore. Romance and hilarity ensue, but nothing's funnier than the tie Julia wears during their interview encounter. A tie? Should Hugh check his purse at the door? What's with this nouveau trend toward bookstore romance, anyway? First You've Got Mail, now this. It's just my observation, but it seems to me most folks working in a bookstore are already in highly committed same-sex relationships and would sooner browse the HTML aisle than drop knickers for you, pal. Besides, who'd believe a bookshop without a prominent Stephen King display? As with FW&AF, the supporting cast is a colorfully eccentric, loony, luckless lot. Hugh's outrageous flat-mate Spike couldn't be more British if Richard Branson stamped "Virgin Atlantic" on his bum and gave him a gate at Heathrow. Check out the Mormon Tabernacle Choir-full of bad teeth (bonding by Picasso). I think his toothbrush is hiding in the FBI's Witness Relocation Program. Spike, like a lot of the folks in this flick, is a beastly, quirky scream. Hugh's relatives are charmingly flaky, all. And not one of them is a Saturday Night Live alum! Unless you count Alec Baldwin, who does such a mean Mickey Rourke, the Mickster deserves some commission coin. Universal's got itself a winner! No more pigs in the city; just a Babe in the bookstore. Hey Star Wars fans, if you can't squeeze into the theater again for George's master class in computer graphic speak-and-spell and techno-juvennihilation, then line-jockey over to Notting Hill. This flick is ten times the movie that Phantom Menace is. Step to the rear, Sandra Bullock. Please wait outside, Jennifer Aniston. The sweetheart queen has returned to the throne. And the quirky shall inherit the Earth. Copyright 1999 Mark Ramsey. All rights reserved. NO PORTION MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR. ******************** DONÆT FORGET TO VISIT MOVIEJUICE.COM! Hey, kids, don't forget to visit the MovieJuice! Site at http://www.moviejuice.com. The pictures are half the fun (and sometimes more than half the laughs)! ******************** TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS LIST: DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL! Just go to http://www.moviejuice.com and follow the directions at the top of the left frame. It's very easy. NOTE: YOUR NAME CANNOT BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST UNLESS YOU UNSUBSCRIBE USING THE EMAIL ADDRESS YOU REGISTERED WITH). And don't write me lots of mean-spirited crap. I won't read it. ******************** IF YOUR LINES AREN'T WRAPPINGà Your browser and/or email client (why DO they call it that?) has a setting called "Wrap Long Lines." Select it! [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Chris Culligan" <culligan@gate.net> Subject: Re: [MV] The Eight-Week Rule Date: 26 May 1999 21:26:12 -0400 He could have put no effort into this film and still walked away with cash to spare. I'm glad that he saw fit to put some heart into it and give us an enjoyable movie (IMO). On the subject, would you say he's "in it" for the money or would you say that the Star Wars movies are a "labor-of-love" for Lucas? I'd be interested to hear what y'all think. CHRIS ----- Original Message ----- Sent: Wednesday, May 26, 1999 7:29 PM > > > > > >Even if Lucas ends up "in trouble" I wouldn't mind having those kind of > >problems. I don't think he'll go bankrupt and I'm sure the sequels to this > >prequel will be made regardless of the revenue it generates. Good hell, if > >we can have 4 or 5 Iron Eagle movies we can have more Star Wars movies. > > > >James K. Rudy > > > [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: torq@mo.net Subject: Re: [MV] The Eight-Week Rule Date: 26 May 1999 21:15:35 -0500 At 09:26 PM 5/26/99 -0400, Chris Culligan wrote: >He could have put no effort into this film and still walked away with cash >to spare. I'm glad that he saw fit to put some heart into it and give us an >enjoyable movie (IMO). another reason i personally surmise that this movie will be the biggest money-maker of all-time is based on myself. i saw star wars at midnight wednesday night (24 hrs after it opened). i came into it with VERY low expectations - i've never thought much of the other three films, and didnt expect this movie to be any good, especially since i'm not really into "impressive" special effects. well, i enjoyed this movie quite a bit. and i even went back and watched the other three again, and also saw this movie for a second time. i plan on seeing it a few more tmes, too. now, i dont see a huge number of movies in the theatre, but i do see a movie every couple weeks. and only two other films - "sling blade" and "american history x" did i see more than once - until now (and i almost went to see "sling blade" a third time). if i'm any indication - a NON star wars fan who really enjoyed the film and wants to see it many times, i'm sure the film will be #1 of all-time. (and for the record, i did not see titanic in the theatre, but think that it is a HORRIBLE, trite, pretentious piece of garbage) >On the subject, would you say he's "in it" for the money or would you say >that the Star Wars movies are a "labor-of-love" for Lucas? I'd be >interested to hear what y'all think. from the interviews i've watched lately (both recent and dating back the past twenty years - thank you "time and again" on msnbc), this seems to be something lucas has enjoyed doing quite a bit, regardless of the money. he's funded them himself, he's said that he hasnt really changed the script much at all since he wrote it back circa 1974 (except, apparently, luke & anakin's last name was originally "skykiller")., and he generally doesnt seem to be a terribly fame-oriented type of guy. although, for the record, i still think "THX-1138" is his best film (though, i havent seen "american graffiti") - and one of the best films ever. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Mel Eperthener <bcassidy@usaor.net> Subject: Re: [MV] The Eight-Week Rule Date: 26 May 1999 23:59:36 -0400 At 09.26 PM 26/05/99 -0400, Chris Culligan wrote: >On the subject, would you say he's "in it" for the money or would you say >that the Star Wars movies are a "labor-of-love" for Lucas? I'd be >interested to hear what y'all think. I think Lucas is one of those lucky few b@$^@^ds who gets to do what he loves, and becomes filthy rich doing it. And in a world of Albert Belles and Neon Diones and Val Kilmers, he is still someone to be looked up to. We should all be so lucky, eh?? Regards, --Mel --Mel Eperthener president, Gowanna Multi-media Pty Please support the endeavour of a friend and fellow Australian. Political Corrections by Michael Jaymes Cassidy http://www.angelfire.com/ma/politicalmusings ____________________________________________ If people are worried about the whole Y2K thing, just wait until they try to get technical support the day "Phantom Menace" opens. __________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Wade S." <wds9974@hotmail.com> Subject: Re: [MV] The Eight-Week Rule Date: 27 May 1999 08:29:48 CDT I only wish I had that kind of trouble.............. I think this week-end, with the holiday crowd, >is key. If it falters much at all, Lucas is in trouble. If the audience >increases (and I still hear people making the argument that it might), then >he's set. Of course, I can't think of anything coming out this week-end to >threaten the movie's number one spot, so at this point, all we can do is >wait and see. > >Regards, > >--Mel _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/27/99 Date: 27 May 1999 11:04:50 -0600 HONG KONG (AP) - A week after the new Star Wars blockbuster opened in the U.S., pirated copies have already hit store shelves in Hong Kong and Macau. Pirated video CDs of "Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace" are widely available in shopping malls for Hong Kong for $3.20 to $3.80, the South China Morning Post reported Thursday. In nearby Macau, the pirated VCDs are selling for about $1.50. The "Star Wars" film, which began screening in the U.S. last Wednesday, is scheduled to be screened in Hong Kong in July. It became the fastest movie to reach $100 million (five days, versus six for "The Lost World: Jurassic Park"). -=> * <=- BURBANK, Calif. (AP) - Actress-director Sondra Locke has settled her long-running breach of contract lawsuit against Warner Bros. Locke accused the studio of scheming with former boyfriend Clint Eastwood to offer her a three-film deal in exchange for her dropping a 1989 palimony suit against the actor. Locke claimed she never got to direct any films under the deal. She said she proposed 30 projects and all were rejected. Jury selection was beginning Monday in Los Angeles County Superior Court when the lawsuit was settled, said her attorney, Neil Papiano. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Michael Dequina <michael_jordan@geocities.com> Subject: [MV] The Movie Report#193, 5/27/99 Date: 27 May 1999 17:50:13 -0700 T H E M O V I E R E P O R T #193 MAY 27, 1999 You can help support the MR and Mr. Brown's Movie Site by purchasing videos and DVDs from Reel.com. Please visit: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-reel.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dwelcome.htm= l Thank you very much. =3D>T H I S W E E K<=3D M O V I E S -_Notting_Hill_ -_Buena_Vista_Social_Club_ -_Trekkies_ -_Black_Mask_ -_Trippin'_ -_The_Winslow_Boy_ V I D E O -_Gloria_ -_In_Dreams_ -_Saving_Private_Ryan_ -_The_Theory_of_Flight_ E V E N T S -_Buena_Vista_Social_Club_ premiere =3D>U P D A T E S<=3D @MR. BROWN'S MOVIE SITE -Photos from the Independent Spirit Awards, Sean Connery Day in Hollywood, and more, starting at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/celeb/44.html -Movie Site Links has finally been updated: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movielinks.html For that, inks to the official websites of all the current films, past reviews, exclusive Hollywood event photos, movie MIDI music, movie discussion board, and more, visit: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown or http://welcome.to/mrbrown or http://mrbrown.webjump.com Please don't forget to sign the guestbook... If you are reading this on Usenet, you can subscribe to the MR at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/moviereport.html Select reviews are available at CompuServe Hollywood Hotline: http://www.HollywoodHotline.com=20 ...and the Eyepiece Network at: http://www.eyepiece.com ...and Albany Online at: http://www.AlbanyOnline.com ...and Film Frenzy at: http://www.filmfrenzy.com I am always up for a good live chat. Feel free to message me on ICQ at #25289934 or on AOL Instant Messenger under the screen name "MrBrown23." all movies graded out of four stars (****) ~~~ =3D>M O V I E S<=3D N E W R E L E A S E S Hollywood Hotline Featured Review _Notting_Hill_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 While their careers are far from flagging, neither Julia Roberts nor Hugh Grant have quite recaptured the heights of the projects that propelled them to stardom. This has been especially the case with Grant, whose last project, the 1996 medical thriller _Extreme_Measures_, found the actor acquitting himself surprisingly well in a serious role, but it offered little reminder of self-effacing British charms that broke him through in 1994's _Four_Weddings_and_a_Funeral_. Roberts, on the other hand, has had (to put it lightly) her fair share of successes since 1990's _Pretty_Woman_, but few of the hits she has had possessed the simple magic of that modern-day romance classic that made her career--even her role in 1997's entertaining smash _My_Best_Friend's_Wedding_ had her stretch somewhat, playing, to use the words of her character, "the bad guy" (albeit a charming one). Roberts has always been best at being, as in _Pretty_Woman_, a glowing presence--something she has never been content to do since. _Notting_Hill_, from two of Grant's _Four_Weddings_ collaborators, writer Richard Curtis and producer Duncan Kenworthy (director Roger Michell is new to the mix), casts the two likable stars in their well-trodden element. As such, the film does not uncover any new talents that they might have buried within, but it gives audiences exactly what they want from them--and in a smartly written and wholly irresistible package. Many stars have been accused of essentially playing themselves in film, but never has that been more blatantly the case with Roberts's role in _Notting_Hill_: that of Anna Scott, a world-famous movie star whose private life is often fodder for the tabloids. (Further blurring the Julia/Anna divide is the opening montage of red carpet arrival footage, most of it culled from actual news coverage of Roberts at gala events.) This may reek of shameless self-indulgence, but the movie star conceit allows Roberts to poke fun at her image and, more effectively, enables Curtis to deftly let off some pointed barbs at the Hollywood machine. One hilarious sequence perfectly captures the often ridiculous nature of a press junket (naturally, this section received the best response from the all-media audience); and in one single, simple line, Curtis takes a stinging jab at the writing-by-committee tactic so often used for so-called "blockbusters." The main intent of _Notting_Hill_, however, is not satire but romance, and Curtis and Michell have crafted a truly enchanting one. The premise is pure fantasy: one day Anna walks into the travel book store of Notting Hill (a neighborhood in London) resident William Thacker (Grant, comfortably back in _Four_Weddings_ stammer mode), and in quick time this average joe finds himself striking a friendship with the glam starlet that eventually develops into something deeper--which, of course, leads to some problems with anonymity. As far-fetched as the story is, it is done with such style and grace--the latter especially the case with Roberts and Grant's effortless rapport--that there is no difficulty in suspending disbelief. While Roberts and Grant make an immensely appealing center, the characters at the periphery provide memorable support. Emma Chambers, Hugh Bonneville, Tim McInnerny, and Gina McKee are all given their individual moments to shine as William's sister and close friends, respectively. Likely to generate the most talk, though (aside from a funny surprise cameo by a name star), is Rhys Ifans, a scene stealer William's disgusting slob of a flatmate, Spike. If there is a misstep made in _Notting_Hill_, it is the ending. Admittedly a crowdpleaser, it's also so overdone as to be the only moment in the movie that is far less than convincing. But by that point, Roberts, Grant, and everyone and everything else will have so effortlessly endeared the audience that such a complaint is moot. That one moment may ring false, but what remains true throughout is the enrapturing spell this sparkling entertainment casts upon the audience. IN BRIEF _Buena_Vista_Social_Club_ *** <see premiere coverage below> Artisan Entertainment is selling this documentary by Wim Wenders as being about "the history of the best Cuban music," but the mere presence of old-time Cuban musicians is as deep as the history lesson gets. The film, which follows composer/musician Ry Cooder as he gathers Cuban music veterans for an album and subsequent concerts in Amsterdam and New York, functions better as an affectionate cinematic celebration of that all-but-forgotten music. Along the way, we get to know a few of the musicians, most memorably singer Ibrahim Ferrer, who is genuinely touching as he walks the streets of New York in almost teary awe. At times _Buena_Vista_Social_Club_ plays like a feature-length infomercial for the soundtrack album, but the film is so heartfelt in its simplicity that it's almost rude to quibble about it--even if you are, indeed, compelled to buy the album afterward. (opens June 4) _Trekkies_ (PG) ** 1/2 The most indelible image of the news coverage of the hoopla surrounding _The_Phantom_Menace_'s opening was not the many people in line dressed up as Darth Maul, but people out of line dressed up as characters from that _other_ long-running sci-fi series, in particular one woman: leading a protest of all the media attention lavished upon _Star_Wars_ while dressed up as Borg, she held a Yoda doll in a noose, dropped it onto the ground, and then proceeded to stomp on it furiously. Sadly, such (for lack of a better term) "deviant" behavior is not chronicled in _Trekkies_, a documentary about _Star_Trek_'s fervent fans, but there are plenty of extremes on display. Witness the Whitewater juror who insisted upon wearing her Starfleet uniform to court and only likes being addressed as "Commander." Marvel at the dentist who turned his office into a pretty neat microcosm of the _Trek_ universe. Listen in astonishment as one fan, who already dresses his poodle in Starfleet clothes, contemplates having his ears surgically altered to resemble a Vulcan's. Laugh hysterically at the infamous "Q Virus" story and one fan who drives around in a working replica of an unusual transport vehicle featured in the TV series. All of this holds a strange fascination, but as one can glean from the above paragraph, it does get somewhat redundant after a while. Not to mention grating at times--the fan who gets the most screen time, 14-year-old Gabriel Koerner, is so smugly pretentious one wishes he would end up on the wrong end of a phaser. _Next_Generation_ star Denise Crosby, who also produced, makes an engaging tour guide to all the madness, but the film loses steam halfway into its slim 86-minute running time. I N C U R R E N T R E L E A S E Hollywood Hotline Featured Review _Black_Mask_ (R) *** After stealing the show from Mel Gibson and company in _Lethal_Weapon 4_, it was only a matter of time before American distributors started invading the vault of Jet Li's Hong Kong work. The first of what is sure to be a long line of wide American releases is _Black_Mask_, a gritty, hyperstylish 1996 adventure that plugs Li's talents into a superhero yarn. However, as fun and exciting as the film often is, it is far from Li's best showcase. That distinction belongs to _Fist_of_Legend_, an electrifying 1994 reworking of the Bruce Lee vehicle _The_Chinese_Connection_ whose American distribution (through Quentin Tarantino's Rolling Thunder Pictures) was scrapped. However, it is easy to see why _Black_Mask_ ended up as his first HK effort to widely reach U.S. screens. It isn't so much that the film is a diverting entertainment (which it certainly is), but that it is one of Li's few actioners set in contemporary times. Most of his high-flying films, from _Fist_of Legend_ to his starmaking _Once_Upon_a_Time_in_China_ series, were set in period China--not exactly inaccessible to Yank audiences considering the amount of action in these films, but a difficult sell nonetheless. _Black_Mask_ is much more easily marketable: a dark, extremely violent comic-book-style adventure where Li plays Tsui, a medically-enhanced supersoldier who escapes the shady outfit that created him. He attempts to live a quiet existence as a pacificist librarian, but soon he jolted back to action when his former cohorts have taken to killing off all of Hong Kong's drug lords. His identity kept a secret under a black mask (hence the title), Tsui, with the reluctant help of aptly named policeman Rock (Lau Ching Wan), attempts to set things right. _Black_Mask_ has much more of a technical sheen than any of Jackie Chan's fun yet rather crudely produced HK imports. The English dubbing job is actually competently done (Li doesn't do his own dialogue, but his stand-in does an adequate job). There is some inventive production and costume design, as well as some often stunning cinematography. Director Daniel Lee's strong suit is definitely his visual style, which appears to be influenced by the frenetic camera techniques of Michael Bay. While the glossy approach keeps the film never less than visually stimulating, it also shortchanges the many fight sequences, which, of course, are what people see Jet Li films for. Granted, no amount of MTV-style editing can rob Li's acrobatic martial arts skills of their electrifying effect, but the quick cuts do dilute it a bit. One is left in greater awe when one is actually able to see what Li can and does do--without any flashy frills. But until _Fist_of_Legend_ or any of his better showcases--such as _Once_Upon_a_Time_in_China_, _Fong_Sai-Yuk_, or _The_Tai-Chi_Master_, the latter which co-stars _Tomorrow_Never_Dies_ scene stealer Michelle Yeoh--is made available to the masses (those films are all available, though on a fairly limited basis, on video), _Black_Mask_ nicely gets the job done as either a showcase for Jet Li's athletic talents or an undemanding blast of action and mayhem. _Trippin'_ (R) ** Daydreaming high school senior Greg (Deon Richmond, a long way from playing Kenny, a.k.a. "Bud," on _The_Cosby_Show_) is inspired to wake up and think about his future by the sensible girl of his dreams (Maia Campbell). This often racy teen comedy is as formulaic as it sounds, and a subplot in which Greg's best friend (Donald Faison) runs afoul of a local crime boss (Stoney Jackson) is heavyhanded in its preachiness. Nonetheless, due in no small part to the likable leads (in particular Campbell), this good-natured film is as harmless and goes down as easily as your typical WB sitcom. _The_Winslow_Boy_ (G) *** 1/2 David Mamet, he of the puzzle box screen thrillers and profanity-laden plays, would seem like an odd match for a stately (and G-rated, no less) costume drama. Yet he tackles the genre beautifully in this superbly acted adaptation of Terence Rattigan's play about the court battle waged by a lawyer (Jeremy Northam) in defense of a wealthy man's (Nigel Hawthorne) youngest son (Guy Edwards), who was expelled from military school for petty theft (a mere five schillings). But this is no conventional courtroom drama, or romance for that matter. At the heart of the film is a beautifully muted pas de deux between Northam's character and Hawthorne's spunky daughter (Rebecca Pidgeon), who are divided by political differences. The suspense of their simmering will-they-or-won't-they relationship is matched by the court case--a fact made all the more remarkable that there are scant few actual courtroom scenes; hearing almost everything unfold through second-hand accounts suddenly makes the stakes even higher. That touch, and the economical device of showing political cartoons to track the public's attitude toward the court case, is indicative of the considerable clarity and precision with which Mamet has crafted this intelligent and very satisfying work of art. (full reviews of the following in past MRs and at the listed URLs) -_Analyze_This_ (R) *** <MR#180, 3/4/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt46.html#analyze -_Besieged_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#192, 5/20/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#besieged -_The_Castle_ (R) *** <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#castle -_Cookie's_Fortune_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#185, 4/7/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#cookie -_The_Dreamlife_of_Angels_(La_Vie_R=EAv=E9e_des_Anges)_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#dreamlife -_Election_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#election -_Endurance_ (G) ** <MR#191, 5/13/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#endurance -_Entrapment_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#entrapment -_eXistenZ_ (R) *** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#existenz -_Get_Real_ (R) *** <MR#188, 4/29/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#real -_Go_ (R) **** <MR#185, 4/7/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#go -_Life_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#186, 4/16/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#life -_Life_Is_Beautiful_(La_Vita_E_Bella)_ (PG-13) **** <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#vitabella -_Lost_&_Found_ (PG-13) ** <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#lost -_The_Love_Letter_ (PG-13) * 1/2 <MR#192, 5/20/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#letter -_Lovers_of_the_Arctic_Circle_(Los_Amantes_del_C=EDrculo_Polar)_ (R) *** <MR#190, 5/11/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#amantes -_The_Matrix_ (R) **** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#matrix -_The_Mummy_ (PG-13) * 1/2 <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#mummy -_Never_Been_Kissed_ (PG-13) *** <MR#183, 3/28/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#never -_The_Out-of-Towners_ (PG-13) ** <MR#184, 4/1/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt47.html#out -_Pushing_Tin_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#187, 4/22/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt48.html#tin -_Shakespeare_in_Love_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#171, 12/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#shakespeare -_Star_Wars:_Episode_I--The_Phantom_Menace_ (PG) *** 1/2 <MR#190, 5/11/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#phantom -_Tea_with_Mussolini_ (PG) *** <MR#191, 5/13/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#mussolini -_Three_Seasons_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#3 -_A_Walk_on_the_Moon_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#walk -_William_Shakespeare's_A_Midsummer_Night's_Dream_ (PG-13) *** <MR#189, 5/6/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#midsummer -_Xiu_Xiu:_The_Sent-Down_Girl_ (R) **** <MR#191, 5/13/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt49.html#xiuxiu O N T H E H O R I Z O N FRIDAY _Eternity_and_a_Day_ The Palme d'Or winner at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival went to Theo Angelopoulos's Greek drama in which a dying writer (Bruno Ganz) searches for higher answers in his final days. _The_Loss_of_Sexual_Innocence_ (R) Episodes from a man's (Julian Sands) life are juxtaposed with the story of Adam and Eve in Mike Figgis's unconventional drama. _Notting_Hill_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <see above review> Delightful romantic comedy about the unlikely relationship between a movie star (Julia Roberts) and an average Briton (Hugh Grant). _The_Thirteenth_Floor_ (PG-13) This science fiction thriller about parallel universes and virtual reality has been sitting on the Sony Pictures shelf since last spring. If that isn't enough to scare you, it was produced by uberhack Roland Emmerich. Craig Bierko, Dennis Haysbert, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Gretchen Mol star. ~~~ =3D>V I D E O<=3D N E W T H I S W E E K _Gloria_ (R) ** Full review in MR#175, 1/28/99; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt44.html#gloria Buy at VHS and DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44626 Sharon Stone did no favors for her career or her fans by starring in Sidney Lumet's dull, unsatisfying remake of the 1980 John Cassavetes drama about a gangster's ex-girlfriend and the orphaned boy (Jean-Luke Figueroa) she reluctantly takes under her wing. (Columbia TriStar Home Video; DVD also available)=09 _In_Dreams_ (R) * 1/2 Full review in MR#173, 1/15/99; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt44.html#dreams Buy at VHS and DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44626 With Darius Khondji's atmospheric cinematography downsized for the small screen, there is precious little to recommend Neil Jordan's muddled, hokey thriller about a woman's (Annette Bening) psychic dream connection with a killer (Robert Downey Jr.)--even on video's lower standards. (DreamWorks Home Entertainment; DVD available in June)=09 _Saving_Private_Ryan_ (R) **** Full review in MR#151, 7/24/98; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt37.html#ryan Buy at VHS at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D41948 No amount of panning and scanning can rob the raw visceral impact of this film's opening D-day invasion sequence. However, the added intimacy of the small screen only puts the key flaw at the center of Steven Spielberg's multiple Academy Award-winning (with the exception of one key award) film into sharper focus: sketchy characters, with the exception of Tom Hanks's Capt. Miller. But in any format, the film is indeed a spectacularly riveting entertainment, one whose memory lasts long in the heart and mind. (DreamWorks Home Entertainment; widescreen version also available)=09 _The_Theory_of_Flight_ (R) ** 1/2 Full review in MR#173, 1/15/99; and at: http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt44.html#flight Buy at VHS at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44406 The eccentricities of this comedy/drama about the relationship between a woman (Helena Bonham Carter) stricken with Lou Gehrig's disease and her reluctant caretaker (Kenneth Branagh) put it a step above disease-of-the-week movies made for the tube. But the offbeat too often stretches into the unbelievable, in particular when Branagh schemes to rob a bank in order to hire a gigolo for unhappy virgin Bonham Carter. Strong performances (in particular Bonham Carter's) and chemistry between the leads rate this one a near miss--and, as such, a fairly safe risk at the video store. (New Line Home Video)=09 A L S O N E W T H I S W E E K _Insomnia_ Buy at VHS and DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D41458 Norwegian psychological thriller/character study of a detective (Stellan Skarsgard) tracks down a killer. (Home Vision; DVD available June 22) _Un_Air_de_Famille_ Buy at VHS and DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D41556 Acclaimed French comedy in which a dysfunctional family gathers for a turbulent birthday dinner. (Fox Lorber Home Video; DVD available June 15) R E C E N T R E L E A S E S (full reviews of the following in past MRs and at the listed URLs) -_Another_Day_in_Paradise_ (R) ** <MR#173, 1/15/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt44.html#paradise Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44449 -_Babe:_Pig_in_the_City_ (G) ** 1/2 <MR#169, 12/3/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#babe Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44140 -_A_Cool,_Dry_Place_ (PG-13) ** <MR#176, 2/4/99> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt45.html#cooldry Buy at VHS at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44678 -_Holy_Man_ (PG) * 1/2 <MR#162, 10/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#holyman Buy at VHS and DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43614 -_The_Impostors_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#160, 10/5/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#impostors Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43530 -_Orgazmo_ (NC-17) * 1/2 <MR#164, 10/29/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#orgazmo Buy at VHS at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43740 -_Star_Trek:_Insurrection_ (PG) ** <MR#170, 12/11/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#insurrection Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44281 -_Velvet_Goldmine_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#165, 11/6/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#velvet Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D43872 -_Very_Bad_Things_ (R) **** <MR#167, 11/20/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#bad Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44179 -_You've_Got_Mail_ (PG) **** <MR#171, 12/16/98> http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt43.html#mail Buy at VHS or DVD at Reel.com: http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=3DMRBR&OBJECT=3Dmoviepag= e.as p?MMID=3D44362 ~~~ =3D>E V E N T S<=3D May 26, 1999 -- _Buena_Vista_Social_Club_ premiere <see above review> I made one of my all-too-rare forays into the world on the other side of the barricade Wednesday night at the Los Angeles premiere of Wim Wenders's new musical documentary. Due to a friend's generosity (thank you, Chuck), I was able to enjoy the VIP treatment and walk past the autograph hounds camped out on the sidewalk (yes, they seem to cover every single event) and into the doors of the Directors Guild building on Sunset Boulevard, where the event was being held. After Chuck checked in and got our tickets (rather, his tickets, one of which he gave to me), we hung out in the lobby, taking in the scene. A small but substantial line of still photographers and TV news media were standing behind some velvet ropes set up in the lobby, awaiting arrivals of luminaries. This being the premiere of a small film, those were in a short supply. The only person for whom I saw the media pounce was Wenders, clearly the center of attention for the night. Before I was able to recognize anyone else, a security guard told us to take our seats in the auditorium. Even by the time we had taken our seats, per the usual premiere rule of thumb, it was still about a half hour before the night's presentation began, for guests took their time trickling into the auditorium. Before the lights dimmed for some opening remarks by Wenders, composer Ry Cooder, and a representative for the charity Operation USA (the beneficiary of the proceeds from the event), I was able to spot actor Jeremy Piven (_Very_Bad_Things_, TV's _Ellen_ and _Cupid_), who had taken a seat several rows behind us. Following the film was a reception in the DGA building's spacious lobby, where a bar was set up as well as three tables serving food. On the way from the auditorium to the lobby, I spotted a couple more familiar faces: Esai Morales, perhaps best known for his work in _La_Bamba_; and _Titanic_ Oscar nominee Gloria Stuart, who, I must say, is rather energetic for a woman closing in on age 90. After hanging out around Wenders for a while (the center of well-wishing, as is typical for the director of the showcased film), Chuck and I decided to indulge in the free food. I have not attended many premieres or similar events, but I must say that the food and beverage service was the most disorganized I have seen at a Hollywood function. There was a fairly quick line for a cart that served small but delicious Cuban corn tamales, but the main food line was long and slow, and, needless to say, everyone quickly grew impatient. However, I was able to distract myself for a little while when I discovered who had been standing in front of me--_Three_Seasons_ writer-director Tony Bui, who caught my attention as he was being introduced to musician Jackson Browne. After Browne had taken leave, I introduced myself to Bui and complimented him on his beautiful award-winning film. Bui, his friends, Chuck, and I were on deck at the food table when the line came to a crashing halt. The reason? Apparently someone had miscalculated the number of people there, and they had actually run out of plates. More minutes of waiting ensued as the crew tried to figure out if they had any more plates available; in the meantime, there were salads interestingly stored in those doggie bag boxes you get at Chinese restaurants. When the wait got far too ridiculously long, the idea dawned on a few of us--eat or dump the salad, and use the box to get the rice and potato dishes that awaited. (However, I must say that they were _not_ worth the wait.) Problem solved... ...only to face another. Not so surprisingly, the line at the bar was also a crowded mess, and rather than have to wait in another line, Chuck and I (with empty glasses in hand) decided to track down one of the few wine-size bottles of water that had been floating around the room. As I looked away for a moment, Chuck finally found one in the possession of one guy who apparently wanted it all for himself. I turned and saw who it was, and it was Jeremy Piven. Never one to pass up an opportunity, I introduced myself to Piven as one of the few critics who really liked _Very_Bad_Things_. I quickly explained myself as being a "sick fuck," but he just as quickly shot down that explanation, saying that I simply got the joke. With his energetic lead, he and I then launched into an involved discussion about the film, covering everything from the bum rap it got to its apparent signs of life on video (and a number of points in between). Along the way, he made a statement that struck me as being interesting, if somewhat oddly out of the blue: "I know I can be friends with someone when they get the joke [of _Very_Bad_Things_]." As our conversation drew to a close, he lifted the bottle, and grinned, waiting for me to lift my glass. I did, and he poured me some of the water he had so closely guarded (but, unfortunately, after he took a sip directly from the bottle). A fitting end to our meeting, if I do say so myself. ~~~ =3D>N E X T W E E K<=3D More reviews, including: -_Instinct_ 'til then...=20 __________________________________________________________ Michael Dequina Chat Forum Host, The Official Michael Jordan Web Site http://jordan.sportsline.com mj23@michaeljordanfan.com | jordan_host@sportsmail.com michael_jordan@geocities.com | mrbrown@iname.com >My personal WWW sites< Mr. Brown's Movie Site: http://welcome.to/mrbrown Michael Jordan Beyond the Court: http://fly.to/michaeljordan A Michael Jordan Fan's Heartbreak: http://fly.to/mj23 Personal Page: http://welcome.to/w3md >Other WWW sites I work on< CompuServe Hollywood Hotline: http://www.HollywoodHotline.com Albany Online: http://www.AlbanyOnline.com Eyepiece Network: http://www.eyepiece.com Film Frenzy: http://www.filmfrenzy.com "Life is knowing the toughest competition you ever face is yourself." --Michael Jordan __________________________________________________________ [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: maillist@moviejuice.com Subject: [MV] MovieJuice! - ADVANCE - THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER - Mildly Travolting Date: 28 May 1999 15:27:10 -0400 (EDT) THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER - MILDLY TRAVOLTING by Mark Ramsey http://www.moviejuice.com/1999/generalsdaughter.htm May 28, 1999 Is John getting fat? Is Tubby going tubular? Does he experience "career setbacks" or just "belly flops"? Is "Travolta" Italian for "three-voltas-in-one"? Here's the deal: The best looking chick in the entire history of the Army is found brutally murdered and no one wants to touch the case. Except John Travolta, that is, who'll touch any case that might contain Ring Dings. John does not fear death, as long as it's Death by Chocolate. Jeez, we could have solved this case in a New York minute if the road to the killer had been paved with Twinkies! Who is this chick anyway? She's the hotter-than-Hell daughter of a big-shot General, a Captain in "Psychological Operations" or "Psy-Ops," where (in her words), "we fuck with people's minds." To which Bon Bon John replied, "I was with ya until the 'minds' part." At "Psy-Ops," the goal is to "blunt the enemy's will to fight." Unfortunately, Travolta's will evaporated when the Chinese stole our menu secrets. Naturally, the General's pissed when his baby girl is found dead and tied naked to tent posts outside a military base which, notes Muncharino Barbarino, is not far from a good place to eat. Tubby Travolta, whose cholesterol stands at attention during inspections, promises to "find the sonofabitch, if it's the last thing I eat." Let's see, rape, torture, murder. And you can even visit the official web site to send The General's Daughter e-postcards to all your friends! It's something to settle for if you can't find those "ethnic cleansing" e-postcards. Enter Madeleine Stowe, who hasn't been on the big screen in a while and is barely on this one when Husky John is in the same frame. Heston can part the Red Sea in a frame like this, but Mondo Manero can barely roll through a doorway! Go figure. Madeleine, who's channeling Morticia Adams for much of this flick, is a highly effective rape investigator. And not since the dessert tray has Travol-ton found such a useful asset. But wait! The General's Improbably Good-Looking Daughter is not what she seems! Suffice it to say there's a seedy underbelly to this tale, and I don't mean the seeds under John's belly, either. Enter James Woods who does a terrific job being...well...James Woods. Who's gonna do that better? Jimmy and John try to outsmart each other in a tiresome, "writerly" sequence, much like I try to outsmart nasty unpopped kernels in my popcorn bag. Meanwhile, so convincing is Jimmy as Jimmy, I'm thinking: Doesn't every character know this is James Woods? Shouldn't they be asking for his autograph? Why isn't every scene interrupted with "Hey, it's James Woods! What are you doing here on the base, Jimmy? What's up with that Sean Young thing, anyway? I loved it when Roy Cohn played you on HBO!" The General's Daughter is like one long episode of TV's Homicide except the singing actor from the original Broadway cast of Chicago is replaced by the singing actor from the original cast of Grease. Enter Clarence Williams III, "Linc" from the original Mod Squad, who - from what I can tell - is now is a charter member of the Sedentary Squad. "Raise your remote controls and aim, men! Don't fire until you see the whites of Must-See TV!" Linc may not be "groovy," but he's definitely "heavy." Says Linc, "There are three ways of doing things: The right way, the wrong way, and the Army way." What about "the Way of the Wizard," for Chrissake! Linc is "Mr. Smithers" to the General's "Mr. Burns." He represents loyalty, devotion, and acting so stiff he was tented for termites at the one-hour mark. Maybe it's just me, but it's a distinctly ominous sign whenever a senior officer thoughtfully examines his medals near the climax of a movie. It implies some complex moral or ethical conflict and represents a sure obstacle to a timely Travolta three-course meal. This flick is written strictly by "the book," which isn't surprising since writer William Goldman wrote the book and keeps getting re-hired to re-write the book. I think he uses one script now and just changes the names. "Cross out 'Redford,' write in 'Travolta,' go to Wells Fargo and deposit check." "In Psy-Ops," says the General's Daughter, "we deal with the blackest of black and the whitest of white." Not to mention the clichΘ-est of clichΘs. Is Goldman laughing all the way to the bank? Now he's getting dialogue ideas from the Turner Classic Movies color scheme. Believe me, you've seen this flick before. It's set in that alternate movie universe where the star could always be Bruce Willis. He's always partnered with a woman from his past. The bad guy is always a star of modest proportions (so as not to be too obvious while avoiding no-names), and the sinners reach to the highest levels of government power and always include an actor best known for his work with swine. My favorite scene is where Jiggle-Belly John and Madeleine visit a psychiatrist and tell him his former patient was just strangled. Slowly and deliberately, the psychiatrist rises and walks about the room looking deeply upset, thus duplicating a thousand other scenes in a thousand other movies. Where's he going, anyway? Did he leave his smokes in the Star-Wagon? Is he picking up crumbs after Travolta? Is he getting too old for this shit? Are Butch and Sundance in the waiting room? Ho hum. To quote the Army code of conduct: Don't ask, don't tell, and - most importantly - don't place your sandwich upwind from Travolta. Copyright 1999 Mark Ramsey. All rights reserved. NO PORTION MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR. ******************** VACATION NOTICE MovieJuice! is officially on vacation! See you all mid-June, right around Austin Powers time. ******************** DONÆT FORGET TO VISIT MOVIEJUICE.COM! Hey, kids, don't forget to visit the MovieJuice! Site at http://www.moviejuice.com. The pictures are half the fun (and sometimes more than half the laughs)! ******************** TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS LIST: DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL! Just go to http://www.moviejuice.com and follow the directions at the top of the left frame. It's very easy. NOTE: YOUR NAME CANNOT BE REMOVED FROM THE LIST UNLESS YOU UNSUBSCRIBE USING THE EMAIL ADDRESS YOU REGISTERED WITH). And don't write me lots of mean-spirited crap. I won't read it. ******************** IF YOUR LINES AREN'T WRAPPINGà Your browser and/or email client (why DO they call it that?) has a setting called "Wrap Long Lines." Select it! [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "The Reporter" <gregorys@xmission.com> Subject: [MV] Movie News - 05/30/99 Date: 30 May 1999 13:48:17 -0600 LOS ANGELES (AP) - And you thought adults hated Barney. Just listen to what they're saying about Jar Jar Binks, the flop-eared amphibian from the new "Star Wars" movie. Many fans, echoing the views of a number of film critics, see the character as an annoying goofball at best and a racial stereotype at worst. Since George Lucas' "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace" opened May 19, the Internet has been afire with messages - and several entire Web sites - calling for no less than the annihilation of the creature. "The tally so far is running about 10 to 1 in favor a having a festive Jar Jar-B-Q," said a Web site called Jar Jar Must Die. -=> * <=- HONG KONG (AP) - Pirated copies of the "Star Wars" prequel with washed out desert scenes and noise from a theater's audience have hit stores in Asia, after the film opened in the U.S. and before its Asia debut. Pirated video CDs of "Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace" are widely available in shopping malls in Hong Kong for between $3 and $4, a fraction of the cost of movie tickets. In Beijing, street vendors were sold out. Roadside vendors in Malaysia and at least one store in Jakarta, Indonesia, were also selling the discs. All copies sold in Hong Kong appeared to be from the same source: a home video recorded in a U.S. movie theater. The video is dark and fuzzy and the sound quality is poor. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Gerald Taylor" <geeg@vossnet.co.uk> Subject: [MV] test Date: 30 May 1999 20:57:23 +0100 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_000E_01BEAADF.03D6F2C0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable ------=_NextPart_000_000E_01BEAADF.03D6F2C0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD W3 HTML//EN"> <HTML> <HEAD> <META content=3Dtext/html;charset=3Diso-8859-1 = http-equiv=3DContent-Type> <META content=3D'"MSHTML 4.72.2106.6"' name=3DGENERATOR> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff> <DIV> </DIV></BODY></HTML> ------=_NextPart_000_000E_01BEAADF.03D6F2C0-- [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Jason Cormier" <movieman@netcom.ca> Subject: [MV] Notting Hill review Date: 30 May 1999 17:14:30 -0700 If romantic comedies is your cup of tea then pour yourself on over to Nitting Hill (ughh - what a terrible opener). Anyway this is a nice little movie that has a surreal essence due to the fact that Julia Robert's character is Julia Roberts. Not literally - but she plays an actress by the name of Anna Scott who is the most popular film actress of her time - and who just got paid $15 mil for her last movie. Sound familiar? And Hugh is in familiar territory doing what he does best (no bj jokes please) - acting like a very charming but bumbling goof. There is a lot of humour here - which is good as it makes up for some stretches in the last half. I definitely had a good time - and if you enjoyed Four Weddings and a Funeral or The Tall Guy (which you should rent if oyu haven't seen it - Jeff Goldblum and Emma Thompson - very funny!) then you will definitely enjoy Notting Hill - 82%. [ To leave the movies mailing list, send the message "unsubscribe ] [ movies" (without the quotes) to majordomo@xmission.com ]