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1998-11-20
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From: owner-movies-digest@lists.xmission.com (movies-digest)
To: movies-digest@lists.xmission.com
Subject: movies-digest V2 #133
Reply-To: movies-digest
Sender: owner-movies-digest@lists.xmission.com
Errors-To: owner-movies-digest@lists.xmission.com
Precedence: bulk
movies-digest Saturday, November 21 1998 Volume 02 : Number 133
[MV] production folks (was Help on Saving Private Ryan)
[MV] BEOWOLF
[MV] REVIEW: HOME FRIES
Re: [MV] REVIEW: HOME FRIES
Re: [MV] ESSAY: And The Nominees Could Be (If Anyone Remembers)...
[MV] Re: Early Oscar Contenders
[MV] Screen It Newsletter (November 19, 1998)
[MV] REVIEW: ENEMY OF THE STATE
[MV] Movie News - 11/19/98
Re: [MV] "Saving private Ryan"!!!
Re: [MV] "Saving private Ryan"!!!
[MV] Not a Spoiler, but related to Star Wars Prequel: No info about m ovie is contained within
Re: [MV] Not a Spoiler, but related to Star Wars Prequel: No info about movie is contained within
[MV] The Film.com Weekly Newsletter -- 11/20/98
[MV] The Movie Report#167, 11/20/98
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1998 11:28:10 -0800
From: Oz <oz@hollywoodbitchslap.com>
Subject: [MV] production folks (was Help on Saving Private Ryan)
"Romero, Leticia" wrote:
>
> COOL! What are you working on these days?
Trying to get three screenplays some backing, doctoring two others,
and running the site listed below.
Are there any other production folks on this list?
Just curious.
- -------{{{{OZ}}}}------------------------------------------
[sick of being ripped off at the movies?]
..*HOLLYWOOD BITCHSLAP*.. TAKE YOUR BEST SHOT
--------------http://www.hollywoodbitchslap.com-------------
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------------------------------
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1998 17:17:32 -0800
From: "Romero, Leticia" <lromero@saonet.ucla.edu>
Subject: [MV] BEOWOLF
THEY'RE MAKING A MOVIE OF BEOWULF?!! What lunatic thought that Christopher
Lambert would make the ultimate story any good?!!! I'm in shock...
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------------------------------
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1998 08:37:32 -0700 (MST)
From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com>
Subject: [MV] REVIEW: HOME FRIES
HOME FRIES
(Warner Bros.)
Starring: Drew Barrymore, Luke Wilson, Catherine O'Hara, Jake Busey.
Screenplay: Vince Gilligan.
Producers: Mark Johnson, Barry Levinson, Lawrence Kasdan and Charles
Neuwirth.
Director: Dean Parisot.
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (profanity, adult themes)
Running Time: 92 minutes.
Reviewed by Scott Renshaw.
HOME FRIES opens with the bucolic, folksy feel of a girl-appeal
comedy-drama. Sassy young Sally (Drew Barrymore), drive-thru cashier at a
small town BurgerMatic, is visited by Henry Lever (Chris Ellis). Sally is
eight months pregnant; married Henry is the father, though he never
revealed his marriage to Sally during their affair. As Sally explains to
her customer exactly why he can no longer have it his way, you might
suspect that HOME FRIES will follow our plucky, unconventional heroine on
her search for independence and true love through the world of greasy
dining -- HOME FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, or something of the sort.
Be prepared to dismiss such notions quickly, as Henry leaves their
encounter...only to be pursued by an ominous black helicopter through the
woods until he has a heart attack. Thus begins a darkly twisted, truly
unexpected comic concoction from a decade-old script by "X-Files" producer
Vince Gilligan (who clearly has a thing for black helicopters). It seems
that the copter was piloted by brothers Dorian (Luke Wilson) and Angus
(Jake Busey), two Air National Guardsmen who also happen to be Henry's
stepsons. At the insistence of their maniacal mother (Catherine O'Hara),
they've scared philandering stepdad to death, with the as-yet-unknown
object of Henry's affections next on their list. The first order of
business, however, is finding out who was on the same frequency as the
copter's radio during their ambush, leading Dorian to an undercover
assignment at a certain BurgerMatic, and a tentative relationship with a
certain drive-thru cashier.
The kind of quirky humor HOME FRIES deals out can easily become
oppressive if not directed with a sure hand. First-time feature director
Dean Parisot seems to know just how to drop the peculiar into a scene
without pointing at it for you and slapping your knee. A sensitive moment
in which Dorian presents Sally a gift for her baby -- a toy helicopter he
describes as "non-toxic, I think" -- is set against a grease fire in the
BurgerMatic kitchen. Henry's wake features Zamfir's pan flute rendition
of "You Light Up My Life." And the sequence of most profound bonding
between our two young lovers occurs at a natural childbirth class where
the instructor tells her students "you didn't get into this with your legs
closed, and you won't get out of it that way."
It's all consistently off-beat in a way that's more often refreshing
than just plain weird, but it also comes with an undercurrent of
sincerity. Luke Wilson -- deadpan in an "aw shucks"-appealing kind of way
- -- does a nice job with Dorian's ambivalence over his bizarre family
dynamics and his attraction to Sally's sweet (relative) normalcy. In
fact, the search for a "normal" family comes to play a significant role in
the proceedings. Dorian and Angus still share bunk beds in their
childhood room, frozen in the time they were abandoned by their father;
Sally's father (Lanny Flaherty) is an alcoholic in and out of the good
graces of her mother (Shelley Duvall). There's something almost touching
to the convoluted family tree Dorian describes for Sally's baby, since it
comes with the hope that the next generation will somehow be less screwed
up than the last.
It's too bad that HOME FRIES concludes with an overwrought
helicopter-car chase that feels ridiculously out of place. It's also too
bad that Drew Barrymore can't make Sally more interesting as the object of
everyone's love or hate, her character slipping in and out of focus like
her generically Southern accent. Ultimately, the story isn't even really
about her. If anyone is the true protagonist, it's Dorian in his search
for affection outside a dysfunctional family where mom spews crocodile
tears at her husband's death and big brother pumps carbon monoxide into
the trailer of an unsuspecting woman. Not exactly the stuff of a folksy,
girl-appeal comedy-drama, is it?
On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 crisp fries: 7.
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit Scott Renshaw's MoviePage
http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/
***
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------------------------------
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1998 08:43:38 -0800 (PST)
From: Christina Stanley <cristina@blarg.net>
Subject: Re: [MV] REVIEW: HOME FRIES
<always interesting review snipped>
Jeez, it looks like a totally different movie in the ads currently
running. Hollywood marketing is so odd.
christina, also hates misleading video boxes and one-sheets.
______________________________________________________________
cristina@blarg.net
"Nobody can be exactly like me. Even I have trouble doing it."
Tallulah Bankhead
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------------------------------
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 98 11:14:07 PST
From: Wade Snider <wsnider@brazoselectric.com>
Subject: Re: [MV] ESSAY: And The Nominees Could Be (If Anyone Remembers)...
So are we to assume that you think Ally Sheedy should get an Oscar as should Robert
Downey junior???
Or, is the point of this essay that there were some interesting but not
significantly noted performances that may not get any real recognition?
- --------------------------------------------------------
W. Snider
If man evolved from apes, why do we still have apes?
- --------------------------------------------------------
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 1998 08:46:20 +0800 (HKT)
From: Jayson <ja970600@balut.admu.edu.ph>
Subject: [MV] Re: Early Oscar Contenders
To Mr. Renshaw,
Are those the people you think WILL be nominated, MUST be nominated or
will not be nominated but SHOULD have been? Sad to say, I haven't seen
most of the films you mentioned because they haven't reached this side of
the globe (and maybe never will). Anyway, it was good to see you praising
"most-likely-to-be-overlooked" performances and not going with the obvious
nominees (like performances in Saving Private Ryan, Pleasantville, The
Truman Show, Beloved, etc.).
- -------
Jayson
- -------
Smelly cat, smelly cat
What are they feeding you?
Smelly cat, smelly cat
It's not your fault.
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 1998 07:23:45 -0500 (EST)
From: reviews@screenit.com
Subject: [MV] Screen It Newsletter (November 19, 1998)
Welcome to the Screen It! Newsletter (November 19, 1998).
This week at the movies, a wide variety of films open as the Thanksgiving
holiday rush begins. With two national, and a handful of other limited
releases opening, there's something for nearly everyone.
On home video, Eddie Murphy talks to the animals in one of the bigger
hits of this past summer, while Samuel L. Jackson and Kevin Spacey try
to do some negotiating in a suspense thriller.
PLEASE NOTE: The new movie reviews WILL NOT be publicly posted until
LATE Thursday night (EDT) to comply with the studios' wishes/demands.
Next week, reviews of "A Bug's Life" (from the makers of "Toy Story"),
"Babe: Pig in the City" (the sequel to "Babe"), "Home Fries" (Drew
Barrymore, Luke Wilson), "Ringmaster" (Jerry Springer), and "Very Bad
Things" (Christian Slater, Cameron Diaz).
===========PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS===========
IT'S THE BIGGEST BREAKTHROUGH IN GETTING A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP!
Tempur-Pedic Swedish Sleep System has been featured on Dateline
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===========PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS===========
NEW MOVIE REVIEWS FOR FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20TH:
"CELEBRITY" (1998) (Kenneth Branagh, Judy Davis) (R)
Comedy: A neurotic celebrity reporter (Branagh) and his equally
despondent ex-wife (Davis) try to find happiness and acceptance through
their friendships and relationships with others. It's the same old
Woody Allen material, but this time Kenneth Branagh plays the
stereotypical Allen character in an exact, but distracting impersonation.
The R rating comes from profanity, sexually related material and brief
drug use.
(Limited Release)
http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/celebrity.html
__________________________________________________
"ELIZABETH" (1998) (Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush) (R)
Drama: The daughter (Blanchett) of Henry VIII becomes the Queen of
England and must deal with various forces of betrayal and conspiracy
that threaten her and the throne. Always compelling and featuring some
fine performances from its talented cast, the film may not win any
accolades from historians or high school history teachers, but it comes
across as a decently crafted variation of the "normally" stuffy costume
drama. The R rating comes from violence (occasionally resulting in
decapitated heads, etc...) and several sexual encounters.
(Limited Release)
http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/elizabeth.html
__________________________________________________
"ENEMY OF THE STATE" (1998) (Will Smith, Gene Hackman) (R)
Suspense/Thriller: Having unknowingly received evidence concerning a
government-based murder, a lawyer (Smith) finds his life turned upside
down as covert government officials try to find out what he knows.
Smith drops the wisecracks and producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Tony Scott
(two guys known for high tech, but often stupid, testosterone-laced
action flicks) deliver a decently constructed, thinking person's
conspiracy thriller. The R rating comes from violence and profanity.
(National Release)
http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/enemy_of_the_state.html
__________________________________________________
"GODS AND MONSTERS" (1998) (Ian McKellen, Brendan Fraser) (Not Rated)
Drama: A once famous, and outwardly gay movie director (McKellen) hires
a robust gardener (Fraser) and the two enter into an often awkward, but
platonic relationship in this speculative account of the last days in
the life of legendary director James Whale. Featuring a stellar
performance from Ian McKellen -- who's clearly Oscar bound with this
role -- and very good supporting takes by both Brendan Fraser and Lynn
Redgrave, the film obviously won't be for all tastes, but it's clearly
a well-executed, character-driven drama. Although the film isn't rated,
if it were, it would receive an R for sexually related material, nudity,
and profanity.
(Limited Release)
http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/gods_and_monsters.html
__________________________________________________
"THE RUGRATS MOVIE" (1998) (voices of E.G. Daily, Christine Cavanaugh) (G)
Children's Animated: Based on the Nickelodeon TV show, a group of young
kids must find their way home after getting lost in the woods. Playing
out just like most would imagine -- the big screen treatment of an
animated TV show -- the film should entertain the young kids and not
horribly bore their parents. The film is rated G for not containing
material to warrant a higher rating, but does contain several perilous
moments that may have different reactions in younger kids.
(National Release)
http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/the_rugrats_movie.html
__________________________________________________
"WAKING NED DEVINE" (1998) (Ian Bannen, David Kelly) (PG)
Comedy: A small Irish town (including Bannen & Kelly) hopes to pass off
one of its citizens as the winner of a huge lottery, despite the original
winner dying of a heart attack, so that they may claim the multimillion
pound prize. This small, but charming and highly entertaining film is
simply one of the best, and easily one of the most enjoyable films of
the year. Its PG rating comes from older male nudity (played for
laughs), language and "thematic elements."
(Limited Release)
http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/waking_ned_devine.html
__________________________________________________
NEW VIDEO REVIEWS FOR TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24TH:
"DR. DOLITTLE" (1998) (Eddie Murphy, voice of Norm MacDonald) (PG-13)
Comedy: A doctor (Murphy) suddenly regains his long repressed childhood
gift that enables him to converse with animals. While the comedic
potential from the main plot line wears thin rather quickly, and the
remaining subplots completely strike out, the funny dialogue delivered
by the animals keeps things lively and humorous. Rated PG-13 for some
crude scatological humor, and a few sexual remarks, this was one of the
bigger hits of the summer with a domestic box office take of more than
$140 million with another $110 million or so coming from overseas
markets.
(http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/dr_dolittle.html)
__________________________________________________
"THE NEGOTIATOR" (1998) (Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Spacey) (R)
Suspense/Thriller: Chicago's best hostage negotiator (Jackson) takes a
group of people hostage himself and must deal with another experienced
negotiator (Spacey) while trying to prove that he didn't kill his
partner. Loosely based on real life events and featuring two of the
best actors working today, "The Negotiator" is a compelling and often
thrilling "whodunit" that unfortunately runs out of gas and momentum
before the end credits roll. With great performances and an intriguing
premise and initial setup, however, the film manages to end up as an
above par entry in this genre. Rated R for profanity and violence, the
film grossed a bit more than $40 million domestically.
(http://www.screenit.com/movies/1998/the_negotiator.html)
__________________________________________________
===========PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS===========
IT'S THE BIGGEST BREAKTHROUGH IN GETTING A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP!
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NBC, CNN and the Wall Street Journal. Originally developed by NASA,
this pressure relieving material is so effective, over 25,000
doctors and sleep clinics recommend Tempur-Pedic mattresses.
Request a FREE "Better Sleep" video and a FREE sample of the
revolutionary Tempur-Pedic material.
http://freesample.tempurpedic.com/index.php?ts=11359
===========PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS===========
Do you find the Screen It Website useful?
If so, contact your local newspaper, TV or radio station, or favorite
magazine and ask that they do a story about our site so that others in
your community or country may benefit from this information. Contact
information can be found at the following address:
http://www.screenit.com/press.html
__________________________________________________
Remember, before you and/or your kids see it, buy it , or rent it, make
sure that first you Screen It!
Screen It! Entertainment Reviews for Parents
http://www.screenit.com
__________________________________________________
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 1998 10:31:25 -0700 (MST)
From: Scott Renshaw <renshaw@inconnect.com>
Subject: [MV] REVIEW: ENEMY OF THE STATE
ENEMY OF THE STATE
(Touchstone)
Starring: Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight, Regina King, Loren Dean,
Jake Busey, Barry Pepper, Tom Sizemore, Lisa Bonet, Gabriel Byrne.
Screenplay: David Marconi.
Producer: Jerry Bruckheimer.
Director: Tony Scott.
MPAA Rating: R (violence, profanity, adult themes)
Running Time: 127 minutes.
Reviewed by Scott Renshaw.
Director Tony Scott presents what sometimes seems like a documentary
on electronic surveillance in ENEMY OF THE STATE. His vehicle is the
story of Robert Clayton Dean (Will Smith), a Washington D.C. attorney who
unwittingly becomes embroiled in a conspiracy when a computer disk finds
its way into his shopping bags. On the disk is evidence that a National
Security Agency boss named Reynolds (Jon Voight) engineered the murder of
a U.S. congressman (an uncredited Jason Robards) who would have killed
legislation making it easier for the NSA to spy on citizens. Piece by
piece Dean's identity is destroyed and accusations are trumped up against
him, until the only chance he has left is a secretive former government
operative known only as Brill (Gene Hackman).
It's a great button-pushing premise for a millenial-angst-heavy
information age, full of shadowy government operations and technological
voyeurism of every shape and form. Early on, however, Scott starts to
fetishize all that technology. Satellites sweep across the sky from
hundreds of miles above to pinpoint a fleeing target; microtransmitters
are planted in shoes, pens and cell phones; phone and bank records betray
every personal secret. The first time a chase scene spills over with
surveillance details, it's effective and alarming. The second time, you
start to notice that it drags scenes out much longer than they need to be.
The third, fourth and fifth times, you wonder why the omniscient gadgetry
is beginning to seem more cool than scary. Is this a movie about people
oppressed by electronics, or a commercial for electronics?
Fortunately, the human angle is in the capable hands of Will Smith.
In his first purely starring role -- no buddy cop, no aliens -- Smith
continues to show the charisma of a star. He's a more effective hounded
Everyman than you might expect, cracking wise when it serves the moment
while generally handling his predicament with intelligence and resolve.
Hackman arrives fairly late in the film to provide some requisite bonding
moments, but mostly the weight of ENEMY OF THE STATE falls squarely on
Smith's shoulders. He proves more than capable of handling it.
He also gets to work with an action/thriller script considerably more
coherent than average. Dean's imperfect relationship with his wife
(Regina King) links deftly into the conspiracy plot, as does the
connection between Brill and go-between Rachel (Lisa Bonet). The
resolution is a rushed disappointment -- mixing in a dopey mob sub-plot
just when the table-turning pleasures of Dean and Brill watching the
watchmen had been so promising -- but for nearly two hours it's pretty a
effective story. With Scott keeping the pacing steady and intense, all
the script needs to do is avoid situations so obviously stupid that you
feel insulted. Marconi's script may not be impressive, but it's
unobtrusive, which is one of the higher compliments you can pay an
action/thriller script in 1998.
Still, there's the matter of all those gee-whiz shots of satellite
cams, computer extrapolations and general manipulation of technology.
Tony Scott has always been a director who never met a five-second piece of
film he liked, and in ENEMY OF THE STATE it often proves distracting as he
whips back and forth between Smith talking to someone and someone
_listening_ to Smith talking to someone, a couple dozen times in the space
of a minute. Sure it's unsettling to consider that the only privacy you
may have is inside your head, but it's most unsettling if we connect with
a character connecting with that reality the hard way. Will Smith
provides that humanity almost in spite of Scott's inventory of spy gear.
The director takes the edge off the edgy concept, turning in a solid
thriller that hypes us up when it should be freaking us out.
On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 state secrets: 6.
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Visit Scott Renshaw's MoviePage
http://www.inconnect.com/~renshaw/
***
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 1998 20:42:01 -0700 (MST)
From: "Gregory A. Swarthout" <gregorys@xmission.com>
Subject: [MV] Movie News - 11/19/98
Starting Tuesday, moviegoers can get a peek at George Lucas'
"'Star Wars' Episode One: The Phantom Menace." The trailer
will run in specially selected theaters in 26 states and in
Washington DC, says www.starwars.com, the official "Star
Wars" website. (The trailer goes "wide" on Friday and will
play in all 50 states, says Lucasfilm.) The movie itself
opens in May.
-=> * <=-
If you know of any good conspiracy websites, pass them on to
Will Smith. "I'm on the Internet nine hours a week. I have
conspiracy theories forever," Smith told the Boston Globe.
"I argue with friends who are attorneys and such all the
time about different ones." Smith's love of conspiracy
meshes with the plot of his new movie, "Enemy of the State."
He plays a Washington lawyer tormented by U.S. intelligence
operatives.
-=> * <=-
Adam Sandler's goofball comedy "The Waterboy" had a $25.2
million weekend to top the charts for a second consecutive
week and push its 10-day take to almost $80 million,
according to studio estimates. Opening in the No. 2 spot
with $17.5 million was the slasher flick "I Still Know What
You Did Last Summer" (thus topping the $15.8 million debut
of "I Know What You Did Last Summer" last October). Brad
Pitt's three-hour "Meet Joe Black," which many critics
called stupid, made its debut in third place with $15
million. "The Siege" slipped two places to No. 4, and "Antz"
crawled down a notch to fifth.
-=> * <=-
Jonathan Taylor Thomas, who became a teen heartthrob while
on the sitcom "Home Improvement," is in the family holiday
movie "I'll Be Home for Christmas." But his image may shift
once another movie, "Speedway Junkie," comes out. In that
one, he plays a tough street kid. "I wouldn't recommend
young kids see 'Speedway Junkie,'" Thomas told the Los
Angeles Times. "It's definitely an age-appropriate movie --
dark and realistic and edgy. If young kids want to see me,
go see the Christmas movie."
-=> * <=-
Madonna is being wooed to star as one of her own personal
icons, the controversial Mexican painter Frida Kahlo,
reports PEOPLE Magazine stringer Jan McGirk. The
political-sexual drama, to be called "Brush with Death," is
set to be released in December 1999 and will highlight
Kahlo's affair with Bolshevik Leon Trotsky as her marriage
to muralist Diego Rivera crumbles. "The film will be
entirely shot in Mexico," says producer Sundeep "Bobby"
Bedi. "Actors will be chosen once the director is [hired]."
Madonna, who, like Kahlo, has dabbled with Hinduism,
reportedly collects drawings by the artist, including a
self-portrait featuring Kahlo's trademark heavy eyebrows
that look like caterpillars making their way across the
bridge of her nose.
-=> * <=-
Will Smith, who stars in the soon-to-open "Enemy of the
State," reveals to USA Weekend that having an Air Force
veteran for a father wields an influence on his relationship
with his wife Jada Pinkett Smith. "I focus on my
relationship with Jada like a soldier," says Will. "When
we're together, I'm her mate. I'm her security guard. I'm
her cook. I'm everything ... you have to focus on everything
in your life with that type of military intensity."
-=> * <=-
Hobbled by leg irons and bound in handcuffs, Harry Connick
Jr. was dragged into a prison lockdown unit to do his time:
two days. The actor-crooner was doing research for an
upcoming role as an inmate when he was put in prison clothes
and restrained for his trip to Camp J, a solitary unit at
notorious Louisiana State Penitentiary. An unshaven Connick,
who had planned to do three days in solitary, signaled to
get out a day early, saying "it was too quiet" and "the food
wasn't too good," said Warden Burl Cain. "The inmates didn't
know who he was," Cain said. "They nicknamed him
'Youngster.'"
-=> * <=-
FINISHED: "Babe: Pig in the City," which took so long to
complete that Universal Studios was forced to cancel a
charity premiere last week. After some early concerns that
the "Babe" sequel would be too scary for children, a
re-edited version was shown to the Motion Picture
Association of America on Monday afternoon. The film, rated
G, will open Nov. 25 -- on schedule.
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 1998 20:53:41 -0700 (MST)
From: Yusheng <gregorys@xmission.com>
Subject: Re: [MV] "Saving private Ryan"!!!
A lot of world war 2 movies tell us that so many soldiers died for the
justice of the world. But this movie is different,it tells about so many
soldiers died for one trivial person.Hence the question: Is Ryan's life of
more value than those of the soldiers died for him? But I don't think this
is the real question. The real one is: Is our life more valuable than
theirs,is the freedom that we enjoy today more valuable than theirs?
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 19 Nov 1998 22:28:32 -0600
From: Diane Christy <dchristy10@earthlink.net>
Subject: Re: [MV] "Saving private Ryan"!!!
On 11/19/98, 9:53 PM -0600, Yusheng said so nicely:
>The real one is: Is our life more valuable than
>theirs,is the freedom that we enjoy today more valuable than theirs?
Great question!!
~~~~~
Diane Christy (Samantha and Joshua's Mom)
Jefferson, LA
http://www.geocities.com/~dchristy10/
mailto:dchristy10@earthlink.net mailto:DChristy1@aol.com
ICQ #12904700
~~~~~
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Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1998 07:43:45 -0700
From: jkrudy <jkrudy@micron.com>
Subject: [MV] Not a Spoiler, but related to Star Wars Prequel: No info about m ovie is contained within
I saw the Star Wars Prequel Trailer last night and let me just say this:
May God grant me the strength to survive until May 21, because the
anticipation may just kill me! I wish I hadn't watched it, but only because
it made me more anxious to see the actual movie!
Have a great weekend all.
James K. Rudy
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------------------------------
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1998 01:49:58 -0800
From: Oz <oz@hollywoodbitchslap.com>
Subject: Re: [MV] Not a Spoiler, but related to Star Wars Prequel: No info about movie is contained within
jkrudy wrote:
>
> I saw the Star Wars Prequel Trailer last night and let me just say this:
> May God grant me the strength to survive until May 21, because the
> anticipation may just kill me! I wish I hadn't watched it, but only because
> it made me more anxious to see the actual movie!
Not to be one of those insane site pluggers or anything, but a
regular at my site posted a report on 17 minutes of workprint he
managed to see in the UK.
He's a non fan of the trilogy but what he saw impressed him enough
to make him eager. Full report at
http://hollywoodbitchslap.com/hbs.cgi?sneak
- -------{{{{OZ}}}}------------------------------------------
[sick of being ripped off at the movies?]
..*HOLLYWOOD BITCHSLAP*.. TAKE YOUR BEST SHOT
--------------http://www.hollywoodbitchslap.com-------------
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------------------------------
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1998 17:50:33 -0800
From: "Film.com" <announce@dmail1.film.com>
Subject: [MV] The Film.com Weekly Newsletter -- 11/20/98
Welcome to the Film.com Newsletter - a weekly mailing
of the news and reviews from www.film.com.
This mailing is distributed to the Film.com mailing list and to
new members of Film.com. For information on how to
subscribe/unsubscribe, please scroll to the bottom of this message.
Contents - 11/20/98
1. Enemy of the State: Will and Gene Get Noisy
2. Celebrity: Branagh Does Woody
3. Waking Ned Devine: Lotto Fever
4. The Rugrats Movie: Babies Talk
5. Central Station: Brasilian Road Movie
6. Preview: Star Wars, Episode I
7. Weekend Box Office
8. In the Screening Room . . .
9. Video news: New releases
10. Video specials from Reel.com
11. Movie Music
12. Do You Have G2?
13. Enter to Win the "Real Life, Real Stories" Contest!
14. Next week on Film.com
1. ENEMY OF THE STATE
Review excerpt by Robert Horton
http://www.film.com/reviews/index.jhtml?review_url=/film-review/1998/10780/18/default-review.html
" . . . It never seems to have occurred to Bruckheimer and company that
part of the appeal of a movie like North by Northwest is that the
nightmare-adventure the hero takes is actually fun. That's one of the
subversive things about the genre: after you've dangled from the face
of Mt. Rushmore, normal life looks dull by comparison. In Enemy
of the State, everything is awful and crowded, and when Smith gets
back his nagging wife and his Mercedes and his vaguely deceitful
business practices, we're encouraged to applaud. For the fade-out, we
get Larry King, delivering a warning about government's
intrusion into people's lives. Wow. In its own unwitting way, this
film makes you question who the enemy really is . . . ."
2. CELEBRITY
Review excerpt by Norman Green
http://www.film.com/reviews/index.jhtml?review_url=/film-review/1998/10767/174/default-review.html
" . . . Yes, we get breathtaking views of the City, photographed in
black and white by Sven Nykvist. Yes, we can count on Woody for
dead-on set pieces like the high school reunion, and a rabbi whining
at skinheads in the green room of a talk show over who ate the last
hors d'oeuvre. But no, Celebrity simply does not hold together. The
editing is fragmentary, fractured, disjointed, chaotic. Too much is
unintentionally unfunny. And it succumbs to the kind of inner emptiness
it tries to decry. As someone once said about psychoanalysis, Celebrity
is the disease it purports to cure. . . ."
3. WAKING NED DEVINE
Review excerpt by Elizabeth Weitzman
http://www.film.com/reviews/index.jhtml?review_url=/film-review/1998/10823/1470/default-review.html
"Is Waking Ned Devine the next Full Monty? Long before anyone
saw the film that's what we were hearing, and I guess it does make
some sense, since it's a foreign (but English-speaking) comedy that
makes the most of exposing its characters very-unbuff bodies. As far as I
can tell, though, the list ends there. . . ."
4. THE RUGRATS MOVIE
Review excerpt by Sean P. Means
http://www.film.com/reviews/index.jhtml?review_url=/film-review/1998/10825/27/default-review.html
http://www.film.com/reviews/index.jhtml?review_url=/film-review/1998/10832/101/default-review.html
" . . . The question is not whether children will like The Rugrats Movie
-- they'll eat it up with a spoon, since it's simply an expansion on the
Nickelodeon cable-TV cartoon they've been watching and loving since
its debut in 1991. The question is whether the grownups, who haven't been
watching as the electronic babysitter did its thing, will be able to stand 86
minutes in the company of these lumpy little toddlers. The answer,
mercifully,
is yes . . ."
5. CENTRAL STATION
Review excerpt by Peter Brunette
http://www.film.com/reviews/index.jhtml?review_url=/film-review/1998/10361/100/default-review.html
" . . . Call me a curmudgeon, but I just can't warm up to Central Station,
the new Brazilian film that's gotten audience awards at several festivals
on the circuit this year since its premiere last January at Sundance, and
even won first prize at Berlin. To me, its blatantly manipulative pairing
of an adorable young boy and a selfish, honesty-challenged older woman,
who first battle and then learn to love one another amid the photogenic
surroundings of Brazil, seemed so calculating that I could never get
emotionally involved. A better title might have been "Kolya Flies to Rio,"
though Central Station lacks the Czech film's bite. Speaking of bites, I
am thankful that at least the kid did not also have an adorable dog. . . ."
6. PREVIEW: STAR WARS, EPISODE I
Preview excerpt by Tom Keogh
http://www.film.com/reviews/rev_coming/previews/1998/11853/
[Yes, we have the Real Video trailer! Check it out . . . ]
"W hat's the fastest path to madness? Spend an hour or two researching
everything on the Internet being said or rumored about the new Star
Wars trilogy. The obsessiveness of fan speculation about George Lucas'
long-promised, three-part prequel to the familiar Star Wars saga is
astonishing. Meanwhile, Lucas himself - via the project's official Web
site (www.starwars.com) - is fueling feverish enthusiasm for everything
from set design to editing wizardry to the precise function of every element
on Mandalorian spacesuits. (What? You don't remember the Mandalorian
spacesuits from The Empire Strikes Back?)
Still, if you keep your wits about you, getting the lay of the land for the
next
trilogy - which precedes, in narrative terms, all the Star Wars movies we're
already familiar with - can be fun and intriguing. Why? Think about it: the
storyline necessarily has to lead to the downfall of the Jedi and the rise
of the
Empire, not to mention Anakin Skywalker's nasty metamorphosis to
becoming Darth Vader. We're talking dark, and that's precisely what Lucas is
promising. Will audiences reward this downbound story arc through the year
2005
(the projected release date of the last film in the new batch) to the tune
of hundreds
and hundreds of millions of dollars? Check out our preview coverage to get the
latest word . . . ."
7. BOX OFFICE RESULTS
Weekend of November 13-15
http://www.film.com/reviews/rev_box/
1. The Waterboy
2. I Still Know What You Did Last Summer
3. Meet Joe Black
4. The Siege
5. Antz
6. Pleasantville
7. I'll Be Home For Christmas
8. The Wizard of Oz
9. Living Out Loud
10. Rush Hour
8. IN THE SCREENING ROOM
http://www.film.com/screen/
This week: new trailers for You've Got Mail, Celebrity, and The Thin Red
Line, --
and don't miss the full-length trailer for Star Trek: Insurrection. Plus,
check out our
"Film Clips" room, loaded with scenes from current films, and the
RealShorts Film Festival, our online collection of 31 short films from
the Seattle International Film Festival.
10. NEW VIDEO RELEASES
http://www.film.com/reviews/rev_video/
In Sean Axmaker's video column, read all about this week's new
releases, including Dr. Dolittle, The Negotiator, King Lear, and the return of
My Life as a Dog. Be sure to send the "Print and Go" page to
your printer, to take along as a handy guide to the video store.
11. VIDEO SPECIALS FROM REEL.COM
http://www.film.com/store/
Reel.com has a Thanksgiving gift for its customers - free shipping
on all domestic orders through November 25! And, of course, the
American Film Institute's Top 100 continues on sale -- all at 25 percent off.
12. MOVIE MUSIC
http://www.film.com/reviews/rev_wild/stc/
Next week on Soundtrack Cinema: New soundtrack releases, including
selections from "The Siege" and "Apt Pupil."
13. DO YOU HAVE G2?
http://www.film.com/reviews/smil
Check out the Film.com and Screening Room channels on the new
G2 Player - and don't miss the Talking Picture Show, in which Film.com's
critics debate the movies of the week.
14. REAL LIFE, REAL STORIES
Would you like to win $50,000 just for being yourself?
With RealNetworks "Real Life, Real Stories", you can!
We are asking you to send us a 3 minute video telling us
why the world should spend the day with you. The winner
will receive $50,000 and have a day in his or her life
broadcast on the Internet. For details including, how to enter
by mail and contest rules, visit: http://www.real.com/reallife
NEXT WEEK . . .
Watch Film.com for reviews of this year's Thanksgiving movies: Babe:
Pig in the City, Home Fries, Very Bad Things, Ringmaster, and A Bug's
Life; trailers for The Thin Red Line, Mighty Joe Young, You've Got
Mail, and The Mod Squad, our holiday movie preview, and more . . .
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------------------------------
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1998 21:32:20 -0800
From: Michael Dequina <michael_jordan@geocities.com>
Subject: [MV] The Movie Report#167, 11/20/98
no1
T H E
M O V I E
R E P O R T
#167
NOVEMBER 20, 1998
Saturday, November 21, marks the one-year anniversary of The Day...
PLEASE HELP...
...keep the MR and Mr. Brown's Movie Site alive. I am undergoing a
serious funding and resource crisis. Please send any donations (every
little bit does help) to:
Michael Dequina
3650 Denver Avenue
Long Beach, CA 90810-2205
You can also help by renting or purchasing videos and DVDs from Reel.com!
Get a jumpstart on your holiday gift shopping by visiting:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-reel.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=welcome.html
Thank you very much.
=>T H I S W E E K<=
M O V I E S
- -_A_Bug's_Life_
- -_A_Simple_Plan_
- -_Very_Bad_Things_
- -_Meet_Joe_Black_
- -_Thursday_
V I D E O
- -_Can't_Hardly_Wait_
- -_Dirty_Work_
- -_Fear_and_Loathing_in_Las_Vegas_
For links to the official websites of all the current films, past reviews,
exclusive Hollywood event photos, movie discussion board, movie theme MIDI
files, a comprehensive link section, and more, visit Mr. Brown's Movie Site:
http://welcome.to/mrbrown or
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown
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
...and the Eyepiece Network at:
http://www.eyepiece.com
...and Albany Online at:
http://www.AlbanyOnline.com
all movies graded out of four stars (****)
~~~
=>M O V I E S<=
N E W R E L E A S E S
_A_Bug's_Life_ (G) *** 1/2
With the release of Disney and Pixar's _A_Bug's_Life_, the first
head-to-head Disney-DreamWorks animation battle has officially taken place.
The winner? Well, there isn't one--it's a draw. While their respective
studios continue their war of words and massive publicity, _Bugs_ and
_Antz_, it turns out, can peacefully co-exist, each carving out their own
delightful, distinctive niche in the computer-animated insect milieu.
The similarities between _Bugs_ and _Antz_ begin and end with the facts
that they are completely computer animated, center on ant colonies, and
that the two main characters are a worker ant (here named Flik, voiced by
Dave Foley) and an ant princess (Atta, voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus).
Ne'er-do-well Flik is ordered by the Princess to find warrior insects to
help his colony in their ongoing conflict with a gang of grasshoppers led
by the maniacal Hopper (Kevin Spacey). Flik finds a willing group in the
praying mantis Manny (Jonathan Harris); his moth wife, Gypsy (Madeline
Kahn); male ladybug Francis (Denis Leary); walking stick Slim (David Hyde
Pierce); caterpillar Heimlich (Joe Ranft); black widow spider Rosie (Bonnie
Hunt); rhino beetle Dim (Brad Garrett); and pillbugs Tuck and Roll (Michael
McShane). But as warrior-like as these bugs may appear, they are actually
gentle circus performers desperate for a gig after being fired by flea
circus owner P.T. Flea (John Ratzenberger). Realizing his error, Flik
nonetheless tries to make a counteroffensive against the grasshoppers work,
lest he let down the colony once again.
The script for _A_Bug's_Life_, credited to co-director Andrew Stanton,
Donald McEnery, and Bob Shaw (from a story by Stanton, Ranft, and
co-director John Lasseter), lacks the sharp, satirical, sociopolitical
subtext of _Antz_. For that matter, neither is the story as hilarious and
smart as that of the previous Disney/Pixar collaboration, _Toy_Story_. In
telling a simpler story, _Bugs_ holds more kid and general family appeal,
but that does not mean that there isn't enough witty dialogue, funny
situations, and entertaining characters to amuse the adults in the crowd.
(In fact, the film's best gag, which comes during the end credits, is
clearly aimed at adults; I wouldn't dream of giving it away, but I will say
that, with any luck, it should kill a lazy trend in recent film.) The most
memorable characters are distinguished by terrific voice performances:
Spacey completely inhabits the menacing Hopper with malicious glee;
Louis-Dreyfus is nicely neurotic as Atta; and Ranft fits Heimlich with a
hilarious, almost effeminate German accent. As a whole, though, the
ensemble here won't make you forget the work of the more stellar cast of
_Antz_; Foley does an adequate job voicing Flik, but, not surprisingly, he
doesn't hold down the center of the movie as well as Woody Allen in the
other film.
Where _A_Bug's_Life_ is clearly superior to _Antz_ is in the visual
department. The art by the Pixar crew is stunningly detailed, from the
gritty walls of the ant colony tunnels to, most impressively, the insects
themselves, namely the amazingly lifelike grasshoppers. Lasseter and
Stanton also employ more ambitious camera work than their DreamWorks
counterparts, especially during an exciting aerial chase sequence set
during a rainstorm. PDI did a terrific job with the animation on _Antz_,
but _A_Bug's_Life_ shows that Pixar is still the king of feature computer
animation.
And, by default, so is Disney, and, with its broader demographic appeal,
_A_Bug's_Life_ should handily outpace _Antz_'s impressive box office
grosses. But DreamWorks has already established itself as a worthy
contender in the animation field, and the Mouse should watch out when the
big SKG fires its next assault, next month's hotly anticipated epic
_The_Prince_of_Egypt_.
_A_Simple_Plan_ (R) ****
_Very_Bad_Things_ (R) ****
_A_Simple_Plan_ and _Very_Bad_Things_ are films of two opposing
genres--drama and comedy--but both are actually so similar that their
titles could very well be interchangeable. Both are about botched secret
schemes that lead to downward spirals of transgression; both are bound to
leave audiences unsettled--and both are among the most memorable films of
the year.
Although his filmmaking career has spanned twenty years, Sam Raimi has
always remained on the fringes of Hollywood, scoring no big box office hits
but amassing a fiercely devoted cult following and with his trademark brand
of dark humor (more often than not tinged with gore) and wildly kinetic
camera work. More than a few Raimi cultists weaned on the likes of his
_Evil_Dead_ trilogy will undoubtedly cry "sellout" after seeing
_A_Simple_Plan_, which neither looks nor feels like a traditional Raimi
film. Instead, it looks and feels like a simply "traditional" film: no
flashy camera work, no excessive violence, no macabre humor.
Thematically, on the other hand, this adaptation of Scott B. Smith's
bestselling novel is exactly what one would expect from the auteur. Bill
Paxton and Billy Bob Thornton play Midwestern brothers Hank and Jacob
Mitchell, who, with friend Lou (Brent Briscoe), discover a downed plane
containing a dead body and a bag full of money--$4.4 million, to be exact.
Their plan, as the title states, is simple: split the money between them,
but only after the plane is discovered and it is determined that the
authorities are not tracing the cash.
As they say, "the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry," and
that's exactly what happens. As jealousy, greed, and suspicion enter the
picture, a tense and ever-twisting turn of events follows, in which the
most innocent characters reveal their more sinister tendencies--and vice
versa. This theme of the ever-shifting tides of evil within people is a
perfect fit for the dark sensibilities of Raimi, and he made a wise
decision in keeping his showy visual tendencies in check. Any of Raimi's
usual visual theatrics would have detracted from Smith's tightly-wound
script, and his restrained approach intensifies the suspense of the story.
Adding to the complexity and power of the story are the actors, whose
multidimensional performances create complex characters the audience
sometimes hates yet maintains a certain empathy for. Thornton is likely to
receive the most attention for his heartwrenching turn as the sad sack
Jacob, who may be slow-witted but is nobody's fool. Equally as impressive
though certain to be overlooked in Thornton's shadow is Paxton's subtle,
slow burn as the often-conflicted Hank. Bridget Fonda's role as Hank's
wife Sarah seems simple at the start, but as the character gradually takes
on sharper edges, so does Fonda's performance. The film's richness of
character lends its conclusion a poignant and haunting impact.
As badly as the characters in _A_Simple_Plan_ behave, nothing they do
comes off quite as reprehensible as the deeds perpetrated by the characters
inhabiting _Very_Bad_Things_, the audacious writing/directing debut of
actor Peter Berg. Stuffed with scenes of stylishly shot splatter, this
film is as violent as any that has been released as this or any year--and
it's all played for _laughs_ (coincidentally, much like Raimi's earlier
work). That shameless, eager-to-shock energy, with a crafty script and a
flawless ensemble cast to match, make this beyond-black comedy a very good
thing indeed.
A few days before his wedding to Laura Garrity (Cameron Diaz), Kyle Fisher
(Jon Favreau) heads to Las Vegas for a big bachelor blowout with his
buddies: self-improvement-obsessed realtor Robert Boyd (Christian Slater),
quiet auto mechanic Charles Moore (Leland Orser), straightlaced family man
Adam Berkow (Daniel Stern), and Adam's boorish younger brother Michael
(Jeremy Piven). Mix these five men, gallons of booze, pounds of cocaine
and marijuana, and a stripper into a hotel room and something bad is bound
to happen--and it does. A rather grisly "complication" during sex with
Michael leaves the stripper dead, and the ever-cunning Boyd comes up with,
yes, a simple plan to correct, as he calls it, the "105-pound
problem"--bury her body in the desert.
Predictably, this rash decision just leads to more trouble. What isn't so
predictable, however, is the severity of the troubling situations Berg puts
his characters in. These developments will undoubtedly offend some, but
most people would be laughing too hard to be offended. An obvious
comparison would be to the Farrelly Brothers' surprise sensation
_There's_Something_About_Mary_, but the brands of humor are distinctly
different; whereas the Farrellys dabbled in "gross-out" bodily function
humor, Berg's violent variety of comedy can best be described as "shock"
humor. But however different their specific sensibilities are, the
Farrellys and Berg share the same go-for-broke attitude when it comes to
generating laughs, going so far as to seem to dare the audience not to
laugh. "Shock" gags would not mean anything if they didn't organically
emerge from the story, and like _Mary_, the very bad things of the title
are firmly rooted in the script.
But there's more to Berg's assured writing than his ability to jolt the
audience into laughter; there are also some juicy roles, and each cast
member tackles their respective job with aplomb. The characters truly take
shape, and the actors achieve liftoff, after the stripper incident, when
everyone experiences different types of emotional fallout. The fact that
Kyle's increasing anxiety can be palpably felt while not exactly seen is a
tribute to Favreau's firm grasp of the character, who tries to maintain a
veneer of composure throughout. Adam becomes mad with paranoia, leading to
some effectively hammy hysterics by Stern. Nicely playing off of him is
Piven, whose all-attitude Michael undergoes the most dramatic arc in the
film. Slater's often irksome Nicholson-channelling works like a charm for
Boyd. As his self-improvement philosophy becomes increasingly, shall we
say, dark, Slater's devilish Jack-like grin and swagger could not be more
perfect; it's his best performance since _True_Romance_. As the wedding
date nears and the tension mounts, the chirpy Laura seems less like
herself--or is that _more_?--and Diaz obviously has a blast. Even a
relatively peripheral player like Adam's wife Lois (Jeanne Tripplehorn)
takes on greater depth as things get more and more horrifying; only Orser's
barely-heard Moore remains an enigma, but I believe that was the point.
Berg falls a little short at the end; his ultimate resolution doesn't quite
live up to the raucous build up, but it closes the film with an
appropriately acidic sting. (_A_Simple_Plan_ opens December 4;
_Very_Bad_Things_ opens November 25)
IN BRIEF
_Meet_Joe_Black_ (PG-13) ***
Most meetings last just a couple of seconds. A hello, a handshake, and
you have officially met someone. In the case of _Joe_Black_, the meeting
is stretched over three hours, and while it is an enjoyable and sometimes
touching entertainment, the same effect could have been achieved in half
the time.
That's exactly what director Mitchell Leisen did in 1934's
79-minute_Death_Takes_a_Holiday_, upon which Martin Brest's film is based.
Despite the presence of the Grim Reaper himself, _Joe_Black_ is a simple
and frothy fantasy that does not deserve such an epic length. Death, who
has arrived on earth to take an aging business tycoon (Anthony Hopkins) by
the name of Bill Parrish (Get it? _Parrish_?) into the great beyond,
decides to take a holiday in the land of the living in the body of a
recently deceased young man (Brad Pitt). Death gets more than he bargained
for when he falls in love with Bill's unhappy youngest daughter Susan
(Claire Forlani).
An drab corporate intrigue subplot contributes to the bloated running
time, as does the tediously drawn out finale, which strings together a
number of potential endings of diminishing effectiveness; had the film
ended fifteen minutes earlier, it would have been better for it.
Nonetheless, the length does not completely dilute the involving core of
the story, whose effectiveness can be credited to the ever-impressive
Hopkins and the luminous Forlani, whose heartfelt performance is as
stunning as her appearance. Not surprisingly, the weak link in the lead
trio of actors is Pitt, whose portrayal of Death comes off as a cleaned-up
version of his blank stoner character in _True_Romance_.
_Thursday_ no stars
In a recent article for the _Chicago_Sun-Times_, Roger Ebert commented,
"It's pretty hard to offend me, but a film named _Thursday_ crossed the
line at the Toronto Film Festival earlier this month. Watching it, I felt
outrage. I saw a movie so reprehensible I couldn't rationalize it using the
standard critical language about style, genre or irony. The people
associated with it should be ashamed of themselves."
I echo Ebert's sentiments, but from a different angle. There is a lot of
violence, sex, and various other forms of bad behavior on display in first
time writer-director Skip Woods's low-budget thriller. But the graphic
nature of _Thursday_ is not what upset me; it was the content behind the
mayhem--or, rather, the lack thereof. There's absolutely no substance to
Woods's script beyond the setup: a "reformed" ex-drug dealer (Thomas Jane)
who has his quiet Houston household violently thrown upside down after his
still-in-the-biz ex-partner (Aaron Eckhart, who should have known better)
arrives for a stay. What follows are random, plotless acts of violence and
nastiness, such as various bloody shooting deaths; grisly body disposals;
and, most notoriously, an Amazonian femme fatale (Paulina Porizkova)
wearing a jacket reading "CUNT" who openly masturbates and later rapes the
main character. This criticism may sound hypocritical from someone who
completely bought into the sick sensibility of _Very_Bad_Things_, but there
writer-director Peter Berg had an actual story to work with, and the
borderline offensive shocks naturally emerged from that narrative. Woods,
on the other hand, hails from the school of film that believes that shock
value in and of itself equals hipness. In actuality, it only equates to
pathetic desperation.
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)
- -_American_History_X_ (R) *** <MR#162, 10/16/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#historyx
- -_Antz_ (PG) *** 1/2 <MR#159, 9/25/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt39.html#antz
- -_Belly_ (R) ** <MR#165, 11/6/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#belly
- -_Beloved_ (R) *** <MR#162, 10/16/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#beloved
- -_Bride_of_Chucky_ (R) * 1/2 <MR#163, 10/22/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#chucky
- -_The_Cruise_ (PG-13) *** <MR#163, 10/22/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#cruise
- -_Elizabeth_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#162, 10/16/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#elizabeth
- -_Happiness_ **** <MR#162, 10/16/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#happiness
- -_I_Still_Know_What_You_Did_Last_Summer_ (R) * <MR#165, 11/6/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#istillknow
- -_I'll_Be_Home_for_Christmas_ (PG) * 1/2 <MR#166, 11/12/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#xmas
- -_John_Carpenter's_Vampires_ (R) * 1/2 <MR#163, 10/22/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#vampires
- -_Life_Is_Beautiful_(La_Vita_E_Bella)_ (PG-13) **** <MR#162, 10/16/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#vitabella
- -_Living_Out_Loud_ (R) *** <MR#164, 10/29/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#living
- -_The_Mighty_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#160, 10/5/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#mighty
- -_Orgazmo_ (NC-17) * 1/2 <MR#164, 10/29/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#orgazmo
- -_Pleasantville_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#162, 10/16/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#pleasantville
- -_Practical_Magic_ (PG-13) ** <MR#162, 10/16/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#magic
- -_Rush_Hour_ (PG-13) ** 1/2 <MR#159, 9/25/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt39.html#rush
- -_The_Siege_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#164, 10/29/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#siege
- -_There's_Something_About_Mary_ (R) *** 1/2 <MR#150, 7/10/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt36.html#mary
- -_Velvet_Goldmine_ (R) ** 1/2 <MR#165, 11/6/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#velvet
- -_The_Waterboy_ (PG-13) ** <MR#165, 11/6/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#waterboy
- -_What_Dreams_May_Come_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 <MR#160, 10/5/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt40.html#dreams
- -_The_Wizard_of_Oz_ (G) ****
F U T U R E F I L M S
- -_Little_Voice_ (R) *** <MR#164, 10/29/98>
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#lv
(December 11)
O N T H E H O R I Z O N
FRIDAY
_A_Bug's_Life_ (G) *** 1/2 <see above review>
Disney and Pixar's delightful computer animated tale of ants at war with
grasshoppers opens exclusively at the El Capitan in Hollywood, with wide
release to follow Wednesday, the 25th. Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus,
and Dave Foley head the voice cast.
_Celebrity_ (R)
The annual Woody Allen project focuses on a reporter (Kenneth Branagh)
covering the celebrity beat. Winona Ryder, Charlize Theron, Bebe Neuwirth,
Joe Mantegna, Gretchen Mol, Melanie Griffith, and, in a 12-minute role,
some guy named DiCaprio round out the ensemble.
_Dancing_at_Lughnasa_ (PG)
Opening in Los Angeles while continuing in New York is Pat O'Connor's
adaptation of Brian Friel's play about the lives of five sisters (Meryl
Streep, Catherine McCormack, Kathy Burke, Sophie Thompson, and Brid
Brennan) in 1936 Ireland.
_Enemy_of_the_State_ (R)
A lawyer (Will Smith) is targeted by the government in this thriller from
director Tony Scott. Gene Hackman co-stars.
_Savior_ (R)
The soul-searching journey of a mercenary (Dennis Quaid) in war-torn Bosnia.
_The_Rugrats_Movie_ (G) ***
Full review in MR#166, 11/12/98; and at:
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt42.html#rugrats
Energetic adaptation of the smash Nickelodeon animated series, which is
enjoyable for wee ones and grown-ups alike.
_Waking_Ned_Devine_ (PG) ***
Full review in MR#164, 10/29/98; and at:
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt41.html#ned
Pleasant crowdpleasing comedy in which the population of a small Irish
town attempt to claim the lottery jackpot won by deceased resident. Ian
Bannen and David Kelly star for writer-director Kirk Jones.
~~~
=>V I D E O<=
N E W T H I S W E E K
_Can't_Hardly_Wait_ (PG-13) **
Full review in MR#146, 6/11/98; and at:
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt35.html#wait
Rent or buy at Reel.com:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=moviepage.as
p?MMID=41581
The small screen should fit perfectly for this messy throwback to '80s
teen comedies, following a number of stories at a wild high school
graduation bash. The dull will-they-or-won't-they relationship between
Jennifer Love Hewitt and a deserves-better Ethan Embry is the focus of the
film, but co-stars Seth Green and Lauren Ambrose steal the show. (Columbia
TriStar Home Video)
_Dirty_Work_ (PG-13) *
Full review in MR#147, 6/17/98; and at:
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt35.html#dirty
Rent or buy at Reel.com:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=moviepage.as
p?MMID=41558
Bob Saget, late of TV's _Full_House_ and _America's_Funniest_Home_Videos_,
made an inauspicious directorial debut in which two losers (Norm MacDonald
and Artie Lange) start a revenge-for-hire business. A promising premise
for dark comedy is ultimately lost under a flood of poor taste and
unexpected schmaltz. (MGM/UA Home Video)
_Fear_and_Loathing_in_Las_Vegas_ (R) no stars
Full review in MR#144, 5/29/98; and at:
http://www.godamongdirectors.com/mrbrown/movierpt34.html#loathing
Rent or buy at Reel.com:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=moviepage.as
p?MMID=41412
Terry Gilliam's unwatchable film of Hunter S. Thompson's unfilmable novel,
in which a sports writer (Johnny Depp) and his lawyer (Benicio DelToro) go
on a long, tedious drug binge in Sin City. Christina Ricci and Cameron
Diaz are among the stars who turn up in cameo roles. (Universal Studios
Home Video)
A L S O N E W T H I S W E E K
_Hurricane_Streets_ (R)
Rent or buy at Reel.com:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=moviepage.as
p?MMID=40922
Brendan Sexton III stars in writer-director Morgan J. Freeman's tale of
troubled teens in the city, which won three awards at the 1997 Sundance
Film Festival. (MGM/UA Home Video)
_The_Land_Girls_ (R)
Rent or buy at Reel.com:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=moviepage.as
p?MMID=41573
World War II drama centering on "land girls"--British female volunteers
who tend to the lands of farmers sent to war. Catherine McCormack and
Rachel Weisz head the cast. (PolyGram Video)
_Passion_in_the_Desert_ (PG-13)
Rent or buy at Reel.com:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=moviepage.as
p?MMID=41576
Adaptation of Honore de Balzac's novella about an officer (Ben Daniels) in
Napoleon's army who forms an intimate bond with a leopard while stranded in
the Sahara. (New Line Home Video)
_TwentyFourSeven_ (R)
Rent or buy at Reel.com:
http://www.reel.com/cgi-bin/nph-session.exe?COBRAND=MRBR&OBJECT=moviepage.as
p?MMID=41034
Drama in which Bob Hoskins stars as an Englishman who starts a boxing club
to help keep troubled youths off the street. (Universal Studios Home Video)
~~~
=>N E X T W E E K<=
More reviews coming Tuesday, including:
- -_Enemy_of_the_State_
- -_Home_Fries_
'til then...
__________________________________________________________
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
"Life is knowing the toughest competition you ever face is yourself."
- --Michael Jordan
__________________________________________________________
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