Reviews

I bought a used copy of Barton Fink a while back after renting it once, not sure why, but the movie is compelling to me. Not due to the fact that it makes a definite statement about anything in particular, rather it's just such a stylish, atmospheric, and occasionally hilarious film that watching it is always a totally captivating experience. The movie follows the travels of Barton, a fresh and critically celebrated playwright, who finds his way to Hollywood. What happens on his arrival entertaining and completely indescribable, so I won't even bother trying. It's an excellent movie, totally engrossing and watchable over and over again.

I was literally born into a world of Weird-Al. Being born in '83 and having an older brother who listened to quite a bit of Weird Al tapes and watched uhf countless times, I was needless to say exposed to his work very much. So, obviously I'm a bit biased when I rate this movie. Of course I gave it a 10.. this movie is literally a part of my heritage; every scene in it has associated with it some fond childhood memory of mine. Whether it was listening to the uhf soundtrack on a long car trip and laughing hysterically at the tough-guy Gandhi bit ("Give me a steak, medium rare", "HEY, BALDY! *BAM BAM BAM*") or watching the "drink from the firehose" scene on the screen.. this movie is a part of me, for better or worse (I'd say for better).

Can't recommend it enough.. though I'm not sure how it will seem to the first time viewer. Oh well, you'll love it or you'll hate it I guess.

Zelig is a fictitious biography of a man named Zelig. Zelig happens to be a human chameleon, able to take on the shape and personality of anyone who is in the room with him. The film is shot in such a way as to make it seem like an authentic documentary (with fictitious news footage, interviews, etc), which it of course isn't. It's filled with trademark Woody Allen humor, it's inventive, and it's entertaining. I thought it was an excellent film.

Welcome to the Dollhouse is an excellent film. It shows, in a strictly un-opinionated manner, a young girl's experiences as one of the unpopular kids in her junior high-school. She is faced with the extreme viciousness commonly shown in schools towards the students who, for whatever reason, don't fit in. The film never attempts to go any deeper than simply displaying these occurences to us, never really analyzing them or questioning why things like that happen. It just shows what is, what we've all experienced or at least seen, and for that I think it's all the more effective.

There are also some humorous moments thrown in, which I thought were nice and somewhat alleviated the otherwise depressing mood of the film (not that I'm complaining).

Welcome to the Dollhouse is a great snapshot of human behaviour. That's the best way I can describe it.

Most older war movies had a tendency to glorify their subject matter. War was often shown as a big adventure, something that young people just go do to show how much they love their homeland. Often the enemy is shown as inhuman evil-incarnate, whose death is not only justifiable but deserved.

All Quiet On the Western Front, however, attempts precisely the opposite. It follows a group of young German students who, with intense pressure from their teacher, enlist to fight in WW1. Never throughout the entire film are their experiences with war glorified or shown in such a way as to somehow justify or rationalize what they're going through and doing. For example, in one powerful scene, they are situated in an underground bunker while they are bombarded with artillery from above. The shot is intentionally long, to show the tension building among the men, with some being shaken to the brink of insanity and others trying to repel the nightmare surrounding them by playing a game of cards. There are many such scenes in the film.. all of them cause us to look at war through the eyes of real people, not fictitious heroes triumphing in completely unreal scenarios.

Yes, it's depressing. Yes, it's not fun to watch. But I'm glad this movie was made.. it will completely abolish any notions you had about war being glorious.

Modern Times is an excellent film. It is, at heart, a commentary on the capitalist economy. Chaplin focuses on the plight of the working man, and while his message is pretty well always hidden beneath hilarious and inventive gags, it nonetheless remains poignant. He frequently takes pot shots at the greedy factory owner, showing him as unconcerned with the work-conditions of his employees and driven solely by the desire for profit.

For me, the film's dual-purpose makes it extra appealing. Being a Chaplin film, it is hilarious throughout, with scenes of Chaplin being forced to eat from an insane feeding machine (to increase productivity), and him inadvertently becoming the leader of a Communist demonstration. The extra appeal comes from its teeth, though. Chaplin obviously had some strong feelings towards the issue of the individual's exploitation at the hands of the corporate machine, and these feelings permeate throughout the entire film. And, best of all, he manages to mix the meaning with the humor so well that often you'll be unsure whether to laugh or to reflect on what the man was saying. My tip is, do both.

This is an excellent movie. It may have been made in 1936, but watching it for the first time in the year 2000 I found that it hasn't dated the slightest bit. Its message is timeless: the good, honest, kind-hearted guy is usually the one persecuted, laughed at, by a society who "doesn't even know what it wants" (a quote from one of the main characters in the film). Gary Cooper is excellent as the shy, humble guy in question. While he's definitely not painted as an angel (he has the tendency to hit people, a lot, but always with just cause ;) he nevertheless manages to wonderfully convey the character's innocence in terms of his exposure to "true" human nature. Of course, while the plot might seem like it would be a downer, this is still a Frank Capra film we're talking about. Capra manages to balance the comedy and drama so well I'm speechless..

Really, a charming movie.

American Pop is an excellent movie. It follows 4 generations of a family of musicians, beginning in the pre-World War 1 era and stretching all the way up to 70s. Along the way it manages to capture each time-period's distinct musical feel, and shows how each generation of the family carries on its predecessors' legacy.

Great in every way, whether it be the excellent animation (which is, admittedly, an acquired taste, but very beautiful if you like it), the well written story, or the voice acting.

The movie has a very sentimental, restrospective feel to it which I particularly liked. It's obvious that those making the movie felt very strongly about the evolution of music and respected all those involved in its development. The sound-track is fantastic.. Black Sabbath, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan (though the songs of his which are included are not sung by him).

Definitely worth watching if you like movies. ;)

Wonder Man is the first film I've seen with Danny Kaye, and I enjoyed it. The humor is light, inoffensive, and Danny Kaye does it well. Besides Kaye, there were a few notable funny characters, such as the deli shop owner and the drunk at the bar. Well worth watching if you're in the mood for a happy and funny film.

Shane is, in my mind, the embodiment of a true western. By "true western", I mean authentic (or seemingly authentic, to me anyway) in its portrayal of the west and of the people who lived there. The atmosphere created by the movie through its character dialogue, beautiful cinematography, and believable story all helped to immerse me in the belief that "this was as things were".

Now, whether this is true or not, and whether the movie did in actuality provide a realistic outlook on what life was like in this era, I can't say. I do know however that it was a relentlessly entertaining film, and in my mind that makes it well worth watching.

I really had no idea what to expect when I grabbed High Plains Drifter from the video store shelf. I recently saw The Outlaw Josey Wales, and really enjoying that film, I figured I couldn't go wrong; I was right. High Plains Drifter is more than just another western with the standard assortment of gun fights, bar scenes, and shots of horseback riding on wide-open prairie. To be sure, it does have its share of the said events, it is a western after all, but what I particularly liked was the film's character development and well thought out story.

I don't want to ruin any of the film's enjoyment for any potential viewers, so I won't go into describing any of the characters. Suffice it to say though that they all have a very realistic quality to them, especially Clint Eastwood's character. No stereotyped good guys/bad guys here, thank you very much.

As I mentioned, the story is also very nicely developed. It has multiple layers which are peeled away as the movie progresses, remaining entertained throughout.

High Plains Drifter is an excellent western. If you're a fan of the genre, you'll no doubt find it to be an entertaining watch.

Cape Fear is an excellent movie. I can't think of one Scorsee film that I haven't liked, and this movie once again just goes to show why: the man has an uncanny knack for style. Generally his movies all have a very "dark" feeling, with realistic situations with realistic people (no one is truly good, but some are truly bad ;), and Cape Fear follows this formula perfectly. It is suspenseful throughout (very suspenseful), and I thought character development was well done as well; we get a sense of who these people are and how they act and think without having to learn their entire lives' histories.

Robert De Niro was the stand-out in this one, with his excellent portrayal of Max Cady, the intellectual psychopath. Nick Nolte is similarly great, giving his multi-faceted "good guy" character extra depth and character. The rest of the cast was very good as well.

No complaints, a top of the line suspense story!

After Hours is a movie that doesn't really fall into any one particular genre and defies classification. It is very stylishly presented, with all kinds of cool shots and camera angles throughout. The movie is also very dark and gritty, but Scorsese managed to work in plenty of comedic elements to create a, well, unique (and in my opinion very cool) atmosphere.

The movie is very entertaining and engrossing, not a boring moment throughout. The characters are all very unique, interesting, and weird, which I thought was good to see as opposed to boring stock-characters who just say their lines to further develop the underlying story. The characters really are the story in After Hours.. and that's one aspect I really liked.

A great, fun, and definitely weird movie that's not to be missed.