Reviews

An entertaining comic book adaptation starring Macaulay Culkin in one of his last major roles as the richest kid on earth who has everything he could ever want except friends. It's cheesy, but funny enough for its run time.

The Problem Child films aren't highbrow entertainment, but they're memorable for nostalgic reasons. John Ritter is just as winning as he was in the first film and Laraine Newman steals the entire show as Lawanda, a scheming temptress who has her hooks into him. Lots of tacky gross out humor and childish moments, but it's all done in good spirits.

When one is retelling a story as slight as Little Red Riding Hood for a feature film, it makes sense to add a little extra meat on its bones to pad out the story and add some more drama, but there are times when it feels like you're watching anything but a version of the story. The songs are bouncy enough and there's more than enough danger to keep young kids entertained.

The people over at Cannon Films didn't have the Disney template to fall back on, so they've gone back to the original story and tried to tell a more faithful version to the original story. It lacks the menace of the Cocteau version, but does have some dancing statues and a few listenable musical numbers. Rebecca De Mornay is fittingly beautiful in the role even if her singing voice is a tad airy and John Savage showcases a powerful voice and commanding presence.

Michelle Pfeiffer and Harrison Ford play recent empty nesters who believe the ghost of their missing neighbor might be haunting their lakeside home.

The script has fun taking the audience on a roller coaster ride of emotions, twists, and turns with the real meat of the story not showing up until an hour into the film. For some, this will make the viewing experience slow, but for others, it'll be a welcome surprise. Pfeiffer is especially good here with a realistic depiction of fear and madness throughout.

Sarah Michelle Gellar is at her wicked best as the stepsister of Ryan Phillippe's spoiled rich boy who convinces him to take the virginity of Reese Witherspoon's goody two shoes.

It has an excellent soundtrack, the performances are all spirited and fit the campy tone of the movie, and the script is smarter than I'd initially anticipated for a late 90's teen movie.

In this very funny satire on Hollywood's obsession with youth, two rivals stumble upon a mysterious potion that not only restores your youthful beauty but keeps you from ever dying.

Goldie Hawn and Meryl Streep make for a fabulous team as they lose several of their limbs trying to usurp the other and gain the loyalty of sad sack Bruce Willis, who gives one of his best and most surprising performances.

When a young boy goes on vacation to England with his grandmother after losing his parents, he stumbles upon an annual meeting of some of the most wicked, child-hating witches in the world who are plotting to rid the entire world of children.

Anjelica Huston electrifies as the wicked Grand High Witch who's part glamour queen and part hideous crone once she removes her fake skin mask and wig. Jim Henson's creature effects are impressive and the story takes several surprising turns.

A lot of your enjoyment of Sleeping With the Enemy will depend on what you're looking for before you turn it on. If you want a thought provoking character study about domestic abuse, look elsewhere. If you want a fun, silly popcorn thriller where Julia Roberts has a 3 minute fashion montage to "Brown Eyed Girl", this is one for you.

It's compelling in spite of its flaws and implausible twists and turns and Roberts is a good damsel in distress.

Jawbreaker might have a little too much in common with the cult classic Heathers, but that doesn't mean it's not bringing anything to the plate. Rose McGowan makes for a delicious villain described as "Satan in high heels" and a lot of the one-liners and situations are funny and amusing.

Darren Stein directs with a lot of flash and color which keeps things moving at a zippy pace.

Kirsten Dunst leads an all-star cast as a legitimately talented beauty pageant contestant who finds her life on the line when someone starts murdering her competitors in a small town pageant.

There are so many oddball characters and pieces of local color that, at times, it feels like an authentic documentary on small town life. Every actor from Kirstie Alley to Denise Richards to Brittany Murphy to the scene- stealing Allison Janney have never been better and all seem to understand the material they've been given.

Bridget Fonda's new roommate played by Jennifer Jason Leigh ends up getting a little too close for comfort when she steals more than her clothes and starts trying to steal her boyfriend and her entire life.

Single White Female has some predicable moments, but it's directed with style and has enough outlandish and insane plot beats to make you laugh and gasp. Fonda and Leigh are fantastic!

The reluctant member of a high school clique accidentally kills the leader of said clique with her new boyfriend and decides to make it look like a suicide which leads to all the kids at school thinking it's a cool idea to kill yourself.

Heathers is as dark as comedy can get and it has a lot to say in between Daniel Waters' hilarious zingers. Winona Ryder and Christian Slater are perfectly cast as the outlaw teenage couple.

A new girl at school discovers her latent supernatural abilities after befriending a trio of outcasts who practice witchcraft. Soon, they bite off more than they can chew and get drunk with their newfound power.

The ensemble cast of girls have believable and palpable chemistry together but it's Fairuza Balk's nutty Nancy that walks away with every scene she's in. Some of the computer effects fail to impress, but the film moves quickly and is a fun watch.

Reese Witherspoon delights as Tracy, a determined and overachieving high school student who's taking a student government election far too seriously. Matthew Broderick plays the teacher who's sick of kids like Tracy winning while he's stuck in a lousy job with an unhappy home life.

Election's script never dips too far into silliness like it could have and the characters, while oddball, never turn into cardboard cutouts or cliches. Not an easy feat and everyone involved should be commended.

Al Pacino plays a cop who goes undercover into the gay S&M scene in New York to catch a killer who's murdering men who resemble him.

The gritty early 80's New York sleaze is present and many of the murder scenes are harrowing and disturbing, but the film lacks suspense and takes a little too long to get to where it's going.

Katharine Isabelle and Emily Perkins have terrific chemistry as two goth sisters obsessed with death who are torn apart after a werewolf attack changes one of them into something unrecognizable.

Ginger Snaps uses teenage female hormones and bodily changes as a source for horror and does it with a great sense of humor and a lot of heart. The script is smart and funny and the acting is excellent. Mimi Rogers is great fun as Isabelle and Perkins' clueless mother.

The classic story of Sleeping Beauty gets the live action treatment with an interesting assortment of actors including Morgan Fairchild and Sylvia Miles, who steals the entire film as the wicked fairy.

It's well made in the technical sense and some of the songs are bouncy and fun, but the story feels overly padded in order to make it feature length and this kills the pacing at times.

Kathleen Turner plays a bored housewife who goes back into time after being knocked out at her class reunion and she gets a do-over of her teen years.

Turner is warm in the title role and the script is sweet, nostalgic, and full of heart. John Barry's gorgeous score hits just the right spot and can make you sob like a baby.

Rebecca De Mornay plays a recently widowed woman who experiences a miscarriage due to stress and decides to get revenge on the woman who she believes drove her husband to suicide. How does she do this? Well, by stealing her perfect family away from her of course.

De Mornay can go from warm and pleasant to icy and cold as ice with the raise of an eyebrow and it's hard to imagine anyone else playing this role but her.

Macaulay Culkin has a good time playing against type as a Bad Seed-esque character prone to causing massive pile ups on interstates, shooting dogs, and plotting to murder his younger sister because she's getting more attention than him. Elijah Wood plays his cousin who's come to live with him for a brief spell and who catches on to his evil ways before everyone else.

Culkin and Wood carry the film even when the script goes into predictable directions.

Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner play a married couple who are wildly in love...until they aren't. Once they decide to get divorced, they wage an all-out battle in some of the most insane ways you can imagine.

Douglas and Turner still have that unbeatable chemistry that made Romancing the Stone and Jewel of the Nile work so well and they appear to be having a field day being nasty to one another. The script is hilarious and one of the best "bad marriage" sagas since Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Cloris Leachman has a great time camping it up as the wicked witch who wants to devour poor Hansel and Gretel who have gotten lost in the woods and found her gingerbread house.

The production design is better than expected for a cheap Cannon film and the effects are charming. Some of the songs are easy to hum as well even if many of them were taken from the classic opera based on the story.

Sigourney Weaver gives dimension and depth to the classic character of the evil queen. She's less pure evil and more complicated this time around thanks to her brat of a stepdaughter who never even tries to warm up to her. It's no wonder that she snaps and tries to have the young girl killed.

The film's pace dips in the middle half and feels like some scenes were switched or re-edited in an odd way, but the finale is exciting and full of blood and fire.

John Waters skewers the court system, the media, and people who like Bill Cosby movies in the form of Beverly, a suburban housewife and mother who gets murderous impulses when someone does anything to harm her family.

Kathleen Turner delivers one of the finest and funniest performances and she's got great support from the rest of the cast who are just as game to do whatever insanity Waters throws their way.