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jwalkernot
Reviews
Finding Forrester (2000)
Van Sant Can Do Better
This bland film does a few things right, but it flounders on stereotyped characters, predictable situations, and a relentlessly phony climax. The movie purports to be about writing, but that's really the MacGuffin: The one time we actually get to hear words written by either of the two lead characters, the soundtrack quickly fades and we get a montage of people responding to the words in place of hearing the actual writing itself. (I guess the screenwriter decided that it would be safer to show us everyone responding this way than to try writing something that would provoke such a response in the film's actual viewers.) Meanwhile, Sean Connery's character periodically provides sage advice on writing to his young friend -- advice like "POUND the keys! POUND the keys!" Ishmael Reed once said that writin' is fightin', but this is ridiculous.
Mermaid Chronicles Part 1: She Creature (2001)
Surprisingly Good
I stumbled on *She Creature* by accident -- it was starting on HBO as I put in a videotape, and I got hooked before I got around to hitting play. It's a mermaid movie, but one with far more in common with *Alien* than with *Splash* -- an effectively made low-budget horror picture that exploits all sorts of our anxieties to chilling effect.