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john-sweney
Reviews
Wiener-Dog (2016)
You cannot un-watch this film
This film is dark, depressing, sad, not-at-all-clever and you cannot un-watch the penultimate death scene. This is not a dog movie, the dog is merely a device to connect several unrelated vignettes: A cancer survivor boy with disconnected and delusional parents, a scattered lonely woman who hitches up with a drug-addicted acquaintance from grade school, a failed film school instructor who cannot sell a script or get beyond his own clichés, and a frail lonely bitter grandmother who is haunted by her regrets. How Danny deVito and Ellen Burstyn signed on is beyond me. Example: There is an endless dolly shot following a trail of diarrhea on the pavement. If you are a dog lover, or a wiener dog lover in particular and fall for the clever marketing of this film, you will be sorely disappointed, even permanently scarred. (Keep in mind, I thought Pulp Fiction was entertaining!)
Ain't No Way Back (1990)
Nice for Cambell Scott fans
Sort of like Brigadoon meets the Hatfields & McCoys... This is a ghost story and a romance story wrapped up in one, all set in the backwoods of God-Knows-Where. Cambell Scott stumbles upon a mysterious family embroiled in a feud, and -- this is not a spoiler -- falls in love with the beautiful daughter. (Florence Nightingale syndrome.) While no one would peg this as Oscar material, it is as nicely written and directed as any grade B movie. More importantly this is a must-have for any Campbell Scott fan, as it is probably his first starring role, released right before Longtime Companion. As of late 2007, this movie can be found at Amazon or on E-Bay for cheap.