Reviews

The reputation of "2010" as an inferior film is unfair, as viewed upon its own merits, it is really an exceptional film. The effects are great, the humanistic story is very solid, and acting is wonderful all-around. This is also a faithful rendition of the Clarke novel.

Compare "2010" to other hard sci-fi films of the past 30 years, and you'll probably realise this is one of the top ten during that period. Miles better than Moon or Sunshine or Intrastellar, Europa Report, or the Solaris remake.

While I still consider "2001" as the best sci-fi film of all time, "2010" is a very worthy sequel that manages to paid homage to the original while making the story more accessible. Not an easy feat, and kudos to Peter Hyams the director for doing such a great job!

Sofia Coppola did something magical with Virgin Suicides and Lost in Translation.

This film, however, is dull and conventional. There's Bill Murray playing a rich, perfect version of himself that everyone likes. He has a few fun scenes, but that's it. The story has nothing new to say and doesn't even have the wide-eyed magical glow of Lost in Translation to say it with.

On the Rocks is not a bad film. It's just very average, about marriage problems, so it gets an average score, and I guarantee you'll forget most everything about it soon after you watch it.

I had the pleasure of watching this film with live organ music at the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC on April 26, 2008. It was absolutely hilarious, just a great slapstick comedy in which an otherwise dull and ordinary professor suddenly finds himself escorting three different women to the same ritzy dance/dining hall. The film ends with a classic chase sequence in which everyone in the plot shows up angry and wants a piece of the professor! A young Reginald Denny plays the hapless professor and resembles a young Maurice Chevalier, who actually would have done pretty well in the part, too! If this delightful film ever makes it to DVD, be sure to check it out. It's at least as funny as Chaplin's The Circus or any number of Keaton features.

I saw this documentary on the Bombay Talkie DVD released by Home Vision. Of course, HV is out of business now, so tracking down this DVD and documentary might be a bit difficult. However, the documentary is quite fun, much more so than the actual film.

The focus is on Helen, suppposedly a very famous Bollywood dancer who has appeared in hundreds and hundreds of Bollywood films. Most of these appearances were musical numbers, and a few of them are offered in this documentary. Quite a lot of fun to watch, and that's saying something, considering how I don't really like Bollywood. The documentary was made in the early 70's when Helen was still in her prime, so her interviews and the film clips go well, hand-in-hand. Check it out if you find it.

I caught this film on TCM a few nights back. Wasn't sure what to expect, but I was totally floored. It's a silhouette animated film, as opposed to cel animation like Snow White, but it shows incredible craftsmanship and detail. The music is awesome, too! Very stirring, very evocative of a classical score rather than a typical movie score.

The story is based on parts of The Arabian Nights, I presume (act 4 is devoted to Aladdin and the Magic Lamp). This film is far superior to the Disney Aladdin a few years back, no contest. The story is about a Prince who falls in love with a magical princess and has to go through a series of trials to win her. In his way are an evil sorcerer, a magical gate, and hordes of dark creatures. The film isn't too long (just over one hour), but it is thrilling from start to finish. I don't know if it's available on DVD, but it's absolutely worth catching (and definitely recording!) on TV. TCM is the best bet to find it.

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle is the last of the 9 RKO musicals Astaire did with Rogers. However, from a story point-of-view, it is their best film by a mile. The contest isn't even close, IMO.

It's not their best musical. This film is really a drama with a few musical interludes, whereas most of the other Astaire-Rogers films were musical comedies. Those other films had flimsy plots at best and were saved only by their songs and dances. BUT - "Vernon and Irene" could easily stands alone without any songs or dances. It even has some action sequences as is typical of war-time films (WWI, in this case).

The film is a bio-pic about the Castles, who in their heyday were even bigger than Astaire and Rogers. The choreography is more attuned to 1910's sensibilities than the usual Astaire and Rogers film, but that's okay. Astaire and Rogers dance just well as always.

As the dancing duo's last RKO film, V&C is quite classy and a fine close to a great RKO dancing career for the two.

Howdy.

I really wasn't expecting much from this film. Borrowed it from my local library for a dark night. Yeah, the budget is way down there, the acting is uneven, but I was actually drawn in by the plot. I bet with a bigger budget, better film stock, better lighting, this could have been a really cool mainstream movie. It wouldn't have won any awards for originality, but it would have been entertaining enough for a couple of hours of chills.

I wouldn't bother buying it, but if you can find a copy to borrow or rent, it's actually pretty okay. I'd say 5.5/10.

Ed

Wow. What a tremendously moving film! I found this film on sale at a local video store and decided to buy it on a whim. Then, I proceeded to watch it like 10 tens over 4 days! That's not an exaggeration, either. I was completely awestruck by how moving and inspirational this film is! There is a real sense of love and communion in this film. The folk tunes are haunting and really help to establish the film's atmosphere. This film was released in 1972, so it feels at times a product of the flower generation, but it is such a joyous film that I cannot stop watching it.

My favorite religious "musical" used to be Godspell (great songs, funny humor), but maybe Brother Sun, Sister Moon is my favorite now, although it is not strictly a musical but rather a dramatic film with many incidental songs or chants.

Anyways, you must check out this film! You will NOT regret it! Ed

This is a typical samurai film. The masked daughter of the Shogun wants to kill a samurai who has seen her scarred face. I guess she's a little self-conscious about her appearance. Anyways, she sends waves of ninja warriors to kill the samurai and plots diabolical schemes / ambushes without much success.

This film is apparently part of a series featuring the same samurai character. The masked princess also featured in the 4th film of the series, so this is sort of a revenge film.

The film is okay, although production values are a little low, and the fight scenes are merely average. Still, if you like serial-type films or samurai films, this is good for a couple of hours of entertainment.

This is a terrible movie. Utter junk. Absolutely dreadful. Jack Black was funny in School of Rock, but he's collared in this dog of a film. And Ben Stiller! Excuse me, but does this guy even know how to act? He essentially plays this same neurotic, manic, bad-tempered jerk in every single movie he's in! It's incredible - he's just a Johnny One Note, and that note is a flat one.

Christopher Walken is a bit goofy and off-beat, but he's always like that. Rachel Weisz looks pretty but is poorly used in this film. And WHAT was director Barry Levinson thinking? Was he sniffing too much of that Va-POO-rize? Levinson used to be a decent director, but this film was just plain bad.

Good grief, folks, please don't waste your time with this film. If you're a Ben Stiller fan, see The Royal Tenenbaums or something. At least that's a funny film. Or, if you like Jack Black, save a couple of bucks for King Kong or something.

I borrowed this movie on DVD from a friend, but if it were my disc, I'd already be using it as a frisbee for a pet dog. Woof.

Well, this was just about the last of the Abbott and Costello films for Universal. It's also quite a funny film, not quite as funny as A+C Meet Frankenstein but pretty good stuff.

This time, the boys get mixed up with a sacred medallion that belongs with a mummy that supposedly guards a large cache of treasure. There are gold-diggers after the boys, and then the guardians of the mummy and the medallion are after them, too. As you can imagine, there are a bunch of chase scenes in this film, including a hilarious sequence at the end involving three(!) mummies!

This film isn't meant to be scary, and the mummy is pretty much played for laughs. Abbott and Costello are as funny as ever, giving us variations on their "Who's on First" routine (this time with a shovel and pickax) and the food-switching gag that appeared in Pardon My Sarong. Plus, it wouldn't be an Abbott/Costello film without at least one throwback big band musical number (it's a nice one, too).

I'd rate this one 6/10. It's clean fun from a more innocent time.

I was a little surprised to see Gene Kelly in this WWII drama. The film is one long flashback. It's not bad, but nothing out of the ordinary. If you like WWII propaganda films, this is decent. The story is about a lawyer with some personal problems and how he ends up in the services as a pilot. It's more drama than war film. The plot is a bit sappy at times and just generic, war hero stuff, but if that's your cup of tea, you'll like it just fine. The flashback portions remind me a bit of the Mel Gibson/Sissy Spacek film "The River."

Gene Kelly only has a supporting role and no, this is not a musical. The performances are generally quite good all around.