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Reviews
A Face in the Crowd (1957)
They Meant Well
Yes, it has a good message--but this kind of message (the no subtlety kind) is best delivered by Western Union! A more complex central performance might have put it over, but Andy Griffith is the wrong man for the job. Not once in the movie could I see why the character became such a big star. Not once!
Score (1973)
A Non-Porn Porno Movie--What's the Point?!
Maybe this would be "hot" to someone who has never seen a movie or book with a sexual theme, but to me it was just a poorly-acted soft-core porno movie. There's bigger kicks waiting for you in the video store...in the curtained off area! The quality of acting is the same as porno, and the cast is actual 70s porno stars. On the plus side, the soundtrack is very how do you say groovy?
Freaky Friday (1976)
Hilarious, cheap, ridiculous--a 10!
I nearly busted a gut with this one. Barbara Harris is an especial treat, especially in the climatic waterskiing nail-biter! I wish I could be *her*...just for a day! It has interesting feminist implications and the heavily hinted-at subplot involving teen alcoholism is compellingly unexplained.
Empire Records (1995)
Quite the "stinker," it is!
Oh, where do I start? The acting is the best part...and it is poor. The script is nonsensical, and the characters' motivations change seemingly with the wind! It is obviously trying to get by on charm, but Empire Records has none! The soundtrack of bad mid-90s "rockers" such as Better Than Ezra and the Gin Blossoms doesn't really help things. No...it doesn't help things one bit!
Mame (1974)
A Disgrace!
"Mame" is a disgrace to many things--to Lucille Ball, to a story which has been told better many times over, and to the musical genre altogether. Ms. Ball does not understand her character at all and she seems to be heavily sedated. Bea Arthur is good, but it is not enough. The production is very shoddy and cheap looking, the songs are sub-par, and nearly every joke misfires. Also, Lucy couldn't dance well, so the music had to be slowed down to a funerial pace. Avoid at all costs, but DO see the delightful "Auntie Mame."
Contact (1997)
"A '2001' for the '90s!" is right
Several commenters here have described "Contact" as "a '2001' for the '90s!" and I would have to agree. Because like most other cultural products of this decade, it's a pale imitation of something meaningful from an earlier era.
In "Contact" a raft of fascinating, complex ideas are reduced to middlebrow drivel in the hands of the hack Zemeckis. Although the simpy music, the clueless dialogue, the moronic new age love interest (and his unrelenting "surprise" appearances) all kept us in stitches throughout, I doubt that was the intended response. Even Jodie Foster seemed uncomfortable in the enforced "naturalism" of her role.
I'd have much preferred seeing a "Contact" directed by Raul Ruiz or Michaelangelo Antonioni, with Lili Taylor as Ellie. Picture that!