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CarrieSpicoli
Reviews
Tart (2001)
Way Too Many Loose Ends
If you're like me, a lover of the cast and/or indie films themselves, you might be able to sit through this film. But if you aren't a fan of either, and take an interest in this movie based on the cover and description, you'll most likely be disappointed. Even I wasn't exactly blown away, which is one of the first time's I can say that after viewing a film with Brad Renfro in it.
Tart tries to add some interesting sub-plots to the otherwise overused plot (awkward, unpopular teenager wants to change her life, joins new crowd, falls in love, new crowd and new boyfriend turn out to be bad people etc.) with things like Cat, the main characters (played by Dominique Swain), younger brother being a 9 year-old hypochondriac, Cat's father being Jewish (one of Cat's "new friends" is anti-semantic, another thing that just pops up out of nowhere then goes away) and all these other new girls among the popular crowd just kind of come on to the scene without a really good introduction (with the possible exception of Eloise, played by Lacey Chabert). Another problem is the lack of character development. One minute Cat is shy and set against doing any of the "bad stuff" the popular kids do, another she is at a ball with her love interest, William (Brad Renfro) suddenly getting, high, drunk, and losing her virginity. Everything after that film is sped up and not very thoroughly explained, like William suddenly starts rumors about her and leaves her, all the girls (who are basically all clones of each other, plus Mischa Barton with a British accent) stop talking to her, and suddenly there's about twenty minutes left of this film. How is everything going to be explained by then, you may wonder. well, it's not.
Instead, it just ends with Cat rekindling her friendship with Delilah (Bijou Phillips) her jagged, but one true friend who she ditched at the beginning of the film for the popular crowd, then it follows Delilah catching William in a compromising position with a man in the woods, and is soon after murdered for her remarks. I guess this was the director, Christina Wayne's attempt at a big "twist" ending, but instead it's just frustrating that the entire movie is wrapped up on that note, and the ending is just Cat having a loving moment with her mom, who she had spent the entire movie arguing with.
That being said, I could still bear to sit through this film again, but if you've seen just about any other works of Renfro, Phillips, or Swain, this doesn't compare.
The Sitter (2011)
Not Anywhere As Funny As Pineapple Express, Undeserving Of All The Hate
Jonah Hill (pre-weight loss) returns for one final comedy as an underdog fat guy, this time a suspended college student named Noah Griffith. Noah has his moments of being a complete douche, also set with his moments of being kind hearted and well-intentioned deep down, in this one of many "Babysitting Comedy".
The film lacks in the physical "It's funny because he's fat" type of humor Hill's characters have become notorious for ("Superbad", "Accepted", "Get Him To The Greek") however Noah's dark/dry sense of humor and one liners will more than likely give you a couple laughs (at one point he refers to Blithe, the beauty-queen obsessed eight going on 25 girl he is babysitting, as "Jon-Bene Ramsey") especially if you're a teenager/young adult and a fan of his work.
The kids, Slater (Max Reynolds), the awkwardly shy early teenager, Blithe (Landry Bender), see above for character description, and the mobster in training and arsonist, Rodrigo (Kevin Hernandez) all carry their own and in my opinion were good young actors, line delivery was believable, and each looked like they were having fun but all were able to provide touching, mature and vulnerable sides shaping their respective characters towards the end.
As for the plot, some complain this movie is a blatant rip-off of "Adventures in Babysitting". But in reality, what is an "Original" babysitting movie? Most are going to recycle the plot of a reluctant babysitter getting stuck in a series of mishaps having taking the kids out, it mostly depends on the film to provide you with the right amount of laughs and not completely obvious plot turns, which I think The Sitter just did.
If you're looking for a few laughs, I recommend this, if you're into most of David Gordon Green and/or Jonah Hill's other works the sense of humor is most likely for you.
Bully (2001)
You Can Only Push Someone So Far Until They Crack
Like another user commented before, Bully is Strangely a masterpiece. Centered around a good kid gone bad Marty (Brad Renfro)and Bobby (Nick Stahl), Marty's so called "Best- Friend", Bobby is a very mean, sociopathic person, as he cracks as soon as things don't go how he planned. Marty is basically his lapdog, he makes Marty dance with him at a gay bar, almost immediately ruins his chances with the very promiscuous and aimless Ali (Bijous Phillips) by making her watch gay porn while they have sex and when she doesn't want to he rapes her, and finally while on a more legal level, is just an all around asshole with no motive to Marty's girlfriend, Lisa (Rachel Miner)
The plot kicks off after a great amount of backstory and alredy a history of terrorizing all of the characters, Lisa says to Marty that he should stand up for himself, which leads Marty to tearfully admit that Bobby's brutalized him all his life, so Lisa says they should kill him. This is where I start to believe Lisa's character is about as psychotic as Bobby. Marty, though he already appears to be throwing his life away is one of the only characters you can feel for, and he knows this plan is more than likely flawed, but after countless attempts at getting his parents to move he wants Bobby out of his life any way possible (going to the police would have been an option, but they probably wouldn't have believed him. I wish they would have at least addressed this in the movie)
Enlisted on the killing are a couple more brain dead teens, Donnie, a druggie who sometimes seems to be placed for comic relief, played to perfection by Micheal Pitt, Mike steals every scene he's in especially the "It's not like he's gonna swim" or "Okay I stabbed him but only like this much" and so on, and his girlfriend, Heather, a rehab escapee, and came from a screwed up family. After there first attempt at killing Bobby fails, as Lisa get's cold feet, Donnie insists they get "professional help" as they hire a "hitman" (Derek I, played by "Kids" Leo Fitzpatrick) who's partners in crime are a bunch of 12 year- olds, and Lisa's fat cousin Derek II (Daniel Franzese), they get some more weapons, such as bats, knives, and aa baton. They decide they're ready again, and as they break into 2 groups they drive down to a swamp and they do kill Bobby, in a VERY brutal manner, kudos's to Brad Renfro, Nick Stahl, Micheal Pitt, and Kelli Garner especially. It becomes clear they are all in over their heads and even what they thought was thoroughly planned was still no where near solid, and soon enough Derek II decides he can't take it and turns everyone in. And in in a very touching -toward the end- scene, where Marty is arrested, and his brother, who Marty told to be good a few scenes before this, stares sadly as his brother is halled off to jail.
In the last scene, the 7 reunite in court and they begin the court case begins, and we find out that Heather got 7 years, fat guy got 11 years, Ali got 40 Years, Lisa got life, Hit-man got life, Donnie got life, and poor Marty got the death chair. Though that was their sentence in reality all the girls are out now, and Marty ended up living but he is in for life
Finally there is the major likes and dislikes of the film
Likes, the acting choices they chose for this film, everyone is perfect at their part, the hilarious one liners but Donnie and Heather, and the point that you can only push somebody so far until they crack. The writing is intense and the first time you see it you will be left thinking for hours, and want to learn more. A very naive group of teens these kids were, but a very interesting, multiple sides-to story they have created.
Dislikes- WAY too much sex, I'm not a prude but some of the scenes were pointless and not that hot, like anytime Marty and Lisa had sex. Lisa has boobs like a man. They seemed to just be adding time on to the movie.
Still, Larry Clarke is a great director, and I love his sad but true, gritty filmstyle.
R.I.P Brad Renfro.
The Bad News Bears (1976)
A busted bat and a long fly ball, any day now Durocher will call|!
The Bad News Bears is one of the biggest "Don't judge a book by it's cover" movies you'll ever see, yeah it's one of those "Team of Missfits Coming Together" kind of movies that you see all the time, but this one is different, it's the original, no predictable victories or Disney clichés'.
The movie is about an alcoholic low key unfriendly pool cleaner named Morris Buttermaker who is payed to coach a team of little leaguers after one of the kid's Dad sued the league for the right to play, the team is of course a team of underdogs, the kind of kids who you wouldn't want playing on your team in gym class; with Toby: The Nice guy who's gonna finish last Lupous, the shy one Tanner, the short- tempered, overbearing, runt Ahmad, the token black kid Engleberg, the fat kid Rudi Stein, the uncoordinated awkward guy Ogilvy, the smart one Jimmy, the curly top Jose and Miguel, the foreigners and Regi, the redhead with an overbearing sports Dad One thing I liked the best is that they give each kid a reasonable amount of screen time, some (Amanda, Kelly, Tanner,)more than others, but each a good amount, so you can know each member all pretty well, unlike most sports movies, where you only get to know a couple players, while the rest are pretty much extra's.
together, they do not make a good team, but after Buttermaker's ex- girlfriend's daughter, Amanda joins the team to prove to Buttermaker she can still pitch and the local bully "lone shark" (as Ahmad said), Kelly Leak joins the team to tick off the A$$hat Yankee's coach, Roy Turner, the Bear's eventually get their act together and become a great team, going to the championship (and losing), still think it's sounds boring? Trust me, it's not, it has just the right amount of physical and subtle humor with the right added drama and is -somewhat- realistic
to make a classic movie, heck, I had to almost literally drag my Mom to see this movie, and she liked it, so once again, just cause it's one of those movie's that has the most reused plots ever, doesn't mean it'll suck.
Breaking Away (1979)
Simply Amazing
This movie is truly an underrated classic and very deserving of 4 stars, it has a great cast, Daniel Christopher as Dave, who really did think he was Italian and someone we can all relate to when it comes to accomplishing out dreams but having something that holds you back, and his friends, a group of charming misfits, the kind've guys who seem nice but most people just pre- judge them as a bunch of freaks. The four make up every kind've person, Dave, the dreamer, Mike, the washed up one with many past regrets, Cyril, the silly one, and of course Moocher, the runt. Next we have Jackie Earle Haley of Bad News Bears fame (but you don't understand, that's Kelly Leak!) as Moocher, playing the only one you could actually consider normal in that four. Cryril, the silly one, but deep down you could sort've tell something in his life depressed him and he covered it by wisecracks and jokes at the worse times. And Dennis Quaid as Mike, he was a bit of an ass, but you can't help but feel sorry for him and all the mistakes he's made.
There are supposed coming of age stories all the time now, but this is a true one, there at the time where everyone is most confused, after graduation, the first big step in life. And they all stuck together. At the beginning, they are completely different from who they are at the end. There are also great yet subtle comedic bits (Cyril saying something about these two people getting together on a rock and rants on and on and Moocher just says "Their married now", when Dad says "I'm not papa I'm your god damn father!". When they run over the frisbe, etc.)
In general it's got the recipe for a perfect movie, great acting, realisticness, just the right bit of intensity added with a pinch of comedy.
Bad News Bears (2005)
Good For a Remake, but it Doesn't Come Close to the Original
The first time I saw a commercial for this, the first thought was "I hate it when classics are remade". But after awhile, I decided it may be worth seeing, so I rented it, it was better than I thought I'd give it that, it's not what I'd call great, but it's worth renting or seeing on TV.
One of the biggest minuses if hardly any of the kid's in this movie couldn't act their way out of a paper bag. The only kid's who were believable when it came to acting would be Tanner and Engleberg. The rest....sorry kiddies, but no cigar. Then of course there was this remake Kelly Leak, uhh correct me if I'm wrong but isn't Kelly supposed to be tough!?!?! What exactly is tough about this guy? The old Kelly smoked, got arrested (or at least in trouble)by the police, and he looked small and weak but obviously wasn't. Maybe the problem with this Kelly is the problem with most of the character's, COULDN'T ACT, he and the actress who played Amanda in this showed no emotion whatsoever when they talked example: at the Hooter Bar, Kelly- "What time do you get off work?" he said it nowhere near as cocky as Jackie Earle Haley (original Kelly)when he said "I have a Harly Davidson, a Harly Davidson, does that turn you on??"but when this Kelly said his line, he said it with no emotion, he actually sounded rather sad, this teaches you to never let kid's with no acting experience past auditions, it's like American Idol, you don't let them through if they can dance but need to learn to sing, they get through if they can sing and you teach them to dance.
But aside from all that, Billy Bob Thorton takes Walter Mathau's shoes greatly with his hilarious one- liners and natural tipsy- like acting. And even though the kid's can't act, they still made this movie pretty good.