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Crane_94
Reviews
Grease (1978)
Nostalgic Nostalgia Fest Maintains Its Superficial Bounce
It's hard to think of a bigger slice of 1970's Hollywood kitsch than this candy-coated, mega-successful 1978 musical comedy. Capitalizing on the tidal wave of Eisenhower-era nostalgia pervasive on both big and small screens at the time, it manages to be stridently artificial and mindlessly entertaining at the same time, although it still boggles the mind that it has had such an afterlife, including sing-along versions playing at art-house movie theaters. Part of the ironic amusement is watching actors obviously in their late twenties and early thirties pretending to be teenagers. Credit should be given to director Randal Kleiser for his unapologetic stance on maneuvering the contrived silliness with spirit if not much finesse. Set in a period of the 1950's that existed only in Hollywood and lacking any semblance of reality or dramatic conflict, the threadbare plot focuses on greaser Danny, the cool leader of the T-Birds, and wholesome Sandy, a good-girl Aussie blonde enjoying a summer romance on the beach prior to senior year at Rydell High. Sandy was supposed to move back to Australia, but she ends up staying stateside and attending Rydell. With image being of the utmost importance, Danny initially rejects Sandy - now a cheerleader - when they meet again, and we follow all their romantic complications over the course of the school year until graduation. There is also the ongoing power struggle between the T-Birds and the rival gang, the Scorpions, as well as the peer-pressure shenanigans caused by the T-Birds' girlfriends, the Pink Ladies, headed by sleep-around tart, Rizzo. All of this merely provides an excuse for the various musical numbers, the most energetic being the ensemble pieces like the cleverly edited "Summer Nights" and the stylized "Jailhouse Rock" knock-off, "Greased Lightning". Most of the numbers are from the Broadway show, though there are some deliberately anachronistic insertions such as Barry Gibb's disco-accented title tune and the peppy funhouse duet, "You're the One That I Want". John Travolta is perfectly cast as Danny, even if his singing voice threatens to evaporate from his sincerity. Olivia Newton-John has the right manner and looks for Sandy, though she is hardly challenged to develop a compelling character here. The standout is Stockard Channing as Rizzo, the only character that has any connection to the reality of the times, and she expertly sings the mocking "Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee" and frankly outdoes Newton-John on the touching "There Are Worse Things I Could Do". Several familiar faces fill out the cast - Eve Arden in Miss Brooks mode as Principal McGee, Sid Caesar rather constrained as Coach Calhoun, Joan Blondell equally pallid as malt shop waitress Vi, Edd Byrnes as a Dick Clark-type lothario, Alice Ghostley as the auto shop teacher, Dody Goodman as the ditzy school administrator, and of course, Frankie Avalon serenading "Beauty School Dropout" to squeaky-voiced Didi Conn's Frenchy. Serious examination of the film is useless since it is more a cheery variety show with superficial references to the sexual politics of the 1950's. The new 2006 "Rockin' Rydell Edition" DVD package comes with extras that should satisfy fans. There is an insightful commentary track by Kleiser and choreographer Patricia Birch; eleven minutes worth of deleted scenes in black-and-white; a nostalgic "Grease Day" featurette that contains interviews with Travolta, Newton-John and producers Allen Carr and Robert Stigwood; and coverage of the 25th Anniversary DVD launch party, which includes spirited performances by Newton-John, Travolta and the remaining cast.
Monsters, Inc. (2001)
Now this is what a family movie is all about...
Laughter, humor, a lesson to learn, an evil villain, a good guy, and his faithful sidekick. What more could you ask for in a movie? Oh, and there's even a romance! They have made a great show for family and kids alike, something that mom and dad can enjoy watching, but that the kids will find fun too. It teaches a lesson... good conquers evil, laughter and love and friendship is more powerful than evil, fear, and nastiness. Good friends stick together and help each other, and also that we shouldn't be scared of things simply because they are unknown to us. I think there is a subtle race/ethnicity lesson here too. The monsters are afraid of the humans... they say they are bad, evil, and can bring death and disaster. The monster leaders have made sure that all monsters know not to touch humans, because they are just BAD. But when one human child gets into the heart of a popular and well known monster, and the monster lives and is not hurt in anyway for caring for and touching and being friends with this human, the rest of the monster world learns a valuable lesson in that humans are bad just because they are human, and that a child's laughter is the most powerful force there is! Hummm, I think that's a pretty good lesson to learn right there!
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)
More Powers To Ya!
This is the second of three Austin Powers movies that have been released. It's basically a parody of the James Bond and Our Man Flint movies. If you've seen either or both of the other Powers movies, you know the storyline to this one: Austin (Mike Myers) is a secret agent (!) working to rid the world of its megalomaniacal nemesis Dr. Evil (Myers), who has various bizarre world domination machinations and is aided by Bond-style gizmos, a round table of dopey assistants, and other evil-doing secret agents (also Myers). Just think of a simple-minded Bond storyline and throw in '60s slang, haute couture, and bad teeth, with a heaping helping of potty jokes and double entendres, and a cast with the looks of the United Nations of Circus Freaks (with the thankful exception of the sexy female secret agents Powers partners with). Without the babes (Heather Graham, here--is it me, or do those eyes make her look like a doll? She makes me randy, baby. Yeah!... Oh, and there's a way-too-brief cameo by Rebecca Romijn-Stamos in this one.) and Dr. Evil's ever-changing schemes, these movies would be totally repetitious. Basically, since there's so little variation in these movies, this review could apply to all. I recently purchased this and after watching it (and having seen it at the theatre) I noticed how many jokes have been recycled throughout this series. If you've only seen the latest, Goldmember, you've seen many of the same jokes as the first two. Which is not all bad, but it does become somewhat predictable and tedious. Although, each of the movies does have its share of original jokes, many of which are downright hilarious and make the movies worthwhile. Kudos has to be given to Myers for his effort. He's hilarious and has an under-appreciated talent in playing so many distinct characters in the series. The Dr. Evil character, especially, is the one in which the actor disappears. He created the characters and has made a fortune from it. If you liked the others, you'll like this one. If you haven't seen the others and you like dumb plots, silly costumes and makeup, silly dancing, silly humour, double entendres, and potty jokes, (or if you're a 12 year old boy) you'll like this. Otherwise, get your shags elsewhere.
Brotherhood of Blood (2007)
too complex for comfort
granted, this movie has a very clever ending. yet the other 90% of it simply left me scratching my head. not that i can never think while watching a movie, but a movie this convoluted needs a map or something. The unnecessary complexities in the plot are mostly red herrings designed merely to confuse. But the casting I like. There's at least some good actors who can pull it off.
Well, at least the young directors showed precocious talent: *brotherhood of blood* cost a mere $100,000 to make but looks like it cost 5-times that figure. It's nice to see directors make the most of meager resources.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
wonderful movie, horrible DVD
i remember when i watched this movie in the movie theater. i loved it. definitely one of the best ones of the harry potter franchise. then, in Christmas, my parents gave me the widescreen DVD version of this film. in that time, i didn't liked the widescreen format, now i love it. but, since back then i didn't liked the widescreen format, i sold the widescreen DVD version i got, and i bought the fullscreen version later. that was one of the biggest mistakes i've made in my life. i mean, when you watch the movie, the picture quality is horrible!another thing is that,like, in one shot, harry potter might be talking to Professor Lupin, and you see harry but you don't see Professor Lupin! that's retarded! it looks as if harry was talking to himself! and, there's drizzle in the whole movie! warner bros. might have forgotten to clean the picture quality of this movie. the picture quality for this movie is surely of the worst I've seen in my life. another thing is that, in one scene, harry potter and rons dad are talking in the leaky cauldron, in the left down side of the screen you see a code or something like that. i think those things come in every DVD in history. im not sure what they are for, but in this movie, they are so easy to catch! so, overall, don't buy this fullscreen version. its such a wonderful movie and it is a real shame to watch it in such a horrible picture quality. even if you don't like widescreen pictures, still buy the widescreen version for this movie. you will find out that some buy black bars and a small picture are nothing compared to drizzle an sloppy camera angles.
Independence Day (1996)
popcorn flick
I really loved ID4. I wasn't expecting too much of a plot - what can you expect when a film is called Independence Day and features aliens invading Earth in giant spaceships? -. This thing is one hell of a ride. It contains some of the best massive destruction scenes ever filmed, but the development of the plot is kinda stupid and sometimes offensive - like the Empire State goof -. I went to see this wanting to watch great special effects and i got it. I only hope Emmerich and Devlin would hire an actual screenwriter next time they make a movie, The Patriot sucked. ID4 is NOT science fiction. SCI-FI contains some explanation of why things work the way they do, like in 2001. This movie boasts great fx and action sequences. The problem does lie with stereotypical characters. However the scenario of fighting back the apocalypse is something we can all root for. Even those who didn't like it must have had a slight feeling of pride while beating back the aliens. The actors were at the very least charismatic and charming, even if they were underdeveloped. Bottom line, this movie is great fun and holds up after repeated viewings.
Heat (1995)
An excellent and intelligent movie
The two leads, Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are dynamite. Pacino and De Niro have played plenty of cops and criminals in their respective careers and this would have to be a major highlight in their impressive filmographies. Al Pacino portrays Vincent Hanna as an intelligent, tough, no-nonsense, obsessive and relentless yet flawed character. Vincent might be a highly decorated cop, but he is so consumed with his work, that it takes its toll on his personal life. He has been divorced at least twice, his daughter is messed up, and his third wife is ready to divorce him. It shows that his job as a cop is his entire life. He's not the type of person to sit around all day. Robert De Niro's Neil McCauley is more restrained than his other characters in the past (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Cape Fear). Neil McCauley though a career criminal, isn't portrayed as such a bad guy. He is portrayed as a human being with a life. He too, has a personal life which is parallel with Vincent's. He is intelligent, precise, violent and private, though he is lonely and does not have any attachments in his life. The only friends he has are the other criminals he works with and the love interest in his life which plays a big part in the movie later. Val Kilmer is actually pretty good in his otherwise hit-and-miss career. Other supporting actors including Tom Sizemore, Jon Voight, Diane Venora, Amy Brenneman, Ashley Judd, Mykelti Williamson and Ted Levine are solid and this keeps the strength of the movie together.