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Reviews
Dirty War (2004)
Much more gritty than any Tom Clancy movie
Seeing this film brought back to me memories of 9/11. The first thing I remember of that morning was seeing TV pictures of an airplane flying into a large building, and my immediate thoughts "Must be a preview for a new Tom Clancy film".
This was not a Tom Clancy film. This was certainly not a British version of "The Sum Of All Fears". The typical Tom Clancy film or novel has a relatively small cast, a linear plot, and usually some sort of resolution. This film had neither. Sure, what I saw directly on screen was a small cast, a plot, and a vague resolution, but, like 9/11, the point was that reality was so much larger and more complex.
I work in systems planning, and the reality of the disaster preparation exercise, and the disaster itself, is painfully obvious. It's impossible to prepare for a disaster like this, nor will it be any more possible to deal with this when it happens.
From the argument between the police (Not enough is being done to prepare) and the politicians (Giving everybody on the tube a gasmask would cause panic), to the constant loudspeaker announcements (You are in no danger to your health, but don't go home before we decontaminate you), and (Don't eat, drink, or smoke before we decontaminate you), I was on edge during the entire film. Not the slightest urge to channel surf.
This film was 90 minutes in length. It could have been twice that, and still not shown all the possible details. Instead, it left enough unsaid to allow each of us to imagine the details, each of us in our own way. That made it so much more real to me, than any Tom Clancy film.
I lived in London once, and just off the Edgeware Road. And I took the train from Waterloo station many times. As I watched Dirty War, I kept telling myself that this is only fiction. Right now.
Allah and Jehovah willing, this film will remain fiction, and sometime in 20 or 30 years, my nephews may watch this film and remember the early 21st Century, and the panic we felt too much. Hopefully to the same degree as I feel currently, when viewing memorabilia of the Cold War with the Evil Communist Regime of the mid-20th Century, and remember "Drop and cover" exercises in school.
Angel Eyes (2001)
Sucky plot, but J-Lo is still watchable
"Will you hang up, and I'll call your machine..."
That scene was intended as either a "Dear John" or an apology message. Either way, it was a key moment in the story.
Yes, the whole move was cliched. Yes, the plot sucked and was predictable.
But I still enjoyed watching J-Lo. I think her performance here was at least as good as Wedding Planner - that one was just better written.
A definite 5 1/2.
Something Wild (1986)
A Road Movie - With A Twist
I really enjoy this movie whenever it comes on cable - for two reasons:
- I like watching Melanie (yeah the topless scene is great but there were better ones).
- I sorta identify with Charlie - I've spent my whole life looking for a lady like Lulu.
- Its fun watching Jeff and Ray too - in a movie from their early years. (OK, I think that was 3 - whatever -)
My favorite scenes?
- The first one where Lulu teaches Charlie how to defraud a cheap restaurant (no I don't do that but...)
- The scene where she throws his beeper out the window (I carried one for many years before I got a cell phone - let's not start discussing that...)
- The souvenior shop where Charlie buys a new wardrobe ("Charlie - attempt to be cool...").
- Charlie taking Lulu from Ray in the restaurant ("I'm taking Lulu - and you can't stop me...").
The whole thing was a long fantasy - but that's the type of Jonathan Demme movie that comes out the best. Very few guys like Charlie meet women like Lulu (Audrey!!).
So here's a question for the women - Did Ray help Audrey become Lulu (without realising it?) Or did Audrey turn into Lulu after she left Ray? (Either way you have to pity Ray - the bad guy who DIDN'T get the girl).
Mulholland Dr. (2001)
Its just a long dream sequence
I think its very simple - its just a long dream sequence. Like many long dreams, it shifts focus at odd times. Sometimes you remember a previous scene or character, other times scenes and characters just flow by randomly.
It sort of reminds me of the infrastructure of the Nightmare On Elm Street movies (not the plot, which was simple horror). Remember in NOES movie #2, somebody mentions another character as having lived thru the extreme horror of having her whole family murdered by a madman? That's seemingly a flashback to #1, EXCEPT that the family murdered subplot in #1 turned out to be just another dream scene (the final end of #1, if you recall, was with a bunch of the friends - all alive after 95% of the movie having just been revealed as a long dream - heading to school in a car thats just turning into a murder scene).
I remember a scholarly discussion about the whole NOES scenario - called the infinite dream - where you wake up to reality, only later to find out that you were still dreaming, when you wake up a second time. Then later you wake up again - and again - and again - each time into yet another dream.
In cases where dream scene #2 logically follows scene #1, you remember #1, but have no idea what's coming next. In cases where scene #2 logically precedes scene #1, you conversely know just what's coming next ("I've already had this dream!"), but have no idea of what just happened.
It doesn't have to make perfect sense. In a way, it's just like life. You take it one scene at a time - sometimes the scenes relate, sometimes they don't.
I'm definitely going to see this again. The next time will be harder - if I can't get my VCR working, I'll watch it IRT 1:00 in the morning.
Flight of Black Angel (1991)
Scary, and Very Realistic
Just enough details to make this seem very real, and very possible.
Makes you wonder about the military phrase "routine training exercise" used in actual news stories.
No breaks in the action - and no subplots. This is straight action from beginning to end. Well worth watching.
Dude, Where's My Car? (2000)
Screamingly Funny (Juvenile, moronic, deadpan humour)
Don't eat popcorn during the last 10 minutes of the film. I did, and almost choked from laughing.
If you like South Park, you'll love this film. Basically, if you took Eric, Kenny, Kyle, and Stan, moved them to LA, and waited 10 years or so, you'd end up with Chester and Jesse.
It's not as funny as the ads say (what film is?), but it is worth the time and money. Just don't take it (or yourself) too seriously.
It pokes fun at numerous victims, such as alien worshipping cults, aging ex hippies, dogs, fast food takeout driveup windows, various other Los Angelan phenomena.
And then?