Reviews
Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957)
Always enjoy watching this flick
Only one problem with the plot, though. At one point Allison and the nun watch a huge naval battle from a distance, where American and Japanese battleships are slugging it out. Great effect, but this never happened in WWII.
Wing Commander (1999)
Remember Starship Troopers? It's not that good...
The battle scenes in Wing Commander are quite good. The problem is all the time in between. Not strong on plot, characters, or logic. My 12 year old son liked it, so there you go.
Funny Farm (1988)
Irritating is not the same as funny
What a predictable, stupid, weary story. You'd think Chevy Chase would have rated better writers.
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
I was strangely unmoved by it all
Not a bad flick as Trek goes, but there were a number of troubling points. The humans on the Briar Patch planet had been there for over 300 years, but there were only 600 of them? How can this be? We saw children in the village. Did they thin the herd every few generations? And just what was the motivation of the younger ones who went off into space? Why did they develop such a hatred for their own people? How did they manage to build such huge, powerful starships by themselves with no industrial base, heavy machinery, or factories? The movie had its moments, but I thought the story was the weak link.
Meet Joe Black (1998)
Great movie, although deathly slow at times.
My girlfriend had to talk me into seeing this one, and I'm glad she did. The movie was much better than I expected, although I initially was put off by the three hour running time. Well written and acted, although it had more pregnant pauses than a yard full of hesitant rabbits. I often felt like walking up to the actors and yelling, "Say it! Say it!" Lots of shots of people looking into each other's eyes. Nevertheless, a good flick.
The Cable Guy (1996)
Say it ain't so, Jim
When asked to list my favorite and least favorite movies of all time, I use a different criteria than most. If a movie succeeds at what it was meant to do, it's a good flick. That's why (IMHO) ID4 was a good movie, and so is Plan 9 from Outer Space. Both did exactly what their creators meant them to do. That's why Cable Guy is on my list of worst movies. It had all the ingredients of a good movie, including two of my favorite actors, and it fell far short of what it should have been. Stupid is not the same as funny.
Mad Max (1979)
It looks like Mel but doesn't sound like Mel!
Why was this movie dubbed? They did a good job, but I generally don't have any problem understanding Aussie. In fact, I love what they do to our language! Anyway, I caught this flick only a few days ago for the first time. I didn't realize until recently that there was a movie before The Road Warrior, since that was the first one I saw. The mayhem, the cars, Oh, The Humanity! It's all here. Makes me want to book a walkabout to The Alice.
Titanic: Adventure Out of Time (1996)
Rich and complex, many different possible endings
This is a game you can really immerse (whoops) yourself in. The story, like the Cameron movie, is fictional, set on the factual Titanic. You have the chance to change history, but beware! You may unwittingly make things worse! The two CD set also features a walk-around only scenario. After playing the game awhile, you really get to know your way around the Titanic. Not all of the interior is authentic, (you *couldn't* really climb up the fake stack on the real Titanic!) but it's close enough to make the past live again. Pay attention and take *lots* of notes! No conversation with the many guests on board is pointless.
Godzilla (1998)
Get a grip, people! It's not Kurosawa!
Okay, so here's the deal. You know the movie is about a bipedal marine iguana that smashes skyscrapers in New York. You've seen the low budget Japaneese original. You know the drill. You got what you expected! I enjoyed this movie. I didn't expect much in the way of plot and dialog, and I wasn't disappointed. I agree that the acting could have been much better. I agree the plot could have been better. And, yes, the casting didn't work. I just kept seeing Ferris Buhler! That having been said, just don't vapor lock on me, it's not Kurosawa, it's Godzilla!
Deep Impact (1998)
Expected great SPFX, great story a plus.
You don't expect a disaster flick to have heart. You don't expect believable characters who you care about. You expect boffo special effects. Deep Impact gives you both. Far superior to Armageddon, (which did much better at the box office) there is very little here to nitpick. Most of the science worked (as opposed to Armageddon) and the movie managed to be thoughtful and touching as well. It forced you to think about what you would do if you had to choose between your family and life. In no way superficial, DI is a great movie, IMHO.
Le Cinquième Élément (1997)
Quirky and cool, not your typical Hollywood flick.
This is one of my favorite flicks. It's not typical Hollywood cookie-cutter fare. Cool music, interesting and strange aliens, and original and rememberable characters. They didn't spend a trillion dollars on SPFX, but that's okay. This was not a movie written by committee. It was obviously one person's vision where the studio did not butt in and screw it up. It helps that Bruce Willis is one of my favorite actors, but the supporting cast was excellent as well. Like Blade Runner, it wasn't a box office cash cow, but again, that's okay. True Science Fiction fans are used to being lonely.