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Are You Afraid of the Dark?: The Tale of Apartment 214 (1994)
Masterpiece
This is quite possibly the greatest ever episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark I just watched it again and I think I cried more this time than before! It is brilliantly written and breaks your heart. Interestingly, I think, as the other reviewer so astutely noted, this isn't really one of the "terrifying" episodes of the show and yet it is quite possibly the best. The other episode that I often think is the best is also one of the more moving, emotional episodes and that is The Tale of the Lonely Ghost, from season 1. Episodes like that and The Tale of Apartment 214 are as good as television gets and will be remembered for decades - I never forgot them as a kid growing up, and they still resonate with me as an adult. Also, once again, the show has a great twist! This show really knew how to do ghost stories, just ask the writer/director of The Sixth Sense, who stole the idea for his movie from this show (not this episode). People might think this was some random basic cable show, but the quality in this series is every bit as good as say, The Twilight Zone.
Stay Away, Joe (1968)
The title should have been, 'Stay Away, ALL!'
Some here have commented that this is the WORST Elvis movie ever made. Well, they are only partly right. For me, this IS THE WORST MOVIE EVER MADE PERIOD! I have never seen anything so basely crude, and insulting, and vile, and against human nature as this film. A true embarrassment to the Motion Picture Industry, this isn't even so Bad, its good. There is no campy trashy fun to be had here like in some of Elvis' other bad movies like Clambake. This one is so rotten to sit through its painful. Pure Garbage. Native Americans should sue for their poor clichéd and stereotypical treatment here. Actually, perhaps ALL Human Beings should sue for the crime and disservice this movie does to the species as a whole 0 Stars, seriously. Grade: F
Mazes and Monsters (1982)
I Loved IT!
I guess I am just weird, but I have seen this movie several times and I just treasure it. I just love how the 4 kids all become friends and play the game together. I always wanted to be in a gaming group like that. I also though Chris Makepeace was wonderful in the part, and that he acted with much enthusiasm and effusiveness. I loved the music even which some have put down and yes even the sappy love/friendship song.
I found it thoroughly involving and not an ANTI-Gaming movie. It is a coming of age movie about adolescence in my book, and it is more about the disconnect that a kids feel to their parents than anything else. The pressure that parents put on their kids to succeed as well is shown here as one of the key reasons that Tom Hanks snaps. The real attack is on parents who don't bother to get to know their children and what their kids want and need, but who are trying to run their kids lives by picking out their schools, friends, and jobs for them like Tom Hanks character's parents in this film.
If ya all weren't so busy snickering and making fun of this movie, you might have realized why Tom Hanks snaps and that it actually had nothing to do with the M & M game at all, and that he would have obviously snapped anyway due to how damaged he was from his overbearing parents (his mom is hinted at as a drunk and his brother ran away from home and his father is just one of them tough gruff bossy sonabitches who orders his son around).
Well I adore this movie anyway, and I found it both entertaining, funny, and moving.
Oliver Twist (1974)
Wonderful
I don't usually comment on movies here but since there is only one review up and it is so absolutely negative, I felt I had to respond. I saw this movie as a young child and have seen it many times since then and I have always loved it. It was my first introduction to the Oliver Twist story and I found it to be sweet and enchanting. I thought the animation was fine, quite good for the time, I certainly didn't find it 'flat' like the other reviewer said, I mean if he is comparing it to Disney masterpieces or Pixar, it certainly cant compete, but it certainly isn't a problem for you to enjoy the film.
I also found it hysterical at times! There was a lot of laugh aloud moments for me, particularly the kitchen fight with the cooks and Oliver. Talk about slapstick comedy! The music is also very good. I enjoyed all the songs as well. It was sorta reminiscent of Charlotte's Web in terms of style, you know the cartoon they did with the spider and the pig back in the '70s as well. It was incredibly moving at times as well. I shed a tear especially near the end when one of the main characters dies.
And I thought the frog that Oliver has as a pet was adorable! I think people can take things too seriously sometimes. The other reviewer was way off the mark. I certainly thought this was better than Madagascar which I just saw recently, which had a very weak story, and only so-so visuals if you ask me. This cartoon had Charles Dickens as a literary source and you can't get much better than that.