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Movie

Date Reviewed

A Simple Wish

7/14/97

Addicted to Love

5/27/97

Air Force One

7/28/97

Anaconda

4/22/97

Austin Powers

5/8/97

Batman ad Nauseum

6/23/97

Brassed Off

6/16/97

Breakdown

5/19/97

Cats Don't Dance

5/19/97

Chasing Amy

4/22/97

Con Air

6/9/97

Contact

7/14/97

The Devil's Own

4/8/97

Face/Off

6/30/97

The Fifth Element

5/12/97

George of the Jungle

7/21/97

Gone Fishin'

6/20/97

Grosse Pointe Blank

4/8/97

Hercules

7/9/97

The Hudsucker Proxy - Video pick

4/24/97

Inventing the Abbotts

5/19/97

Liar Liar

3/25/97

The Lost World - Jurassic Park

5/23/97

Men in Black

7/9/97

My Best Friend's Wedding

6/23/97

Operation Condor

7/22/97

Pin Gods

5/22/97

Romy & Michelle's H.S. Reunion

4/30/97

The Saint

5/2/97

Speed 2

6/16/97

Volcano (and some Dante's Peak)

5/5/97

Young Frankenstein - Rental

7/1/97

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Movie Reviews

7/14/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
A Simple Wish	Matinee or Rental

This is a film for children - adults on their own will find the jokes predictable and even a little old - however, we must not forget that kids have never heard these jokes before. The kids all around me this Sunday matinee were laughing and giggling at Martin Short's antics - he definitely was channeling a little Danny Kaye. If you know me at all, you know that is a high compliment - I mean, he is not Danny Kaye's heir to the silly children's jester throne, but he was really as close as Hollywood will let anyone get. Mara Wilson is - guess what? adorable as the one making the wish. The movie is crawling with Oscar nominees too - generally in scenes together and everything - Kathleen Turner, Teri Garr, and Amada Plummer (not sure if nominated ever but she should be). There are cute fairy godmothers and wicked witches and adventure and lessons to be learned. A great deal of work went into this movie - it would be a shame if no one ever saw it. But see it with a child, certainly. Robert Pastorelli is a different kind of dad, the wish is a different kind of wish, and this is an infinitely better children's movie than Wild America or Space Jam (shudder). The production designers and camera people did some really clever things - and there is a fake Broadway show in it that is a soooooo very perfect stab at that institution. It's not brilliant or for adults, but it's a nice, pleasant movie you can pretend to be eight years old with. Catch a matinee or rent it, depending on your tastes. But only with a kid. Otherwise, don't worry about it. :) karina

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5/27/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Addicted to Love	Full Price Feature

Addicted to Love is an offbeat romantic comedy about revenge, voyeurism, the nature of love, and what makes one feel complete. Maggie (Meg Ryan) is an off-putting loony you can't help but like, and Sam (Matthew Broderick) is a guy who, post-dump, wants to regain what he thinks he's lost. Their interaction throughout the movie, while interssting in and of itself, wouldn't amount to a hill of beans without their exes - played by Kelly Preston and (the french guy). While having their former lovers under surveillance, Sam & Maggie interact deeply and honestly yet ignore their actual camaraderie for the false but fascinating one they create with their exes. The movie is filled with really innovative shots and use of light, both in the actual making of the movie and within the plot. I don't want to give anything away, but the shot with the paint roller is my favorite in a long time. Pre-release press has stirred low expectations for this movie and I truly hope everyone ignores it. The situations may be unusual, but all the characters behave and react with utter loyalty to the internal logic of the world freshman director Griffin Dunne has created. It's funny and engaging, full of genuine honesty cleverly edited into a satisfying tale. There are so many oportunities for this movie to make the wrong choices and I was overjoyed that those pitfalls were avoided. The audience seemed delighted, but not in that soft-focus warm fuzzy delight, but by the sheer pleasure of watching an interesting story unfold. In this summer filled with gorgeous vapidity (as all summers tend to be), Addicted to Love will leave you sated.

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7/28/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Air Force One	Full Price Feature with Popcorn

All I can say is, I'm voting for Harrison Ford! Ok, it's not ALL I can say. It was butt-kicking! I bit off all my nails and I really didn't know what was going to happen next. As Kevin put it, it is the best permutation of Die-Hard-On-A-Plane we've seen in a long time - it was less gung- ho macho silly than Executive Decision, but with all the cool bang em up stuff and innovative good guys and human interest moments. It's not as explosive as Con-Air but not such a stretch from a motivational point of view. Even as Harrison dangles in danger, we know in our hearts he will win because he's Harrison Ford and he is the Prez, but we also have no idea how or if maybe this once, he won't! Pres. Marshall is canny, though, and we love him for it. I saw this with a number of friends, only one of which had his BS-O-Meter going off, which disappointed me. He found it to be silly and improbable - but do you go to movies to see the paperboy arrive every morning at 6:30 or do you go to see the paperboy eaten by a dinosaur? Which is a more interesting movie? Terrorism happens all the time in real life and every time you think, my god, how could this happen? It seems unreal. Why should this situation seem real and mundane? They hijacked AFO!!!! An article in Entertainment Weekly detailed the could-have-happeneds and could-not-have-happends from the film and many of the things my friend complained about could have happened, they just haven't happened in real life so far. Other ones were normal Hollywood stretches that made some exciting movie moments - it was great the way information was handled in this screenplay. Some stuff we have no way of knowing if it could happen or not thanks to the classified nature of the most bad-ass flying fortress in the world. If you don't know the premise, the president and a pile of other people are taken hostage on board Air Force One, the top of the top of security and protectiveness in the world. It's the most classified flying document in the world too, so it was difficult for the production team to know what was REALLY possible and what was not...as one of the producers said, you can't just call up the Secret Service and say, "If I were a terrorist trying to hijack Air Force One, how would I go about it?" Harrison Ford IS the President of the United States, trumpet the print ads, and he really is - he is a mite altruistic for a president who would be elected in this day and age, but by gum, you believe him. Bill Clinton understandably LOVES this flick - I know I would dig a movie about someone with my job kicking some serious butt in the name of what's right and to protect my family. Lots of great tension, groovy visual effects, and Gary Oldman's surprisingly human bad guy. You *know* he's the bad guy the moment he walks on screen, and you might wonder that the Secret Service men don't think, man, he looks like trouble, but he is both more evil and less evil than we would expect from a summer action blockbuster. Non-action movie fans will enjoy it, patriots will enjoy it, and Harrison Ford fans will enjoy it. It's fun and exciting and ohmygod ohnonono! Go see it and much down - I believe this guy will get re-elected! Get your full price tickets and board Air Force One! karina

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4/22/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Anaconda	Avoid at all Costs

OK, I didn't expect this to be the next Alien or anything, but my GOD. I at least hoped to see some really cool snake effects or maybe be able to tell the salivating hordes out there that there was some bare female flesh. Neither exist. There is an embarrassing acting turn from Oscar Winner Jon Voight (I should have been worried when he got thrid billing to Ice Cube), an equally useless performance by Oscar nominee Eric Stoltz, and some truly stupid dialogue from start to finish. To be completely fair, the locations were lovely real rain forests and the camera work was actually quite good. BUT THIS MOVIE BIT THE WANKER AND IT HAS BEEN #1 IN THE BOX OFFICE FOR TWO WEEKS RUNNING. Will wonders ever cease. Save your money and rent Living in Oblivion instead. Or SSSSSSS - at least that's a funny snake movie. Avoid Anaconda. If you can't breathe, you can't scream is the tag line. If you can't leave, you can't respect yourself. yuck. ugh. bleagh. ick. phooey. yarg. hork. shemp.

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5/8/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Austin Powers	This film is not yet rated

Last night I saw Austin Powers with some other people and I can say that our opinions were mixed; so mixed in fact that I am inviting my counterpart, Kevin, to review this movie with me, because I don't think one person's biased opinion will be enough for this Mike Meyers vehicle. Since it's my mailing list, however, I will go first. MIKE MYERS IS AN ATTENTION-STARVED WHINYBOY. That said, I will concede that there were elements of this movie that were enjoyable for me, but not enough to make a feature film. Gags I would have liked went on too long in new SNL style. Funny parts were quickly shunted off in favor of Myers preening and mugging and being so proud of his icky naked body. The 60's flavor was pretty accurately captured by the production team, including all the things that made 60's movies so stupid, like meaningless cutaways to go-go dancers. If this were an episode of the Simpsons, reasoned Kevin, I would have been rolling on the floor. Perhaps; but the Simpsons would have done this as a parody of 60's spy movies. This is a 90's spy movie that stars a villian and hero actually from the 60's, a la the Brady Bunch movies - it's not a parody, it's a fish out of water comedy, with a splash of homage to it. And that is why it doesn't work. It felt like a recent Mel Brooks movie - all the lessy funny and more sad because of how funny it *could* have been. Some great cameos helped, and I did generally like Myers' turn as Dr. Evil - if he had gotten someone funny (or at least not as in love with himself) to play Austin Powers it would have been even better. But Myers love for himself is expressed by looking pleadingly at the camera after every mug and twitch and "yeahhh, baby!" as if to say, 'That was funny, right, you think I'm funny?" At least Jim Carrey doesn't care if you are watching him or liking him,he just goes for broke. Even gags of Jim's that don't work are less annoying due to their honesty. Big huge kudos for the production design team - there are some great looking clothes and props and so forth in this mess. But, if you still think SNL is funny, by all means, run out and pay full price. I was given a ticket and I still wish I'd stayed home to watch NewsRadio. Kevin on the other hand, laughed himself into choking fits. Here's what he has to say: It's groovy, baby! Don't let this square babe lead you astray. Austin Powers is silly, stupid fun. Granted, it helps to be a fan of Mike Myers (especially since he plays two roles and seems to be naked much of the time), but this send-up of the sixties and spy movies hits most of its targets perfectly. Think of it as Laugh-In meets James Bond meets the 1990's. Some of the jokes are lame (often intentionally so), some gags go on a bit too long, but I found myself laughing quite loudly throughout this movie, and I'm not ashamed to admit it (even though Karina was threatening to break up with me the whole time). Best of all, despite being a product of a Saturday Night Live alumnus, the whole movie is relatively free of tedious SNL cameos (there's only one, and he's actually pretty funny). Check it out, baby! It's shagadelic! You be the judge. But don't blame me if you pay good money for this and hate it! karina

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6/23/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Batman ad Nauseum	Avoid at All Costs

6 butt shots. 5 crotch shots. Infinite chest shots. Stupid stupid stupid! Oh, if only watching this movie was like mixing liquor and beer - at least I could have thrown it up. OK. Um, good points....nice Gotham City architecture left over from Batman Forever. Uhhhh...Mr. Freeze's makeup is very cool - even with a blue light in his mouth. Poor George Clooney, trying to inject some ER-quality heart into a few scenes with Alfred but just getting squashed by all the inane, whiny loud, boring, nonsensical crap. The sparsely occupied theatre was hooting at all the incredibly pathetic one-liners that a fourth grader would roll his eyes at. Sid and Marty Kroft style sound effects - seriously - bad guy goes flying (and there is plenty of way-too-high, way-too-far flying around of bad guys) WHOOSH! Bad guys lands on his fanny, a la Sigmund the Sea Monster, and bdoooiiiinng! YAWN! says the audience. BOO says the cow. The $200 million used to torment me last night could have been distributed among the needy upstart filmmakers all over America. Or sent to Africa to feed the entire continent for a year. No storyline to speak of. Why were Elle McPherson and Vivca A. Fox in this movie? They didn't do anything. Vendela was suspended in a jar, she might as well have been some lovely extra from the enormous pool of non-working actors. Heroes dangling in a seemingly unsavable situation - then cut to them chatting and relaxed at home. Um, I guess they escaped! I walked into that theatre with EXTREMELY low expectations, I was embarassed to tell a coworker I saw in the lobby what I was there to see (until he said he was also seeing it, "under duress"), and I am bitter that my duty to protect you, my readers, from wasting money, forced me to see this dreck. Did I mention that I was disappointed by this movie? Noisy ready-to-sell alternarock soundtrack, whiny Chris O'Donnell, uninteresting and unfinished plot involving Alicia Silverstone, not enough bad guys doing bad things, but plenty of bad guys talking about all the bad things they were going to do. I actually didn't notice when one of them was caught (ooh gave it away, oops!) and still I don't know how it happened. Bane was funny. But even a piece of asbestos looks pretty in a pile of vomited barbeque. Rent something, go see an art film, a movie you have seen before, just don't see this. Unless you like sickening car accidents.

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6/16/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Brassed Off	Full Price Feature!

Brassed Off is a tiny little British movie about the coal mining town of Grimley, the Tory party's coal mine closures, and the Colliery Band trembling on the edge of packing it all in. It may not sound like much, but it was a wonderful movie - "Pete Postlethwaite's best film this summer!" Pete Postlethwaite is really amazing as the colliery band leader - emotions track across his cheekboned face leaving deep footprints. Ewan McGregor (you know, Trainspotting alum turned young Obi-Wan Kenobi) is similarly translucent - if the sound had cut out of the film, we still would have known exactly what was going on, just by watching him and Pete. Steven Thompkinson plays Postlethwaite's son, a man in a terrible position in town, with more layers than an onion. Tara Fitzgerald is fine as Gloria, the Grimley native who is an outsider as well. My writing skills are insufficient in such a brief medium and without giving away plot points to fullt recommend this film. I don't know much about Tory/Whig British politics or the Margaret Thatcher detractions, but the plight of these desperate miners does not need to have a political background to have power. Brassed Off has a great deal of comedy as well, and at the beginning I would have descibed it as "sweetly funny," but then the movie becomes much more than a catch phrase. You dialect hounds out there will fancy the Yorkshire sounds and music fans will love the band's performances. The cast is filled with comfortable, real faces and viscerally real performances. Please go see it! Pay full price! karina

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5/19/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Breakdown	Full Price Feature

I was hesitant about this movie because I don't really like Kurt Russell all that much; but I was very entertained and tense and it was all quite unnerving. The short version: Kurt Russell and Kathleen Quinlan are driving across country, break down, and she takes off with a trucker to get help - then, when Kurt starts poking around, no one knows anything and then the real excitement starts. The previews tell you this much and I will tell you no more, because the fun is watching all the other stuff unfold. But it is very tense and exciting and I believe that the things his character were doing to try and recover his wife were just what any guy would do. No super-heroics or part military training required, just a jolt of survival instinct and a little luck, and the fact that is was an everyman kind of guy going through all this made it all the more exciting. Some superstud ex-Marine type wouldn't be as potentially fallible, as seat-of-your-pants, and that is what made this movie work. The bad guys are scary in a real, hick town looney kind of way rather than some seething Übervillain kind of way, and that makes this movie work too. The music is evocative of creepy, wide open spaces and the death that awaits you there. It's a cool flick, with a good story, and it's worth paying full price. And I never say that about Kurt Russell movies. For the opposite type of vehicle, try renting Executive Decision for contrast. karina

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5/19/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Cats Don't Dance	Definite Rental (it's gone from theatres)

To head off any commentary: I like animated movies, and I am 27 years old. I too thought this was some stupid-looking knockoff when I first became aware of it. On with the review. My friend Tom, who is an animator by trade, recommended this movie to me, and I generally trust his movie-going instincts. Now, it's no Toy Story, nor is it Meet The Feebles, but it is actually quite entertaining, very well executed, and interesting. On some scenes I thought, "There is no way a kid could catch all these jokes" - there are scads of adult jokes and plenty of kid friendly ones too, but nothing so lame as anything in the ABC prime time lineup. The music (by Randy Newman, the man who ruined Toy Story for me) was nice and toe-tapping, the artwork was really very interesting - if you suffered through Space Jam, you HAVE to see this movie just to restore your faith in animated physical comedy. What Warner Brothers *used* to be, in their finest moments, Cats Don't Dance comes close enough. It's about a tabby named Danny (voiced by Scott Bakula - oh boy. But he can sing!) who comes to Hollywood in the 40's with a dream to be in the movies - only Hollywood would never let an animal perform song and dance. He meets up with a bunch of other animals who tell him to give up, and basically talks them out of their bad attitude and everybody's happy. One of the best parts of the film is the villain, a Shirley Temple-meets-Joan Crawford child star with a giant ape of a manservant, Max - who is really really really funny. She is everything bad about Hollywood and she's great. It's really very true to the old school of Warner Toons (it's a Warner Picture, as well!) and for all you out there in the dark who are still mad at how Bugs Bunny has ruined his formerly cool image, I think you will appreciate it. I did. The kids in the audience really liked it too - they were quiet, but I heard one say, "Can we see it again!!!!!" and another clapped and clapped. For you fuddy duddies out there who think cartoons are for kids, I don't know when the last time you saw a cartoon was, but movie cartoons have never been for kids. Classic Bugs Bunny shorts were made for adults and the 90's wave of Disney treasures, while marketed for kids, are definitely adult-savvy. Drop your "I'm too old for this nonsense" façade and go enjoy yourself. Movie musicals are practically dead except in animated form, and really, after all the live-action dreck that passes for cinema these days, you will appreciate the thought, planning and care that goes into these films. Animation is not just Scooby Doo! Space Jam is a painful exception, made by fuddy duddies who think animation is for kids. Do NOT see Space Jam. I would be overjoyed to make you a list of the good ones. karina

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4/22/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Chasing Amy	Matinee Price or Full Price

Any of you who are familiar with Kevin Smith (the working director, not Kevin Smith, locally known as my boyfriend) and his work will find Chasing Amy to be his best produced film to date. It's fun and infantile and vulgar, like Clerks (and with plenty of inside jokes for those who have seen Clerks and Mallrats), but with a really mature message and well-developed characters. I don't want to give away the plot to those who don't know, because ignorance would be bliss for a moviegoer, so if you don't want it given away, skip to the next paragraph. As you may know (or don't mind knowing ahead of time), the main character falls in love with a lesbian. A gay friend of mine expressed disgust for this plot line, saying it trivialized homsexuality as a concept, and he felt that it implied that everyone is straight really, but we are waiting for the right member of the opposite sex. Having heard this dismissal, I went to the movie worried that it would turn out just so. I think it was handled appropriately, but I would love to hear from the 10% out there what they think! Anyway, the dialogue (as in all Kevin Smith films) tends to be a tad overwritten (although I do know people who really talk that way spontaneously) but it's still very sincere and enjoyable. Go see it!!! I only give the Matinee Price reservation because Smith's directorial style may grate on some who are used to Steven Spielberg or say, Woody Allen. But it's definitely a movie to see

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6/9/97  Today's movie:	My rating:
Con Air	Full Price Feature (if you're into that)

OK, this movie is no Schindler's List, but it's not Beastmaster II: Through the Portals of Time either. Con Air has all the things that make a decent action movie a better action movie: really good acting, unique visuals (despite the marketing campaign's obsession with the one shot of Nicholas Cage walking in slo-mo away from a fireball), and two things which heighten tension for me: characters who are not 100% good or bad, and the claustrophobia of being trapped in a closed area (in this case, an airplane). Not to say that plenty isn't thrown away in favor of some pyrotechnics. Steve Buscemi is utterly wasted in this film, and some of the villains were interesting enough that I wouldn't have minded knowing a little more about them. I like to think that I, unlike many reviewers these days, know when to shut up and enjoy the ride, and I did enjoy it. With so many talented, savvy actors on this train (Ving Rhames, John Malkovich, John Cusack, Colm Meaney, Nicholas Cage, Steve Buscemi, several other familiar faces) I know that much of the moments of humor or business that I found interesting must have come about on the set rather than in the script-writing process. Even a turkey like Showgirls would have been better had it been populated with actors working *with* the script instead of popsicle sticks making a bad thing worse. The script is peppered with clever humorous bits, and it makes the movie worth seeing. I don't have to tell you how it ends, but you don't have to know how it gets there. John Cusack made a suprisingly spunky action star himself, without being too unbelievable (despitre his inappropriate footwear). It's exciting and funny and the acting is great. But it's just an action movie. You make the money call, but I was willing to pay full price. karina

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7/14/97  Today's movie:	My rating:
Contact	Full Price Feature

Wow. Cool. Smart. How did they do that shot? (open mouthed silent gaping) The opening sequence begins as interesting but as your mind starts to wrap around it, it just becomes...ahhhh open mouthed silent gaping. As Kevin says, the best use of silence in a film in years. Jodie Foster is genetically engineered for the role of Ellie Arroway - reading the book it was an inescapable comparison. The movie does diverge significantly from the book on both major and minor points, but it is completely devoted to the central theme in the novel. My only complaint is the distracting use of footage of our real president in scenes that could very well have been set in a future administration with an actor as our future unknown president. OK, and a certain blazing hypocrisy is not pointed out in a key scene. But besides that, Contact left me feeling viscerally tugged and with an intense desire to reflect and be alone. I don't want to give away too much, but essentially we get a little wakeup call from the stars and start re-examining everything - science, theology, our place in the universe...the ideas are not new to me as I was raised in a similar environment to Ellie, but to have them executed so eloquently on screen is a rarity. The start of the film has the most "mundane" action, but to compensate, director Robert Zemeckis (Who Framed Roger Rabbit and the agonizingly overrated Forrest Gump) does some totally amazing camera things - it never stops moving, like the curious eyes of a child. Most people would not notice so just watch for a scene when young Ellie runs upstairs. Wow! How did they do that! It was almost distracting it was so neat. But the story hooks you and the sophistication of the novel is hinted at. Naturally they have to get through a lot to get to the end, so many plot elements came off a bit pat and contrived, but only because they didn't take the time to explain why it is not contrived. Just go see it, but read it as well. It's more visceral than I can explain in a short little review like this - but you can feel your breath in your throat at the most unexpected times. Matthew McConaughey is Palmer Joss, a flip side of Ellie's coin, and frankly I don't understand the point of much of the parts of their relationship (especially since it was created for the film), but he does provide some valuable debate points. Pay full price and I don't think you will be disappointed. karina

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4/8/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
The Devil's Own	Matinee Price only

Two superstars. A lengthy politically charged plot about IRA terrorists and their human side. Two hours of excellent performances and deep character development. If you don't know anything about the IRA, you won't learn anything. Harrison Ford looks ready to pass the marquee stud boy mantle along to Brad Pitt, but then he leaps in and is a great hero like he always is. I took a while deciding what I thought about this movie, because it was interesting, but at the same time, I didn't walk away with anything. My butt was sore and I needed to go to the bathroom, but I am glad I saw it. Some of you may have heard press on interstellar tensions on the set between Ford and Pitt, but on screen they have great chemistry. It's fairly violent, and some of the Irish accents can get pretty deep if you aren't used to hearing them. Some folks I have talked to (who might know better, I don't know) said that they head Brad's accent was in and out. I thought it was very consistent and fit him well. This is a much shorter review because it's one of those movies I just don't know how I feel about. It's definitely not a waste of time, but if you have to choose between this and something else (like Sling Blade!) maybe you could rent this later. It will not lose anything but noise and power to the small screen, but it does merit a matinee viewing. It does not suck, it just doesn't stick. Like Chinese Food. karina

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6/30/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Face/Off	Full Price if you like John Woo movies

If you like gunplay, especially well-executed and original looking gunplay, well, John Woo is your man and Face/Off is your movie. I enjoyed this a lot more than Woo's Broken Arrow by the simple virtue that it had a really interesting story and you never knew where it was going to turn next. The movie is stuffed with plot, and crammed with Nicholas Cage and John Travolta doing what they do best, which is inhabiting a character (well, two characters each) and having the time of their life doing so. There is a ton of gunplay, did I mention that? I tend to find firestorm type shoot-em-ups boring, but this was different. To say more would require delving into plot and I don't want to ruin anything for anyone. The preview ruins very little for us. Joan Allen, still haunted by the spirit of Goody Proctor, turns in a nice performance as The Good Guy's Wife, as well as Gina Gershon (but not until well into the 2nd reel) as...? Go to the bathroom before it starts, it runs something like 2 hrs and 20 minutes. If you don't like John Woo movies (the slo-mo bad guys, sunlight flashing dramatically off sunglasses, etc.), well, you still might like this one. The bad guy slo-mo shtick was stupid to me in Broken Arrow but fit its subjects better here. From a medical standpoint, Face/Off is wildly improbable (I mean, just look at the SIZE of Travolta's SKULL!) but at the same time uniquely fascinating. It's not for the squeamish, and you should have a sense of humor going in, because these bad guys are greatly funny and the good guys are pretty silly too! Hong Kong filmmakers are breathing new life into the genre for us Americans who think we want to see Batman and Robin or Speed 2. (yuck) Woo throws us climax after climax, just like all the other action movies this summer, but his actually seemed to be building toward something and towards an actual payoff, rather than just BLAM for BLAM's sake. A strange little actor plays Pollux Troy, the brother of Castor Troy, and they are the bad guys. I wish I knew his name but he was like the Anti-Niles Crane to Troy's Anti-Frasier. I won't say any more! Just go see it! I hope you all enjoy it, I know I did. Nicholas Cage is so perfect for this kind of stuff - who says you have to do only Merchant Ivory films after an Oscar win? Pay full price. karina

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5/12/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
The Fifth Element	Full Price Feature

Wow. This is actually as cool as it wants to be. It is not a typical American film - in many ways it is extremely French, but it is this novelty that makes it so interesting. (It is in English) I hate to use the word "neat" because it does not adequately capture it, but think of an 8 year old kid looking into a microscope for the first time and using the word "neat" because he doesn't have the vocabulary to say "fascinating, unique, interesting, pretty..." Bruce Willis is by no means treading any new ground with this role, but it works perfectly in this version of the future (2259). Think of this future as a better-maintained, more peaceful Blade Runner - but this movie is not like Blade Runner. It is different from other movies in the same way that Blade Runner or Brazil are different, but it is more rooted in a kind of mythos than just cold hard technology. It's not all explosions and sexy women like an American action film. Previews made me fear it was colorful and silly, but it is only colorful and....and NEAT. Luc Besson directs a movie that would never have been made in the US because the lowest common denominator would have demanded at test screenings to change all the things that make this movie fascinating. Ian Holm, Milla Jovovich, and a score of interesting creatures (and Ruby, a manic DJ who annoys his way into your favor) in these beautiful settings make this movie worthwhile. The overall message in and of itself is not all that original, it's the presentation that makes it worth seeing. This movie did not open Cannes *just* as a publicity stunt. The music is different, the sheer volume of information and plots is different, and it all works great. Don't get me wrong - some of you may go and just think, "This is too much, too busy, too many things!" But despite the fictional quote from the Emperor about Mozart's music having too many notes, some times too much is really a wonderful thing. Go see it, get together and talk about it. It's really good. Pay full price to get in, too. It's cooooooool.

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7/21/97 Today's  Movie	My rating
George of the Jungle	Matinee with Popcorn

Before all the George maniacs out there start into me, please let me say that I have never seen a George of the Jungle cartoon. I am told that this live-action film was basically true to the form, except for making Ursula more sympathetic. So, with that in mind, I watched it like a Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoon, and found it to be very silly and enjoyable - this is not Beckett, people, this is Brendan Fraser talking with no adjectives or articles while wearing a buttflap (which, for me, was worth the price of admission), and a menagerie of well-executed animals having fun with him. It was totally silly and tree-smashing, but still had some hip little clever jokes and some predictable jokes that felt familiar *even though I have never seen the cartoon before.* Kids will like it quite a bit despite the mushy stuff (and if the actress playing Ursula and Brendan Fraser did not actually do it at some point I will be very, very surprised.) It's definitely a different movie than A Simple Wish but I think more grownups will like George better. Kudos for a Swahili cover of Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On." John Cleese provides the voice for an ape named Ape, CGI provides the voice for the elephant-dog Shep and there's a great toucan who might be a puppet or might be well-trained (Jim Henson's Creature Shop rides again. ) A cool treehouse, silly villains, funny porters, and an amusing (if pigeonholing) turn by Thomas Haden Church as Lyle, Ursula's obnoxious fiance-to-not-be make this movie even better. Lovely scenery - and the Hawaiian locations weren't bad either! Did I mention Brendan Fraser was almost naked? It's rare these days (except in a Joel Schumacher film) that the male body gets any feature when there are women to be seen instead, so for you ladies out there sick of Cameron Diaz and Julia Roberts, here are shiny pecs and gluts for ya. Fraser was nice as a simple, sweet jungle boy with the natural artlessness of the wild - very all-around-nice-guy, as he should be. I have actually never seen a Brendan Fraser movie before this one - is that his real voice? It's not brilliant, but it's nice summertime fun - and squeaky clean at that. Grab a bag of popcorn and remember it's not dorky, it's cleverly ironic - at least, Rocky and Bullwinkle are, and it's the same idea. Try a matinee on a hot summer Saturday, with popcorn. Or a soda. karina

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6/20/97  Today's movie:	My rating:
Gone Fishin'	Rather Burn My Eyes Out

Kevin and I conducted a little sensory-deprivation experiment; he deprived himself of any form of stimulus by watching Gone Fishin', and I deprived myself of any oxygen by sitting inside a plastic bag for the duration of the film (facing away from it of course). I think Kevin sustained more damage to his brain, but my hair looked worse after the experiment. OK, to be honest, I did not see this film, I never intend to see this film. For one thing, I was friends with the 2nd AD on the movie, and the scene you see in the previews where the boat jumps out of the water, plows through a boat-show crowd and up onto an incline of some kind, is the real-life scene of tragedy for one of the stunt-extras. Not to go into too much gory detail, but there was severing and instantaneous death involved. Just the fact that someone died for this cinematic bile is sad enough; to feature the SHOT THAT KILLED HER in the PREVIEW is disgusting. Never mind the unappealing visions of a purse-lipped Joe Pesci (remember his Oscar win? I didn't think so.) muttering "Uh oh" as a train approaches their boat, stupidly parked on the tracks. Never mind the once action-hero-or-at-least-sidekick- but-at-least-he-was-in-The-Color-Purple Danny Glover slumming his way to payday. Those two must have some awfully expensive drug habits to maintain, to want to do this movie. Now, you all may know I can always find something positive in a movie (except Silence of the Hams) and here is the positive point for Gone Fishin' based solely on the preview: This movie has some real daredevil stuntwork, camera work, and complicated action sequences that I am certain were incredibly difficult to pull off, and look almost as polished as a Jan de Bont sequence. I applaud the labors of the crew, I bow my head in respect for the deceased stunt woman's family, and I recommend you rent Goodfellas and The Color Purple to remember these guys before....the fishing trip. karina

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4/8/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Grosse Pointe Blank	Full price Feature

This movie was everything I wanted it to be! John Cusack, guns, 80's music, wacky character issues like, "what do you do for a living?" "I'm a professional killer." It's Martin Blank's (Cusack) 10 year high school reunion (I know I can relate) and he is a professional killer touching base with his past. Oh, yeah, but there's also multiple contracts out on multiple heads, unresolved relationship issues with his old girlfriend, played by Minnie Driver, and guns! It looks like the kindof movie that is done well, is great fun; if done badly, a painful mess like Get Shorty. Guess what? This one is done well! I've always been partial to John Cusack and if you were an eighties teen with a crush on him he is reliving a little of that Better Off Dead charm but it's tempered by his new acting career choices where he plays more of a real grownup - this summer he will be a good-guy badass in ConAir. Bonus points if you like music like The Violent Femmes. Bring a date or get a bunch of the guys together, it can go both ways. If you are fretting about what you will say at your next high school reunion (or if you skipped yours because you were too embarrassed to say you worked as a phone rep) then you will appreciate our hero's position. Pay full price and enjoy a box of Raisinettes. Yours, karina   Grosse Pointe Blank revisited Still great! Maybe it's John Cusack's special brand of upbeat negativity, but this movie works so well! I saw it again last night with a friend who hadn't seen it (and who, of course, loved it) and it's just as much fun the second time around! Added bonus: Through the amazingness that is my life, we got a special studio preview tape that included a LONG (I mean like 3 minutes) preview for Titanic and Mimic; Titanic, the movie so huge that TWO studios are financing it, and Mimic, which I had heard NOTHING about until this preview. Prognosis good. Titanic looks totally amazing - they built a real boat, and it's so huge and perfect, it looks computer generated. A billion stars and a gazillion gallons of icy water later, and this movie looks like the ride of a lifetime. Yes, this is based on a preview but it really was impressive. Mimic has two Oscar winners and a Tony winner (F. Murray Abraham, Mira Sorvino, and Charles S. Dutton, respectively) and a Relic-like plot idea with mutating DNA creations, but it looks much better than the Relic. Of course, the Relic looked like it could have been something, but hey. It was better than Anaconda. And Anaconda had an Oscar winner and an Oscar nominee (Jon Voight and Eric Stoltz) and that still didn't help. It's going to be a GREAT summer. karina

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7/9/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Hercules	Full Price Feature!

For you fuddy duddies out there who dismiss animated features as "kid's stuff," you must have been living under a rock these last 8 years or so - Disney, Nickelodeon, Fox, HBO, all these studios have been producing cartoons that appeal to adults. Hercules is a perfect example - it has all the fun mythological stuff to hook the kids, cute baby Pegasus, familar myths and legends stories, and Disney's prerequisite BEAUTIFUL animation. Alan Menken, shaking off the extremely wrongful snub for Best Score at the Oscars last year, composes a fun bopping score much more along the lines of his Little Shop of Horrors than Hunchback of Notre Dame or Beauty and the Beast. The Greek chorus is a girl group style chorus who are worked into the action in truly clever ways only possible with animation, and of course anachronisms abound (as in Aladdin). Best of all is all the clever, knowing, yet squeaky-clean humor that will FLY over the kids' heads. James Woods voices a smarmy Hollywood agent/used car salesman version of Hades, Lord of the Underworld, so he's no nightmare-inducing Queen from Snow White, but he is definitely bad - but very very funny. Herc himself is sympathetic and developed in a way that a comparable live action hero just isn't these days. The jokes are actually so fast and furious I am going to have to see it again to catch them all! And yes, I will pay full price again! The soundtrack is not as strongly standalone as Little Mermaid or Beauty and the Beast, but it fits perfectly within proper Greek theatre parameters - only adults would appreciate that. Michael Bolton is the only blemish on this shiny urn. But hey, it's only during the credits! It's fast and fun, it's a short movie with lots packed into it (voice talents include Matt Frewer aka Max Headroom, Bobcat Goldthwait, Charlton Heston, Rip Torn, Tate Donovan, and Danny DeVito, among others of course). Amusing stabs at Space Jam (shudder) and the present day iconization of the strangest things, not to mention self-mocking Disney merchanidising mania, will keep the grownups interested, and may even help them save some money at the Disney store. It's a cool movie and really very satisfying. Full Price Feature with a drink (it's short, you won't need to go to the bathroom) and popcorn. karina

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42497 Today's movie:	My rating:
Video pick - The Hudsucker Proxy	Rent it NOW!

This movie came and went in theatres, not helped by its weird name and lack of car chases. It's written and directed by the Coen brothers (Joel and Ethan), best known recently for Fargo, but also loved for Raising Arizona and Miller's Crossing, Barton Fink (which, by the way, I hate), and Blood Simple. Hudsucker is their most underrated film. The story line, a fictional account of the sap that brought us the hula hoop, is almost secondary to the amazing writing and the gorgeousness of this movie. It's an homage to Frank Kapra films (like It's a Wonderful Life), and it has that same sentimental feel, but it also has amazingly funny, fast, brilliant moments which you just have to see to get. If you've seen these other Coen movies and just not gotten their sense of humor, you might want to start out easy with Raising Arizona or Fargo. Hudsucker is not bloody like Fargo, or farcical like Arizona. It's...classic-feeling. Tim Robbins is our hero, Norville Barnes, and a host of familiar supporting actors buoys him - notably Paul Newman. Jennifer Jason Leigh is the dame, and I will admit it took me three viewings of this movie to get used to her mannerisms and voice, but she is just right. This movie is delicious like ice cream. My friend Sam says, "You can't write dialogue like this," yet they did and it's great. Rich, textured, and if you're one of those gaffe watchers on the hunt for continuity errors, you won't find a one, despite amazingly complicated background stuff. The music is huge, the sets are fabulous 40's, and the script deserves a way bigger fan base. Go to Hollywood, Blockbuster, Vulcan, wherever, just go.

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5/19/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Inventing the Abbotts	Catch it on HBO

Inventing the Abbotts is an attractive little period piece about two brothers obsessed with the three rich and pretty Abbott sisters in their town. It has some interesting things to say about small town politics in the 50's, and about love and about using people, but it meanders around, touching on the interesting points before flitting away to another plot point. I thought it was paced a little slow, but the performances were all worth watching. It's not a fun-filled fifties teen fest, nor is it a pre-beat generation angstorama, it's a little of both. The costume designer stuffs Liv Tyler, Jennifer Connelly and the other sister into some unflattering costumes. The two boys (Joaquin Phoenix and Billy Crudup) seem as cynical and gritty as the street boys of today. Much of the drive behind the narrative is supposed to come from a present day voice-over (not unlike The Wonder Years or Stand By Me), but I didn't really want to hear about what Joaquin's adult version thought about those times in his youth - I wanted to watch for myself. Considering how unmotivated some of the action is, the up-and-comers cast in this movie did all they could to justify their part in the script, and that is why this film is worth watching. It's gone out of theatres, but if you see it starting on cable (uncensored cable), try and catch it. karina

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3/25/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Liar Liar	Full Price Feature

This Friday I saw Liar Liar, a Jim Carrey comedy in which a son who misses his father makes a wish that dad (that would be Jim Carrey) can't lie for one whole day. The short version: Midway through the movie I already wanted to come back and see it again. Jennifer Tilly says it is "All of Me crossed with Kramer vs. Kramer." So I hope you liked those movies because they make a great Liar Liar. The long version: Every time I talk about a Jim Carrey movie I try to remain aware that there are slews of people out there who find him to be sophomoric, over-muggy, and stupid. If the only Carrey movie you have ever seen is the first Ace Ventura, you might have that impression. But if you're like me and my moviegoing partner (Kevin), you let yourself laugh at Jim Carrey's antics and curse yourself for falling for it. Each Carreysim that passes it becomes easier and easier to relax and admit I am enjoying the hell out of myself! So, this preface is merely to say that I am working with the assumption that you already like Jim Carrey. I am becoming a bigger and bigger fan of his each film (yes, even Dumb and Dumber surprised some hoots out of me - damn me!). If you are NOT a fan of Jim Carrey, my strong recommendation would be to see Liar Liar and THEN pass judgement on his comic talent and his ability to hold a movie together with something other than his butt cheeks. His character is more mature in this movie, and most (95%) of the time he is not doing the rubberfaced diva act that turns some people off. I ramble on because Jim Carrey is one of those actors people tend to remain negative about - if they saw something they didn't like, and when the hype wave makes him more ubiquitous, they just wanna resist more. But to you non-believers out there, this might be the Carrey movie that breaks you. It has truly unrealistic and outlandish moments, sure, but they are fueled by his desperation. The rest of the movie (once you accept the no-lies spell) is extremely real and honest. Oh, and it's really funny! Did I mention that part? Whew! Now on with the actual review! The crux of Liar Liar is that attorney Fletcher (Jim C.) is destroying his relationship with his 5 year old son by being a lying flake. By having to tell the truth all day, he undergoes a transformation - for the better of course. While on paper this sounds awfully hokey, it really works well for the movie, balancing the wacky Carrey moments with real warmth, without being gooey. I am sure most of you have seen the previews and thought to yourself, well, I know those jokes now, why should I see the movie? I am sick to death of memorizing a gag from a preview and finding out it's the biggest laugh of the movie, and watching what should have been a peak comic moment flop within the whole context of the film because I have seen the joke a zillion times. Liar Liar does no such injustice. The bits you see in the preview are end pieces stuck together with even funnier stuff between them than they show in the teaser. And there's plenty more where that came from! The previews hint at a treacly sub plot of family and an adorable child (the son's birthday wish, tinking music, etc.) but this child (I'm sorry I didn't write down the actor's name) and Maura Tierney (Audrey/mom - you would recognize her from NewsRadio) and Jim Carrey (dad) have a truly involved relationship. For you Cary Elwes fans out there (all three of you) he plays Audrey's boyfriend . T. Fletcher's conflict with himself (the emotional one - you'll have to see the movie to see the physical one!) is extremely genuine and I even misted up at points. Carrey is actually a very gifted actor whose audience doesn't want to see him be serious. His TV movie Doing TIme On Maple Drive should be rereleased so he has a chance at more opportunities than playing a guy who can...well I don't want to give anything away, but when he goes into the courthouse bathroom, watch out for funny! No, it has nothing to do with body functions. I tend to grow impatient with kids in movies, either because they are Hollywood style precocious or act 10 years older than they should be. Fletcher's son Max was very real, very sweet, and best of all, not trying to be as funny as the lead. It's great watching these two together - and the more I feel for the "serious" part of the film, the more hilarious becomes Fletchers battle with himself. He isn't *told* that he cannot tell a lie for a day - it just sort of happens. It's as if a cosmic ventriloquist is physically manipulating his vocal cords to say "YES" even as his mouth and brain and demeanor are trying to say "NO." (Boy it's tempting to give something away) - the examples they give in the preview sound mean spirited rather than just sounding like enforced honesty - but he is terribly embarrassed by the words that spew out of his mouth. We like his kid as much as he does, so we fell he pain that his truth-telling contortions are causing him. Bust a gut funny is this! The supporting players are funny (even Oscar nominee Jennifer Tilly!) and the Carrey machinations are funny, it's all funny. The director, Tom Shadyac, used to be a stand-up comedian himself and he knows how to use the rhythm and tempo of Jim's performance to propel the movie rather than to drag it down, SNL-style. My vote: Full Price Feature (need a sound cue right here - how about cha-ching!)

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5/23/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
The Lost World - Jurassic Park	Full Price Feature

Stephen Spielberg. Dinosaurs. Sequel to $300 million+ audience favorite. What more do you need? An engraved invitation? Yes, granted, the Lost World book was a hack job obviously designed to be a sequel that denied much of the prequel. The book is silly and atrocious (but, to my amusement, extremely easy to visualize - I mean, including cuts and fades!): the movie has one scene in common with the book. This is a good thing. It is more violent than past Spielberg outings, even surprisingly so. Less technobabble - all that was covered in the first flick, it is assumed you know it already for this one. It's got everything: great visual gags and monster movie homages, witty lines with actual wit, and real nail biter scenes to boot! Kids with actual personalities, TONS of new dinosaurs, rain, terror, Jeff Goldblum and Vince Vaughn all wet and frightened, Pete Postlethwaite all manly and cunning...the most intense image I walked away with was slowly cracking glass. OH my god. It's a total carnival ride! My friend Sam had a bit of a problem in the third act, and upon consideration I will concede that I had to suspend disbelief just a smidge higher than normal, but the payoff is worth it. The CGI effects have matured - I wouldn't have thought they could improve on what already looked seamless but they did! You can practically feel the dino's pulse. The animatronic ones are gorgeous too - I am so happy to be alive in a time when I have to use moviemaking logic, rather than my eyes, to figure out which is the puppet and which is the computer generated one. In Dolby Digital the sound is EVERYWHERE. This movie will not disappoint you. It's not as smooth and delicious as Jurassic Park, (at least Lost World doesn't have all those annoying side trips into parenthood issues) but it is an utterly worthy sequel. Pay full price and hold on to your socks! karina

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7/9/97  Today's movie:	My rating:
Men in Black	Matinee Price

Men in Black showed such promise in the preview - it delivers everything in the preview and almost nothing more. Some interesting production design, a couple of predictable but humorous digs at famous people, and some amusing bits strung together make this movie the cuisine equivalent of a light Chinese meal. Will Smith's likeability, which makes him a good foil to the practically personality-free character that Tommy Lee Jones plays, seems forced (more so than normal) and Jones' looks like he wishes he could have had some of the funny lines. The creatures were pretty interesting looking, and there is a weird farmer guy who was an interesting side story, but all in all, it was kinda....well.... There is a plot but it's really just a linear slice of time rather than an actual plot - oh they try to hook us into some kind of suspense with a countdown clock and all that, but really, are we ever in doubt? At least in movies where there are possibly apocalyptic events that MIGHT happen if our heroes come through, we are all wound up thinking "My god, how will they ever do that thing and make that doohickey?" Not so here. MiB exists for critters, cool toys, and cute bits. It felt vaguely like a skit comedy show with one running theme. I say matinee price rather than rental JUST so you can see all the cool critters and things down at MiB headquarters and such visuals - but you have seen almost the entire thing already, you just don't know it. Rent Independence Day for Will Smith and effects, see Men in Black because it's a hot summer afternoon and you don't have much else to do. But don't pay more than matinee price. karina

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6/23/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
My Best Friend's Wedding	Full Price Feature plus candy

Girl is best friends with boy, finds out he's getting married, realizes she loves boy, tries to steal boy by any means necessary. As my male readers roll their eyes, "Of course she likes it, it's a chick flick," I wish I could quote the men coming out of the packed theatre to prove to you that it is a fully accessible movie for both sexes. This movie is fabulous! And I mean that in the splashy Birdcagey spectacle of it all. I have long been leery of Julia Roberts, but she pulled off the devious yet vulnerable yet smitten role just right. She even dons the physical comedy Everyone was perfect - they were utterly believable even in their sometimes outrageous behavior. I have actually been to a rehearsal dinner similar to the one in the movie so I can talk! Cameron Diaz is gutsy enough to poke fun at herself and we love her - there is no bad guy/good guy thing and there is no pat predictable throwaway ending. It's full of genuine, honest emotion from start to finish and I sped to the store to buy the soundtrack. The opening title sequence sets the stage and you folks out there who think the opening is dumb, well I pity you and your inability to feel the joy that I was feeling. A line from the preview was shuffled around in a scene but ultimately cut because the riotous laughter prevented its ever being heard. Rupert Everett, as Julia Roberts' friend and editor is a prize! He breathes life into scenes that would otherwise have been clumsy and awkward. I have read some bad press on Dermot Mulroney, and maybe you have to have a taste for Demot Mulroney's character's type of relating to other people, but I found him utterly apt. Just go see it right now! karina

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7/22/97  Today's movie:	My rating:
Operation Condor	Matinee Price

I love Jackie Chan. He is often compared to Gene Kelly for his artistry with his body, and rightfully so. Operation Condor is one of many older Chan movies being dusted off and rereleased in the US with English dubbing and a new soundtrack. I believe this one came out in Hong Kong in 1991. It's a parody/homage of the Indiana Jones franchise, complete with idol-robbing Nazis, and spear-chucking desert folk. However, unlike First Strike and Supercop (Police Story 3) and even Rumble in the Bronx, Condor is less about the amazing things Jackie can do than the amazing places they have him doing things in. Don't worry, there is plenty to amaze you and planty of serious injuries in the outtakes, but the intricate choreography of say, his ladder fight or the refrigerator/shopping cart dance of death, is lost in favor of a quick leap and a quick kick but WOW we're in a Nazi munitions dump! COOL we're in a remote desert marketplace! HOLY MACKEREL we're in a real working wind tunnel (this was the best scene, both for humor and for WOW COOL HOLY MACKEREL). Chan directs this feature, and maybe that is why he spends less time on himself than his other director, Stanley Tong, does. The humor is present but much goofier, and Jackie's character isn't as well developed as in the other films released in the US so far. It's still a Jackie Chan movie and for that, you should go. Herein Austin it was playing in what we call the Lincoln "puppet theatre" - a smaller non-THX annex usually relegated to late-runs and low-box office draws. There are plenty of beautiful women and really spiffy props and locations, but not enough Jackie. Encourage the studio to keep releasing these great movies, go see Operation Condor. karina

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5/22/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Pin Gods	Matinee Price Only

Pin Gods is a tiny little documentary about three guys, Bob, Tony, and Sonny, going on the Pro Bowlers Association tour in 1993 (or it may be 1994). It was shot on video by various sources and then transferred to film, but by and large (except for the very old footage) the picture quality is very consistent. They are all inspired by the reigning champion, Walter Ray Williams, who will be on the tour as well. We meet them prior to the tour, watch them bowl, compare their standings, and see them advance and drop out, their families reactions, etc. It's got a lot of great footage that was carefully assembled all over the country, and some great title screens that push the story along well. Interspersed within their stories is 60 yr old champion Carmen Sa,,,,, (his name was long and Italian and in script on the back of his shirt so I never got the whole thing) who preaches the gospel of the excitement and the science of bowling. Our three bowlers are pretty good at ignoring the cameras, and their personalities are so...well, I mean, they are young, ambitious (one describes himself as cocky) wanna-be pro bowlers with a dream, and they are very competitive. But not necessarily born to the sport. The film does seem a lot longer than it actually is, but that may be because I can only watch so much bowling footage before I get sleepy. The conversations and interviews are interesting, and the turn of events on the 14th stop of their tour is interesting also. It's not a wacky comedy, unless you want to laugh at middle class east coast Italians dreaming of the bowling circuit. At first it seems so kitschy and ludicrous you want to laugh, or think it's a fake documentary, but once you see how really committed these boys are, you can't mock them. The music was written for the movie, and it's kinda swingy loungy 50's beat stuff but it emphasizes those great shirts perfectly, and our old pro Carmen. It's a look at a world few people, even few sports enthusiasts, even think of, but the people involved in it are completely into it. Only in the US, I say. If it's playing in your town (it is in Austin at the Dobie) try and catch it, but I would recommend a matinee only because it doesn't splice together as smoothly as I would like for six and a half bucks. karina

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4/30/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Romy & Michelle's H.S. Reunion	Definite Rental

I don't know about all of you, but if my best friend from college and I had gone to high school together, we would have been B+ student versions of Romy and Michelle. Having said that, I enjoyed the characterization and the ideas behind the film, but found it a little....odd. The dialogue was sometimes devoid of any interest and the soundtrack wasn't 80's enough. But! With my ten year reunion looming 2 months away, and having a job and a life I could wish to be somewhat more...impressive, I found another way to identify with Romy and Michelle. The short version is that these women were best friends in high school and are still best friends today, 10 years later, and are fairly unsuccessful by material standards. Their high school experience was as an offshoot of the normal pecking order, and they have anxieties about impressing the snobs they looked up to way back when. Needless to say, mayhem is supposed to ensue, but it doesn't really. It's funny, but not laugh out loud funny, and it's interesting, but not enthralling. It's not a waste of money, but if you had to choose between high school reunion flicks to see in the theatre, I would again recommend Grosse Pointe Blank. Mira Sorvino (that's Oscar winner Mira Sorvino to you) and Lisa Kudrow are surreal in their roles but not in a bad way. Janeane Garafalo is, as always, edgy and angst ridden, and always funny. There are gratifying moments, Big Kahuna in-jokes, and every now and then, an attempt at a Message (but not in a bad way). I say to everyone, rent this movie with a high school chum.

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5/2/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
The Saint	Matinee Pricing or better

To preface this review I have to say that I never saw the TV show or anything else related to The Saint. I did not read up on the concept before seeing the movie and so if the purist Saint fans are out there breathing heavily because I did not have a problem with this movie, well, that is my excuse. Val Kilmer is really perfectly suited for this role - his mimicry and acting abilities come to a perfect peak playing a surprisingly fallible badass who happens to have an astounding array of wigs and disguise materials. His liver lipped goober persona is so far from his manliness-oozing Thomas Moore persona that it's truly amazing. When I say manliness-oozing I am not speaking out of some lusty haze for Val Kilmer - I am immune to his charms but when he assumes his artist persona you practically smell sex right through the screen. Val idolizers will eat it up. He has suspiciously hot chemistry with Elisabeth Shue (you know, Oscar Winner Elisabeth Shue) and an amazing Apple PowerBook which not only has a NotePad to die for, but it boots right up in seconds! The Saint has an interesting story, interesting situations, and it's definitely worth seeing, it just didn't blow my socks off. Apparently the ending was drastically different (and maybe this is what all the Saint fans are complaining about) before a TON of reshoots but I don't think the movie would have gained anything another way. You'll know what I mean. My nitpicky thing? His little pocketknife/swiss army killing machine dealie. It is dealt with like it is the only thing he keeps from his youth (though this is never mentioned) but it seems so over the top James Bondy after a while I wanted him to use it even more - as a remote control, a fold-up car, a condom dispenser...but it certainly doesn't detract from the movie. Great locations and spiffy but low key action sequences, and Shue makes it all human without being The Dame. A bizarre and *almost* intrusive rock soundtrack pervades the action - and I don't mean they are rocking to songs, I mean a rock-composed pumping club mix score which, after being inundated with John Williams, Danny Elfman, and Carter Burwell music all year, well, it seemed funky. But it didn't bother me, it just had a whiff of MTV to it. Only a whiff. I say, go to cheap night or a matinee and you will feel great - full price won't kill you but so many others are more worthy. karina

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6/16/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Speed 2	Catch in on HBO

Ever sacrificing for my loyal reading audience, I saw Speed 2. Now, in defense of Jan deBont, this guy knows how to make movies look good. I think that Jan deBont is THE man you want shooting any kind of vehicular movement for you - he could make an ice cream truck tootling down your street look exciting. That said, he is not the person you would go to for any kind of complicated character analyses. Now, don't get me wrong, I will defend Twister's sparse plot line to the death - I mean, how much character development can you have, really, in that kind of situation? But isn't Speed 2 a sequel, with already-familiar folks doing what they do best? Well, no. This is a movie with basically a tie-over character (Sandra Bullock) who introduces us to the HERO Jason Patric. It's Jason's movie, start to finish, and while he is completely good at what he is doing (and he is asked to do a LOT), he doesn't bring anything external to the script to his role, like Sandy did in the first one. I'm glad Keanu Reeves is not in this picture, but I'm sorry that Sandra Bullock is. She, and Willem DaFoe, are totally wasted. Best line, also from the preview: "Who's driving the boat?" Willem: "I am!" (Sigh of relief from audience - Jesus is driving the boat! * ) Unfortunately, good visuals only go so far. Jan deBont takes the material he has to the utter limit, and for that he should be applauded, but he needs to hire the guy who wrote the Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont, instead of the Bananas in Pyjamas he has on his script team right now. To better enjoy this movie, try to have never seen the preview at all ever. It ruins the whole thing. Try and find a HDTV and rent Twister instead, or go see Brassed Off (do that anyway). When Speed 2 comes on HBO, grab some popcorn and try and invent a drinking game based on the silliness. karina *if you don't know what I am talking about, see The Last Temptation of Christ and you will understand why Willem Dafoe should not have been in this movie.

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5/5/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Volcano (and some Dante's Peak)	Dollar Show, Drunk if Possible

To start off with, Volcano is worth more than a dollar if you saw Dante's Peak. If you live in LA, I bet it's worth a little more to see your city up in flames...again. The dialogue is predictable in a general action/disaster movie style, characterization is at a minimum, yadda yadda yadda. The lava looks very cool. The sound sounds very cool. The models of the various city landmark look great. Unlike Dante's Peak, this lava actually melts stuff like plastic, rubber, and metal. Cars melt, and that is cool. However, there are plenty of silly little gaffes and "Um, why would...." type moments, but overall Volcano is what you make of it. I had a small group together and we insisted on eating together afterward so we could tear apart the movie. Inevitable comparisons to Dante's Peak occurred, and I will share some with you here. Dante's Peak had a more believable couple with Pierce 'I'm So Yummy" Brosnan and Linda "I Can be Soft and Feminine Too!" Hamilton. Volcano had an actual volcano that actually destroyed stuff, rather than just causing earthquakes, acidic water, and ash. DP had agonizingly bad dialogue and blazingly obvious gaffes like a town meeting where they say DON'T DRINK THE WATER while imbibing sparkling ice water. Volcano had an abrupt lava eruption in the middle of downtown with only 100 casualties. DP had an actual dormant volcano coming back to life. Volcano had the La Brea tar pits with heartburn. I'm no vulcanologist....but neither were any of these people. Between these two movies I know less about Volcanos than I did before. Classic Volcano banter: "What will come up (from the volcano)?" "Magma." "What's that?" "Lava." If they need to explain to audiences who were drawn to the movie by the possibility of seeing Angelyn burned up by a Volcano, don't you think they have an idea that Magma is that groovy hot orange stuff that melts rock? The Lava was actually quite cool, did I mention that? I even took notes during the movie but some of them will give away too many great laughs that we had. It's not as bad as Anaconda, though. Think of it as a ratio: Anaconda : The Relic : : Dante's Peak : Volcano. None of these are Oscar Winners, and so few are good popcorn movies. Rent The Ghost and the Darkness instead - it was woefully underrated. For Volcano, go to a dollar show (or sneak in - it's really a big screen type deal). karina

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7/1/97 Today's movie:	My rating:
Rental - Young Frankenstein	Always full price

Werewolf! Werewolf?! There! There wolf. There castle! Would you mind telling me whose brain I did put in? Abby someone. Abby Normal. I'm almost certain that was the name. I recently purchased the new special edition laserdisc of Young Frankenstein - it has bloopers, deleted scenes, and a running director's commentary audio track option. Now, this movie is one of the best comedies ever made, and if you've never seen it, you really should - it's the Gone With The Wind of parody/homage movies. Mel Brooks' commentary is not as illuminating as others (The Mask on DVD director's commentary is actually GRIPPING! It's really great!) I've heard; he rambles about personal memories on the set and how nice Kenny Mars is and he reiterates information we are looking at, but occasionally tells us something new and interesting. Better just to watch and adore. The production design is meticulous in its obsession with accuracy - the actual original equipment from the 1931 Frankenstein movie, the lighting and camera angles. Gene Wilder (who also co-wrote it - perhaps Mel would do well to write with Gene again, judging by his more recent films) is perfect as the grandson in denial. Teri Garr is innocent and saucy, Madeline Kahn is just perfect, Peter Boyle is the best monster ever, and Marty Feldman was genetically engineered to play Igor. The musical score (available though obscure internet CD sites and probably not officially sanctioned) is as important a character as the human actors. If you have only seen Mel's junk like Dracula: Dead and Loving It and Robin Hood: Men in Tights, I implore you to rediscover the Mel Brooks from the late 60s' and early 70's. His humor is crass and politically incorrect but he offends everyone, so it's OK. Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, and arguably The History of the World Part I are real joys. Rediscover Young Frankenstein if you haven't seen it in a while. It is a true classic. If it were in the theatres, pay full price! As a tape, well, get the best quality you can and a big TV. karina

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