Bad Boys (2014) A part of ESPN’s 30 for 30 series, this documents the notorious Detroit Pistons teams in the 1980s. I was surprised how normal Dennis Rodman seemed. No one could have predicted his name would become a byword for odd and unusual behavior. Professional sport needs more people like Bill Laimbeer who revel in playing the bad guy. Despite his accolades, Isiah… Continue reading Private Jack was a bad boy
Month: April 2014
The Tabloid ran a story about the air in room 237
Something in the Air (2012) Gilles is an artist in France in the 1970s. His friends are left-leaning political activists who expect him to join their protests. He has sympathy for their views, but their insistence he dedicate everything to the cause conflicts with his artistic commitment. This is a good movie about the struggle… Continue reading The Tabloid ran a story about the air in room 237
A soccer crowd goes to war and John Milius approves
Drug War (2012) When he’s arrested, drug lord Timmy Choi provides evidence against his partner to avoid the death penalty. It’s a decent movie, but identical to countless other warnings about the dangers of the drug business. Milius (2013) This film is a chronicles one of the greatest, unheralded directors in Hollywood history, John… Continue reading A soccer crowd goes to war and John Milius approves
The pelican briefly held great beauty
The Pelican Brief (1993) Two pro-choice Supreme Court justices are assassinated by an evil corporation in order to sabotage a pending environmental lawsuit. The masterminds of this conspiracy outsmarted every law enforcement agency and reporter in the country, but Tulane law student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) uncovers the connection via a magical concoction of statistical analysis and intuition. Julia… Continue reading The pelican briefly held great beauty
Abused children desperately search for justice and philosophical truth
Short Term 12 (2013) In this expansion of his earlier short film, Destin Cretton documents a group home for abused and forgotten kids who’ve been told they were worthless until they believed it. Grace (Brie Larson), a survivor of abuse and current counselor at the home, must deal with unresolved feelings when newcomer Jayden reminds her… Continue reading Abused children desperately search for justice and philosophical truth
Jurassic wonder years
We’re Back! A Dinosaur’s Story (1993) Simon Wells, the great-grandson of H.G. Wells, directed this film about time-travelling dinosaurs. He also directed An American Tale: Fievel Goes West (1991), Balto (1995), and The Prince of Egypt (1998). Based on a children’s book, this schizophrenic film can’t decide if it wants to be a movie about dinosaurs, a movie… Continue reading Jurassic wonder years
Home Alone 2.5
Dennis the Menace (1993) After Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), John Hughes’ unparalleled decade-long success, which began in 1983 with National Lampoon’s Vacation in 1983, came to an end. His subsequent films failed to capture the magic of his earlier work and this movie, based on the long-running comic strip, is no exception. Nick Castle is… Continue reading Home Alone 2.5
Secrets don’t make friends at home or abroad
Topaz (1969) After the successful premiere of the first James Bond film, many people wanted Alfred Hitchcock to direct an entry in the series. He had a history in the spy genre with films like Foreign Correspondent (1940), Suspicion (1941), and The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), he had a dark and subtle sense of humor, and his film’s… Continue reading Secrets don’t make friends at home or abroad
Cloning your husband in post-apocalyptic Tokyo
Husbands and Wives (1992) When Jack (Sydney Pollack) and Sally (Judy Davis) casually announce their marriage has ended, it forces Gabe (Woody Allen) and Judy Roth (Mia Farrow) to question their own relationship. Gabe flirts with Rain (Juliette Lewis), one of his students, while Judy eyes a relationship with Michael Gates (Liam Neeson). Filmed as a… Continue reading Cloning your husband in post-apocalyptic Tokyo
Coppola’s children of the night
Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) This film was woefully miscast. Gary Oldman is so compelling as Count Dracula it’s hard not to root for him, while Keanu Reeves is so wooden as Jonathan Harker it’s difficult to believe he’s the hero of the film. Outclassed by the actors around him, he’s unable to generate any interest in his… Continue reading Coppola’s children of the night