Change Your Image
gregvw
Reviews
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)
Even better than I had hoped
The casting choices were fantastic. The four leads really captured the essence of the characters. In the case of Trillian, the character is actually better than in the book. I can not imagine a better source of urbane smarmy narration for the Guide than that provided by Stephen Fry. If you are unfamiliar with the books, I recommend reading at least the first book before seeing the movie as the film is simply too short to develop the characters in any depth, so you're more likely to enjoy the it if you already know them well.
One of the highlights is the segments where the Guide entries are shown in stylized color silhouette animations. In particular, the segments which describe the bureaucracy of Vogons and the invention of the infinite improbability drive were highly amusing. Much funnier than expected. Hopefully, the next book will be adapted as well.
Dungeons & Dragons (2000)
Spellbindingly Bad!
While D&D proved to be uniformly awful in regards to acting, cinematography, direction, plot, visual effects, writing, and obtrusive scoring, it truly was a cinematic delight for those who like to crack wise at the screen ala MST3K. Jeremy Irons played the most over-the-top performance I've ever seen... hammier than the Hormel factory. Some of the attempt at humor did make me laugh, but by in large it was the absurdity of the film that did it. Questions unanswered: What sucker financed something with freshman director, writers and producers? Also why wait so long to make this movie? Hasn't the games' popularity ebbed a tad in the last 15 years?
Fitzcarraldo (1982)
Engrossing!
Herzog has really produced a gem with Fitzcarraldo. The story of a more-than-half-mad opera fanatic (played to perfection by Klaus Kinski) who's dream is to build an opera house in the Amazonian jungle. His plan is to exploit the only unclaimed region of rubber trees to get his venture capital. The only problem is the territory is unreachable by boat because of trecherous rapids. Fitzcarraldo has a blue-sky plan to get his ship to those trees, but when his crew deserts him, a stroke of native lore-based luck allows him to enlist a tribe of headhunters to haul his immense riverboat up and over a cliff between two rivers. Fitzcarraldo, his captain, engineer, and cook are particularly engaging characters of some idiosyncracy; actually all of the characters seem pretty idiosynchratic in this film. I found the incidental music to be well chosen and the cinematography to be first rate. My only complaint is that the film is 157 minutes in length and there were a number of opportunities to trim the running time without sacrificing content.
You're Telling Me! (1934)
Packed with hysterical Fieldsian antics
This is one of the funniest films I've ever seen. Fields stars as Sam Bisbee a liquor-loving inventor who is trying to sell his puncture-proof (actually bullet-proof) tires to a major corporation. The son of a wealthy socialite proposes to Bisbee's daughter, only to be foiled by his mother when she encounters the uncouth Bisbee. On top of ruining his daughter's potential marriage, Sam also loses his car and several other inventions and mistakenly shoots the tires of a police car. The resolution involves a princess, Bisbee running down mainstreet with an ostrich on a rope, and a classic Fieldsian attempt at hitting a golf ball (which somehow results in a pie getting stuck to his hat.)
Do yourself a favor and see this movie!
Video from Hell (1985)
Some great bits
The highlights are Frank's solos on "Stevie's Spanking" and "St. Etienne" and of course, anything Frank says. Some of the early Mothers segments are rather disturbing. Probably the most entertaining segment is his testimony to Congress (highly recommended.)
Mindwarp (1991)
Putrid unwatchable quagmire
Not even the very likeable actor Bruce Campbell can save this horrifyingly crappy movie. The premise: A girl gets bored living a fake reality inside a computer and gets cast out from the innerworld. The surface is populated by cheap rubber mutant cannibals who moan a lot and wear hubcaps.
Don't watch this unless you really hate yourself.
Mystery Men (1999)
An entertaining portrayal of less-than-perfect superheros
The best points of this film are the cast, who did a great job and the highly Tim Burton-esque scenery. The movie does tend to drag in a few points and there are many aspects of plot which could have been more amusing. All in all a good effort, especially considering this is the first thing that Kinka Usher has directed that wasn't a Chihuahua. Great Performances by Azaria, Stiller, Macy, and Garafalo (who is always wonderful).
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
If you liked DUNE, you'll probably like this
This movie seems to fall victim to one of the most common Sci-Fi maladies. Essentially, the drama and character development are absent to make room for loads of bells and whistles.
Maybe I'm being unfair, since I actually enjoyed the visual aspects of the film and the action sequences. I wish that this movie had been more like The Empire Strikes Back instead of trying to miraculously resolve all of the conflicts at once in the last ten minutes. It's very unsatisfying. Did they simply replace Ewoks with Lizards. Yup. If I were under 12, this probably would have been my favorite movie ever (as A New Hope once was).
The fundamental problem - most people expected way too much from this movie.
If you had no complaints about the rampant inconsistencies in DUNE, the nonexistent character delevopment, and general betrayal of every satisfying quality in a story for an intriguing visual experience, then I unreservedly recommend The Phantom Menace to you.