The opening of this cute, but misunderstood little donkey looks terrific. The story opens with the current descendant of Nestor giving a tour of Santa's deserted house on Xmas Eve. Unfortunately, the the story takes a pretty by the numbers look at Nestor's story of humiliation and triumph. Even more unfortunately, unlike the narrator of Rudolph- here the story is almost entirely done in narration. And most of the entire story is Nestor crying about his long ears and other issues. Meanwhile the less than terrific Nestor song is sung again and again. Not the best effort by Rankin & Bass. The story needed more work. Lots more work.
Reviews
16 Reviews
Nestor, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey
(1977 TV Movie)
Prettily animated, but not much story
19 December 2006
Braindead
(1992)
Braindead indeed
31 October 2005
Warning: Spoilers
This movie is for people who like gore. Mindnumbing scene after scene of gore. Also bad acting comes into play, particularly with the film lead as Lionel. Seems like a lot of performances are at the Benny Hill level of comedy, with lots of signaling "THIS IS FUNNY- LOOK AT MY MUGGING" sort of thing. I like films with plot, character and nuance such as Scream, Wait Until Dark or Silence of the Lambs. This is not one of them. I do admire some of the camera work and techniques- and as mentioned in more favorable reviews, the kungfu scene with the priest is a classic. The start of the film is promising with an Indiana Jones-like escape with the Rat of Summatra from a locale used in Lord of the Rings. A later scene of the rat in the zoo is very low-budget. The last half of the film becomes repetitively gory- the dead are indeed alive and won't go away. I found it boring in the end.
Camp
(2003)
Lotsa fun
14 August 2003
This is a fun, quirky (not perfect) movie about theatre freak kids. Some of the story lines are just as obvious and clunky as the movie "Fame", and some of the acting is amateurish- but the numbers are a blast and there are some great touches such as the dueling divas and the Sondheim cameo. 7 out of 10.
Urbania
(2000)
Tense but worthwhile
18 September 2002
Dark. At times gruesome. Strange and surreal. Well-acted, especially by the lead, Dan Futterman, but also most of the supporting cast does a good job. This is a dense film that requires patience and intelligent viewing. The subject matter of grieving, loneliness and gay-bashing, is not easy material. Still, if you can handle it, a very satisfying and well-written film.
The Naked Kiss
(1964)
tacky and awful
18 June 2002
Bad. Really, really bad. Such terrible editing, writing and acting, that there are some laughs. Perhaps this director is another Ed Wood? I watched with two friends after a video store clerk recommended it. Beware of video clerk recommendations!
Chop Suey
(2001)
Chopped up vignettes with nowhere to go
22 October 2001
There are interesting pieces here of and about Bruce Weber's likes and dislikes. Maybe if a professional editor had put it together for Biography, I would have felt more satisfied. Instead, I spent $8 at a film festival on it. For an autobiography, almost nothing is revealed about Bruce Weber, other than he likes to look at photographs, shoot interesting people, especially beautiful teenage boys, and listen to jazz. The director of "Crumb" would have made a much more interesting and cohesive film.
The Deep End
(2001)
Tense and disturbing
1 October 2001
I found this a good movie- but not a standard hollywood thriller. Tilda Swinton is amazing, as usual- and elevates the film. The pace is deliberate, which is interesting and irritating- contrasting the mundanity of everyday life with her son's secret sexual life and the complications ensue. Yes, there are holes in the plot, but during the movie I didn't think about them too much, other than wonder about a blackmailer who could be kind existing, as in this movie. If you like European pacing, tension and good acting, I would recommend this.
Unbreakable
(2000)
Unbreakable is unbearable
6 August 2001
A germ of a good idea gets buried under a script that needs many rewrites and a director quite impressed with himself. If slow pace worked so well in Sixth Sense, why not make this one twice as slow? Won't that make it twice as good? No. When action does occur, it often occurs with no sense of internal logic. Such as when the son suddenly points a gun at his father to show that Pops is a superhero. This comes out of nowhere. Also, Willis's catatonic performance worked well in Sixth Sense because he had a stunningly good child actor to fill the gaps. Here Willis isn't surrounded by that talent level. Why does he do the things he does? Why is he numb to everything? I don't know, and halfway through this mess, I didn't care. Avoid at all costs.
Drop Dead Gorgeous
(1999)
moments of brilliance, hour of monotony
17 April 2001
Flashes of comedic brilliance brighten this dull film. For every former beauty queen hawking sausages in a bloody apron, there is lame interplay between the two main beauty queen contestants, and much mugging and accent butchering by the impressively talentless Kirstie Alley. How has this lady and, for that matter, Tony Danza, enjoyed a successful career when so many talented people can't get work? Such are the mysteries of show business. With better editing, directing and casting- this could have been a very funny film. All it serves in the end, is to show how good Christpher Guest (This is Spinal Tap, Waiting For Guffman, Best of Show) is at mockumentaries. Watch this film, then any of Guest's spoofs to enjoy the difference.
The Ritz
(1976)
Strained Comic Mayhem
27 February 2001
I have to differ from the other comments posted. Amid sporadic funny moments, there are a lot of actors trying too hard to be funny. The strain shows. I watched this with two friends on another friend's recommendation- none of us were thrilled.
Superstar
(1999)
Fun and silly
2 January 2001
For fans of Molly Shannon- this will be enjoyable entertainment. She throws in pieces of many Saturday Night Live characters, and the first two-thirds is often hilarious. The final third bogs down when the writers try to cram the obnoxious title character, Mary Catherine Gallagher, into a romantic, feel-good plot. Until then, have fun.
The Hustler
(1961)
Overrated kitchen-sink drama
20 November 2000
This is no Hud! Having heard of this movie as an all-time classic- I instead was treated to a slow-moving soapy with Piper Laurie and Paul Newman trading "tragic but heroic" speeches. The pool scenes between Eddie and Fats were great, but that was about it. The director slowed everything wayyyy down. See Hud instead...
Flirting with Disaster
(1996)
Looking for family
5 July 2000
A dark, twisted and funny tale of a man's search for his "real" parents and all that can go wrong. Hippies, FBI, even Bed and Breakfasts get lampooned.
Highly recommended for those that enjoy a naughty comedy. If you liked Afterhours or The Opposite of Sex, you should enjoy this!
Highly recommended for those that enjoy a naughty comedy. If you liked Afterhours or The Opposite of Sex, you should enjoy this!
Tales of the City
(1993)
Fun, sexy look at the gay old 70's
19 June 2000
Usually when I've already read a book and liked the results, a movie or TV show on the same material doesn't stand a chance. But this show brings the book's quirky charms and character interweaving along with zest and fun. I would highly recommend this to anyone who is comfortable with the issues of gayness, drugs and sexual promiscuity. Olympia Dukakis and Laura Linney are perfect, the direction and screenplay and music impeccable.
One on One
(1977)
A fun by-the-numbers underdog story
20 March 2000
It's the basketball version of Rocky, derivative and cartoony at times, but a blast for any basketball fan. And yes, athletes still get paid to "water the lawn"! The basketball scenes are action-packed and exciting- Robby does seem a bit whine at times. A definite video grab.
Saving Private Ryan
(1998)
Amazing visual storytelling, occasionally hackneyed plot and speeches.
18 June 1999
Here it is: a movie that demands to be seen on the big screen- amazing fight sequence to start the movie. It may not always be 'real'- movies just can't be- but there is drama and intensity. Some good and solid performances, terrific sets and sound overcome the plot and some belabored dialogue.
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