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Rodney613
Reviews
The Patriot (2000)
Mr. Smith Goes to The Revolution (Mel Gibson Wins The War All By Himself)
Do you remember the episode of the Simpsons in which Mel Gibson remakes Mr. Smith Goes To Washington with a bloody finale in which he kills somebody with American flag? Well, transfer that to the Revolutionary War, and you'll know what to expect from Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich's latest epic piece of trash that is full of more innaccuracies than JFK. I leaned over and mentioned this to my friend and he replied with "But he hasn't killed anybody with the American flag", to which I responded "Wait, there's still 20 minutes left". Sure enough, Mel Gibson stabs, and flips over a horse using the American flag. This movie screams EPIC!! yet it doesn't have the fantastic photography (or for that matter lighting, directing, acting) of Ridley Scott's masterpiece Gladiator. Mel alone kills over 40 people. It is bloody, but not entertaining. It's not an epic, and most importantly it's not interesting. Do not pay to see this movie and expect entertainment unless you want to make sarcastic remarks for 3 hours.
Murder by Death (1976)
Silly, Wonderful Simon Spin on Classic Murder Mysteries
Neil Simon is a writer of extremes. When he is good, he is great. He can be extremely funny as in the Odd Couple. When he is bad, he is really bad and can be terribly unfunny as in California Suite. Murder by Death, while certainly no Odd Couple, is very close to being extremely funny. Some of the greatest and most entertaining actors of our time are gathered in this (9 times out of 10) hysterical film. Peter Sellers and David Niven (both of whom were terrific in Casino Royale) are wonderful as 2 of the 5 great detectives invited to a dinner by a mysterious Mr. Twain (Truman Capote)who wants to outsmart them. Peter Falk plays Sam Diamond (hehe, get it?) and suspiciously sounds a lot like Humphrey Bogart. Hmmm... Also on hand are Mrs. Marbles and Inspector Perrier. In the characters you can see what the movie is like. Sellers steals the show (as always) as a spin on Charlie Chan named Wang. All of the characters have equally funny material to work off of, yet some jokes work and some don't. (Most do) Also appearing in supporting roles are James Cromwell and Alec Guiness. This is a very amusing, silly, witty film that might not make you laugh at loud, but will make you smile for sure. NOTE: DO NOT TRY TO MAKE SENSE OUT OF THE ENDING, YOU WILL END UP WITH A MASSIVE MIGRAINE
Love and Death (1975)
Early Woody Allen At His Best
I consider this hysterical movie to be part of Woody's transitional phase when he was going from silly, light slapstick like the fantastic Sleeper and the wonderful Take The Money And Run to darker, more though-provoking fair. With wonderful music, and cinematography that makes the atmosphere, Woody shows why he is the most brilliant comic actor/writer/director since Charlie Chaplin. The story of a coward during the Russian Revolution named Boris Greshenko who accidentally becomes a war-hero is filled with laughs. The amazing thing about Allen films like this is that the jokes just keep coming rapid-fire one after another after another. This can also be seen in Woody's stand up performances, as he doesn't give the punchline and stop--he keeps going. This signature style is what makes him so funny. If you don't have some huge grudge against Woody Allen, go out and see this movie!! It's beautiful, thought provoking, and hilarious.
Road Trip (2000)
Animal House For the Next Generation
A beautifully crafted college-comedy film that made me think back to the John Landis days of Animal House. Tom Green is the John Belushi of this picture. Sure, nobody will ever have the comic genius of Belushi, but Green makes you remember the old days. The plot involves a guy accidentally sending a tape of him having sex to his girlfriend, and the 3 day 1800 mile trip that results from it. The 4 characters are each given equal time to blossom and all of the supporting players were hilarious. If you enjoyed Dead Man on Campus then this is for you. My one complaint is that at times, it did feel a bit awkward, but this is relatively minor. A strong 8/10.
Being John Malkovich (1999)
The Biggest Head Trip Since Fear and Loathing
Spike Jonze is either a genius or a psycho for this incredible, sickening film. A lot of credit also goes to Charlie Kaufman as well. I can compare this film to Terry Gilliam's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas in that these were the only two movies where I sat up and asked myself "What the heck is going on?" An absolutely fantastic film, although unconventional, I don't think it qualifies as an art film. Not laugh-out-loud hilarious, but the kind of witty humor that I enjoy. The movie is worth for its sheer originality, including, my favorite scene, when John Malkovich becomes John Malkovich. It is simply magnificent. Jonze does a brilliant directing job here, although, I would've liked to see something more unique and unconventional to fit the story of the movie. (See Three Kings; which Jonze did a great acting job in) Malkovich is always a pleasure to watch, as is John Cusack. Cameron Diaz seems a little out of place for some reason, but Catherine Keener does a great job.
A very strong 9/10 which means if you can survive the ride, and can get passed the weird story, this film is well worth it.
Man on the Moon (1999)
Milos Forman Does It Again!
Man on the Moon, from the director of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus, and The People vs. Larry Flynt is nothing short of a pop-culture masterpiece. Forman reunited with the writers of Larry Flynt for this sensational---I hate to call it a biopic because it's so much more--this sensational film about the life of the late entertainer Andy Kaufman. It seems that there is no half-way on this film. Almost everybody I talked to either loved it or hated it. This depended largely on how you felt about Andy Kaufman's humor. I think that those who had never heard of Kaufman, or who had liked him when he was performing, loved the film. Everyone else didn't. To put it simply, Jim Carrey turned in the best performance of the year. Keven Spacey is my favorite actor, but Carrey was simply magnificent here. To use a trite expression, he simply becomes Andy Kaufman. This film wasn't really supposed to cover the entire life of Kaufman, and sure, it had minor innaccuracies, but the sheer movie making magic here is phenomenal. All of the supporting players were quite good, especially Paul Giamatti as Bob Zmuda. It's nice to see nearly everyone Kaufman ever worked with making a cameo here. Dave Letterman, Paul Shaffer, the cast of Taxi (minus Tony Danza and Danny DeVito who plays Kaufman's manager in the film), Lorne Michaels, the real Bob Zmuda, Jerry Lawler, Lance Russell, Norm MacDonald even appears as Michael Richards. The ending of this movie was totally beautiful. It summed up everything that Kaufman was. Critics blasted this for not probing into who Andy Kaufman was...but that's just it, Andy Kaufman was whoever you wanted him to be. He was a product of your mind. Asking "Who is the real Andy Kaufman" is just what he wanted.
Man on the Moon 100/100 A+. Forget everything you ever knew about Kaufman, and enjoy it.
Dennis Miller: The Millennium Special - 1,000 Years, 100 Laughs, 10 Really Good Ones (1999)
Dennis Miller At His Ironic Best!
I recall an episode of the Simpsons where Lisa sees the comic book guy wearing a shirt that reads: "C:\Dos C:\Dos\Run Run\Dos\Run" To this Lisa replies "Only one person in a million would find that funny" And the comic book guy responds "Yes, we call that the Dennis Miller Ratio"
If you are that one-in-a-million who appreciate Miller's cynical, ironic, sarcastic, vulgar take on things; if you have a taste for the obscure, the irreverent, and the frequent repetition of the F and C words, then this is for you.
I enjoy Miller's humor but if you don't like it, DO NOT WATCH THIS SPECIAL. People either love or hate Dennis Miller, so if you're a fan of his, you need to see this; some of his best work.
Bananas (1971)
One of Woody Allen's Best Early Films
Those of you who are familiar with Woody Allen, and anybody who has seen any great amount of his movies know that his films have mainly two periods. The first is a much lighter humor, visible in Sleeper and Bananas, and the other, which occurs much later on, is a dark, cynical take on life (Deconstructing Harry) This belongs to the first category, and is an absolutely brilliant film. Woody is one of the true comic geniuses in this country, along with Chaplin, Keaton, and a select few others. The film grabs you from the first gag, and never lets go. It is laugh-out-loud hillarious, and anyone who liked Sleeper should definately check this out.
Pitch Black (2000)
Incredibly Satisfying, Above Average Sci-Fi Horror
This movie, which is essentially Alien Meets Midnight Run Meets The Birds, is the best sci-fi/horror in a long time. The plot, involving some unlucky passengers crash landed on a planet with some ugly little creatures, who must trust a serial killer to save them, is a bit thin, but creates some genuinely suspensful moments.
No real big name actors here, except for Vin Diesel, who does a fine job in his performance here as the killer. The director picks some odd camera angles and weird shots, but I think it pays off. He lets see from the viewpoint of the killer/hero, the viewpoint of the weird alien bats, and he actually makes you a little afraid of the dark. The noises of the creatures are very frightening, but sound a little grating after a while. Other than that, and the fact the movie is about 10-15 minutes too long, its really worth your while. I recommend it to fans of the genre and those with open minds who didn't crucify Alien 3.
Rating 8 out of 10.
Dick (1999)
A Great Companion Piece To NIXON!
A really great movie here, however far fetched, or not, it is hillarious.
Dan Hedaya makes a great DICK, and its great to see the various SNL members pop up as well. Rent Oliver Stone's Nixon to see Anthony Hopkins and Paul Sorvino in the serious story of Watergate, and then rent this hysterical story of "The Unmaking of The President". For anyone old enough to remember Nixon, or for people with an interest in it, this really holds some great value. Not a movie for teens unless they hold some interest in it.
I give it an 8/10
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Minghella's Absolutely Fantastic Average Movie
Talented Mr. Ripley is one hell of a movie. Unfortunately, its comparable to flash paper. Its spectacular when its on fire, but after a split second, POOF! its gone.
The problem with this movie is that it sags in the middle, and amazingly, even while thrilling you, it bores you. Now, character study movies can be fascinating. So can 3 hr epics. The English Patient was a world-class masterpiece, Mr. Ripley is convuluted.
Matt Damon does a great job as Tom, and so do all the other actors, most notably, Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Every scene that he is in is just a pleasure to watch.
Minghella's direction is great, although at times, it can get a little distracting.
Mr. Ripley has something meaningful to say, and is always trying to say a hundred different things, but can't quite get it out. Its a shame.
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
This Project Is AVERAGE
While I must applaud the makers of the film for their creativity and originality, I must point out that they forget something in this very unusual horror film. THE HORROR! You say its scary because its left to the imagination, perhaps, but only when done in a certain style. Only several people could do that, foremost, Alfred Hitchcock. What this film does it bring a kind of mediocre Hitchcock to a young audience. The camera work is not subjective, its annoying. They want to do it in that style, fine, but have a Stead-i-Cam. Its not scary, is my biggest problem. We need a film like the Exorcist. As put in Entertainment Weekly "A cat jumping from offscreen is scary, the Exorcist is so disturbing it will mess you up for months." Rent that and then you will get it, or even Texas Chainsaw Massacre, it'll stick with you for a while. Currently, I would say Stigmata looks promising.
Final Grade: DETENTION C-
"Thats just my opinion, I could be wrong."
The Haunting (1999)
Some Houses Are Born Bad, And So Are Some Movies
After this film I am convinced that what Jan de Bont is to directing, Alan Thicke is to acting. This film is not a horror movie, its one giant close up after another. I could actually count the hairs on Liam Neeson's face. Also, to have a fantastic talent like Bruce Dern in such a nothing movie is very aggravating. This film is not scary at all, the acting in de Bont's SPEED 2 was more terrifying than anything you'll find in this film. The only good things were the glorious Cinematography, the Scoring, and the sets, the Production Designer must have been an angel.
Final Grade: This House Should Be Condemned D