suzdal Reviews

Wild Wild West (1999)

Fun, exciting and humorous

[8/10 · 7 July 1999]

A fine Western with the quirkiness that we all loved from the series. The casting is surprisingly appropiate and the writers are respectful enough of the audience's intelligence as to not just pretend that race is not an issue in an Old West setting. My only real beef is that they chose to cast Branagh as West's nemesis... but the fact that they changed his name to Arliss makes me wonder wether we might not see a sequel where his little brother Miguelito comes back for vengeance.... I'd go see it in a heartbeat.

No it's not the original series, but short of tossing Robert Conrad, et al in a time machine and regressing them to their 20's there's no way to duplicate the original series. The movie is a good ride in it's own right with all the action and gadgetry you could ask for.

Mom and Dad Save the World (1992)

Funny, silly and highly enjoyable

[8/10 · 21 March 1999]

Jon Lovitz as the Evil Emperor with a Death Ray targeted on Earth. Terry Garr as the beauty who steals his heart. Jeffrey Jones (the headmaster from Ferris Bueller) as Our Hero. A highly enjoyable little Flash Gordon spoof (complete with beautiful but stupid Bird People, played by Kathy Ireland, among others). If you enjoy Lovitz's humor in general, then you'll like this. It hits the mark perfectly and succeeds in being exactly what it intends to be.

The Cable Guy (1996)

Hilarious black comedy

[9/10 · 21 December 1998]

This movie was unjustly panned when it came out mainly because of Carrey's against-type role. He's excellent though, as is the rest of the cast. All of Ben Stiller's movies and his TV show have been on the darker side of comedy and full of pop-culture TV references and in this one he's at his peak. The trial-of-the-century subplot works beautifully with the main theme of Stiller (and our) love-hate relationship with the idiot box. If you like dark comedies and are able to accept that Jim Carrey has a wider range than just slapstick (although I also loved Ace Ventura) watch this.

The climactic end scene alone makes it worth it but there are plenty of funny moments and good dialogue. If you enjoy it then try to find tapes of "The Ben Stiller Show" which also went without the recognition it deserved.

Stiller is definitely one of the best talents in Hollywood.

The Outsider (1997 TV Movie)

No one involved cared much and it shows.

[3/10 · 16 December 1998]

Mindless is right. As Joe Bob likes to say: this movie has 20 minutes too much plot. but this is because it's a pretty lame plot, full of holes and general silliness. The idea is workable but done better elsewhere. The action sequences are good in spots and terribly fake in others. None of the main characters come across as believable. A couple of amusing moments-including two all-too brief scenes with Jerry Doyle. The lead moll was hamming it up rather nicely but unfortunately she looks more early 90's than vintage. I think narration is meant to lend it a Raymond Chandler feel but gets old in a hurry. Definitely feels like a quickie, no one involved cared enough to make anything authentic, whether you're talking about the acting, the costumes, the action or the humor.

The Prophecy II (1998 Video)

Entertaining sequel to The Prophecy

[25 November 1998]

If you liked the first film, you'll quite probably like this one too. It's a little more tongue-in-cheek and like most sequels not as good as the original, but it's still Walken as Gabriel with all that entails. The action is still good. Eric Roberts could be better, but he plays Michael not Gabriel. I think the humour was a little more obvious in this one, too. If you didn't like the original the skip it.

Crossworlds (1996)

Fun action sci-fi flick

[25 November 1998]

A small, low budget (but not B-more like an HBO film) Rutger Hauer film. better than I expected it to be, kind of feels like a pilot, since it's set up for sequels but with a heavy introductory feel. Decent leading characters with Rutger Hauer is his weary mentor role. A lot of fun and I will be looking out for the sequel.

The Ripper (1997 TV Movie)

Nicely done, interesting take on Jack the Ripper

[23 November 1998]

Not blazingly original, but still a well made film about the infamous Ripper murders. The cast is good, Bergin and Anwar are excellent and West is perfectly cast. Costuming, atmosphere and the like are up to big screen standards. Events and characters are modified a little for dramatic purposes, so true blue Ripper enthusiasts might find fault, but recommended for fans of Victorian period movies and general thriller/mysteries.

The Big Hit (1998)

Hilarious, over the top.

[8/10 · 28 October 1998]

So it starts out like an action-flick... you think you're watching the usual self-referential, ironic modern action movie, one with a sense of humor but that's all... WRONG!... it's a out-and-out comedy, the writers slowly build up to a huge climax which is so *obviously* ridiculous that I'm surprised anyone didn't get it. It's a refreshing change from the average overdone action films that try to make you take things like people outrunning explosions, ludicrous amounts of destruction and nigh-invulnerable heroes seriously. It's in the tradition of Hong Kong action-humour. Think Jackie Chan, The Tick or The Blues Brothers... this is to the Action genre what Army of Darkness is to the Horror genre.

Astroesque (1998)

Weird, low-budget but promising

[28 October 1998]

A very promising and original first feature by comic book writer (Madman/Red Rocket Seven/etc) Mike Allred. If you only like slick, big budget, Holywood flicks you probably won't like this. But if you enjoyed Tetsuo: The Iron Man, watched any Troma movie or set your VCR for Joe Bob's latest pick then this might be up your alley.

The Prophecy (1995)

Clever, scary and witty

[9/10 · 28 October 1998]

While it's not the Citizen Kane of our generation, this is a very nicely done movie. The plot is satisfying and holds together and the action is quick and not too overwhelming. Christopher Walken is in fine form as a wicked, witty and "monkey" (human) hating Archangel Garbiel, not a little tounge-in-cheek, by far the best part of the film. The visuals are good and it's certainly one of the best of the PseudoBiblical Horror film sub-category (also try its sequel Prophecy II, not quite as good but still fun and the Exorcist III for a similar feel)