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Reviews
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
The Greatest Movie Ever Made?
Every time I watch The Shawshank Redemption it reinforces the fact that it is my favorite movie of all time. But certainly as entertaining a film that it is, being a personal favorite does not necessarily make it a great film or dare I saythe greatest film ever made.
But what then makes a film great? First and foremost, if it sets out to entertain the general public, it must do that (and Shawshank certainly does that). Its pure entertainment value is essentially a stipulation in its inclusion in the great IMDb "greatest movie" debate. The serious nature of its central plot pointsa wrongly convicted murderer who assists the corrupt warden as means to affect his own escapeis contrasted by some truly funny scenes. Although by no means a comedy, the splendid screenplay is wrought with witty dialog. There's nothing fancy about this filmno special effects, spectacular scenery or even a bunch of pretty women. No, its just the telling of a story, mostly through the narration of Morgan Freeman's character, Red, that almost lulls viewers into believing that nothing really interesting or important is going to happen here. But after all of the subtle plot twists I think what makes this film great for me is I feel like I'm actually sharing in Andy's redemption. Now if that isn't what they teach in Film-making 101 then they should just close up the classroom.
Ultimately, there cannot be a single motion picture that is the "greatest film of all time" because as art, and in an art form as varied as cinema, greatness must be measured by each individual. Greatness, as beauty, truly is in the eye of the beholder. But in this beholder's eyes I think The Shawshank Redemption is truly the greatest film I have ever seen.
Big Momma's House (2000)
One of the stupidest movies of all time
I never saw this movie during its original theatrical release. I never saw this movie during its original showings on premium cable. I only viewed it some eight years later. I wish I had never seen it at all. This has got to be one of the stupidest movies I have ever watched in my whole life. Almost, but not quite as bad as Weekend At Bernie's. The whole premise of the film is a complete insult to just about anyone's intelligence. The key to making even a very incredulous plot line palatable is to create one in which the audience will at least WANT to believe. To me, this film doesn't even come close to meeting that test. But one redeeming value I got from it was that it made my mind up very quickly that I will never watch Big Momma's House 2.
WarGames (1983)
A great mediocre motion picture
This is one of those films that certainly is no masterpiece, but for some reason whenever I am flipping channels and it comes on, I'll probably watch it to the end. I'm not sure what it is about this film: The nerdy Matthew Broderick character hooking up with the pre-Breakfast Club hottie, Ally Sheedy? The whole Cold War doomsday plot line? (In retrospect, this is actually a pretty good comment on the subject and just a few years before they tore down that wall) Just thinking that the computer stuff was all state-of-the-art at the time? Typically good performances by the aforementioned and also Dabney Coleman. A few good lines here and there: "You're already dead!" The innocence of the whole thing. I just can't really explain it other than even after almost 25 years I still enjoy seeing Joshua try to crack the code. Or then again, maybe it's just me.
On the Waterfront (1954)
Maybe my all-time favorite one line from the movies
And NO, it's NOT the famous "I coulda been a contender--I coulda been somebody."
I know that when many people think of some of their all-time favorite dialog from the movies the great taxicab scene comes to mind. It's put together very well with the traffic sound effects and all. And that's not to say that I didn't appreciate the scene.
But, no, I like a scene a bit earlier in the film where Charlie mentions to Terry that since he's pushin' 30 and should be looking for a couple of extra potatoes.
Terry then tells his older brother what he thinks of ambition. His perfect reply, delivered perfectly in that muttering grumbling voice of Marlon Brando, has sort of served as a personal motto in my own life:
"I always figured I'd live a little bit longer without it."
The Aristocrats (2005)
Funny, peculiar
To borrow a phrase from an old Gomer Pyle episode, this film wasn't funny, ha ha, but it was funny, peculiar. Only a few of the comedians versions of the dirtiest joke in the world brought even a mild chuckle to me. Yet the film works very well as an intriguing documentary. To borrow another phrase once attributed to the late Richard Pryor's act, the utter profanity and descriptions of the vile, abhorrent sexual acts in the film seemed well beyond shocking--not much more than mere punctuation. One really does learn much about the kinship between professional comedians. I guess the biggest problem that I have with this film is that not being a comedian myself I am not sure that I should have been privy to their secret little handshake. Sure, knowledge is power, but then, ignorance is sometimes bliss. After watching this motion picture and learning a bit about the essence of a professional comedian, I wonder if any of them have ever submitted their occupation to Mike Lowe to use on his "Dirty Jobs" TV show.
White Noise (2005)
A bunch of noise
This was just a very inane movie. The basic premise of the movie, communications from the dead, is very worthy of putting on film. But something went terribly wrong here. I don't consider myself the most intelligent person in the world, but I certainly am not the most obtuse. I found the ending of this film totally confusing. Not only did I not fully understand the basic action of the plot, by that point I didn't really care. And to me, that is the death knell of a movie--not even caring that you didn't figure it out. I rated the film a 2 (instead of a 1) for two reasons: 1) the subject matter, even though not presented very well, is still a fascinating notion and 2) given the inadequacies of the script and direction, I still thought the performances were not the worst I have ever seen.
School of Rock (2003)
The School of Rock Rocks!
This is a very cool film. Richard Linklater, Jack Black, Mike White and everyone involved in the making of this movie must have a great deal of respect for the classic rock of which this effort pays homage. Jack Black is wonderfully cast as the would be great musician who honestly believes that its about the band, man. With an all-star soundtrack one can actually enjoy the film just for the music (the catchy theme song itself is a classic) but don't give up on this very entertaining tale of the slacker who attempts to teach a bunch of prep school students the only thing he knows anything about--rock music. He turns them into a viable entry for a local battle of the bands competition and in the process he also learns a little bit about life himself.
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Lives up to the hype
This is a film that, for some reason, I missed when it was originally released had never got around to seeing more than a decade later. As far as the obligatory comparision to Tarantino's bigger hit, Pulp Fiction, I think Pulp Fiction wins hands down, but Dogs is a great film on its own.
I remember reading a quote from Quentin Tarantino about where his films should be classified in the video store. He said with the comedies. It is real easy to view the film in this light, the violence becoming nothing more than that of cartoon characters.
I have always liked the Stealers Wheel song, "Stuck In The Middle With You," but never knew it was in the soundtrack to Reservoir Dogs. Michael Masden as Mr. Orange, dancing around to this in the famous ear scene is an absolute classic. I'll never be able to hear the song again without thinking of this scene.
Frequency (2000)
Fun at the OLD ball game
This is the best film I have ever seen about the New York Mets. Using their amazing 1969 World Series as an underlying thread tying the father and son's times together truly pays homage to what baseball once was. In spite of the flaws that many of the other viewers have pointed out (which I certainly don't want to simply overlook) I thoroughly enjoyed this film. I'm not quite sure exactly why. Things should make sense logically in science fiction, or at least be plausible. I'm not sure if all of the time travel stuff really does, but using baseball, for me at least, was the one thing that made this movie work. Hearing Curt Gowdy's play-by-play brought back childhood memories for me.
Network (1976)
Meeting the test of time
I think what really makes this film work is its blend between pure satire and the realm of possible realities. Surely a viewer at the time of its original release in the mid-70s could watch this film and know that is was an exaggeration, but it certainly didn't seem like a very far stretch to believe something like this COULD happen. A quarter century later, in this post September 11 world, we can look back with a little perspective. What happened that day which changed the world forever, was also the highest rated television show ever. The evil ones knew that and planned their attack accordingly. No one should call Chayefsky a visionary, but this whole attitude, which Sidney Lumet captured beautifully, was no secret. Viewing this movie again today is almost eerie.
Fernwood 2 Night (1977)
Hey, Vern
Jim Varney, if I remember correctly, was featured on Fernwood 2Nite, as the inventor of a battery powered car (with several hundred C or D cells. He just couldn't keep replacing them fast enough. And I also have fond memories of Kenneth Mars with his chinodonic device, used to push his protruding chin back closer into his face.