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michael702
Reviews
A Prairie Home Companion (2006)
The best movie this summer.
I sat through Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Mans Chest or the longest movie I've ever seen--felt assaulted by the noise and the lack of coherence. I was glad when it was over. Two and a-half hours? Get real!!
I sat through Superman Returns- a decent movie, also too long, Brandon Routh was tolerable, easy to look at. The rest of the cast could have been played by anyone else in Hollywood--no one would have cared. Kate Bosworth? Please........make her eat something and get some training to fall back on when her career fizzles.
I loved Cars. Not the best Pixar movie, but still great, coming from a car geek. Enough said.
But since I have been a PHC listener since the early 80's and have loved it, this was a great adaptation of GK's writing and the spirit of the show. I have the soundtrack also, and wish the movie hadn't cut away from the performances, but understand why they did.
Immediately afterwards, I wasn't sure that the Axeman and the Dangerous Woman were necessary to the story but have since thought that they were important references to Death that Altman has said he was talking about.
I loved Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin(why isn't she in more movies?) and wish Lindsay Lohan would concentrate on being a singer of good songs instead of her socialite career. And I loved Dusty and Lefty, the singing cowboys. GK does a Joke Show every year on the show and it's one of my favorites.
I loved the movie..go see it!
Cars (2006)
An Adult Kids Movie
I can't believe the negative comments about this movie. I agree that the story is a little familiar, but the humor for adults in this is so wonderful--it's a pleasure to watch and try and catch all of the sly references (and not just pop culture things) and wonderful visual images. **POSSIBLE SPOILERS**I was amazed with the desert scenes and all of the buttes and mountains shown as car hoods and fenders, the old hotel entrance in a wheel. I loved how Ramone had a new paint job every time he came on scene. I loved Luigi's Ferrari mania and when Michael Schumacher came in at the end...perfect humor. And I haven't laughed so hard in a movie in a long time as I did in the "tractor tipping" scene. And if you are a fan of movie soundtracks, do yourself a favor and buy this one........
Wanderlust (2006)
Very entertaining
I had never even heard of this movie, and stumbled across it tonight on IFC. I saw Paul Rudd was in it, one of my favorites, and since the remote was across the room, I watched it. I was impressed by the format of this film, part fiction, part documentary and the interviews and clips of the real road movies. "Road movies" are one of my favorite kinds of movies and it was great seeing the clips of Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, Motorcycle Diaries etc. And I loved the interviews with the creators of these movies, like Robert Benton, Walter Salles and Monte Hellman, director of one the weirdest movies ever, Two Lane Blacktop.
Very entertaining film for TV. Might even consider buying it on DVD.
A Little Thing Called Murder (2006)
Starring Judy Garland as Sante Kimes...............
I love Judy Davis in almost anything she does, and absolutely was blown away by her performance in "Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows" a few years ago. And while I wasn't sure if it was necessary to re-tell this story that was done in 2001 with Mary Tyler Moore called "Like Mother Like Son: The Strange Story of Sante and Kenny Kimes" which was not a bad TV movie, this version was done well enough that it is a different kind of movie.
And as much as I love Judy, I felt like I was watching Judy Garland do this role, sort of like she was channeling Judy Garland playing Sante Kimes. It was totally watchable though, even though knowing it's a true story (at least the facts of the story) make it all the more interesting to watch.
I should have taped it though (yes, I'm still in the VCR world occasionally,) because I cannot stand the incessant and never-ending commercials on Lifetime...
De-Lovely (2004)
A Lovely, overlooked film.
I loved this movie. Ignore all complainers and whiners. This is NOT a typical H'Wood biopic, and I loved the life story within a movie part of it. Kevin Kline was terrific, Ashley Judd was great (stay away from the silly thrillers, Ashley) and the music was done with great creativity by a great bunch of modern-day singers, especially Alannis Morrisette, who I don't like all that much. I'm in my 50's, don't give a damn about accuracy and whether a song was in a minor key(since I don't read music). I love movies where the music is used in clever ways and thought all of it was done very well. The costumes and the sets were terrific as well.