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363,111 | 4,888,011 | 52,655 | 10 | Dick Miller in a lead role : perfect ! | If you've seen Roger Corman's and Joe Dante's movies , then you probably recognize Dick Miller . That husky scowling guy with a heavy New York accent appeared in many of Corman's movies and has appeared in all of Dante's movies . In " A Bucket of Blood " , he gets what may have been his only lead role . He plays Walter Paisley , an envious-of-the-beatniks waiter who kills people , covers their bodies in clay , and presents it as art . Yep , that sounds like a Roger Corman movie , and he made a neat one here . It's hard to tell whether they were idealizing beatniks or mocking them , but the movie's enjoyable nonetheless . And there's one scene which I bet that all the teenage boys really liked when the movie first came out ( you'll know it when you see it ) . A really cool flick . FYI : Dick Miller often plays characters named Walter Paisley . |
363,144 | 4,888,011 | 61,390 | 10 | what we have become | While Chuck Jones remains best known for his Warner Bros . animated shorts , he also directed a couple of interesting pieces after he left WB . Probably best known are " The Dot and the Line " and " How the Grinch Stole Christmas " , but another one is " The Bear That Wasn't " , an eerily prophetic look at the industrial age . Based on a short story by Frank Tashlin ( also a former WB director ) , it portrays a bear hibernating , only to wake up and discover that there's a now a factory surrounding his cave . While the cartoon maintains a lighthearted tone , it does get fairly serious - if inadvertently - when the bear tries to explain his predicament . Representatives of each successive echelon tell him that he's just a man who needs a shave and wears a fur coat . At the very least , we see the invasion of the natural world by industry ; one might interpret this cartoon as a precursor to " The Lorax " . But inside the factory itself , not only do they force the bear to perform labor similar to what Charlie Chaplin did in " Modern Times " , but there's the hierarchy displayed when we see the president in his throne-like chair . Not to mention the fact that they do everything possible to berate the bear out of knowing that he's a bear . But even beyond all this , the cartoon brings to mind the fact that these factories have since shut down and moved production to the Third World . Michael Moore's " Roger and Me " is a prime example of what resulted from such a situation . In other words , first the factories destroy their natural settings , then they abandon the areas and let them rot . This is what we have become as a society . All in all , I certainly recommend this cartoon . |
365,265 | 4,888,011 | 87,843 | 10 | Sergio Leone's grand ambition . | After so many years of westerns , Sergio Leone made " Once Upon a Time in America " , about several friends forced to abandon their loyalty as they age . This is one of those movies that's too hard to simply describe ; you really have to see it to understand it . And you may be disappointed if you expect something exactly like " The Godfather " ; they are gangsters , but they're Jewish , so that changes things a little . If absolutely nothing else , this disproves the notion that we have nowadays that historical epics are always pieces of drudgery ( blame " Alexander " for that stereotype ) . " OUATIA " is the sort of movie that could only star people like Robert DeNiro . It also stars James Woods , Joe Pesci , Elizabeth McGovern , Treat Williams , and Jennifer Connelly ( in her debut ) , and they all do a great job . This movie is a masterpiece in every way . But don't take my word for it ; see for yourself . |
365,346 | 4,888,011 | 95,574 | 10 | She may have little faith , but there's lots of faith to be had in the movie . | One of the major aspects of " Malenkaya Vera " ( called " Little Vera " in English ) is that it was the first movie from the Soviet Union that featured a sex scene , albeit a short one . The title is important : Vera is the Russian word for " faith " , identifying that punk Vera ( Natalya Negoda ) has little faith in the Soviet system . And as the movie shows , there's not much faith to be had in it . The opening scene shows the bleak industrial town of Zhdanov , nearly a hell on earth . When Vera's lover Sergei ( Andrey Sokolov ) moves in with her family , it leads to some unexpected events . Like in many Russian movies , people's names describe their characters . For example , there's Viktor ( remember that " victor " means winner ) . All in all , this is a good look at the Soviet Union while it was collapsing - and we can see why it was collapsing . Really good . |
364,817 | 4,888,011 | 52,304 | 10 | must have been Daffy's relative | When the mice set up a mini-carnival for Cinco de Mayo , a loopy vulture ( or crow ; I'm sure not totally sure which he was ) attacks , thereby prompting Speedy Gonzales to spring into action . And he does . . . with a vengeance ! The great part is knowing what's going to happen , and watching it play out . I noticed that the vulture / crow had a face very similar to Daffy Duck . Maybe this was a preview of the Speedy / Daffy cartoons in the mid to late ' 60s . Or maybe it's just a coincidence . Overall , " Tortilla Flaps " is a really fun cartoon . They must have had a lot of fun filming it . I guess that lots of things can hurt people's pride . PS : I know that " exito " was just supposed to be " exit " with O on the end , but that word actually is Spanish for " success " . |
363,627 | 4,888,011 | 87,800 | 10 | More creative than the average horror flick . | OK , Ronee Blakely's acting is more like something out of an Ed Wood movie , but " A Nightmare on Elm Street " is truly a horror classic . Specifically , it's more creative than most of them , due to the fact that Freddy Krueger ( Robert Englund ) has to go inside peoples ' dreams to kill them . His blade-fingers are like a character in and of themselves . This is one movie that no horror-fetishist can afford to miss . One day , I think that we're all going to look back on these horror classics like we nowadays look back on the sci-fi / horror flicks of the ' 50s and early ' 60s . Just try and go to sleep after watching this movie . |
364,497 | 4,888,011 | 52,233 | 10 | words of Wisdom | Following up on the zaniness of " Up in the World " , Norman Wisdom returned as witless Norman Pitkin in " The Square Peg " . In this case , he joins the army in WWII and gets dropped into Nazi-occupied France , where he's a dead ringer for a Nazi general . I will say that I didn't find this one quite as funny as the previous movie , but the scenes where he's in the general's headquarters are just a hoot - you could turn the sound off and it would still be great . This is one movie that you're sure to love . Also starring is Honor Blackman ( that's right : Pussy Galore ! ) and Edward Chapman . And to think that I'd never even heard of Norman Wisdom until yesterday when I watched " Up in the World " ! |
364,660 | 4,888,011 | 70,222 | 10 | Always " bee " yourself ! | That's if you like campy ' 70s schlock , for everyone else . In this case , woman in a small California town are turning into queen bees and screwing their husbands to death ! You read that right . Needless to say , there's everything that we expect in a campy ' 70s flick : big-breasted babes , men wearing ugly ties , and old-style computers . I gotta admit , I wouldn't mind mating with some of those bee girls ! There are some hot ones there ! Of course , in keeping with decency , I would have to avoid the old woman walking around in her bra and panties . I know , it makes me a chauvinist pig for liking a movie full of buxom women . Well , at least these women look like real people . All in all , a real treat for B-movie fetishists . |
364,510 | 4,888,011 | 95,444 | 10 | Send in the " Klowns " ! | Everyone loves a so-bad-it's-good movie , and " Killer Klowns from Outer Space " is the ultimate example : it's so campy , that it's comparable to " Citizen Kane " and " The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie " ! The title pretty much explains the whole plot . John Vernon , as the police chief , was the only cast member whom I recognized , but this movie isn't about the cast . . . it's about the Klowns . Those evil , curly-haired wackos are turning an all-American town into a Hell on Earth , and only Mike Tobacco ( Grant Cramer ) and Debbie Stone ( Suzanne Snyder ) can stop them . Of course , one thing that no horror movie can lack is a " Psycho " - esque shower scene ; in this case , Debbie gets attacked by a Klown while taking a shower . Too bad that they didn't show a little more of her in that scene . Either way , you're sure to love this movie ! And you might be a little suspicious the next time that you go to the circus . . . |
362,720 | 4,888,011 | 405,422 | 10 | Sex really does sell ! | One of the most innovative comedies that I've seen in years , " The 40 Year Old Virgin " rips up everything . Portraying quadragenarian Andy Stitzer ( Steve Carell ) trying to have sex for the first time , it really gives you an " oh no . . . oh yes " feeling watching the movie . I had some favorite scenes , but I probably can't repeat them here . One thing that was really interesting about the movie is that I think that Andy is supposed to have Asperger's Syndrome ( which would impair his ability to start up relationships with women ) . But believe you me , they did a really funny job showing that ! Anyway , it's a great movie . There isn't a dull moment anywhere in it . Also starring Catherine Keener , who shows herself to definitely be one of the best actresses of our time ( especially considering that last year , she also starred in " Capote " ) . You gotta admit , the recent slew of comedies ( this one plus any movie starring Jim Carrey , Jack Black , Ben Stiller , Owen Wilson , Vince Vaughn and / or Will Ferrell ) is really something else ! |
364,357 | 4,888,011 | 373,074 | 10 | absolutely awesome | In recent years , the American assumption about Hong Kong cinema seems to be that their movies consist of chop-socky wackiness . In that respect , " Kung Fu Hustle " does not disappoint . It tells the story of the Axe Gang , who rule 1940s Hong Kong mafia-style . One of their members is Sing ( director Stephen Chow ) , who joined them because , as he puts it , when he was young , he wanted to be a good guy , but found out that it was easier to be a bad guy . Anyway , the Axe Gang descends on a slum known as Pig Sty Alley , which hides some treasures . But of course , the people who live there aren't going to let the Axe Gang run roughshod over them . From that point on , the movie becomes a cross between Bruce Lee and Chris Farley , especially with the harp-playing scene . Stephen Chow is clearly showing himself to be quite a director , with this movie and with " Shaolin Soccer " . Admittedly , " Kung Fu Hustle " is not any kind of masterpiece ; as far as I can tell , it exists for the sole purpose of entertainment . But let's face it , that's the case with most martial arts movies ( you might recall that " Enter the Dragon " really had no reason for existence except to show off Bruce Lee's impressive skills ) . There is one scene in this movie where Pig Sty Alley's landlady ( Qiu Yuen ) chases one of the gangsters in what appears to be a spoof of / homage to the Road Runner-Wile E . Coyote cartoons . 100 % cool . |
365,685 | 4,888,011 | 77,838 | 10 | that era may be gone , but the music never will be | The Band plays its final concert in Martin Scorsese's documentary " The Last Waltz " , recorded in San Francisco . Aside from getting to hear the Band and numerous other great performers ( Bob Dylan , Joni Mitchell , Ringo Starr and Neil Young , to name a few ) , the documentary is also a look back at an era gone by . Among other things , the layered hairdos that they have look a lot better than the spiked hair that we see nowadays . It just goes to show that even if that specific era has passed , the music will never die . This documentary is nostalgia in its best form . May the Band's work be remembered forever ! I recommend " The Last Waltz " to everyone . |
362,785 | 4,888,011 | 70,290 | 10 | Cool or uncool to go into the armed forces ? | Jack Nicholson and Otis Young play Navy cadets Billy " Badass " Buddusky and " Mule " Mulhall , respectively , who are hired to take cadet Larry Meadows ( Randy Quaid ) to jail after he stole some money . So , they decide that if he's going to have to spend time behind bars , then he should have a good time before it , so they show him the time of his life . That's this movie's plot , but it has greater implications . When the movie came out , it was very uncool to go into the army . " The Last Detail " portrays two men whose only access to a better life was by going into the Navy . Obviously , we have to wonder whether or not that would apply today , but it remains an important aspect in this movie . See it at all costs . |
365,420 | 4,888,011 | 95,270 | 10 | a good intro to John Waters | Knowing that John Waters likes to make outrageous movies , " Hairspray " is an easy introduction to his movies . It portrays chubby teenager Tracy Turnblad ( Ricki Lake ) trying to help bring about integration in 1962 Baltimore , all in the context of hairstyles . Watching the movie , one gets the feeling that Waters long had a thing for beehive hairdos - I mean , look at Velma Von Tussle's ( Deborah Harry ) . But overall , it's the sort of movie that you really wish that you could experience , especially when Penny's mother gets freaked out in the ghetto . Anyway , you gotta love John Waters ( who appears briefly as the psychiatrist ) for making these kinds of flicks . Also starring Divine , Sonny Bono , Jerry Stiller and Mink Stole . |
364,318 | 4,888,011 | 105,275 | 10 | more proof of Crowe's talent | We most likely would find it hard to stomach a movie that humanizes skinheads , but " Romper Stomper " does just that . The plot centers on a group of Australian skinheads terrorizing the Vietnamese immigrants , but ironically , we sort of end up sympathizing with the skinheads . Russell Crowe plays the lead skinhead , Hando . A far cry from his clean-cut good guys in " Rough Magic " , " LA Confidential " , " Gladiator " , " A Beautiful Mind " and " Master and Commander : The Far Side of the World " , he almost makes you forget that this skinhead is an actor . Like so many other actors and actresses , Crowe seems able to play literally any role perfectly , even making us root for a seemingly undesirable person . |
363,610 | 4,888,011 | 95,243 | 10 | gorilla my dreams | Even if you have no idea who Dian Fossey was , " Gorillas in the Mist : The Story of Dian Fossey " is still amazing . Sigourney Weaver perfectly captures the spirit of the woman who sought to save Africa's mountain gorillas from extermination by human encroachment . It was eye-opening to see her go from an all-American babe ( needing her bras in the jungle ) to a politicized woman living with the gorillas . The end brings up a question : just who was it ? Even if we never find out who specifically did it , it just goes to show that various factions wanted her out of the way . All in all , this is a great movie , one that I recommend to everyone . Once again , Michael Apted ( of the " 7 Up " series " and the never - released - on - video - or - DVD " Stardust " ) shows himself to be a great director . Also starring Bryan Brown . |
362,669 | 4,888,011 | 61,176 | 10 | laughter IS the best medicine , especially for war | Gen . Sherman said that war is hell , but if he had seen " What Did You Do in the War , Daddy ? " , he would have eaten his words . The movie focuses on an American platoon that captures an Italian village in WWII . The Italians are willing to surrender as long as they can have their festival . This creates a problem for the Americans , who have to look like they're fighting . Meanwhile , one of the commanding officers gets lost in the catacombs and goes crazy . Dick Shawn displays the same type of wacky humor that he employed in " It's a Mad , Mad , Mad , Mad World " , and we even get to see Carroll O'Connor , pre - " All in the Family " . Perfect . |
363,631 | 4,888,011 | 61,177 | 10 | What's up , tiger lily ? Whoa-o-o-o-o-oh | Ever seen a Japanese man with a Jewish name ? Now you will ! Making his directorial debut , Woody Allen takes a Japanese spy movie and re-dubs it into being a search for the world's best egg salad recipe . You read that right . This is , after all , from the man who brought us " Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex . . . " . The dialogue mostly sounds like the sort of comments that we would expect to hear on " MST3K " , with a few exceptions . As for the Lovin ' Spoonful , you'll just have to see what you think of their appearance in the movie . But overall , " What's Up , Tiger Lily ? " is really funny . An interesting follow-up to " What's New , Pussycat ? " . |
362,546 | 4,888,011 | 43,564 | 10 | Quoi est up , Doc ? | Bugs Bunny gets caught between two snooty Parisian chefs trying to turn him into their main course . Once again , the team behind the Looney Tunes cartoons created a clever , irreverent litany of wackiness . If " French Rarebit " has any problem , it's that the cartoon stereotypes France . But hey , this is a joke here ! The point is to luxuriate in Bugs's antics . And believe me , you're sure to have a good time . As we should all know by now , nothing is sacred to Bugs , as he trashes the rules day in and day out . It's a hoot from start to finish . In conclusion : Vive la France ! Because we might just all be the pickle . Moan-sirs and madame-oizels . Ha ! |
363,297 | 4,888,011 | 87,553 | 10 | My mother and her friend interviewed Dith Pran . | When I was seven , my mother and her friend were working on a radio project about the Cambodian genocide , and they went to New York to interview Dith Pran . Through all of this , I learned about Cambodia . It wasn't until I was fifteen that I saw " The Killing Fields " , and I was horrified at the Khmer Rouge's brutality . You can't even begin to imagine the awful things that they did until you see the movie . I also read Haing Ngor's autobiography " A Cambodian Odyssey " . What he experienced was basically the same as what " The Killing Fields " portrays . But the really surprising part is that of all the groups who were in power in Cambodia during Haing Ngor's life there , the Khmer Rouge were the most honest . The French were the colonizers , Prince Sihanouk was a royalist who suppressed the insurgent movements , Lon Nol was a military ruler installed by the CIA , and then the Khmer Rouge . When US planes started bombing the countryside after Lon Nol came to power in 1970 , the Khmer Rouge explained to the Cambodian people what was going on . So , the people began supporting the Khmer Rouge . So whether or not anyone wants to admit it , the Khmer Rouge were driven to their actions ( although that's still no justification for their atrocities ) . The whole issue is so complex , that it takes a while to think about . But either way , you have to see this movie . |
363,331 | 4,888,011 | 451,176 | 10 | In many ways , Los Angeles is changing for the better . | For years , many people viewed LA as the most worthless place on Earth : a cultural wasteland full of rich white people doing white people things , with nothing to show for itself except self-righteous movie stars . I guess that such a description was probably fairly accurate . Well , " Quinceanera " shows that such a description may be fleeting . The movie focuses on fourteen-year-old Mexican-American girl Magdalena ( Emily Rios ) about to have her fifteenth birthday when she discovers that she's pregnant ( despite never actually having engaged in intercourse ) . While this throws her giant extended family into flux , it forces her parents and relatives to reassess things . Along with this , Magdalena's hoodlum cousin Carlos ( Jesse Garcia ) turns out to be gay , and the extended family's patriarch gets evicted . Things just may never be the same in this family . What I mean about LA changing entails several things . In one scene , Magdalena's friends propose taking the bus ; rich white girls would never do that ( as working-class Hispanics , these girls have no other choice ) . In fact , Hispanics are the largest ethnic group in the City of Angels , comprising 48 % of its population ( Asians are second ; LA has the highest Japanese population in the US ) . So it should come as no surprise that two years ago , LA elected its first Latino mayor - I mean Antonio Villaraigosa - in 133 years . As for the overall negative reputation that Los Angeles often has , I get the feeling that that reputation springs from the suburbs ; if you visit LA proper and then its suburbs ( populated mostly by rich white people ) , LA looks like total paradise . All in all , a very good movie . |
363,716 | 4,888,011 | 77,975 | 10 | what a wonderful world it is with John Belushi being a P-I-G | Everybody knows the story of Faber College's wild Delta fraternity making their own rules while the law-and-order-obsessed dean tries to expel them in 1962 . But you still have to see it ! Whether it's John Belushi's whole skit in the cafeteria , the toga party , or the grand finale , " Animal House " is a laugh riot from beginning to end . How anyone was able to come up with something so damn hilarious shows what geniuses some people are . As for some of the characters , we'll first focus on the Deltas . Belushi's John " Bluto " Blutarsky is in a class all by himself , Eric " Otter " Stratton ( Tim Matheson ) is a new kind of pervert , Donald " Boone " Schoenstein ( Peter Riegert ) toes too many lines for his own good , Larry " Pinto " Kroger ( Tom Hulce ) tries but fails to play it straight , and Kent " Flounder " Dorfman ( Stephen Furst ) is a dork . Then , there's the vicious Omega house . Gregg Marmalard ( James Daughton ) is the creepiest of the creepy , Sgt . Douglas Niedermeyer ( Mark Metcalf ) represents the army's nastiest aspects , and Chip Diller ( Kevin Bacon in his debut ) shows that new doesn't necessarily mean good . Next , the older characters . Dean Vernon Wormer ( John Vernon ) is almost a Nazi , Prof . Dave Jennings ( Donald Sutherland ) is a proto-hippie , Marion Wormer ( Verna Bloom ) seems unfulfilled in life , and Mayor Carmine DePasto ( Cesare Danova ) likes to extort . And then there's the women . Katy ( Karen Allen ) is dating Boone but is often displeased with him . But especially noticeable are Mandy Pepperidge ( Mary Louise Weller ) and Babs Jansen ( Martha Smith ) . Maybe it's Babs ' sweet-talking accent , or maybe it's the camera angle on Mandy when Otter is talking to her in the cafeteria , or maybe it's the scene where Bluto is looking up their dresses , or maybe it's the scene where Bluto watches Mandy undress . But whatever it is , those two babes each deserve their own chapters in the Encyclopedia of Hot Women , if there ever is one ! Anyway , " Animal House " is beyond hilarious . Not even the grouchiest , most miserly person could resist laughing . Every time that I hear " Wonderful World " , I think of John Belushi piling the food onto his tray . On that subject , the soundtrack rivals " American Graffiti " in terms of how neat it is . SEE THIS MOVIE AT ALL COSTS ! |
365,421 | 4,888,011 | 112,896 | 10 | Da-a-a-a-angerous and hila-a-a-a-arious ! | As has been the case with all of Mel Brooks's recent movies , " Dracula : Dead and Loving It " is a big excuse to be silly . Aside from the fact that the count ( Leslie Nielsen , who else ? ) is the world's biggest klutz , a Gypsy man has an excessively long moustache , Drac's brides look and act like prostitutes , and Dr . Van Helsing ( Brooks ) strangely resembles a rabbi . That's Mel Brooks all right ! So , this is the sort of movie that you watch knowing full well that you're in for something totally goofy and maybe even stupid . But it's meant to be stupid . Because remember : you're eyes are getting sleepy . . . Also starring Peter MacNicol , Steven Weber , Amy Yasbeck , and even Anne Bancroft as a Gypsy woman with an apparent throat problem . |
363,391 | 4,888,011 | 52,390 | 10 | mine hero | Yet again , Wile E . Coyote ( insert scientific name involving eating ) sets a series of traps to get Road Runner ( insert scientific name involving speed ) , but always gets himself . Probably the coolest one here is a tornado seed . Sure enough , he gets sucked in . . . and then there's a mine field ! And the guy still doesn't give up ! True , even before " Whoa , Be-Gone ! " starts , you know what sorts of things are going to happen , but it's still a hoot . After all , WEC always gets his just desserts for trying to harm RR ( another one of the tricks involves a trampoline ) . It's truly a classic . Available on Volume 2 Disc 2 of the Looney Tunes DVDs . |
363,645 | 4,888,011 | 166,924 | 10 | What was it about ? You're not supposed to ask . | The fact that you most likely won't be able to figure " Mulholland Dr . " out during the first viewing is what makes it so great . David Lynch throws in so many twists and turns that it'll make your head spin . . . if you're not too transfixed already . The plot has Betty Elms ( Naomi Watts ) arriving in LA hoping to become a star , when she becomes in the most bizarre series of events that you could ever imagine . . . or does she ? The answer doesn't just lie with Betty's new roommate Rita ( Laura Harring ) , but rather in that which isn't too obvious . . . or does it ? I can't even try to describe the movie further ; you have see this movie to understand it . In fact , you might want to watch it twice ; there's a lot that you probably won't pick up during the first viewing . Anyway , David Lynch has created here what may be his most interesting movie ever . Granted , his movies are usually bizarre , but " Mulholland Dr . " is in a class all on its own . So all that I can tell you , be prepared to be shocked . |
365,826 | 4,888,011 | 35,754 | 10 | not corny at all ; quite good , actually | One of the great things about the classic Looney Tunes cartoons is how they introduced children to elements of culture . " What's Opera , Doc ? " was probably their most famous cartoon involving opera , but there was also " A Corny Concerto " . Elmer Fudd - having some trouble with his clothes - presents two short films with opera music in the background . And both come out very well . The one with Porky Pig hunting Bugs Bunny had ending that seems like it would have been a little risqué for 1943 ( especially in a cartoon ) , but that's what makes these cartoons so good ; they weren't afraid to push the limits . But the one with a black duckling - possibly Daffy Duck - is truly the highlight ; but how could it not be , featuring " The Blue Danube " ? One scene there gave the cartoon a real feeling of WWII . So , this is truly one of the classics . Up in that great animation studio in the sky , Mel Blanc , Bob Clampett , Chuck Jones , and that whole crew can take pleasure knowing that their work continues to impress us to this day . |
362,801 | 4,888,011 | 53,084 | 10 | I guess that the threat of nuclear annihilation always made for some great comedy with Peter Sellers in multiple roles ! | Any film buff remembers Peter Sellers playing three roles in the Cold War comedy " Dr . Strangelove " . Well , " The Mouse That Roared " was a sort of prequel to that . A tiny , backwards nation on France's Mediterranean coast has no way of moving forward economically . So , the queen and prime minister ( both played by Sellers ) make a decision : the country will declare war on the United States , lose , and collect foreign aid . There's just one problem : when they arrive in New York , there's no one around - the threat of nuclear annihilation has driven everyone into hiding . The army decides that this calls for drastic measures - with hilarious results . Some people might say : " If you've seen one zany comedy , you've seen ' em all . " Be that as it may , you've still gotta see " TMTR " . It's just so funny . And one scene that's likely to open any teenage boy's eyes is when Peter Sellers walks into Jean Seberg's room and she's . . . well , I won't spoil it for you , but I will assert that it seems like it would have been risqué for 1959 . Classic . |
363,504 | 4,888,011 | 69,995 | 10 | Nothing is what it seems . You'd better believe it . | In my opinion , " Don't Look Now " constitutes a real collision of different kinds of careers . Nicolas Roeg had already directed the surreal " Walkabout " , Donald Sutherland had starred in the humorous " MASH " , and Julie Christie had won an Oscar for the bleak " Darling " . So this one must have really blown people's minds when it came out . Portraying a couple losing a child to a drowning , and thereafter experiencing some rather unexplainable occurrences , the movie might make you question your own sanity . I will say that it's not outright scary , but those scenes on the river . . . well , just see if you can keep breathing normally after watching those . Anyway , this is definitely one that I recommend . I did not see that ending coming ( although I doubt that anyone could predict it ) . So do look now , and watch the movie . . . if you dare . Because he's right : nothing is what it seems . |
363,274 | 4,888,011 | 113,326 | 10 | My introduction to Jackie Chan . | Before I'd seen " Rumble in the Bronx " , I'd heard of Jackie Chan but never seen any of his movies . Well , when I saw this , I practically died laughing . Basically an hour and a half of him bonking people in every direction , the movie is physical humor at its best . The plot has Hong Kong cop Keung ( Chan ) coming to New York for his uncle's wedding and having to battle street gangs and a crime syndicate . By battle , I of course mean pulling every crazy stunt imaginable . I really liked the early scene in the store , and then the whole hovercraft sequence . I gotta ask : how did we get by before these kinds of movies ? There was once a time when movies all followed the Disney formula , and Jackie Chan-style plots were unfathomable . Thank God for Bruce Lee ! As it is , Jackie Chan often seems to be spoofing Bruce Lee . Hilarious . |
363,875 | 4,888,011 | 60,782 | 10 | B ( e ) C ( ause ) of various factors | OK , having seen many movies about the Stone Age , we should know that the men were all buff dudes , and the women were all buxom babes . That's certainly the case here . Obviously , no part of " One Million Years B . C . " really makes sense - humans and dinosaurs never existed contemporaneously - but that doesn't matter . The movie was intended as entertainment , and it's very enjoyable . Maybe that's just because we get to see Raquel Welch in a bikini , but the dinosaurs are also pretty cool . The movie makes us nostalgic for the era , even though we never experienced it . So , it's brain candy to the max , and it doesn't pretend to be anything else . You're sure to like it , if only for the thought of Raquel Welch dressed like that . |
364,389 | 4,888,011 | 78,788 | 10 | The best Vietnam War movie ever . | From the opening scene - with " The End " playing while helicopters are attacking a village - to Col . Kilgore's ( Robert Duvall ) admiration of napalm , to the Playboy bunnies , to the final scene , " Apocalypse Now " always hits you like a brick in the face . As Capt . Benjamin L . Willard , searching for renegade Col . Walter E . Kurtz ( Marlon Brando ) , Martin Sheen has what was probably the best role of his career . Above all , the movie is staunchly anti-war , even more so than " The Deer Hunter " ; " Apocalypse Now " condemns the fact that we were in Vietnam to begin with . The Playboy bunny scene not only shows that the GIs were shown the most despicable stuff for entertainment , but it shows that if you expect to create such emotions , don't expect to be able to control them ( in that scene , you can see Vietnamese people outside the compound , and you can only imagine how disgusted they must be at American " entertainment " ) . Col . Kilgore is of course the ultimate rah-rah military type . Among other things , this " patriot " ignores a wounded man , preferring instead to go surfing . He doesn't even flinch when there's an explosion . As he cynically notes : " Charlie don't surf . " All in all , " Apocalypse Now " is one of the greatest movies ever made . With top notch performances by the stars and great support from Frederic Forrest , Laurence Fishburne , Dennis Hopper , Sam Bottoms and Harrison Ford , this is one movie that everyone should see . |
364,727 | 4,888,011 | 104,507 | 10 | two weeks ago , I'd never even heard of a coxswain | Throughout the past forty years , much has been written about the Vietnam War . Less has been told about the history of Vietnam before the US got involved . Regis Wargnier's " Indochine " does a really good job . Catherine Deneuve plays Eliane Devries , the owner of a rubber plantation in 1930s Vietnam . Eliane has raised a Vietnamese girl ( Lin Dam Pham ) as her own and named her Camille . But then , two things change the course of the mother-daughter relationship . One is that Camille falls for French soldier Jean-Baptiste ( Vincent Perez ) . The other is Vietnam's budding independence movement , with which Camille gets involved . Jean-Baptiste's relationship with Camille makes him suspect in the eyes of the colonial government . At the very least , this movie is a fine focus on the events that led up to the US's tragic involvement in Indochina . But it's also a good look at Vietnamese culture ( I like it when movies show us a culture that we don't usually get to see ) , not to mention the Vietnamese landscape . To be certain , I have always considered it important to understand as much as possible about regions such as Indochina , if only to understand why the US got involved there . Definitely a great one . I recommend it . And yes , two weeks ago , I'd never heard of a coxswain ( which they mention during the boat racing scene ) . I only first learned the word while watching the Beijing Olympics . |
363,503 | 4,888,011 | 104,504 | 10 | Don't believe anyone who says that we don't have political prisoners . | With " Incident at Oglala " , Robert Redford and Michael Apted exposed how American Indian Movement activist Leonard Peltier was unjustly convicted of murder . It was obvious that the whole thing was politically motivated . And regardless of who committed the murders , they were intimidating the Indians . And anyway , the white people stole the Indians ' land to begin with , so the Indians had every right to stand up for themselves . The point is that any time that the US government talks about freedom and democracy , it's pure hypocrisy . An innocent man sits in jail while thugs rule the White House . This is an important documentary for everyone . |
364,085 | 4,888,011 | 53,198 | 10 | so Truffaut started here | Francois Truffaut made his mark on the cinematic world with " Les quart cents coups " ( called " The 400 Blows " in English ) . Semi-autobiographical , the movie tells the story of Antoine Doinel ( Jean-Pierre Leaud ) , a misunderstood schoolboy . Everyone hears rumors about him and assumes things about him . Finally , at the end of the movie , Doinel escapes from a seaside cottage and runs out to the shore , and an ambiguous future . The movie was very well done in every aspect . The black and white helps to emphasize Doinel's somewhat dreary existence . I recommend this movie to everyone . |
362,892 | 4,888,011 | 87,363 | 10 | My favorite Christmas movie of all time . | Usually , when we think of Christmas movies , we think of flicks like " It's a Wonderful Life " . Well , here's a new kind : " Gremlins " . This has got to be one of the coolest movies ever made . Joe Dante - always a director with some neat ideas - couldn't have pulled it off better . It all begins when inventor Rand Peltzer ( Hoyt Axton ) buys a furry little creature called " mogwai " from a Chinese salesman ( Keye Luke ) . There are three rules about mogwai : 1 ) Never expose him to bright light ( the sun could kill him ) . 2 ) Never expose him to water ( certainly don't give him a bath ) . 3 ) The most important rule of all is never , ever , EVER , under any circumstances , feed him after midnight . So , Rand gives mogwai to his son Billy ( Zach Galligan ) . But , as you might have guessed , the rules get broken , and before long , the little town of Kingston Falls is overrun by mean , green gremlins . Everything that you love about movies , you're likely to find in " Gremlins " . Whether it's the inside jokes ( a cinema is showing " A Boy's Life " and " Watch the Skies " , the working titles for " E . T . " and " Close Encounters of the Third Kind " , respectively ) , the indictment of vicious landlady Ruby Deagle ( Polly Holliday ) , Lynn Peltzer's ( Frances Lee McCain ) battles with the gremlins , or the overall jab at a " wholesome American small town " , this is a top-notch thriller / comedy . I'm sure that Phoebe Cates is proud to have gotten an early role in this ( she plays Billy's girlfriend Kate Beringer ) . And since this is a Joe Dante movie , B-movie actor Dick Miller of course gets a role : he plays sour neighbor Murray Futterman . Maybe this is just me , but I've noticed some similarities between " Gremlins " and " Ghostbusters " . The obvious one is that they're both about things that nobody wants around town , but there's more . They're both plural nouns beginning with " G " . " Gremlins " has 8 letters , " Ghostbusters " has 12 ; 8 and 12 are both divisible by 4 . Both movies were released on 8 June 1984 ( a year ending with 4 , a day divisible by 4 ) . Oh well , maybe I'm the only one who would even notice that . The point is that this is one great movie , and everyone should see it . . |
364,431 | 4,888,011 | 43,365 | 10 | With Bugs Bunny wrestling , who needs The Rock ? | Almost half a century before everyone got really obsessed with wrestling , that carrot-chomping rascal engaged in it . . . with a vengeance . After belligerent wrestler The Crusher clobbers a challenger , Bugs Bunny quickly enters the fray . At first , The Crusher has the upper hand , but of course Bugs has some tricks up his sleeve . Some of Bugs ' antics seem a little risqué , especially for 1951 , but there's nothing offensive here . These sorts of cartoons are the REAL definition of " family fun " . As Chuck Jones once noted : " Bugs Bunny does what most of us would like to do , but don't have the nerve to do . " Splendid . |
364,946 | 4,888,011 | 427,944 | 10 | 7 deadly - but hilarious - spins | Thank You for Smoking does what few movies ever know how to do : it hits us all right where it hurts , pointing out everyone's hypocrisy in everything , and the way that our society is based on spin . Aaron Eckhart , whom you may remember from " Erin Brockovich " , gets the role of a lifetime as tobacco industry spin doctor Nick Naylor , whose job it is to make his industry look good and win people over . With his good boy looks and worldly charm , he has no problem doing just that . The opening scene features Nick on a talk show with a cancer patient and representatives from anti-smoking groups . He manages to frame the debate so that it looks like the tobacco industry wants to keep the patient alive . That sets up how manipulative this guy is . For meals , he likes to meet with the MOD Squad ( meaning " merchants of death " ) to discuss how to market . This group consists of Polly ( Maria Bello ) from the alcohol industry and Bobby Jay ( David Koechner ) of the firearm industry . Nick always reminds Polly and Bobby Jay that he , Nick , has it the hardest ; their products kill far fewer people . As for Nick's personal life , he always reminds his son Joey ( Cameron Bright ) to think for himself - which of course means always question people who say that cigarettes are bad . In fact , he even shows Joey how to present an argument for a class paper , and no one in the class can challenge the argument . That's how good this guy is at PR . But as Nick notes while getting interviewed by reporter Heather Holloway ( Katie Holmes ) : " I do it for the mortgage . " That's when the movie really gets good . Nick's boss BR ( J . K . Simmons , who played Spiderman's boss ) , sends Nick to meet with the Captain ( Robert Duvall ) , sort of the head honcho of the tobacco industry in Winston-Salem . The Captain explains to Nick that to market cigarettes , they need to make cigarettes look sexy . So , Nick meets with the ultimate entertainment executive , EGO CEO Jeff Megall ( Rob Lowe ) . They figure that Brad Pitt and Catherine Zeta-Jones lighting up after having sex in outer space would make a great scene . . . especially if they release a tie-in cigarette . And when Nick meets with the dying Marlboro Man ( Sam Elliott ) . . . well , let's just say that I didn't expect that scene ! However , Nick's life might get a lot more complicated . Self-righteous Vermont Sen . Ortolan Finistirre ( William H . Macy ) wants to put a warning label on cigarettes , and subpoenas Nick about the dangers of his products . But Nick knows just how to get the public on his own side at the hearing ( " Isn't heart disease a problem , but your state keeps making cheddar cheese ? " ) . All in all , " Thank You for Smoking " is a great look at everything . It's not a polemic at all . Quite simply , it's about how our society is dominated by spin , political diatribes , etc , and both sides are hypocrites , always doing everything possible to make themselves look good . The movie stings like a bee . Perfect . |
363,758 | 4,888,011 | 113,277 | 10 | Pacino and DeNiro , together at last | More than simply a cops-and-robbers story , " Heat " allows us to understand the characters more than the average crime story . In the first place , Lt . Vincent Hanna ( Al Pacino ) and thief Neil McCauley ( Robert DeNiro ) are good friends before they realize that they have to be enemies . And even when it becomes clear to them that they're on opposite sides of the law , the viewer still can sympathize with both men : we understand that McCauley doesn't want to be a criminal but has no choice , and we understand that Hanna finds law enforcement unpleasant but is trapped in his position . Never going overboard on violence or degenerating into silliness , " Heat " is a modern classic and a triumph for all involved . It was , in my opinion , director Michael Mann's best movie ever , and a very interesting look at Los Angeles . This is one movie that won't disappoint you . |
364,639 | 4,888,011 | 70,047 | 10 | Sympathy for the devil on ice , folks ! And what is it about the name Damian ? | My mom said that when " The Exorcist " first came out , she thought that it was the scariest thing that she'd ever seen ( " The Shining " later overtook it ) . When I saw the 2000 re-release . . . well , let's just say that you don't know intensity until you've seen that version ! Since everyone knows what happens , I'll just talk about a few aspects . Nowadays , it's a little shocking to us that the opening scene happens in Iraq . Fr . Karras ' ( Jason Miller ) first name is Damian , which was later the boy's name in " The Omen " . I believe that it was around the time when this movie came out that Ellen Burstyn was active in the campaign to free Rubin " Hurricane " Carter from jail . Linda Blair later spoofed her own character in " Repossessed " , co-starring Leslie Nielsen . Anyone hungry for pea soup ? |
364,483 | 4,888,011 | 70,034 | 10 | Long live Bruce Lee ! Even in the hereafter . . . | Before Bruce Lee came along , it was like Hollywood movies still had what I like to call the Grace Kelly Syndrome : an obsession with European ( particularly Northern European ) kings , queens , princes and princesses gushing over their status as rich white people . Then , along came Bruce Lee and his incredible movements , and blew the Disney mold off of the map . In " Enter the Dragon " , he plays Lee , who enters a contest on an island where reclusive kingpin Han ( Kien Shih ) is running a bunch of illicit operations . Lee is not only spying on Han ; this is a case of revenge , as Han was responsible for the death of Lee's sister . The movie is mostly an excuse to show off Bruce Lee , but believe you me , there's plenty to show off . Whether it's the scene where he defeats all the guards , the scene where he battles bad-ass Bolo , or the final showdown with Han , Bruce Lee always has something to show for himself . Americans John Saxon and Jim Kelly provide some neat support as financially strapped Roper and doesn't-take-crap-from-anyone Williams , respectively . By using this name , I do not mean to speak negatively of Grace Kelly . I just associate her roles with this image . |
365,299 | 4,888,011 | 364,725 | 10 | There was an article about Joel David Moore in The Oregonian two days ago . | Dodgeball : A True Underdog Story is just plain old goof-ball-ism , and it doesn't pretend to be anything else . It has the Average Joes gym going up against Globo Gym in a tournament . The Average Joes gym is clearly a working class gym , while Globo Gym's slogan is " We're better than you , and we know it ! " Maybe for the most part , this is a recycled triumph of the underdog story - where against all odds the ragtag team defeats the big guys with all the money - but the performances carry it to excellence . Ben Stiller , as Globo Gym owner White Goodman , makes a really funny slime-ball . Vince Vaughn , as Average Joes gym owner Peter La Fleur , creates a very commendable character . Christine Taylor , as reporter Kate Veatch , is what a reporter should be . Rip Torn , as trainer Patches O'Houlihan , is one acerbic SOB ( Hank Azaria plays his younger self ) . And I now realize that Fran Stalinofskivich ( from Ramanovia ) was played by Missi Pyle , who also starred in " Bringing Down the House " and " Charlie and the Chocolate Factory " . Oh yeah , and about that article . Joel David Moore is here in his native Portland shooting the indie flick " Spiral " with Amber Tamblyn ( of TV's " Joan of Arcadia " ) . |
363,925 | 4,888,011 | 87,332 | 10 | The first time that I ever watched this movie , it scared me ( don't worry ; I later found it funny ) . | When I was about 3 and 4 , I used to watch " The Real Ghostbusters " on TV . When I was 7 , I noticed that my parents had a video tape that said " Ghostbusters " . I asked them if I could watch it , and they said yes . The first thing that threw me off was that it was black and white . Moreover , it was clearly not a cartoon . The lion statue outside the library probably confused me further . Then , after the woman saw the ghost in the library basement , I could only interpret the movie as scary . Literally every scene invoked fear in me , especially the monster in the refrigerator . By the time that it was over , I thought to myself " I'm never watching that again . " Then , when I was 9 , my mom convinced me to give it a second chance . So , I watched " Ghostbusters " again , and I laughed my head off . I felt so idiotic for having gotten scared by something so hilarious . As everyone knows , the story has Peter Venkman ( Bill Murray ) , Raymond Stantz ( Dan Aykroyd ) , Egon Spengler ( Harold Ramis ) and Winston Zeddemore ( Ernie Hudson ) battling spooks in New York , and they have to go up against an ancient evil god . Among the supporting characters , one finds musician Dana Barrett ( Sigourney Weaver ) and dorky Louis Tully ( Rick Moranis ) . Probably what embarrassed me the most about getting scared by " Ghostbusters " was the fact that I didn't even interpret Louis Tully and his mishaps . The first time that I watched the movie , I literally did not realize that his character was there . Anyway , this is a veritable comedy classic . It was like nothing that had ever come before . With a catchy theme song ( that I play every Halloween ) , this is a movie that's impossible not to like . Oh , and I should probably explain the " black and white " part . When my parents taped " Ghostbusters " off of the TV , it was in color on the TV but it came out black and white on the tape . My parents have never been able to figure that out , so their only explanation is that the tape was haunted . If so , then this was the perfect movie to record onto it . |
364,923 | 4,888,011 | 78,748 | 10 | In space , no one can hear you scream . . . but in the theater / TV room , EVERYONE will ! | There may be debates over whether movies should portray aliens positively or negatively , but " Alien " shows that all bets are off . This is possibly THE perfect sci-fi / horror flick ; in fact , it doesn't even suffice to call it such . From the moment when the egg attacks Kane ( John Hurt ) to Ellen Ripley's ( Sigourney Weaver ) battles against the title character , this movie has you tensed up every second of the way . You may be very suspicious of every movement around you after watching this movie . Obviously , what made " Alien " so great was that it had a woman going all bad-ass on a big ugly creature from another world . You probably know about the " chest " scene ( or maybe you've seen a spoof of it ) , but you have to see it to believe it ! All in all , this is a great movie . Weaver turns in a top-notch performance , and great support from Hurt , Harry Dean Stanton , Yaphet Kotto , Ian Holm , Veronica Cartwright and Tom Skerritt , add to the movie's high quality . " Aliens " was also pretty good , " Alien 3 " was tolerable , and " Alien : Resurrection " was . . . well , that's debatable . But this one remains the best . 1979 was truly a great year for movies , what with " Alien " , " Apocalypse Now " , " Being There " , " The China Syndrome " , " 1941 , " . . . And Justice For All " and " Nosferatu " . |
364,156 | 4,888,011 | 60,908 | 10 | Alan Bates ' best movie ever | Hopefully , by now we've all figured out that war is not only hell , it's insanity . " The King of Hearts " does a great job showing that . In WWI , the residents of a French village have fled , leaving the village empty . Now , both the English and German armies are looking to take over . So , the British general sends Pvt . Charles Plumpick ( Alan Bates ) into town to investigate , and Plumpick finds that the people from the insane asylum have taken over . They don't even know that the war has been going on ! But the final scene shows definitively that the " insane " people are not as insane as the people commanding the war . Everyone in the movie just does a great job . Alan Bates is in top-notch form , as always , and we do have to ask ourselves : Is the real insanity inside or outside the asylum ? |
363,559 | 4,888,011 | 17,925 | 10 | train he rides | If " The General " is Buster Keaton's best known movie , I can see why . An explosion of wackiness with some human emotion here and there , it goes to show why Keaton was such a great comedian . It's always great to see him with a deadpan expression - and even a mop-top hairdo ! - despite the craziness surrounding him while driving the train . But amidst it all , we understand that he has a solid , perfectly good reason for taking the locomotive down the railroad . Of course , even if he didn't it would still be a great movie . It's one that you just gotta love . They must have had fun filming it . And the best part ( for me , at least ) is : they filmed it here in Oregon ! |
363,015 | 4,888,011 | 78,754 | 10 | he may think he's gonna die , but you'll feel like you'll live forever | In this most unusual musical , Bob Fosse offers a scathing look at his own career as a Broadway director / choreographer . Roy Scheider plays Fosse's alter ego Joe Gideon , a drinking , smoking , pill-popping , womanizing creep who doesn't know when to stop . Although this movie is usually called a musical , this is about as far from " Oklahoma ! " as can be : it's gritty and overtly sexual , especially during one dance number . I would say that the two most effective scenes are : when Joe smoking and pops pills while taking a shower before wryly proclaiming " It's show-time ! " ; and the whole hospital sequence . The latter shows just what sort of person Joe is at heart ( pun intended ) : disconnected from reality , but ever joyful . Of course , his song " Bye Bye Love " is to be taken seriously . Fosse himself suffered a fatal heart attack a few years after the movie came out . Anyway , " All That Jazz " is a movie for the ages . You'll never want to forget it . Also starring Jessica Lange and Ben Vereen . " I did f - - - him and he still didn't give me the job . " Yeah , I bet that it's probably like that . |
365,790 | 4,888,011 | 53,125 | 10 | it's not just Cary Grant getting chased by the crop-duster . . . | A common theme in Alfred Hitchcock's movies was chaos : collapsing innocence in " Shadow of a Doubt " , getting drug into a murder plot in " Strangers on a Train " , the possible murder in " Rear Window " , the shower scene in " Psycho " , or the avians ' unexplained killing spree in " The Birds " . But more specific than simply chaos , is getting falsely accused of something , as happens in " North by Northwest " . Cary Grant plays Roger Thornhill , an executive who gets mistaken for someone else . When he tries to avoid involvement , they set him up by murdering someone at the United Nations . Now he's on the run , and can trust only Eve Kendall ( Eva Marie Saint ) . Almost as famous as the crop-duster scene is the Mt . Rushmore scene . The way that one might interpret that scene is not what happens there , but what the monument itself represents . It shows past presidents , as if to represent the highest authority , as the UN scene might have been doing . Another interesting scene is the auction . If you look at how Eve is dressed and how she is seated , you notice that she is sort of like the colorful halfway point between two drab points , represented by two men ( maybe that's just my interpretation ) . And of course Eva Marie Saint was one of Hitchcock's " icy blondes " , much like Grace Kelly , Doris Day , Kim Novak , Janet Leigh and Tippi Hedren . Once again , Hitch proved himself to be a master director . |
363,948 | 4,888,011 | 60,921 | 10 | Spasibo , Gospodin Jewison . . . vy khoroshiy kinorezhissyor ! ( English translation : Thank you , Mr . Jewison . . . you're a great director ! ) | It looks like the Cold War just froze ! When a Soviet submarine gets lost at sea , they dock and realize that they've landed on American soil . Not sure what to do , they go to the Whittakers , a family on vacation . Of course , as soon as the Whittakers realize that these strangers are Russians , the Russians have to take them hostage . Commanding officer Lt . Rozanov ( Alan Arkin ) orders his men to venture into town , looking for a way out . But , once even the tiniest unverifiable report gets out that the Russians have " invaded " , the townspeople just flip . What was especially funny about " The Russians Are Coming , the Russians Are Coming " was the way that every time someone spread the news that the Soviet Union was " taking over " , the story got mangled , getting blown out of proportion every time ! Alan Arkin does a great job as Rozanov ( I can't believe that he still hasn't won an Oscar after all these years ) , along with great performances by Carl Reiner and Eva Marie Saint as Walt and Elspeth Whittaker ( listen to what Rozanov does with Walt's name ) , and Jonathan Winters as a cop ( uh-oh ) . It's a full-scale laugh riot from beginning to end . |
364,627 | 4,888,011 | 43,315 | 10 | Wouldn't politics be better if it was more like this ? | Bugs Bunny and Yosemite Sam run against each other for mayor in a small town . Needless to say , they have all sorts of dirty tricks to play on each other ; Karl Rove has got nothing on these guys . I wish to assert that politics would be better if it was more like what " Ballot Box Bunny " portrays . Sure , you may say , politics is already dirty enough - especially with George W . Bush getting us into the Iraq War and the recent revelations of Mark Foley's creepy activities . But seriously folks , wouldn't you prefer Bugs and Sam's actions to politicians running touchy-feely ads telling us how they'll lead us through prosperity and adversity ? All in all , a classic cartoon . And don't forget to vote on November 7 ! |
362,709 | 4,888,011 | 60,438 | 10 | I came , I saw , I laughed | Transpose " It's a Mad , Mad , Mad , Mad World " to ancient Rome and you basically have " A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum " . This story of a slave ( Zero Mostel ) having to help arrange a romance between two people is worth watching just for the chase scene at the end . If you've been to Spain or Italy , it's neat to see the sites again . But above all , this is what 1960s humor is all about . They must have had fun filming this movie . And personally , I think that it's a good idea that they cut down the musical aspect and left it a straightforward comedy . You're sure to have more than a few laughs . Also starring Phil Silvers , Michael Crawford , Jack Gilford , Buster Keaton , Jon Pertwee and Ingrid Pitt . |
363,409 | 4,888,011 | 190,590 | 10 | Only the Coen brothers could create something so magical AND wacky | Most people would probably never imagine transposing " The Odyssey " to 1930's Mississippi , but the Coen brothers pulled it off perfectly . George Clooney , John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson play three jailbirds ( named Ulysses , Pete and Delmar , respectively ) who escape from a chain gang and subsequently travel through a world containing a blind soothsayer , Sirens , a cycloptic Bible salesman ( John Goodman ) , and even Baby Face Nelson ( Michael Badalucco ) . Yep . You read that right . And to crown it all , Ulysses always needs some Dapper Dan pomade for his hair . Holly Hunter plays Ulysses wife Penny ( short for Penelope ) who has all but given up on him . Of course , the movie's real forte is its music . A litany of mesmerizing , folksy ballads , they truly could not have come up with a better soundtrack . And as a final note , " O Brother , Where Art Thou ? " gives new meaning to the idea of a " horny toad " . |
364,554 | 4,888,011 | 87,291 | 10 | Not a dog at all ! | I can't believe that Disney wouldn't let Tim Burton release this ! They thought that it was too scary for kids ? ! Puh-leeze ! " Frankenweenie " is a really cool movie ! Basically a spoof of Mary Shelley's classic novel , the movie features suburban American boy Victor Frankenstein ( Barret Oliver ) resurrecting his dog Sparky , who got run over by a car . Needless to say , the reanimated dog creates some chaos once the neighbors meet him ! I would imagine that they probably had a lot of fun filming this . Shelley Duvall and Daniel Stern play Victor's parents Susan and Ben , respectively . Paul Bartel also stars , and there's even a very young Sofia Coppola . " Frankenweenie " is a real treat for everyone ! |
363,401 | 4,888,011 | 113,627 | 10 | if solely a problem such as alcoholism can help a person find redemption , then so be it | Mike Figgis's " Leaving Las Vegas " , while it pounds you in the face , also creates a sense of hope . Nicolas Cage plays Ben Sanderson , a man nearly at the end of his emotional rope who has come to Las Vegas to drink himself to death . In Las Vegas , he hooks up with prostitute Sera ( Elisabeth Shue ) , who acts as a sort of last catharsis for him . Figgis knows how to hit the audience from the first shot : the opening scene shows Ben pushing a shopping cart down an aisle , placing liquor bottles into the cart while dancing . In other words , while he's clearly a pathetic soul , he apparently has some drive left in himself , even if it exists only as his personal escapism . Moreover , one thing that the movie makes sure to do is not portray the characters as one-dimensional : Ben is an honest man at heart but his drunkenness turns him into a nasty person , while Sera has her own demons to deal with . It also doesn't make the mistake of focusing on Las Vegas to the point of glamorizing it ; the city remains the story's setting above all else . Nicolas Cage certainly deserved his Oscar for his role here , bringing out Ben's many qualities to their fullest . Shue is equally great in her role , showing Sera as someone whom we need to understand , even if we don't admire her . Also starring - and doing a very good job - are Julian Sands , Richard Lewis , Steven Weber and Carey Lowell . All in all , I wholeheartedly recommend this movie . |
363,956 | 4,888,011 | 130,827 | 10 | running on full | We got introduced to Franka Potente through " Lola rennt " ( called " Run Lola Run " in English ) about a young woman running all over Berlin , trying to get 100 , 000 Marks for her boyfriend ( Moritz Bleibtreu ) . But beyond that , it shows how various things affect other things , as shown by the people whom she passes . You can certainly tell that this is not a Hollywood movie ; if it was , Lola would probably look like Julia Roberts . But the overall point is that this is a great movie , another example of Germany's great film industry . And above all , it showed that - and I know that this is going to sound like something from the old " Batman " TV series - Potente has potential . |
362,756 | 4,888,011 | 60,424 | 10 | Lemmon and Matthau debut as a team | In this , the first movie starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau as a comedy team , reporter Lemmon gets injured at a football game , leading his lawyer friend Matthau to seek a massive settlement ( that is , if Lemmon can pretend to be badly injured for a long time ) . Like other movies of the era - such as " It's a Mad , Mad , Mad , Mad World " and " Who's Minding the Mint ? " - " The Fortune Cookie " shows how greed can send seemingly ordinary people absolutely nuts . I liked how they did the movie like chapters in a book ; a very clever device indeed . And who else but Billy Wilder could do it ? But above all , this was a sign of things to come , as JL and WM would co-star in another ten movies after this . All in all , we're very fortunate that " The Fortune Cookie " exists . Watch for a young Noam Pitlik as the man across the street . |
364,241 | 4,888,011 | 132,888 | 10 | turkeys of all time | Blood Freak is exactly the sort of movie to which " Grindhouse " paid homage . Portraying biker Herschel ( since when are bikers named Herschel ? ) eating some tainted turkey and gaining a turkey's head , the movie is totally silly and knows that it is such . Part of what makes this movie more interesting is the group of people on whom it focuses . Herschel hangs out with a bunch of hippies and develops a relationship with a young woman among them . . . which of course means that they have sex in one scene ( although it didn't go as far as I wanted ) . So , if you're a connoisseur of cheap ' 70s flicks , then this is the one for you ! |
363,386 | 4,888,011 | 104,952 | 10 | No one should yell " Objection ! " at this movie . | I think that this is one of the funniest movies that I've ever seen . After two young men are arrested for murder in a backwards Alabama town , wise guy lawyer Vinny Gambini ( Joe Pesci ) and his sarcastic hubby Mona Lisa Vito ( Marisa Tomei ) come to the rescue . The only problem is , Alabama is a lot different from New York . Judge Chamberlain Haller ( Fred Gwynne , in his final film role ) can't understand Vinny's Brooklyn accent and doesn't like Vinny's clothes , the local hicks try to taunt the two New Yorkers , and other wacko things happen . As it is , this movie is sort of a good lesson about circumstantial evidence , but you still gotta wonder how anyone could come up with something so hilarious . A true comedy classic . |
363,805 | 4,888,011 | 78,346 | 10 | And then , Christopher Reeve became even more of a superhero in real life . | Obviously , everyone knows Superman , so I'll talk about a few aspects . It was sort of a shock to everyone when Christopher Reeve got paralyzed , seeing as to how we associated him with the man of steel . But his tireless crusade for people with spinal cord injuries showed him to be a sort of superhero in his own right . As Superman's father Jor-El , Marlon Brando seems subdued , but still shows why he was one of the greatest actors of all time ( as it was , he and Reeve died within four months of each other ) . As villain Lex Luthor , Gene Hackman makes a really interesting character : vile , but kinda cool , he's the bad guy who we all want to be deep down . Margot Kidder also has a great role as the title character's self-standing hubby Lois Lane , and Ned Beatty is really funny as Luthor's goofy sidekick Otis . Also starring is Marc McClure as Jimmy Olson . I remember a " Saturday Night Live " episode where they imagine what would have happened had Superman been raised in Germany : they conclude that the man of steel - played by Dan Aykroyd in that skit - would have joined the Nazis and been called Ubermann . As it was , Friedrich Nietzsche theorized an " Ubermensch " . All in all , " Superman " is an inimitable superhero flick . I agree with a previous reviewer that " Batman " and " Spiderman " owe a lot to this movie . Truly great . |
363,291 | 4,888,011 | 35,567 | 10 | Katharine Hepburn was the woman of every year . | In their first of nine co-star rings , Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy play Tess Harding and Sam Craig , reporters at a newspaper who get married . Naturally , Sam assumes that Tess will " settle down " and just be a wife , but she is very independent , with events to cover all over the world . They sort of forget that they're married . You just can't beat a pairing like Tracy and Hepburn . " Woman of the Year " moves along like a . . . I can't even come up with a good comparison , but I basically mean that it's very brisk . It's impossible not to like this movie . You would have to be a full-scale sourpuss not to like this movie . A comedy classic . |
365,179 | 4,888,011 | 52,738 | 10 | diaries always make for something great | Telling the story of the German-Jewish girl whose diary brought memories of the Third Reich into people's homes worldwide , " The Diary of Anne Frank " haunts you like few other movies . As the titular character , Millie Perkins creates someone who - despite her horrific experiences - remains convinced that human nature is good . Probably the two most harrowing scenes in the movie are when everyone listens to Hitler on the radio , and when Anne faints while someone walks up the stairs . All in all , this is a great movie . Equally as good as Perkins are Joseph Schildkraut as Anne's father Otto , who will stop at nothing to protect his family ; Shelley Winters ( who won Best Supporting Actress ) as Petronella Van Daan , the matriarch of the family hiding with them ; and Richard Beymer - who played Tony in " West Side Story " - as Peter Van Daan , with whom Anne develops a relationship . Also starring are Gusti Huber , Lou Jacobi , Diane Baker , Douglas Spencer , Dodie Heath and Ed Wynn . A masterpiece . |
364,543 | 4,888,011 | 35,527 | 10 | What's supper , doc ? | The Wabbit Who Came to Supper gives one the idea of milking a situation to the nth degree . When Elmer Fudd - looking like a walking heart attack ( they were making him fat at this time so as to resemble his voice artist Arthur Q . Bryan ) - receives a letter telling him that he'll inherit $3 million as long as he doesn't harm any animals , especially rabbits , Bugs Bunny ( who overheard Elmer reading the telegram ) promptly invades Elmer's house and does everything possible to annoy Elmer . How I would love to try that ! It just goes to show why these cartoons were so great : they were never afraid to pull any wacky gag that they could think of . And this one has some great gags ! So check it out . You're sure to love it . And remember : don't go down there ; it's dark ! |
365,058 | 4,888,011 | 35,529 | 10 | Gold is where you find it , unless a certain wascawwy wabbit tricks you | This time , Elmer Fudd - looking mighty chubby ( so as to resemble Arthur Q . Bryan , who did his voice ) - is looking for gold out in the desert , but Bugs Bunny keeps playing tricks on him . The gags with the dynamite were probably the best ( the crowd behind these cartoons sure had a way with dynamite , as much of their work showed ) . One can always see how various characters try to undermine Bugs's integrity , but poetic justice prevails . It just goes to show why these cartoons will never get old , no matter what happens . You'd better believe that Arthur Q . Bryan and Mel Blanc are the voices for all time ! So seriously Susanna , don't cry for me . |
364,414 | 4,888,011 | 69,704 | 10 | The Wolfman is everywhere , and so will this movie be forever . It really twists the night away ! | In the movie that made him famous , George Lucas portrays several teenagers in Modesto , California , in 1962 . Various things happen to them , and they see all sorts of things . Of course , the movie's other stars are the songs that make up the ultra-cool soundtrack . With a total of 45 classic tunes , this movie is a great time from beginning to end . You'll never forget the prank that Curt Henderson ( Richard Dreyfuss ) has to pull with the police car . Maybe some people might complain that the movie didn't really have much purpose , but that's too harsh ; the point was for everyone to have a good time . And boy do we ! With the soundtrack , plus great performances by Dreyfuss , Ron Howard ( billed as " Ronny " for the last time ) , Charles Martin Smith , Paul LeMat , Cindy Williams , Candy Clark , Harrison Ford and Wolfman Jack , " American Graffiti " is a wonderful romp even today ! |
364,934 | 4,888,011 | 95,765 | 10 | In memory of Philippe Noiret | Philippe Noiret's death yesterday brings to mind all his movies , including " Nuovo cinema Paradiso " . The first time that I saw this was right after I had seen " The Postman " , and I recognized him as the man who had played Pablo Neruda . Here , he plays an equally great role , of the operator of a camera in a movie theater in an Italian village in years past . His friendship with and advice to young Salvatore proves to be more than the boy could have ever dreamed about . In a sense , the movie seems to be a look not only at what Italy was , but also what going to the movies was . It's definitely a masterpiece that I recommend . There may be the issue of whether or not we should make Italy's past look so idealistic , given that Mussolini was in power at the time . But I would assert that this movie shows that even in times of oppression , people can find ways to escape it . A really good movie . |
365,092 | 4,888,011 | 175,142 | 10 | And they just keep on coming , don't they ? | The rating of course only applies to people who would desire to watch such a movie ( for anyone else , it's a zero ) . A spoof of " Scream " , " I Know What You Did Last Summer " , and other such movies , " Scary Movie " is another in the gag-a-minute genre associated with the Marx Brothers , Mel Brooks , the " Airplane ! " crowd , and so on . Some scenes were kinda gross ( they can't go without scatological humor , can they ? ) , but overall harmless . The end was a real surprise . I never saw " Scary Movie 2 " ( I assumed that it was the same ) , but I did see " Scary Movie 3 " . . . and it was pretty much the same . And there's a " Scary Movie 4 " coming out soon ( we can probably assume that it's the same ) . |
362,909 | 4,888,011 | 303,297 | 10 | everyone should see this | Sometimes , we seem to forget that apartheid was only eliminated in 1994 . " Amandla ! A Revolution In Four Part Harmony " tells of how the black South Africans used music to help them overcome the Draconian oppression installed by the white population . Naturally , we get to hear from Nelson Mandela , Winnie Mandela , and Miriam Makeba , but also from ordinary people , and how they individually used music . One of the most chilling scenes was the footage of Hendrik Verwoerd , who was prime minister of South Africa from 1958 until his assassination in 1966 . He said in the interview something to the effect of : " People have misunderstood apartheid . It's really a policy of good-neighborliness . " As you might imagine , the black population had plenty to say ( and sing ) about him . I actually used this documentary as one of the sources in a paper that I wrote for an assignment in German class in Lewis & Clark College in spring , 2004 . I had watched the documentary in a class called Introduction to World Music . In the German class , we were talking about various aspects of the Third Reich . I explained in the paper that apartheid's policies were basically the same as the Third Reich . I made double sure to cite the interview with Hendrik Verwoerd to show just how vile these people were . |
363,459 | 4,888,011 | 78,490 | 10 | 1978 : the year of the anti-war movies | Nineteen seventy-eight saw the release of three famous movies dealing with the effects of the Vietnam War : " Coming Home " , " The Deer Hunter " and " Who'll Stop the Rain " . The last one doesn't actually focus on the war itself , but on some drug-running related to it . This gritty picture portrays a GI ( Michael Moriarty ) sending some heroin back home with a merchant marine friend ( Nick Nolte ) . When the marine hooks up with the guy's wife ( Tuesday Weld ) , they find themselves on the run from some thugs . The movie gives one a real feeling of the grimness not only of the war , but in the lives of the people returning home . The whole end scene just might freeze your blood . One thing is that when we watched the movie , my mom said that a lot of the music was changed ( originally , the whole movie had Creedence Clearwater songs , and only two of their songs remain on the video ) . But aside from that , it's definitely a movie that everyone should see . I understand that it's out of print , but surely it has to come to DVD eventually . |
363,392 | 4,888,011 | 497,116 | 10 | not a political issue , but for the sake of our survival | Above all , what we should learn from " An Inconvenient Truth " is that preserving the planet is not , as Bush would have us believe , a political debate ; it's a moral issue . The very fact that Bush didn't respond to it shows how out of touch with reality he is . I just would like to ask , as Al Gore does , what has to happen before there is any meaningful action to curb global warming . In parts of the movie , I wonder if Gore went a little overboard in trying to humanize himself by telling about his childhood . But he has more of an excuse to than Bush ever will . I was surprised to learn that the US can't sell it's cars in China . I wouldn't be surprised if GM and Ford have to get bought by Japanese companies . But back to the main point . I know that skeptics will try to present data showing various warming trends throughout history , but if they try to deny the data that Gore shows , I must wonder why they don't care about humanity . As Gore notes , with serious action , we can get warming below the 1970 level . But we don't have much time left . All in all , as Roger Ebert noted : you owe it to yourself to see this movie . |
363,038 | 4,888,011 | 43,014 | 10 | I'm ready for my review , Mr . Wilder | We've seen many movies about Hollywood's emptiness , unseemliness , and other undesirable qualities . " Sunset Boulevard " is one of the best . Norma Desmond ( Gloria Swanson ) is a faded movie star in a relationship with reporter Joe Gillis ( William Holden ) . Through his relationship with her , Joe not only sees Hollywood for what it really is , but he also comes to understand Norma for who she is . Billy Wilder always has a great story to tell , and this is no exception . The light / dark contrast in Norma's mansion could be a metaphor : Norma is an old movie star living in modern Hollywood . But as Norma reminds Joe : " I'm still big . It's the pictures that got small . " Outstanding . Erich Von Stroheim also turns in an ample performance as Norma's servant . |
364,592 | 4,888,011 | 52,888 | 10 | attack of the killer pine-cone | In some ways , it seems that if you've seen one ' 50s B sci-fi movie , you've seen ' em all . But " The Hideous Sun Demon " elicits a certain charm , showing how the guy's condition affects him emotionally . Specifically , a scientist ( Robert Clarke , who also directed ) gets exposed to atomic isotopes and develops a condition that turns him into something resembling a giant pine-cone whenever he gets exposed to the sun's rays . I should say that the acting is pretty bad , and I wonder how accurate their scientific references were . But these movies are always a pleasure to watch , partly because they're full of really hot babes ( you'll see what I mean by that scene on the beach ) . Worth seeing maybe once . . . or more if you like to get horny . PS : that road next to the beach is the Pacific Coast Highway , also featured in " It's a Mad , Mad , Mad , Mad World " . |
364,180 | 4,888,011 | 104,797 | 10 | Spike Lee's best movie ever | Reaching his apex of greatness , Spike Lee created a perfect biography of the Black Nationalist leader . In the title role , Denzel Washington literally becomes the character . From the opening , when he accurately accuses the white man of all the injustices that the white man has perpetrated , to his conversion to Islam ( and rejection of his slave surname ) , to his eventual assassination , the movie is top-notch in every respect . Having read Malcolm X's autobiography , I can affirm that the movie followed it very closely . Reading his autobiography will actually help you understand him even further . As will his indication that African-Americans bled for the white man in Korea , Japan , Italy , etc . , so why shouldn't they bleed for their freedom at home ? Anyway , " Malcolm X " is a perfect movie in every way . |
364,999 | 4,888,011 | 35,414 | 10 | a more sadistic bird thou shalt never find | In this day and age , we have seemingly come to interpret Tweety Bird as " cute " . In his first appearance , he was nothing like that ; quite the opposite , he was a bad-ass . In " A Tale of Two Kitties " , wandering felines Babbit and Catstello ( spoofing Abbott and Costello ) find a bird's nest . Grouchy , straight-talking Babbit sends the nervous Catstello up to get the bird , only the tiny avian - whose name isn't actually identified - proves to be the nastiest mother ever . There's naturally an anvil gag . It's just great to see how the guys behind the Looney Tunes weren't afraid to show anything that they wanted . Definitely one to see . |
365,843 | 4,888,011 | 25,316 | 10 | It shall continue happening on movie screens forever onward . | Stories like this have become such a cliché that we might forget that they started here , but they did . And it worked really well here . When bored socialite Ellie Andrews ( Claudette Colbert ) runs away from her surroundings , she gets picked up by down-on-his-luck reporter Peter Warne ( Clark Gable ) , who knows exactly what to do in such a situation . This movie must be what people mean when they say " They don't make ' em like they used to . " Both Gable and Colbert have a great time with their roles . Apparently , the scene where Gable removes his shirt caused a bit of a stir since he wasn't wearing anything underneath . But that only adds to this movie's greatness . It's a gem in the real sense of the word . Also starring is Alan Hale ( yes , the Skipper's father ) . |
363,604 | 4,888,011 | 183,659 | 10 | Ed Harris should have won Best Actor | With " Pollock " , Ed Harris proved himself as adept as a director as he is an actor , playing splatter artist Jackson Pollock . We see Pollock as a talented artist who seemed to grow more and more messed up ( maybe even disturbed ) as the years went by . Equally as good as Harris is Marcia Gay Harden as Lee Krasner , for which she won Best Supporting Actress ( and unlike so many people , Harden can do a believable New York accent ) . All in all , a great movie . I would like to assert that Ed Harris actually did a better job here than Russell Crowe did in " Gladiator " . Also starring are Jennifer Connelly , Bud Cort , John Heard , Val Kilmer , Amy Madigan and Jeffrey Tambor . |
365,020 | 4,888,011 | 36,334 | 10 | you deserve a metal | Having seen " Daffy - the Commando " and " Scrap Happy Daffy " , I think that it's safe to say that that crazy duck was one of the best characters to fight the Nazis ( obviously , there was also Bugs ) . In this case , he collects scrap metal to contribute to the war effort , but Hitler sends a goat after him . If absolutely nothing else , it's just a total hoot to see what Daffy does to the goat . The idea of collecting scrap metal also brings up the point that in WWII , the government encouraged people to save resources as much as possible . I don't see any of that nowadays . In the future , they're not going to look kindly upon this . But anyway , it's a really funny cartoon . Definitely worth seeing . And just be careful what you dream about next time . |
362,806 | 4,888,011 | 106,220 | 10 | It should be the value of any family to see this movie if possible . | Addams Family Values accomplishes what " The Godfather , Part II " did : it equals , if not outdoes , the original . In this case , Morticia ( Anjelica Huston ) has a baby - whom they name Pubert ( you read that right ) , Fester ( Christopher Lloyd ) marries nanny Debbie Jellinsky ( Joan Cusack ) and Gomez ( Raul Julia ) decides that Wednesday and Pugsley should spend the summer at a camp . The best parts of the movie are the scenes at the camp . Run by airheads Gary ( Peter MacNicol ) and Becky Granger ( Christine Baranski ) , the whole camp is an excuse for airhead rich white kids to act nice to each other and perform a play about the original Thanksgiving . If there are any ethnic people . . . well , they can be dealt with . But that's all going to change now that Wednesday and Pugsley have arrived . Anyway , " Addams Family Values " is a movie that everyone should see . I certainly recommend it to everyone . You just never stop laughing , especially when you hear what Fester says after Debbie gives him a present . |
363,510 | 4,888,011 | 36,342 | 10 | there's no doubt that this was a masterpiece | You know that a movie is really good when you feel that you can't tell very much about it without giving anything away . " Shadow of a Doubt " is one such movie . Charlie ( Joseph Cotten ) is a man who goes to visit his relatives in Santa Rosa , California . He is so well respected by his relatives that they named their oldest daughter ( Teresa Wright ) Charlie . When Uncle Charlie first arrives , everything seems to be going very nicely and everyone is having a lot of fun . But then , Young Charlie begins to get suspicious . That's as much as I'm going to tell you about the plot , because I worry that any more information will give everything away . However , I will discuss some interesting aspects in the movie . For starters , duality . There are two Charlies , two bespectacled females , two trips to the train station , two trips to the restaurant , and even when Alfred Hitchcock makes his cameo , he is carrying a piece of luggage almost as big as he is . This all may have something to do with the idea that there are two sides to everything ( which turns out to be an important aspect in this movie ) . Also , Santa Rosa looks like a town in a Norman Rockwell painting , but then , everything changes . In one scene , Young Charlie is trying to call people on the phone , but can't reach them . Each time they show her again , the scene is shot from a higher angle , as though she is sinking deeper into desperation . I guess that overall , the movie is about how Young Charlie is forced to grow out of her youthful impression of the " good old days " , as represented by " The Merry Widow Waltz " , played during a repeated scene of a grand ball . The words " merry widow " also play a role in the plot . That is all that I can tell you . Any more would definitely give away the ending . |
365,160 | 4,888,011 | 166,396 | 10 | the good ol ' Irish | Similar to " The Full Monty " ( but never copying it ) , " Waking Ned Devine " tells the story of a village in Ireland suddenly upset by some quirky events . When local old timer Ned Devine dies , his friends discover that he has won the lottery , and set about trying to reclaim the cash . I remember that I saw this movie a few months before Ian Bannen died , so I pretty much will always remember him for his great role here as Jackie O'Shea ( although I do also remember him from " Ghost Dad " ) . David Kelly is equally great as Michael O'Sullivan , collaborating with Jackie to collect the cash . And let me tell you , I didn't see that motorcycle scene coming ! Overall , " Waking Ned Devine " is one of those great little movies about life in general . As I am not Catholic , prior to seeing this movie , I thought " wake " only meant " get someone up from sleeping " ! But either way , it's a great movie . I will forever remember David Kelly as both Michael O'Sullivan from this movie and as Grandpa Joe in " Charlie and the Chocolate Factory " . |
363,485 | 4,888,011 | 36,244 | 10 | evil succeeds when good people do nothing | There is a saying that the only thing necessary for evil to succeed is for good people to do nothing . The events portrayed in " The Ox-Bow Incident " shows not only that , but could represent real things that have happened throughout world history . The movie portrays drifter Gil Carter ( Henry Fonda ) and his friend Art Croft ( Harry Morgan ) riding into an Old West town . The hotheaded Carter isn't exactly the most likable person . When news comes out that a rancher has been murdered , the townspeople lose what little sense they have . A mob mentality takes over , and the people want nothing except to take revenge on the individuals suspected of the murder . Not even the judge's urging to exercise restraint can detain the people's sudden rage . As for Carter , even though he doesn't seem like the most likable guy , he doesn't seem like the type who would participate in a lynching campaign . But even he gets caught up in the events . While not directly partaking in it - and at times even offering mild criticism - Carter nonetheless allows things to proceed . One might say that parallels were the " good Germans " ( German citizens during the Third Reich who knew what the government was doing but did nothing to stop it ) . As for the fact that the target of the characters ' ire is a convenient target , that's like how Iraq was a convenient target after the attacks . Above all , this is a movie that I strongly recommend , as an important part of cinema history , but also as a warning against letting one's gut instinct take precedence over due process . Also starring Dana Andrews , Mary Beth Hughes , Anthony Quinn , Frank Conroy , William Eythe , Jane Darwell and Margaret Hamilton ( aka The Wicked Witch of the West ) . |
363,453 | 4,888,011 | 79,180 | 10 | Oy gevalt , Gene Wilder wasn't meshugga to take this role ! | Sort of playing off of his presence in " Blazing Saddles " , Gene Wilder plays rabbi Avram Belinski , who leaves his seminary in 1850 Poland to marry a woman in San Francisco and start a synagogue there . But naturally , the American West holds more than a few surprises for him , namely train robber Tommy Lillard ( Harrison Ford ) . " The Frisco Kid " may not be the most famous movie , but it certainly has its merits . Wilder and Ford are quite a pairing , and the movie never drags . I think that I did once hear that some of the first cowboys may have been Jewish , but that's just a possibility . The point is that you're sure to like this movie . |
364,650 | 4,888,011 | 45,000 | 10 | Supergenius : that describes the people who made these cartoons ! | In a slight break from protocol , Chuck Jones , Michael Maltese , and Mel Blanc pit Wile E . Coyote - aka Supergenius - against Bugs Bunny . But , sure enough , Bugs has ways of avoiding capture . . . most of which involve Wile E . getting maimed somehow . The point is that no matter how hard he tries , Wile E . has no success in any field , whether going after the Road Runner or Bugs Bunny . And they play it to great effect . " Operation : Rabbit " is a classic just like the rest of the Looney Tunes cartoons from that era . Having Wile E . talk doesn't diminish the quality at all . Mud spelled backwards is dum . Exactly ! |
365,104 | 4,888,011 | 36,271 | 10 | one of the most unpredictable cartoons | One of the things that I've always liked the most about the Looney Tunes / Merrie Melodies cartoons is their unpredictability . " Porky Pig's Feat " goes all the way , as Porky and Daffy come up with all sorts of elaborate schemes to try and escape from a hotel . You see , the effete manager has charged them for things like air ( for breathing ) , while Daffy gambled away all the money . The whole thing escalates into full-scale war . Aside from what Porky and Daffy do to the owner - and what he does back to them - the last segment was a surprise . Then again , movie studios and executives always like to advertise themselves ( Porky mentions Leon Schlesinger ) . Overall , a really funny cartoon . So , in conclusion , let's all help them get their " Feat " back on the ground ( apologies to the Beatles ) . |
364,145 | 4,888,011 | 113,862 | 10 | I saw Richard Dreyfuss in a bookstore while they were filming this . | In September , 1994 , my mom and I were in the checkout line in Powell's Bookstore in Portland , Oregon . There was a very short man in front of us . When we got up to the cashier , she identified the man as none other than Richard Dreyfuss . We turned around and sure enough , it was he . Needless to say , we wondered what he was doing in Portland . A little over a year later , we found out what he was doing when " Mr . Holland's Opus " got released . We thought that it was one of the best movies that year . We all really liked that it portrayed how sad he got when John Lennon got assassinated . A very good movie . About a year later , Richard Dreyfuss appeared at Grant High School again . He made a speech encouraging people to vote in the upcoming election . All in all , a great movie . I recommend it to everyone . Also starring Glenne Headly , Olympia Dukakis and William H . Macy . Strange that Stephen Herek also directed movies such as " Critters " . |
363,891 | 4,888,011 | 87,015 | 10 | C ( ool ) H ( ilarious ) U ( ltra-moronic ) D ( electable ) movie | Before John Heard and Daniel Stern co-starred in " Home Alone " , they co-starred in the much more interesting " C . H . U . D . " , about derelicts in the New York sewers getting exposed to toxic waste and mutating into Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers . Heard plays George Cooper , who is looking into the strange murders , and Stern plays A . J . " The Reverend " Shepherd , who works at a soup kitchen . When Daniel Stern came to Lewis & Clark College in September , 2004 , I went to hear him speak . He talked mainly about his USO trip to Iraq the previous December , but also about " Home Alone " , " City Slickers " and such movies . I wish that he could have talked about " C . H . U . D . " . True , it's sort of a gross movie , but it's pretty neat for what it is . You probably won't want to venture into the sewer after watching it . |
362,612 | 4,888,011 | 51,554 | 10 | Leave it to the Brits to revolutionize the Count . | Everyone knows the Dracula story , so I'll talk about this movie's aspects . " Horror of Dracula " is particularly groundbreaking because it was the first Dracula movie that showed blood ( naturally , such a movie would have to come from England ; here in the US we still had tight censorship codes ) . Obviously , Christopher Lee remains forever associated with the Count , and he does a really cool job here . Peter Cushing is equally cool as Van Helsing , and it's maybe a little jarring to see Michael Gough ( who more recently played Batman's butler Alfred ) . The Hammer movies were always something admirable , and this is no exception . Perfect . |
362,694 | 4,888,011 | 373,760 | 10 | great part of world cinema | I just last night saw " Cinema , Aspirinas e Urubus " ( called " Cinema , Aspirins and Vultures " in English ) . It's an amazing story of a man who flees Nazi Germany and moves to Brazil , where he shows movies to the inhabitants of a destitute village in the northeast of the country and also gives them aspirin , thereby bringing them a new hope . I like how the movie not only develops the characters , but also shows world events affecting everyone's lives , as Brazil declares war on Germany and it becomes hard for the man to sell the German-produced aspirin . Looking very amateur , the movie has a particularly realistic feeling ; the desert setting might even make you feel like you're sweating as the characters do . But overall , the movie's a wonderful look at life and how we make decisions about our directions . As they say in one scene : " With this , you could sell the Devil a Bible ! " All in all , a very good movie . |
362,681 | 4,888,011 | 45,012 | 10 | It's Tracy / Hepburn , so you know that it's good . | Pat Pemberton ( Katharine Hepburn ) is a sports star , except when in the presence of her fiancé . That's when she joins up with promoter Mike Conovan ( Spencer Tracy ) , and things get good . I think that my favorite scene in " Pat and Mike " is when some thugs are harassing Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn clobbers them ; that scene really hits ya in the good spots ( of course , it also shows why Katharine Hepburn was so unique ; how many other actresses back then would kick ass like that ? ) . All in all , you're sure to admire this movie , but how can you not admire a Tracy / Hepburn movie ? It's a treat in every way . Watch for Jim Backus and Charles Bronson in early roles . |
363,057 | 4,888,011 | 94,608 | 10 | never blame the victim | Jodie Foster broke out of her teenage persona in " The Accused " , in which she masterfully portrays a rape victim seeking justice . The movie shows how , as often seems to happen , the raped woman gets accused of bringing the rape upon herself because of how she dressed . But her character understands what she has to do . Equally as good is Kelly McGillis as her attorney trying to prove that not only did the men rape her client , but several other men encouraged the rape . A particularly effective scene is when Foster decides to take revenge on one of the men who encouraged the rape ; you can feel what she's thinking . All in all , this is a movie that I recommend to everyone . It shows how our society stigmatizes women , but also reminds us never to give up hope . Perfect . |
363,933 | 4,888,011 | 183,790 | 10 | I say : knight Heath Ledger ! | A few years before Heath Ledger starred in " Brokeback Mountain " , he played a man pretending to be a knight in " A Knight's Tale " , chock full of deliberate anachronisms ( namely the soundtrack ) . I swear that it was one of the funniest movies that year . I just gotta wonder : who comes up with these things ? This movie is also interesting for an early appearance of Paul Bettany , who went on to play Russell Crowe's friends in " A Beautiful Mind " and " Master and Commander : The Far Side of the World " , and married Jennifer Connelly . All in all , this is one cool movie . It would be hard to imagine anyone not liking it . Hilarious . So I bid ye all to watch this film . . . ' twill not make ye bored one bit . |
364,216 | 4,888,011 | 106,053 | 10 | The top ten reasons that I like this show . | # 10 : David Letterman declared that 60 % of everything that Bill O'Reilly says is crap . # 9 : " Will It Float ? " . . . would any of those babes float ? # 8 : His musical guests have included Ringo Starr and The Temptations . # 7 : Nodody gets away clean on his show . # 6 : As a Bush supporter , he rips at Bush as much as possible . # 5 : Paul Shaffer and The CBS Orchestra always have some great music in store . # 4 : David Letterman once hosted the Oscars . # 3 : I haven't seen any of the episodes where other people host ( how can you fill in for Dave ? ) . # 2 : The jokes work , no matter which era we live in . And the # 1 reason that I like the " Late Show with David Letterman " : The top ten list . |
364,135 | 4,888,011 | 443,706 | 10 | How could I have never heard of the Zodiac Killer until this came out ? | Believe it or not , I had literally never heard of the Zodiac Killer until around the time that " Zodiac " got released in the theaters ( cut me some slack ; I was born many years after the killings took place ) . So , now I've seen the movie portraying everything surrounding the murders . I have to say that it's a really good movie . It focuses less on the murders themselves than on the investigations . The main character is actually Robert Graysmith ( Jake Gyllenhaal ) , a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle . I , for one , was amazed at how he and the cops discovered the various patterns and clues . Therefore , maybe it helps if you nothing about the Zodiac Killer : everything in the movie is more of a surprise . As for the murderer's actual identity . . . well , in case you don't know the story , I won't spoil it . Aside from Gyllenhaal , there are other people doing great roles here . Robert Downey Jr . plays Graysmith's cohort Paul Avery . Avery sees his responsibility as a reporter , but personal problems impede his work ; he's the type of wretch whom you can't help but admire . Mark Ruffalo plays cop Dave Toschi . Toschi is intent on solving the case and doesn't want the press interfering , but understands that he has to put up with the media . Also starring are Anthony Edwards , Brian Cox , Philip Baker Hall , Donal Logue , Chloe Sevigny , James LeGros and Candy Clark ( I assume that she's the same Candy Clark who starred in " American Graffiti " ) . All in all , I recommend this movie very much . I got the feeling that the tension between Graysmith and Toschi mirrored the tension that must have taken over San Francisco surrounding the murders . And as a side note , we get to hear some great music ( e . g . , Donovan's " Hurdy-Gurdy Man " ) . A very good movie indeed . |
362,848 | 4,888,011 | 79,239 | 10 | How could people be like this ? | It's sad to think that people could actually be like this , but apparently there are such individuals . Lt . Col . Bull Meechum ( Robert Duvall ) is a military man without a war , so he uses all his energy to regiment his family . Immature and rather mean , Bull always gets his way . . . until they move to Beaufort , South Carolina . When Bull's son Ben ( Michael O'Keefe ) befriends African-American Toomer Smalls ( Stan Shaw ) , it sets the stage for what's going to follow . " The Great Santini " is very well done . Since this was written by Pat Conroy - who also wrote " The Prince of Tides " - we can easily conclude that he must have had an abusive father . Also starring Blythe Danner , David Keith , and Paul Gleason ( whom you may recognize as Clarence Beaks from " Trading Places " and the principal from " The Breakfast Club " ) . |
363,849 | 4,888,011 | 71,675 | 10 | That's what happens when you mess with the environment ! | We humans may think that we can do anything without adverse results , but if only we knew ! Mangling the environment is bound to blow up in our faces ! And in " It's Alive ! " , does it ever ! Frank ( John Ryan ) and Lenore Davies ( Sharon Farrell ) drive to the hospital to have their baby . There's just one problem : the new baby looks and acts like something out of a Wes Craven movie . Not only is the infant one mean mother , but the people hunting him are equally brutal : they focus on killing him rather than looking into why he ended up a monster . I've never seen any other of Larry Cohen's movies , but if " It's Alive ! " is any indication , then he must turn out some neat movies . One more thing : I have to admit that the only cast member whom I recognized was Michael Ansara , who played a cop . He was married to Barbara Eden for some years . So Jeannie's husband had to battle a psycho killer baby . Hmmm . . . |
365,890 | 4,888,011 | 79,261 | 10 | victory through hair power | For people like me who were born long after the ' 60s ended , we can only learn about the era through cultural artifacts , of which " Hair " is one . This is certainly a well done tour de force . One can get a sense of how things were for the hippie culture . Probably the most impressive scene - for me at least - is when the group crashes the rich people's party . As for the movie's final scene , one might interpret it as the symbolic end of everything that the ' 60s represented . But no matter how one interprets this movie , it's important to understand that even though the ' 60s themselves may have ended , the movements that typified them still exist in small enclaves . It's a time that people won't soon forget . Anyway , this movie is one that I definitely recommend . Milos Forman scored another great one here , right between his two masterpieces " One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest " and " Ragtime " ( so why did he later make a piece of crap like " Man on the Moon " ? ! ) . Starring John Savage , Treat Williams and Beverly D'Angelo . |
364,167 | 4,888,011 | 174,856 | 10 | Can you imagine how many times this has happened ? | I'll admit that I'd never heard of Rubin " Hurricane " Carter before this movie came out . But watching the movie , I came to understand the whole case perfectly . Carter ( Denzel Washington ) grew up in the slums of New Jersey , forcing him to be strong ( and a hard-ass ) . The racism surrounding him caused him to develop a solid hatred of white people ( and he had every reason to ) . Finally , he was arrested , tried , convicted , and imprisoned for murder . But really , they imprisoned him for being a strong-willed black man ( and they claimed that he was convicted by a jury of his peers , despite the fact that every one of the jurors was white ) . So , after a few years , Canadian activists Lisa Peters ( Deborah Kara Unger ) , Sam Chaiton ( Liev Schreiber ) and Terry Swinton ( John Hannah ) start a campaign to reopen the case and free Carter . Bob Dylan wrote a song about the case , and Ellen Burstyn also campaigned for him to get released . Finally , in the early ' 80s , he got exonerated . As he affirmed : " Hate put me in here . But love's gonna get me out . " The overall point of the movie is that the racism of our society has been wrongfully imprisoning people for years . I think that it's appropriate that this movie - directed by Norman Jewison - came out in 1999 . In that year , I was as old as my parents were in 1967 , when Jewison released " In the Heat of the Night " - also dealing with race relations in this country . All in all , this is a movie that everyone should see . |
362,816 | 4,888,011 | 473,434 | 10 | Believe it or not , this is the first installment that I've seen . | I know that it probably seems pretty silly of me to watch the latest installment before watching the previous ones - and I never really planned to do it like that - but I've watched " 49 Up " , and I really admired it . All twelve of the interviewees provide strong incite into the present state of affairs . True , Michael Apted has interviewed them so many times that it very likely is getting somewhat intrusive , but I think that we do need documentation of what the world is like every couple of years ; I mean , just look at what all's happened in the world ( or even in the characters ' lives ) since 1998 . Anyway , I'm now very eager to see the other installments . And I intend to watch them chronologically . I definitely recommend this one . |
363,779 | 4,888,011 | 71,562 | 10 | an equal sequel | Everyone has probably heard that " The Godfather : Part II " is as good as the original , and it's true . Perhaps it's better , that's debatable . Picking up where the first film left off , we see the Corleones ' control over Las Vegas . Also , Michael ( Al Pacino ) gets involved with Hyman Roth ( Lee Strasberg ) , one of his father's former cohorts . Meanwhile , in flashbacks , we see young Vito Andolini immigrate from the town of Corleone , Sicily , to New York City in the early 20th century . As he ages ( the adult Vito is played by Robert DeNiro ) , Vito becomes increasingly involved in Mafia business . The climax ( at least in my opinion , it was the climax ) happens in Cuba on New Year's Eve in 1958 . You may recall that the Mafia helped prop up Fulgencio Batista and his reign of terror . Anyway , while Michael and Fredo ( John Cazale ) are at a party at the Presidential Palace , Michael angrily yells at Fredo " I know it was you , Fredo ! You broke my heart ! " At that moment , just as it turns into 1959 , the revolutionary forces enter Havana , proclaiming the revolution's victory . The combination of these two events shows that things won't be the same anymore , whether in the Corleone family or in Cuba . To be certain , Kay ( Diane Keaton ) has some unexpected news for Michael when he returns home . The point is , this movie disproves the notion that all sequels suck . This sequel is a masterpiece , with splendid performances by Pacino , Keaton , DeNiro , Cazale , Strasberg , Robert Duvall and Talia Shire . But of course , most of all , this movie's superbness owes to director Francis Ford Coppola . He knows exactly how to make a movie , and don't let anyone tell you otherwise . . |
365,693 | 4,888,011 | 79,336 | 10 | hilarious | There have been many comedies focusing on weddings , but " The In-Laws " may have brought the genre to its panacea . Featuring Alan Arkin ( as the bride's father ) and Peter Falk ( as the groom's father ) going on a series of crazy adventures right before the wedding , the whole thing's a laugh a minute . It just makes one happy that cinematic humor in the ' 70s shifted to the completely loony , and Arkin and Falk make a great comic team . I would imagine that everyone had a lot of fun on the set . Featuring Ed Begley Jr . and David Paymer in his debut . There was a remake , but I heard that it was pathetic . So stick with this one and you'll have a really good time . |
364,944 | 4,888,011 | 131,325 | 10 | one of Eddie Murphy's two good movies that year | In a totally mind-blowing , Hollywood-jabbing story , Steve Martin plays director Bobby Bowfinger , who wants to hire top star Kit Ramsey ( Eddie Murphy ) for a role in the sci-fi movie " Chubby Rain " , about aliens arriving on earth by hiding in raindrops . When Ramsey refuses , Bowfinger decides to secretly film Ramsey , leading to some rather whacked-out situations . It only complicates matters when Ramsey goes to a Scientology-spoofing organization for a rest , and they have to hire a replacement . I don't know whether or not this is the sort of role that only Steve Martin could do , but he does a great job with it , as we would expect . Some of the scenes where they film Eddie Murphy are a hoot , especially in the parking structure . It was sort of jarring to see Robert Downey Jr , as this was released around the time when he kept getting in trouble with the law . Also starring Heather Graham , Christine Baranski , Jamie Kennedy , and Terence Stamp . |
363,898 | 4,888,011 | 86,879 | 10 | I compose ( pun intended ) a message . . . | I guess that it's fitting that since I share a birthday with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , that the movie about him should win Best Picture for the year in which I was born . And is it a great movie ! More than simply focusing on the famous composer's life , it shows how rival composer Antonio Salieri ( F . Murray Abraham ) envied Mozart ( Tom Hulce ) and tried to get revenge on him . Director Milos Forman brings to " Amadeus " the same eye-popping realism that he brought to his other Best Picture winner , " One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest " , and also to " Ragtime " . I'll admit , maybe it's a little strange that Pinto from " Animal House " plays Mozart , but Tom Hulce does a masterful - and funny - job with the role . I recommend this movie to everyone . |
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