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383,183 | 449,021 | 114,099 | 7 | Strange and dark , erotic drama . | Writer / director Philip Ridley presents a suspenseful and equally strange story that holds your interest from the beginning . Brendan Fraser fans will see a piece of his best work . Ashley Judd fans will be very satisfied with all they get to see . This is an odd and sometimes slow story that really sizzles and catches fire . Fraser plays Darkly Noon , who finds himself separated from a strong religious family and is wandering in the woods . He is befriended by Judd , who plays the part of Callie , a very seductive soul who lives in the woods with her mute boyfriend . Fraser's character soon begins lusting for Judd ( and who wouldn't ? ) and has to battle with his religious upbringing and his impure thoughts . His self contained emotions makes him a very volatile person , as he feels God wants him to eradicate the new found evil . Figure into the mix ; the mute's deranged mother ; an evangelic undertaker ; and a wandering circus family . This is a very entertaining movie to say the least . And Miss Judd mesmerizes . |
383,777 | 449,021 | 117,280 | 7 | Rodeo clowns keep the bull from riding the cowboy . | This little seen movie deserves all the respect it can get . It is different , and doesn't lack twisting story lines . Country music star Dwight Yoakam plays a rodeo clown named Virgil Kidder . Virgil works for his buddy Brownie ( Bo Hopkins ) and returns to Waco , where he will have to face his past . This is where he ran out on his pregnant girlfriend Katelin ( Michelle Joyner ) . The local pompous Sheriff Acuff ( John Getz ) blames Virgil for an accident that ended his bull riding career . Virgil just needs to lay low and not cause a commotion for the weekend , so they can move on to Amarillo . This rodeo clown has enough trouble in the ring ; but ends up in a strange relationship with the Sheriff's niece ( Kiersten Warren ) , who happens to think she is a vampire . There is also her stud bull riding brother ( Walton Goggins ) that wants a piece of Virgil's hide . Not enough ? Enter a meeting with Katelin . Interesting ? Hell yes . Also in the cast : Cindy Pickett , Peter Fonda and Brent Anderson . Filmed in and around the areas of Denton and Wichita Falls , Texas . |
383,052 | 449,021 | 51,207 | 7 | Suspense . Mistaken identity . Hitchcock . | Film-Noir from the masterful Alfred Hitchcock , who forgoes his cameo by standing in the opening shadows proclaiming a true life story instead of his usual suspenseful fiction . Henry Fonda plays Christopher ' Manny ' Balestrero , a stand-up bass player at New York City's Stork Club . In the need of money for his wife's ( Vera Miles ) dental appointment , Manny goes to borrow on her life insurance policy . Before arriving home , he is arrested for multiple robberies . The mild-mannered man exclaims he is the wrong man . The witnesses swear he is the right man ; the police are convinced . Before going to trial Manny's anguished wife is placed in a psychiatric hospital . While on bail , the " right " man is arrested . . . at a distance . . . Manny's double . Other players include : Harold J . Stone , Anthony Quayle and Nehemiah Persoff . |
382,934 | 449,021 | 404,390 | 7 | Playing two ends against the middle . | Joey Gazelle ( Paul Walker ) is a low level mobster that is ordered to get rid of a gun used in killing dirty cops . Gazelle hides various weapons for safe keeping in his basement . The gun in question is lifted by his son's friend Oleg ( Cameron Bright ) to use to kill his abusive stepfather ( Karl Roden ) . The homicide is not successful and young 9 yr old Oleg is on the run . The gun is taken and then traded before being recovered again . Two groups of ' good guys ' are putting the heat on Gazelle to make sure the silver snub-nose does not land in the hands of the cops . Flying lead causes copious amounts of blood . The body count is enough to lose tabs on . This is a very manic thrill ride and it seems that the word used the most is f # k . A very apt cast that also features : Vera Farmiga , Johnny Messner , Chazz Palminteri , and Arthur Nascarella . I'm liking Walker more every time I see him . Kudo to writer and director Wayne Kramer . |
384,328 | 449,021 | 443,543 | 7 | Spellbinding romantic masterpiece . | Fascinating drama and powerful love story . Audiences in turn-of-the-century Vienna are stunned , mesmerized and gravitate to the acclaimed illusionist Eisenheim ( Edward Norton ) . The mysterious magic man draws the attention of Crown Prince Leopold ( Rufus Sewell ) , who feels that he and his title has been besmirched ; when his intended , Sophie von Teschen ( Jessica Biel ) , assists the magician with an illusion , Eisenheim and the lovely young woman realize they had a childhood romance . Suspense builds as the Prince assigns the city's chief inspector ( Paul Giamatti ) to shut Eisenheim down . Sophie is found dead and a high profile investigation begins . Eisenheim helps the case by performing his most impressive illusion yet . Norton is superb ; Biel alluring and Giamatti convincing . THE ILLUSIONIST is mind-bending and worthwhile . |
384,316 | 449,021 | 29,322 | 7 | If its not one hoax , its another . | Absolutely hilarious screwball comedy . A hotshot newspaper reporter ( Fredric March ) tries to get in the good graces of his boss ( Walter Connolly ) by exploiting the " imminent " death of an ailing young woman ( Carole Lombard ) . By way of newsprint the doomed young lady becomes the toast of New York City until her health situation is revealed as a hoax . Supporting cast includes : Frank Fay , Margaret Hamilton and Charles Winninger . Lombard is wonderful in the role of the ailing / doomed Hazel Flagg from Vermont . My favorite scene is when March is walking down the sidewalk and a small boy bolts through a gated fence to bite him on the back of the leg and scurry back to safety . This knee-slapping comedy is directed by William A . Wellman and its a crime not to watch . |
383,043 | 449,021 | 473,308 | 7 | Apple , peach , strawberry and Bad Baby Pie . | A little strange , but funny romantic comedy . The characters really make the movie . I've always liked Keri Russell on the little screen , but on the big screen . . . oops , I'm in love again . Jenna ( Russell ) is a waitress at Joe's Pies diner ; being a pie genius she bakes all the pies everyday and creates a new one every day . But her life is not a happy one . She is married to an a^^hole of a husband named Earl ( Jeremy Sisto ) . She also finds out that she is pregnant and does not want the child ; she just wants to leave Earl . Her doctor is in semi-retirement and Jenna's doctor will be the young Dr . Pomatter ( Nathan Fillion ) ; the two fall in love immediately , but know it is wrong . Cal ( Lew Temple ) is the diner's methodical manager ; sometime seeming heartless . Owner of Joe's Pies is Old Joe ( Andy Griffith ) , who only gets along with one of the waitresses . . . Jenna . The other waitresses are played by Cheryl Hines and Adrienne Shelly , who is also the movies writer and director . Jenna's life changes drastically when she gives birth to her daughter Lulu . Starting a little slow , WAITRESS moves into super glide and is worth its weight in Blue Plate Specials . |
382,891 | 449,021 | 839,938 | 7 | One horrific day in New Zealand . | This stark drama is based on the Aramoana Massacre in New Zealand in 1990 . An out-of-work , down-on-his-luck gun collector David Gray ( Matthew Sunderland ) , upset with the local where his family has banked forever , is at the end of his rope . . . he snaps . Gray turns a solemn peaceful small town into the site of a bloody nightmare . He goes on a rampage and starts shooting everyone that comes in the vicinity of his home . Lifelong friends become targets . He even shoots animals that get in the way . He end up killing 13 citizens of the community before being gunned down by the local police . Makes you think hard about your own neighbors . Others in the cast : Karl Urban , Lois Lawn , Simon Ferry and Tandi Wright . |
382,722 | 449,021 | 109,592 | 7 | aka The Cemetery Man . Italian cult classic . | This zombie movie is not as cheesy as say NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD . Rupert Everett plays Francesco Dellamorte , a watchman / caretaker of the local cemetery . A bizarre thing begins to happen that makes his job more tedious . The dead arise after being in their grave for seven days . To kill them again , you have to crush their skull or shoot them in the head . This dark story is not without its moments of humor . Profuse violence and the gore appears real . Lighting or lack of , sets the mood perfectly . Great for a weekend rental . Better seen later in the evening the better . Anna Falchi and Fabiana Formica have memorable roles . |
384,050 | 449,021 | 35,957 | 7 | Inspiring action in the South Pacific . | Based on the book by Richard Tregaskis , GUADALCANAL DIARY is directed expertly by Lewis Seiler . A realistic story of U . S . Marines preparing and landing on the small island in the South Pacific ; not only is there the danger of the entrenched Japanese forces , this devoted platoon battles treacherous terrain , disease and torrential weather . There is also the inner loneliness in spite of faithful camaraderie . An action-packed story told through the eyes of a war correspondent ( Reed Hadley ) . You can always count on the Marines . One of my favorite sequences is as the movie ends with the war tested leaving the island and passing the new green soldiers having no idea what they are in for . An all star cast makes for one of the best war movies of its era . Starring : Lloyd Nolan , William Bendix , Preston Foster , Roy Roberts , Anthony Quinn , Richard Jaeckel and Richard Conte . |
384,174 | 449,021 | 157,503 | 7 | If you don't deserve it ; you deceive to get it . | This is a semi-hilarious mock documentary about a teen beauty contest in Minnesota . Anywhere from hilarious to ridiculous and all points in between . The only thing redeeming is Kirsten Dunst . She knows how to get your pity , concern and loyalty . Ellen Barkin is hardly recognized as Kirsten's drunken mother . Kirstie Alley is pretty darn good as the dirty dealing former beauty queen and mother of the obvious next winner ( Denise Richards ) . Miss Richards ' character is beautiful ; but spoiled , pampered and a bitch . Not exactly an expose , because the behind the scenes back stabbing is assumed to be part of a beauty pageant . Tongue-in-cheek humor . Nevertheless another vehicle for the talented Miss Dunst . |
383,778 | 449,021 | 479,143 | 7 | Rocky VI . . . running on heart and soul . | First of all , you may be thinking that the sixth installment of the Rocky franchise will be very predictable . . . not exactly . Rocky Balboa ( Sylvester Stallone ) an underdog ? The ever-popular Italian Stallion comes out of retirement when a highly publicized virtual match between the ex-champ and the current heavyweight champion Mason " The Line " Dixon ( Antonio Tarver ) ends in victory for the aged Balboa . The Dixon ego is fueled and he reluctantly agrees to an exhibition match . . . televised from Las Vegas . Rocky's son and friends disbelieve that the former two-time champ can enter the ring without embarrassment . Passion , spirit and absolute fortitude summons up all that Rocky has to give . Dixon is much younger , faster and stronger ; but that will not mean the scheduled 10 round fight will be an easy task . What happens is one of the hardest-hitting and punishing matches in boxing history . Also featured in the cast : Geraldine Hughes , Burt Young , James Francis Kelly III , Tony Burton and Milo Ventimiglia . Astonishing is the shape Stallone is in . I found Hughes impressive . And note that Tarver is a former lightweight world champion . |
383,791 | 449,021 | 121,765 | 7 | Somewhere far away a forbidden love grows . | Is some of the luster fading from George Lucas ' acclaimed STAR WARS series ? We are introduced to new characters and watch temptation of the DARK SIDE . Obi-Wan Kenobi ( Ewan McGregor ) and his apprentice Jedi Anakin Skywalker ( Hayden Christensen ) search for the truth behind a sinister plot against the Republic . Anakin has always admired Obi-Wan , but his heart is edging to the Dark Side while professing his love for the now Senator Padme Amidala ( Natalie Portman ) . We are introduced to a more than apt villain Count Dooku ( Christopher Lee ) and Jango and Boba Fett ; and as well Senator Bail Organa ( Jimmy Smitts ) . Anakin and the lovely Amidala fight over sized hornets in a droid factory . Yoda gets to kick some butt . R2-D2 and C-3PO are minor characters in this episode and to utter enjoyment the annoying Jar-Jar Binks is limited to just a couple of minutes screen time . The attack of the Clones is short of awesome and well worth the big build up . Also in the cast are : Samuel L . Jackson as Mace Windu , Ian McDiarmid as Chancellor Palpatine , Pernilla August as Shmi Skywalker-Lars and Jack Thompson as Cliegg Lars . |
382,491 | 449,021 | 86,567 | 7 | Amazingly Interesting . | Very good special effects . A teenage computer whiz ( Matthew Broderick ) gains access to the Pentagon's strategic computer system . He thinks he is playing a new computer game instead of actually warming up a World War . The cast also includes Ally Sheedy , Barry Corbin , Dabney Coleman and John Wood . |
382,212 | 449,021 | 469,263 | 7 | Inspiring drama . Billy Bob rides again . | Directed by Michael Polish , who helps brother Mark write . . . THE ASTRONAUT FARMER is a dramatic comedy well worth attention . Charles Farmer ( Billy Bob Thornton ) is a former Air Force pilot , who was forced to leave the NASA astronaut training program due to his father's death . Charlie is the butt of jokes , because he builds his own rocket in his barn on his Texas ranch . His wife Audie ( Virginia Madsen ) has had faith in him reaching his dream of launching himself into space . Soon his ranch is set for foreclosure and the attentions of the FBI , CIA , FAA as well as NASA are coming down heavy on Farmer as he secures 10 , 000 pounds of fuel to carry out his mission . This astronaut farmer gains support from the common man around the world thanks to TV exposure . His neighbors see him as an oddball , the government sees him as a threat to homeland security , the news media sees Farmer as inspirational . . . you can't help but realize you owe it to yourself to follow your dreams . Also in the cast : Max Thierot , Bruce Dern , Jon Gries , Tim Blake Nelson and Jasper and Logan Polish . |
383,179 | 449,021 | 465,440 | 7 | Breathtaking soul searching trip for a father and son . | Set in Vermont during the Prohabition , Quebec Bill ( Kris Kristofferson ) is desperate for cash after a freak lightning strike burns his barn full of hay . Despite the warnings from his mystical sister , Cordelia ( Genevieve Bujold ) , he decides to go back to his old ways and hatches a plan to steal whiskey from a Canadian whiskey pirate . Quebec Bill and his 15-year old son Wild Bill ( Charlie McDermott ) along with farm hand Rat ( William Sanderson ) and Henry Coville ( Gary Farmer ) , the senior Bill's brother-in-law , set out on a treacherous journey across the Vermont / Canadian border to steal twenty cases of whiskey . The trip proves to be unforgettable and a bit haunting . The cinematography is beautiful and the acting is very commendable . Also in the cast : Heather Rae , Luis Guzman and Lothaire Bluteau . |
383,831 | 449,021 | 362,227 | 7 | A citizen of nowhere . | Viktor Navorksi ( Tom Hanks ) is traveling from his war-torn homeland in Eastern Europe to New York City . While in the air , his country has politically changed due to a fiery coup . Since his country ceases to exist . . . Viktor's passport is no longer good , meaning he can not enter the United States . He becomes stranded at Kennedy Airport with no authorization to leave the terminal's international transit lounge . Viktor is treated rudely by the airport supervisor ( Stanley Tucci ) ; and is constantly monitored by security cameras . During his temporary residence , he falls in love with a beautiful stewardess ( Catherine Zeta-Jones ) . As time passes , Viktor is befriended by several airport workers . But the stewardess is the only one that knows why it is so important for Navorski to enter New York City . Hanks and Zeta-Jones are cast perfectly . Also featured are : Chi McBride , Zoe Saldana , Diego Luna and Kumar Pallana . This movie drags at times , but the mixing of romance and comedy makes THE TERMINAL very watchable . How can you go wrong with a picture directed by Steven Spielberg ? |
382,190 | 449,021 | 48,975 | 7 | Boarding on runway number 5 . Belly land in the jungle . | Director John Farrow re-makes FIVE CAME BACK ( 1939 ) , which he also directed . The crew and passengers of a crippled plane try to survive in a South American jungle . Pretty bland , but worth watching due to the acting of Rod Steiger . Destined to face a firing squad , Steiger's character is pivotal to the films anxious finale . Other cast members of note are : Robert Ryan , Gene Barry , Phyllis Kirk , Anita Ekberg and a young Jon Provost . If you are like me and enjoy watching the old black & white movies . . . this really isn't so bad . |
382,868 | 449,021 | 40,242 | 7 | They say that war is Hell . | Based on a William Haine's Broadway play , COMMAND DECISION is more drama and dialog than war action . There are no women , no dogfights , no actual combat . . . officers are suppose to be gentlemen , right . Flight commander Dennis ( Clark Gable ) is suffering great loses on bombers he sends out on missions over Germany . Time is of importance to keep bombing locations where the enemy is building jet fighter planes ; but Dennis is facing opposition from his own superior Major General Kane ( Walter Pigeon ) and a group of influential politicians and reporters . A testosterone heavy cast including : Van Johnson , Charles Bickford , John McIntire , John Hodiak , Marshall Thompson , Ray Collins , Cameron Mitchell and Edward Arnold . It would stand to reason this film was to boost sales of War Bonds . |
383,874 | 449,021 | 366,548 | 7 | It makes you feel like dancing ! | If you're a young Emperor Penguin in Antarctica and you can't sing . . . you're an outcast . Mumble's ( Elijay Wood ) Dad Memphis ( Hugh Jackman ) and mom Norma Jean ( Nicole Kidman ) know that their son is cute , but had no idea he could dance , dance , dance . Mumble is blamed for the lack of nourishing fish in the community , due to his horrible singing voice . He is cast out by the Elders only to find friendship with a posse known as the Adelie Amigos led by Ramon ( Robin Williams ) , who thinks that Mumble's " hippity-hoppity " is the greatest way besides singing to attract available female companionship . Mumble only has eyes for Gloria ( Brittany Murphy ) , the greatest singer in his estranged homeland . Mumble seeks advice from Lovelace the Guru , who joins the dancing youngster and the Amigos to set out on a fact finding adventure . This journey will prove to change Mumble's life ; as well as save his community . This animated musical is endearing and wholesome entertainment for the whole family . Williams also voices the Guru and other's lending voices to characters are : Hugo Weaving , Anthony LaPaglia , Jeffrey Garcia , Chrissie Hynde and the late Steve Irwin , the Crocodile Hunter . |
382,919 | 449,021 | 101,889 | 7 | An odd , but touching relationship . | Terry Gilliam directs this quirky , busy heartfelt tale of a homeless former professor ( Robin Williams ) obsessed with medieval history and his relationship with a jaded guilt-ridden ex-radio DJ ( Jeff Bridges ) . Williams and Bridges are superb . The story line evolves around redemption and the search for The Holy Grail . Also in the cast are Mecedes Ruehl and David Hyde Pierce . It may take a second viewing to grasp the intended effect . This just may be Bridges ' best performance to date . |
383,865 | 449,021 | 40,202 | 7 | An innocent man is an innocent man . | Documentary styled film-noir based on a true life story . A cleaning woman offers a reward for information that may lead to her son's ( Richard Conte ) release from prison for the murder of a policeman over a decade earlier . A Chicago reporter ( James Stewart ) is asked by his editor ( Lee J . Cobb ) to investigate this human interest story ; and he ends up turning it into an expose of corruption in the criminal justice system . Well written and acted . Kudos to director Henry Hathaway . Stewart is powerful as the cunning reporter . Conte is a bit rigid , but yet believable . Other players : Kasia Olzazewski , Helen Walker , John McIntire and E . G . Marshall . |
382,467 | 449,021 | 465,430 | 7 | Weird horror-comedy . Worth a look . | At first you wonder where this movie is going . Its like a freight train that needs to pick up some speed . Written and directed by Paul Andrew Williams , THE COTTAGE is really a hoot in a twisted sense . Dark comedy good for some belly laughs . David ( Andy Serkis ) and Pete ( Reece Shearsmith ) are rivaling brothers volleying unpleasantries at each other as they take refuge in a secluded cottage in a remote countryside . They are bungling the kidnapping of a buxom blonde Tracey ( Jennifer Ellison ) , who refuses to stay quiet let alone tied up . Things get worse when Tracey's step-brother Andrew ( Steve O'Donnell ) arrives with what was suppose to be ransom money , but instead . . . tissue paper . Confusion and paranoia set in ; but things are really going from bad to worse as the four find themselves fighting for their lives when the cottage dwelling maniacal farmer runs amok with an axe . Everything becomes a weapon as sick slapstick gore begins taking its toll . Disturbing images that lets you decide . . . sick or funny . . . or both . |
382,811 | 449,021 | 1,065,060 | 7 | A very dark family secret . | Directed and written by Dav Kaufman 13 HOURS IN A WAREHOUSE is a lot better than some reviewers express . It doesn't exactly lumber along , it just doesn't progress at a break neck speed . Five small-time crooks , including the Hancock brothers Randy ( Chars Bonin ) and Mike ( Danny Salmen ) , pull off a heist and take refuge in a warehouse that once belonged to the brother's old man before his suicide . With a hostage ( Meisha Johnson ) in tow , the gang have time to kill . Its going to be a considerable wait until the next morning when they can unload the stolen art and collect their payoff . The warehouse once was used for shooting snuff films and porn by the brother's father . During the wait each becomes suspicious of each other and when strange noises are heard paranoia sets in . Plus it doesn't help that a strange set of numbers begin appearing on the walls . What in the hell is going on ? A very dark family secret is revealed ; and the night will become hard to survive . |
382,319 | 449,021 | 101,906 | 7 | If you would climb into a fourth floor window ; why not jump ? | At times a little slow , but an above average TV drama with thrills and suspense . This psychological passage is about a private eye ( Mark Harmon ) and the woman ( Mimi Rogers ) who hires him to find her missing husband ( Cliff De Young ) . Very watchable and personally I liked this a whole lot better than PROOF OF LIFE ( 2000 ) which is more or less the same story . Harmon is cool without trying to be macho . Miss Rogers is flawless and to die for . In support : M . Emmet Walsh , Paul Gleason and Michael Boatman . |
382,287 | 449,021 | 120,879 | 7 | Glam rock on the verge of changing the world . | The British Glam Rock movement is all here . . . the flamboyant costumes , the glitter , the energy , the statement coifed heads , the preening and pulsating glammer pop stars intent on changing the world . Arthur Stuart ( Christian Bale ) is a British newspaper reporter investigating the legend of bisexual glam icon Brian Slade ( Jonathan Rhys-Meyers ) , who drops out of sight after staging his own death as a publicity stunt during a concert . Although married to Mandy ( Toni Collette ) , Slade is infatuated with punk pioneer Curt Wild ( Ewan McGregor ) and will stop at nothing to further their careers . Director Todd Haynes , who also shares writing credit , is far from restrained in presenting this very flashy , visual , sexual and character altering musical movement . This obvious homage to David Bowie , Iggy Pop and Kurt Cobain has more than its share of nudity and sexual situations . The talents of Rhys-Meyers and McGregor seem to feed off the other . Curious yellow ? All that glimmers is not gold . |
383,148 | 449,021 | 469,641 | 7 | A celebration the human spirit , perseverance and valor . | Director Oliver Stone is known for great detail and not pulling punches . Only 20 people were pulled out of the rubble alive , after terrorist flew two planes into the twin towers of the World Trade Center . This movie is about # 18 and # 19 . It started as an ordinary day for Port Authority officers John McGloughlin ( Nicolas Cage ) and Will Jimeno ( Michael Pena ) until all hell broke loose . The two officers were trapped in the rubble of September 11 , 2001 . The two made a pact to fight for survival . Images are intense , emotional and very disturbing . Maria Bello and Maggie Gyllenhaal play the wives of the two trapped officers . The cast also features : Jay Hernandez , Nick Damici , Stephen Dorff and Jude Ciccolella . |
383,949 | 449,021 | 75,314 | 7 | YOU talking to me ? You talking to ME ? | Director Martin Scorsese uses harsh reality and memorable characters to perfection . Robert de Niro plays a slightly deranged Viet Nam vet that drives a NYC cab at night . His insomnia appears relentless and he spends a lot of his time in porno theaters . This lonesome loser does have a heart buried beneath that rough and hardened exterior . Driving his taxi allows him to see through his eyes the underbelly of the city and confirms his contempt for the " scum " all around him . So memorable is his working up to date the beautiful Cybil Shepard only to pss her off by taking her to a porno flick . Then trying to " rescue " a 12-year old runaway turned prostitute ( Jodie Foster ) and dealing with her sleazy pimp ( Harvey Keitel ) . A stomach-churning bloodbath seems to be an unconditional cleansing of a very personal hell . Also in the cast are : Leonard Harris , Albert Brooks and Peter Boyle . This great movie is just a building block towards Scorsese's genius . |
382,197 | 449,021 | 55,830 | 7 | Spooky . . . in a very good way . | Deserving of its low budget cult following . A group of girlfriends crash off a bridge and one girl , Mary ( Candace Hilligoss ) , mysteriously rises from the river . . . but her life has become tormented by repeated visions of a strange man ( director Herk Harvey ) . On her way to Utah to take a job as a church organist , she passes a deserted pavilion that she can't get out of her mind . Its a bit creepy when Mary finds herself invisible to her surroundings and even creepier when she goes to check out the pavilion to find a group of zombies ballroom dancing . . . led by the ' strange man ' . CARNIVAL OF SOULS is shot in Black & White with an atmospheric setting church organ score . . . spooky . Well worth watching . Other players : Stan Levitt , Frances Feist , Art Ellison and Sidney Berger . |
382,878 | 449,021 | 48,280 | 7 | Just the right pedigree . Disney classic . | LADY and the TRAMP is one of the most underrated , but endearing Walt Disney animated features . Memorable music and purebred fun . A high-bred and pampered cocker spaniel , Lady ( Barbara Luddy ) , learns to be adventurous and carefree when she meets Tramp ( Larry Roberts ) , a raffish mutt from across the tracks . Spending the night on a hill overlooking town ; begging for bones ; sneaking into the zoo ; running from the dog catcher and that memorable spaghetti and meatball dinner . Other characters in this fantasy are : Trusty and Jock , Darling , Si and Am . Lush backgrounds and " He's A Tramp " sung by Peggy Lee help make this film one to be enjoyed by the whole family . Others lending voices to characters are Bill Thompson , Stan Freberg , Bill Baucom and Miss Lee . |
382,889 | 449,021 | 478,216 | 7 | Decent horror flick with modest body count . | Part of the After Dark Horrorfest and possibly the best of this crop . Written and directed by Rolfe Kanefsky ; a very anxious movie with some thrills and chills . Most of the acting is bad ; but some nice looking girls to stare at . The killing scenes are imaginative , violent and worth talking about . Ellen ( Blythe Metz ) orders an African fertility mask ; but is mistakenly sent one that is very demonic looking and horned . The mask possesses a evil spirit that overtakes Ellen , driving her insane . On the way to a mental hospital , her husband ( Luciano Szafir ) runs out of gas and leaves her in the car to wait . She believes that she is taunted by her ' Nightmare Man ' and ends up being chased in the woods by him . She finally finds refuge with two vacationing couples partying in a nice home in the middle of nowhere . Soon the ' Nightmare Man ' appears to prove Ellen is really dealing with an evil spirit with killing on its mind . Needless to say , a body count begins and evil continues to breed . The movie is stolen by the character Mia played by Tiffany Shepis . Also in the cast : James Ferris , Hanna Putnam , Jack Sway and Aaron Sherry as the ' Nightmare Man ' . |
382,685 | 449,021 | 949,731 | 7 | Where have you gone M . Night Shamalan ? | Have you ever watched a dog dance on its hind legs ? And exactly what came of it ? It seems that writer / director M . Night Shamalan had started a chain of movies that left us equally baffled . With THE HAPPENING , he is creeping back with some recognizable fright and chills . This paranoia filled thriller has Philidelphia high school teacher Elliot Moore ( Mark Wahlberg ) and his doe-eyed wife Alma ( Zooey Deschanel ) trying to outrun what seems an unstoppable phenomenon sweeping across the land . Mind boggling deaths erupt in major cities and what is causing this total breakdown of humanity ? Elliot's wife and teaching friend Juilian ( John Leguizamo ) and his small daughter head through Pennsylvania farmland in hopes of finding a safe place to hide from this terrible plight that seems to travel with the wind . Is this an invisible killer that you just can't outrun ? Well photographed and some decent F / X as expected . Also in the cast : Ashlyn Sanchez , Spenser Breslin , Alan Ruck and Jeremy Strong . |
382,393 | 449,021 | 120,861 | 7 | What's hard with granting a last wish ? | A bit quirky and bordering bad taste ; but intelligent enough to be worthy of watching . A wheelchair-bound young woman Jane Hatchard ( Helena Bonham Carter ) is teamed with a reluctant caregiver , Richard ( Kenneth Branagh ) . Richard is an artist that daydreams of human flight . He builds an airplane in his garage and intends to fly it . He wants to resurrect his own troubled life by taking care of the independent , dying Jane , who suffers from an neurological disease that has all but left her speechless and very little motor skills . Wheelchair-bound and full of spirit , her last dying wish is to loose her virginity . She offers herself to Richard , who won't help her directly ; but is willing to rob a bank in order to pay a gigolo to do the deed . I found this flick ambitious and humorous . Even in this role , Carter has a certain charisma and likability . |
381,965 | 449,021 | 51,994 | 7 | The Titanic's maiden voyage is doomed . | Based on a novel by Walter Lord and told through the eyes of the ship's second officer , Herbert Lightoller ( Kenneth More ) another version of the doomed maiden voyage of the Titanic . This is a straightforward depiction of the panic , despair , hope and courage of the 2200 some odd passengers as they are finally informed that the luxury liner had collided with an iceberg and suffered a giant gash in its hull . Radio was a new invention , but did very little good raising the attention of the closest ship at sea . With not enough lifeboats on board for a ship the size of the Titanic caused another life lost problem . Women and children were loaded into lifeboats first as other passengers from various stations in life watched with greed and despair as they scrambled to save their own lives . Crew members and passengers alike either jumped into the icy cold waters or simply perished in the wounded ship as it sank into the North Atlantic . Roy Ward Baker directs a large all-star cast that includes : Ronald Allen , Honor Blackman , Anthony Bushell , Kenneth Griffin , Robert Ayres , Michael Goodliffe , James Dyrenforth , David McCallum , Harriette Johns , Richard Clarke , Frank Lawton and Sean Connery . Not that tragedy is entertainment ; the infamous voyage and sinking of the Titanic is history . |
384,506 | 449,021 | 805,570 | 7 | How about a hammer to the head ? | Screenplay writer Jeff Butler adapts a Clive Barker short story and it couldn't be too much more brutal or darker . Leon Kauffman ( Bradley Cooper ) is a struggling photographer in search for just the perfect subject to make a name for himself . He is encouraged by a prominent art gallery proprietor ( Brooke Shields ) to explore the dark and dank side of the city's underbelly and capture shots of the down trodden and late night street wanderers . Against the advice and wishes of his girlfriend Maya ( Leslie Bibb ) , Leon begins stalking a notorious serial killer named Mahogany ( Vinnie Jones ) , who is a legend of sorts that totally beats the living hell out of after midnight subway riders . The finale is as interesting as making a playground in the middle of a slaughter house . THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN is intended for mature viewers that can handle the perverse and graphic carnage . A big surprise is Shields . Not much camera time , but I'm sure the money was good . Also in the cast : Barbara Eve Harris , Roger Bart and Ted Raimi . Kudos to director Ryuhei Kitamura . |
384,476 | 449,021 | 448,157 | 7 | Not your ordinary superhero . | A Peter Berg film . Action packed comedy with fulfilling special effects . And hey , we get a superhero that didn't originate in a comic book . Hancock ( Will Smith ) is a hard-living , sarcastic hero with super human abilities ; maybe misunderstood and real down-and-out with a lack of people skills and out of favor with the public in general and with public officials for lack of property damage control . Hancock saves a public relations expert , Ray Embrey ( Jason Bateman , from being being ran over by a train . Embrey in turn convinces Hancock to agree to an extreme makeover and pull his reputation out of the gutter and make nice with the public . In meeting Embrey's wife ( Charlize Theron ) , Hancock discovers she has similar and even stronger powers than his own . Plus she holds the key to unlock his secret past . Will his popularity rise or will this prove to be his demise ? |
383,551 | 449,021 | 482,606 | 7 | Pressure cooker thriller . | A psychological thriller directed by Bryan Bertino . Forget popcorn and soft drinks ; try a fistful of Xanax and adult diapers . Sorry , that was foolishly going overboard . THE STRANGERS will have you drowning in anxiety and listening to your own blood chill . A young suburban couple Kristen ( Liv Tyler ) and James ( Scott Speedman ) need some peace and quiet and time to think as they arrive at a secluded family vacation home . You don't always get what you want . Rapping at the door becomes bagging on the door . Strangers staring at the house and peeking through writing on the windows . It is a living nightmare as three masked strangers invade the couple's privacy . It is amazing what you can bring yourself to do when survival is on the line . This is not the time to hear someone at the door or your cellphone to ring . It is so much fun to be terrified . |
383,132 | 449,021 | 48,261 | 7 | Its not easy to keep a good man down . | Robert Aldrich directs this fast paced and violent adaptation of Mickey Spillane's novel . Film Noir meets a touch of Sci-Fi . This much overlooked thriller is said to have been accepted better in France than the U . S . when released in the mid 50's . Moody shades of glorious black and white , this film progressively holds your undivided attention . That cool , hard hitting private dick Mike Hammer ( Ralph Meeker ) picks up a wailing woman ( Cloris Leachman ) wearing nothing but a trench-coat in the middle of the highway . This leads to Hammer taking on several thugs and secrets associated with the Atomic Bomb . Femme fatales and mystery amok help make up the core of this very volatile crime flick . Meeker is stoic and self confident as Hammer . There is also an impressive group of actors rounding out the cast : Paul Stewart , Maxine Cooper , Albert Dekker , Jack Elam and Gabby Rodgers . |
382,746 | 449,021 | 335,345 | 7 | There is only one Christ . | Whether your faith is abundant or oblivious , this powerful movie will stir your conscience . A passion of director , writer and producer Mel Gibson is now shared with the world . Presented are the controversial and captivating last twelve hours in the life of Jesus of Nazareth ( Jim Caviezel ) . Jesus goes to the Garden of Olives to pray after the Last Supper ; as the betrayal of Judas Iscariot ( Luca Lionello ) leads to His being arrested and taken back to Jerusalem , where His savage and bloody Crucifixion is set in place at the hands of Pontius Pilate ( Hristo Shopov ) . Be warned of the graphic violence sequences . The only thing that could have made this better for me is being dubbed in English , thus losing the subtitles . Others of note in the cast : Monica Belluci , Francesco De Vito , Maia Morgensten and Hristo Jivkov . |
382,591 | 449,021 | 29,118 | 7 | Edward G . Robinson does what he does well . | Very good crime drama . The gangster with the big ego , small in stature , Joe Krozac ( Edward G . Robinson ) in spite of all the crime associated with him . . . goes to prison for ten years on a tax evasion charge . He previously brought back a wife Talya ( Rose Stradner ) from the old world . As he enters lock up he finds out she is pregnant . In prison Krozac is not the " mister big shot " he has been so accustomed to . For ten tears he is obsessed with meeting his son . While away his wife has divorced him and married a newspaper writer ( James Stewart ) . She has also renamed her son . Krozac is released and his old gang roughs him up and humiliates him trying to find the location of his hidden money . They kidnap his son , since a beating doesn't get the results they want . Joe manages to return the boy home , but bonding is not successful . Very good atmospheric scenes . I most enjoyed the last several minutes of the movie that is shot in the rain . Robinson is always a top notch gangster . Stradner is neither attractive or effective . The young boy Douglas Scott is way too prissy to be interesting . Stewart is yet the big star . Others in the cast : Lionel Stander , John Carradine , Frank Conroy and Alan Baxter . |
382,485 | 449,021 | 55,894 | 7 | Very good British made sci-fi . | A meteorite shower lights up the sky and blinds all that watches it . Most of the world population must also deal with some rather weird plant life that can uproot itself and seek human nourishment . Howard Keel plays a sailor recovering from an eye operation , thus not being blinded by the mysterious glowing display . He finds a young girl that slept through the starry shower . Together they seek out help and a solution to this very weird problem . A couple of marine biologist , stranded in a lighthouse , get a ' hands on ' encounter with the rampaging stalks of terror . An evenly paced movie considering the slow moving menace . This makes you ponder watering your plants . Very good movie . Also in the cast are Janina Faye , Nicole Maurey and Janette Scott . |
382,634 | 449,021 | 44,509 | 7 | Stark melodrama . Humanity in state of depression . | A very gloomy Hal Wallis production based on the play by William Inge . The focus being on a couple of less glamorous people ; Doc Delanely ( Burt Lancaster ) is a recovering alcoholic sharing a mundane life with his frumpy and unkempt wife Lola ( Shirley Booth ) , who lives in anticipation of her runaway little puppy Sheba returning home . She also holds herself guilty for their troubled wedding twenty years ago . When Lola rents out a room to an attractive college student Marie ( Terry Moore ) Doc becomes bothered by her youth and her activities with a boyfriend ( Richard Jaeckel ) . The household already in stress changes its dynamic and the emotional disturbance causes Doc to wobble off the road of sobriety . Lola , precariously needy and a bit backward , all but completely comes unhinged . Doc and Lola in the need of each other suffer their nagging feelings of failure . This movie still packs a wallop . The characters draw you in rather quickly then hang your emotions out to dry . The role earned Booth an Oscar . Lancaster seems rather young for the role , but believable as Doc . Also in the cast : Philip Ober , Edwin Max and Walter Kelley . |
382,242 | 449,021 | 101,761 | 7 | Bust on through to the other side . Sex , drugs and Rock ' n ' Roll ! | Dynamic and explosive story of a L . A . band trying to deal with discovery , fame and dealing with its moody lead singer , who has his own demons to fight . Oliver Stone directs this ode to The Doors . Some of the scenes are almost duplicates of actual events . And on the other hand you also deal with many inaccuracies . It is quite apparent that this movie is based on the myth of Jim Morrison and The Doors and does not get too much farther from that . At times it seems that the other members of the band are only sidemen to the moody , energetic , blatantly sexual front man . Not since Kurt Russell gave us the excellent portrayal of Elvis Presley in ELVIS ( 79 ) have we had a powerful performance like Val Kilmer as Morrison . Kilmer even does some of the vocals himself . Fans of The Doors no doubt will knit-pick this film to death and love it at the same time . It is well worth watching several times . Besides the flawless Kilmer , also in the cast are : Kathleen Quinlan , Michael Madsen , Kyle MacLachlan , Meg Ryan , Kevin Dillon and Billy Idol . Love it two times and two times more . |
383,050 | 449,021 | 235,737 | 7 | Dark , absorbing drug drama . | Surreal and sordid glimpse at the underbelly of drug addiction . This film is narrated by Val Kilmer , who plays Danny Parker , the alias of Tom Van Allen . Danny is a tattooed trumpet player ; a crystal meth addict who is lost in his search to find his own identity . Living to binge on speed and serve as a " rat " for two cops , one played by Anthony LaPaglia . Danny witnessed his wife being murdered ; he is determined to avenge her death as he drifts in and out of his drugged stupor . My favorite character is the no-nose Pooh-Bear ( Vincent D'Onofrio ) . Others in the cast : Peter Sarsgaard , Glenn Plummer , B . D . Wong , Deborah Kara Unger and Meat Loaf . Directed by D . J . Caruso and written by Tony Gayton , SALTON SEA grim as can be , but worth the off-kilter trip . |
383,056 | 449,021 | 486,946 | 7 | Four friends put on the leather and hop on their hogs . | Walt Becker directs this hilariously funny road trip written by Brad Copeland , with room enough for some comical ad-libs . Four friends , Tim Allen , John Travolta , William H . Macy and Martin Lawrence , need a break from their mundane lives and tress filled jobs . These suburbanites decide to hit the road with a cross-country motorcycle adventure starting in Cincinnati and ending on a California beach . These guys throw caution and their cell phones to the wind and sporting their leathers sporting the moniker Wild Hogs . In New Mexico , these amateur care-free souls meet up with a " real " biker gang , The Del Fuegos , led by Ray Liotta . Belly busting . screwball situations and laugh-out-loud misadventures provide a great escape . These four actors work well with each other and you can tell they enjoy playing off of one another . Comedy for the whole family . Also in the cast : M . C . Gainey , Marisa Tomei , Jill Hennessy and a Peter Fonda cameo . |
384,223 | 449,021 | 346,156 | 7 | World of tomorrow is here today . | Nearly a decade of scheming and dreaming and hours upon hours of hard work puts writer and director Kerry Conran's fantasy on the silver screen . . . or should we say " blue screen " . The style can be described as a comic book coming to life . CGI dominated film that mixes Art Deco and film noir . The simple plot is second to the extravagant visuals . An energetic and fearless reporter Polly Perkins ( Gwyneth Paltrow ) enlists the aid of a champion of the skies Joe ' Sky Pilot ' Sullivan ( Jude Law ) to investigate a link between the disappearance of several world renowned scientists and the invasion of New York City by giant generator stealing robots . Angelina Jolie is Captain ' Franky ' Cook , the eye-patched friend and ally of ' Sky Pilot ' . Dex Dearborn ( Giovanni Ribisi ) is a jack of all trades technician who manages to stay in the thick of things . And there is the archival footage of Sir Laurence Olivier as the fanatical futuristic Dr . Totenkopf . This is more than a movie . . . its a stunning piece of art . You owe it to yourself to witness SKY CAPTAIN and the WORLD of TOMORROW . |
382,228 | 449,021 | 36,706 | 7 | The U . S . Secret Service needs Charlie Chan . | During World War Two , spies come in all shapes and forms . America's Number One Chinese detective , Charlie Chan ( Sidney Toler ) , is called upon by the Secret Service to find who murdered the scientist / inventor of a top-secret weapon to protect the U . S . forces from German U-boats . Chan arrives to a house party full of guests that contains a spy that has stolen the assembly plans of the newly invented weapon . The guests are quite eccentric , if not just plain suspicious . Chan is followed by one of his sons ( Benson Fong ) and daughters ( Marianne Quon ) good for getting in the way of the investigation . Not one of the best Chan movies I've seen , but still good enough to hold interest . Absolutely comical is Mantan Moreland that plays a chauffeur named Birmingham Brown . Others in the cast : Gene Roth , Lelah Tyler , Gwen Kenyon , Arthur Loft and Sarah Edwards . |
383,650 | 449,021 | 465,234 | 7 | No just OK , but a decent sequel . | Treasure hunter Ben Gates ( Nicolas Cage ) is on another adventure trying to prove one of ancestors was not involved with the assassination of President Lincoln . The proof will be in a secret book intended for presidential eyes only , handed down for generations . Gates and his partner Riley ( Justin Bartha ) will have to outrace another historian ( Ed Harris ) to a long lost " city of gold " . Clues will lead to the Statue of Liberty in New York and one of its mates in Paris . The trail of clues will go to Buckingham Palace ; the Oval Office ; " kidnapping " the President ( Bruce Greenwood ) ; the Library of Congress and Mount Rushmore . There will be the need of some assistance from Ben's estranged wife ( Diane Kruger ) , his dad ( Jon Voight ) and his mother ( Helen Mirren ) . The scenery is pretty awesome and zinging one liners that are actually funny . Your attention will be on the movie throughout . Also in the cast : Harvey Keitel , Alicia Coppola and Ty Burrell . |
384,369 | 449,021 | 48,182 | 7 | Army misfits become daring gang in Tokyo . | Sandy Dawson ( Robert Ryan ) is a former GI that has hand-picked a group of others like him ; and along with some local thugs muscle their way into a protection racket ruling Tokyo's numerous pachinko parlors . Dawson runs his band of misfits like a hard-boiled military unit . They commit bank robberies , knock off jewelry stores and brazenly rob trains carrying military ammunition . It is a rule that any injured gang member be shot to death . The Army gives a special assignment to Eddie Kenner ( Robert Stack ) to infiltrate the gang and bust it up along with proving that Dawson is a murderer . The finale shootout proves to be as curios as interesting . This 20th Century film noir ( in color ) also stars : Shirley Yamaguchi , Cameron Mitchell , Brad Dexter and Sessue Hayakawa . |
383,390 | 449,021 | 455,760 | 7 | To make the perfect doll . Creepy . | James Wan , who gave us SAW , writes and directs this creepy ghost story . Jamie Ashen ( Ryan Kwanten ) receives a ventriloquist dummy in the mail . Sender unknown . Moments later , as he is out of the apartment , his young wife Lisa ( Laura Regan ) is murdered and her tongue is ripped out . Jamie returns to his hometown of Ravens Fair to unravel a children's nursery rhyme that may give him clues to his wife's death . The rhyme is about a woman named Mary Shaw , who was a ventriloquists that was murdered and buried with 101 or her " children " , a collection of hand made dummies for her act in vaudeville . The small town at one time lived in fear because of mysterious and haunting deaths possibly related to Mary Shaw . Tension is thick as bricks . The atmosphere is creepy . Perfect for a good scare . Also in the cast : Donnie Wahlberg , Michael Fairman , Amber Valletta and Judith Roberts . |
382,940 | 449,021 | 365,737 | 7 | Is good for one good for all ? | Stephen Gaghan directs some fascinating subject matter . . . some stimulating and some volatile . At a rapid pace that may cause some confusion and then what seems like lulls to let your brain digest . The talented George Clooney proves why he is a man to be reckoned with . His role as a government operative and international adviser is strong and compelling . SYRIANA deals with greed , cheap labor , international politics , terrorism , assassination and it all revolves around oil . . . who has it and who wants it . Matt Damon is a small businessman that becomes the financial adviser for a Middle Eastern prince ( Alexander Siddig ) who is afraid of not getting to assume control of his father's oil dealings . Jeffrey Wright plays an oil company official that is being swayed by the government to expose corruption as part of questionable oil company transactions . Also in support are : Amanda Peet , Christopher Plummer , Amr Waked , Robert Foxworth , Chris Cooper , Tim Blake Nelson , Daisy Torme and William Hurt . SYRIANA is expectedly big , a bit messy and full of intrigue , tension and flashy entertainment . |
383,506 | 449,021 | 478,394 | 7 | The Substitute . They are not all alike . | The Ghost House Underground presents an entry from Denmark with not a lot of special effects , but it sustains suspense and anxiety . A small-town sixth-grade class gets a substitute teacher . She is blond , long , lean and lanky with all the finesse of a Nazi interrogator . She treats the children rudely and sadistically taunts each and every one as she indulges in mind control . The children try to alert their clueless parents , but Miss Ulla ( Paprika Steen ) finds it too easy to manipulate them . Carl ( Jonas Wandschneider ) and Phillip ( Nikolaj Falkenberg-Klok ) convinces the class to take matters into their own hands . Upon some snooping they find reason enough to believe the substitute is from another planet . |
384,447 | 449,021 | 40,525 | 7 | Murder for hire and lusty intrigue . | Screenplay written by , directed by and starring the incomparable Orson Welles . Welles plays a rough and tumble Irish seaman who gets caught up in a murder for hire scheme and at the same time not so secretly smooching with the wife ( Rita Hayworth ) of his eventual lawyer ( Everett Sloane ) . Film-Noir at its best . Script and story line meanders in that Welles way . Terrific camera angles and positioning . My favorite scenes are the get-a-way from the courtroom and later the very unusual scene in the mirror maze . Note : This movie has nothing to do with Shanghai , but San Francisco . Hayworth ( the soon to be ex-Mrs . Welles in real life ) cuts her trademark red hair and dyes it blonde . Welles floats back and forth speaking in an Irish accent as he also narrates this misunderstood movie . And the yachting scenes are filmed on the personal yacht owned by Errol Flynn . |
382,420 | 449,021 | 161,081 | 7 | A slow and easy fright fest . First rate terror ! | A professor's wife believes that her neighbor is a murderer ; but her personal terror is trying to cope with a spirit haunting her new home . Harrison Ford is what we think is a mild mannered genius . His neurotic wife is played by the ever classy Michelle Pfeiffer . We see a very different side of Ford and Miss Pfeiffer at one point has only her eyes to relay her torment . What I really liked best about the movie is the sound effects . It reminds me of days gone by when the sounds of the wind , a rainy night , footsteps and a squeaking door speak volumes . This movie is not necessarily too long , it just moves slowly getting to the energy packed finale . Your palms will sweat and you will inch to the edge of your seat . The terror filled twisting climax is well worth the ride . |
382,418 | 449,021 | 139,462 | 7 | Pick one : yesterday or tomorrow . | This is an emotional portrait of love lost and found . A recently divorced reporter / writer ( Robin Wright Penn ) finds a tragic love letter in a bottle . The letter is written by a ship building sailor ( Kevin Costner ) who is still grieving the death of his wife . Another letter is found and forwarded to the Chicago Tribune and the fascinated reporter tracks down the love shy sailor . The dialogue is no great shakes . But the body language and character interaction spoke brilliantly . Even the dialogue between the sailor and his father ( Paul Newman ) showed love and concern . Fantastic camera work . The rhythm of the sea and the lonely beach were poetic . Chick flick , so what ? It puts you in the mood for romance on a lazy afternoon . Very enjoyable soundtrack featuring : Sheryl Crowe , Faith Hill , Marc Cohn and Hootie & The Blowfish . Along with Costner , Penn and Newman are John Savage , Robbie Coltrane and Susan Brightbill . Take two hours and six minutes to feel the romance . |
383,089 | 449,021 | 55,992 | 7 | A funny and entertaining look at a backwoods family . | Elvis Presley plays the part of Toby Kwimper , whose rag tag family is forced to homestead along the beautiful Florida coast . The patriarch of the brood , played by Arthur O'Connell is hilarious . Anne Helm plays Toby's adopted sister ; her love is more than sisterly . Simon Oakland is a mobster that tries to run the family out of their new home place . Joanna Moore tries to get Toby's attention by busting up the happy squatters . Funny situations and five lively tunes help make this one of the most watched Elvis vehicles . The songs " Follow That Dream " and " Angel " are superb . Elvis is very comfortable and natural doing comedy . Every member of the family , young and old , will fall in love with this film . |
383,734 | 449,021 | 273,517 | 7 | When the dark couldn't get much darker . | Slow going at first , but be prepared to flinch as your heart jumps . Darker than dark and darker than a coal miner's boots . Strange things begin to happen after a teenager ( Anna Paquin ) moves with her family into a remote country-side home . The house has ancient secrets to hide and horribly disturbing things begin to happen whenever the lights go out . The use of the rain and thunder accent the movie's eerie fear factor . Supernatural events unleash pure evil , but it is still hard for Regina ( Paquin ) to convince her parents ( Lena Olin and Iain Glen ) that the past is intent on destroying the family . Sometimes it is what you think you see that scares you . Unusual and creepy . Worth a second watch . |
383,258 | 449,021 | 56,023 | 7 | Trouble trying to buy a boat ; and then girls , girls , girls ! | Elvis plays a carefree charter boat pilot ( Ross Carpenter ) . After losing his job , he thinks of buying his late father's boat from its present owner ( Jeremy Slate ) . He goes to work on a tuna boat during the day . At night Ross sings in a nightclub . And somewhere in between finds trouble existing with Laurel Goodwin and Stella Stevens . A soundtrack that features more than a dozen songs . Some quite stupid , but as a whole a better than average album . The classic multi-million selling " Return To Sender " carries the movie . Benson Fong , Robert Strauss , Ginny and Elizabeth Tiu round out the cast . |
382,784 | 449,021 | 377,091 | 7 | Escalated revenge leaves someone dead . | Welcome to a teen's world . Sam ( Rory Culkin ) breaks down and admits to his over protective brother Rocky ( Trevor Morgan ) that the school bully George ( Josh Peck ) has been beating him on a daily basis . To get revenge and payback George his due , the two boys come up with a well thought plan , almost perfect plan . Rocky gathers some of his pals and Sams ' girlfriend Millie ( Carly Schroeder ) for a ride to the woods and a float trip down the river . The plan is to make George get naked and jump in the river as the others leave , forcing the bully to walk home without his clothes . The perfect prank goes bad , very bad . This movie is well directed by Jacob Aaron Estes , who also wrote MEAN CREEK . And why they call a river a creek , don't know . But this is a pretty accurate look at life through the eyes of a teen . Also in the cast : Scott Mechlowicz , Ryan Kelly , Brandon Williams and Heath Lourwood . |
382,703 | 449,021 | 372,784 | 8 | Justice or revenge . A caped hero emerges . | To director Christopher Nolan . . . a job well done . Fantastic movie with super effects . After watching the murder of his parents , industrial heir Bruce Wayne ( Christian Bale ) gathers all inner fortitude and wanders the world in search of the key to burying his fears and the means to fight injustice . After shrugging his disillusions , the Batman legend emerges and the Dark Knight will kick injustice square in the ass and instill true fear into those that have for so long preyed on the fearful . Gotham City has a hero . I had original doubts about Bale playing the DC Comics icon ; but he came through brilliantly . There is an all star cast in support : Michael Caine , Liam Neeson , Gary Oldman , Katie Holmes , Morgan Freeman and Ruter Hauer . |
384,252 | 449,021 | 365,125 | 8 | Knee-slapping funny . Let's go sexin ' ! | One of John Waters best yet . Waters writes and directs this quirky and raunchy comedy about an underground subculture of sex addicts led by Ray Ray ( Johnny Knoxville ) . Sylvia ( Tracey Ullman ) is an uptight frigid middle-aged woman with sex being the last thing on her mind . Her husband Vaughn ( Chris Issak ) however still has those urges for the horizontal bop . She even keeps her daughter Caprice ( Selma Blair ) , kept in a garage apartment under lock and key . The daughter with mammoth sized breasts is actually under house-arrest due to charges of indecent exposure and public nudity stemming from her striptease act . Suburban Baltimore is up in arms about the trend of public sexual expression . When Sylvia suffers a concussion , she eases into Ray Ray's band of sex addicts trying to discover a new and the perfect sex act . Big Ethel ( Suzanne Shepard ) tries gathering as many " Neuter " folks she can . The " Neuters " are basically prudes that are trying to take their neighborhoods back from the sex addicts that love to " go sexin ' " Funny , funny , funny . Also in the cast : Mink Stole , Patricia Hearst , Wes Johnson and Jackie Hoffman . |
384,241 | 449,021 | 338,095 | 8 | Buckets of blood . A terrific scare . | HIGH TENSION lives up to its claim . . . " It will scare the hell out of you " . This shocker is highly volatile with stark graphic violence . Not for the faint of heart . Alexa ( Maiween Le Besco ) and Marie ( Cecile De France ) are gal pals on holiday headed to Alexa's parent's cottage in the South of France . The two story home is in the middle of nowhere adjoining a large cornfield . One takes a shower ; the other ' pleasures ' herself and right when the middle of night approaches calm . . . a mysterious grimy killer drives up in a rust bucket and proceeds to slaughter Alexa's parents and little brother . Alexa is bound and gaged and kidnapped ; Marie , who has managed to hide while being witness to the violence , goes through hell trying to rescue her friend . The atmosphere is frantic and guaranteed to lock up your knuckles and remind you of acidic ' up-chuck ' . The twisting climax will challenge sanity . Before the HIGH TENSION violence begins ; ' getting head ' prompts a novel visual . Philippe Nahon personifies ruthless evil . HIGH TENSION is just that ! Must-see horror . |
383,644 | 449,021 | 462,499 | 8 | There is only one John Rambo . | The ultimate warrior John Rambo is living peaceful and almost carefree in the mountains and jungles of northern Thailand . Not exactly mundane , John operates a longboat on the Salween River and captures cobras and pythons for sale to snake fighters . A group of missionaries arrive wanting to hire him to take them up river into war-torn Burma . After reluctantly delivering them with their medicine and religious materials , they are captured by Burmese National Army soldiers . John for the sake of one of the captured , Sarah ( Julie Benz ) , shifts into attack mode and ends up leading a team of mercenaries to the rescue . The violence is grisly and extreme . Don't think about a body count . . . it is more like a piece count . Graphic and bloody mutilations and all the trappings of war . Also in the cast : Graham McTavish , Tim Kang , Paul Schulze and Maung Maung Khin . |
382,233 | 449,021 | 35,244 | 8 | There is profit in shipwrecks along the coast of Georgia . | Produced and directed by the legendary Cecil B . DeMille . A rough and ready sea drama with very good special effects . Salvagers compete for the cargo of ships wrecked in the reef off the coast of Georgia . Some of the ships go down not by nature , but by the hand of greedy men . An extraordinary finale with an attack of a giant squid . A star studded cast sustains the interest in this stormy and mobile movie . Notable cast members : Raymond Massey , Paulette Goddard , Ray Milland , Susan Hayward , Robert Preston and a bland John Wayne . Yep , the " Duke " has an important role , but does not headline or carry this film . I've seen this at least six times since childhood and I still think it is great . See for yourself . |
382,704 | 449,021 | 893,382 | 8 | Brilliant and combustible . . . The Stones ! | Martin Scorsese and the Rolling Stones . . . neither actually needs the exposure or the money . SHINE A LIGHT just tacks on to the legacy . Mick Jagger , Keith Richards , Charlie Watts and Ron Wood are all here and Scorsese fidgets for awhile trying to figure out how to film them . This documentary was filmed at the Beacon Theater in New York as the Stones were working through their Bigger Bang tour in 2006 . Raw , volatile , high-octane , bad-ass rock ' n ' roll . Longevity serves the band well . Well , it hasn't hurt them much . After Bill Clinton opens , the classic band runs through tunes lesser known as well as the legendary , such as " Start Me Up " , " Brown Sugar " , " Satisfaction " , " Shattered " and " Tumbling Dice " . They welcome guest stars Jack White , Buddy Guy and Christina Aguilera . There are old clips of the band billed as the World's Greatest Rock ' n ' Roll Band as well as exclusive behind-the-scenes moments and excerpts from TV and news footage . Mick struts and Keith smokes ; the atmosphere is electric and it is about as close as you're going to get without dodging sweat in person . My favorite sequence : " The Girl With The Far Away Eyes " . Fan or not . . . a musical experience . |
383,309 | 449,021 | 466,923 | 8 | A secret is best guarded . | Everyone has secrets , but can they keep them hidden ? I extol the twists and turns in the last thirty minutes of this thriller . A lot happens when you least expect it . Rowena Price ( Halle Berry ) is a determined investigative reporter , who writes under an assumed male name . She spends over six months getting the info she needs to break the biggest story of her career concerning the sexual habits of prominent US Senator ; her story is quashed . . . she quits . Now she finds herself involved in even a bigger story . Her childhood friend ( Nicki Aycox ) is murdered and the suspect is advertising magnet Harrison Hill ( Bruce Willis ) , who has the reputation of making evidence of his many affairs disappear . Rowena's right-hand man Miles ( Giovanni Ribisi ) is still working and has many talents and hidden secrets of his own . Miles is eager to help in Rowena's new investigation ; she goes to work for Hill and even traps him into e-mail chat in hopes of proving he is a murderer . The ad executive discover's Rowena as a spy ; but the info she has is made public . When life seems nice and safe , Rowena discovers Mile's hidden secret and he feels safe because he knows of Rowena's deep hidden past . Berry is steamy , strong and outstanding in this role . The F word is used way too much and I assume that is to get the R rating . Also in the cast are : Daniella Van Graas , Paula Miranda , Gary Dourdan and Richard Portnow . |
382,494 | 449,021 | 431,197 | 8 | High - octane action in the Middle East . | Kudos to director Peter Berg . Plenty of action with intense images and war-like violence . An American facility in the Middle East is attacked inside the Saudi Kingdom . Ronald Fleury ( Jamie Foxx ) leads a crack team of FBI agents that make an " un-authorized " trip to investigate and help Saudi officials in finding who's responsible for the suicide bombing at the center of the attack . Intense and topical . You know immediately that this movie belongs to Foxx ; but Jason Bateman's dry humor helps tone down some of the violence . Jennifer Garner is more than pedestrian with what she has to work with . She damn sure is the best sight in the film . Chris Cooper got the job done with his share of the cuts and bruises . The faint of heart may just want to pass on this one . Realistic atmosphere and superior editing . Also in the cast : Ashraf Barhom , Ali Suliman , Richard Jenkins and singer Tim McGraw . The cute Ashely Scott of TV's JERICO has a small role as well . THE KINGDOM brings the same kind of nervousness as putting a ticking time-bomb under your bed . |
384,409 | 449,021 | 105,191 | 8 | Where the sidewalk ends . . . the road begins . | Not only for George Strait fans . Not just for country fans . But it doesn't hurt . Music , romance and a simple plot . Dusty ( Strait ) is a country super star that is falling out of favor with how his manager ( Lesley Ann Warren ) is producing his concerts with smoke and explosions . He decides to take a little walk to get away from it all for a while . He rediscovers his " roots " and along the way falls in love with a pretty barrel racer ( Isabel Glasser ) . The finale is predictable , but touching . A very good soundtrack featuring such tunes as " Heartland " , " Where the Sidewalk ends " and the movie's big finale number " I Cross My Heart " . Strait does show some acting ability ; but then again he plays a character no too much unlike himself . The perky and pretty Glasser is to fall in love with . Also in the cast are Kyle Chandler , John Doe and veteran cowboy star Rory Calhoun . Even if you are not a country music fan PURE COUNTRY is more than tolerable . Relaxing and easy to watch . |
384,478 | 449,021 | 416,044 | 8 | The rise of the great Genghis Khan . | Brilliant and extraordinary ; one of the best subtitled movies I've ever read . A masterpiece from writer / director Sergei Bodrov , MONGOL , is the story of a determined young boy named Temudgin , who would later become Genghis Khan , the mighty warrior who would conquer the world . After his father was killed by a rival clan , Temudgin would be abused and exiled into slavery . At about the age of nine , he would pick out his future wife Borte and almost magically escape death time and time again . Surviving his turmoils and trials , he would unite his people and become one of the greatest military masterminds of all time . From slave boy to Mongol warrior to become the general who would create history's largest and most powerful empire . MONGOL is an epic and eyeful of breathtaking landscapes and graphic battles . Starring are Asano Tadanobu , Odnyam Odsuren , Khulan Chulun and Ba Yin Qi Qi Ge . |
384,026 | 449,021 | 43,924 | 8 | Love ill-conceived , untrustworthy and tragic . | The makings of a classic . . . undisciplined director George Stevens , the up-and-coming and moody Montgomery Clift and the beautiful Elizabeth Taylor . George Eastman ( Clift ) arrives at the door of his accomplished uncle Charles ( Herbert Heyes ) with the promise of a factory job . Against company rules a young worker Alice Tripp ( Shelley Winters ) falls in love with the quiet and solemn young Eastman . George is infatuated at first sight of the gorgeous débutante Angela Vickers ( Taylor ) . The love stricken Alice finds herself ' with child ' and pressures George into getting married . The problem seems to be solved with a boating accident , until said accident ends in a murder charge . Clift is excellent . Taylor is seductive , ravishing and flawless . Winters is noticeable in spite of being cast quite homely and pathetic . In supporting roles : Raymond Burr , Shepperd Strudwick , Keefe Brasselle , Anne Revere and Fred Clark . My favorite scene is the rowboat sequence with Clift sweating bullets and grasping for enough courage to drown Winters . A PLACE IN THE SUN is worth watching over and over again . |
382,775 | 449,021 | 252,501 | 8 | Open your eyes and welcome the future . | Talk about a good one . This is adapted from Stephen King's novel and really can put that fuzzy feeling in your stomach . King does so well with bringing us situations that bring back our similar memories . A photographer ( David Morse ) returns to the town he lived in at the age of 11 . He goes to the site of the now rundown house and the memories begin . It is the 1960's and his widowed mom struggles to pay the bills , but he is rich in memories of what happened on his street . . . nothing . That is until a mysterious man ( Anthony Hopkins ) with strange powers rents the upstairs apartment . His stay was a short one ; but one that would be remembered for a lifetime . For atmosphere there is the great sounds of Chuck Berry , The Crew Cuts , Santo & Johnny and The Platters . As you know , King always tries to slip in some of those great tunes of our childhood in almost every one of his novels . Kudos to director Scott Hicks for this wonderful adaptation . Also in the cast are : Anton Yelchin , Mika Boorem and Will Rothhaar . |
383,830 | 449,021 | 21,884 | 8 | Most memorable horror film of all time . | This movie is a classic that shall live for generations to come . An ambitious doctor ( Colin Clive ) creates life in a creature assembled from organs and limbs of the dead . Boris Karloff , as the Monster , becomes a horror movie icon . The lighting , crude camera work , sound and special effects combine to make a simple movie a masterpiece . The image of the Frankenstein monster will always stand for fear of the uncontrolled . |
382,080 | 449,021 | 337,921 | 8 | A random call for help . | David Ellis directs this stressful action thriller . School teacher Jessica Martin ( Kim Basinger ) is kidnapped in order to find her husband . Jessica crudely assembles a shattered phone in the attic she is being held . Her efforts result in a random call to the cell phone of a young man Ryan ( Chris Evans ) . She begs pleading for the safety of her son and husband . Ryan begins a frantic search against time to find her . Why are the kidnappers so ruthless in the hopes of attaining what Jessica's husband ( Adam Taylor Gordon ) has in his possession ? Helping Ryan is a 27 year veteran cop ( William H . Macy ) , who just wants to retire and own a health spa . Pretty much non-stop action with little time to rest . This movie is a lot better than what you may have expected . Other cast members of note : Jason Statham , Eric Etebari , Noah Emmerich , Jessica Biel and Rick Hoffman . |
383,520 | 449,021 | 38,965 | 8 | Amnesia , a mysterious letter and two million dollars . | John Hodiak stars in this piece of Film-Noir . George Taylor ( Hodiak ) is a bitter WWII veteran Marine with amnesia . He returns to Los Angeles with hopes of rediscovering his identity . He has only two clues linked to his past : a vicious letter of woe from a woman that hates him and another mysterious note from a " Larry Cravat " . George in search of Cravat becomes involved with a winsome lounge singer ( Nancy Guild ) and her boss ( Richard Conte ) . Police investigator Kendall ( Lloyd Nolan ) informs the three that Cravat is wanted for murder and the robbery of two million dollars . But what is Taylor's connection ? For all he knows , since thugs are chasing him . . . hell , he himself may be the mysterious Cravat . Director Joseph L . Mankiewicz co-writes the screenplay with Howard Dinsdale . Hodiak is a passive leading man , while the attractive Guild almost steals the movie from him . Nolan plays the copper with a dry humor . Also in the cast : Sheldon Leonard , Fritz Kortner and Lou Nova . |
384,114 | 449,021 | 52,700 | 8 | Intelligent crime story . | Richard Fleischer directs this excellent and intellectual crime story culminating in anxious courtroom drama . Based on the 1924 trial of Loeb and Leopold , two homosexual college students who planned and executed a heinous crime just for the thrill of doing so . Arty Straus ( Bradford Dillmon ) , a mama's boy sadist , and his submissive friend Judd Steiner ( Dean Stockwell ) stand trial in Chicago for kidnapping and cold-blooded murder . District Attorney Horn ( E . G . Marshall ) thinks he has an open and shut case until brilliant defense attorney Jonathan Wilks ( Orson Welles ) is hired to represent the two highly intellectual killers . The script is suspenseful , taunt and powerful . Welles lives up to his reputation . Other players include : Diane Varsi , Martin Milner , Richard Anderson and Ed Binns . Kudos to Lionel Newman for his musical genius . |
382,478 | 449,021 | 424,880 | 8 | Incindeairy performances . | A griping and intense love story from director Neil Armfield . Candy ( Abbie Cornish ) , a carefree art student , and hopelessly disconnected poet Dan ( Heath Ledger ) are hooked on each other . . . and both are hooked on heroin . This is a deep and darker love story than most . The real world actually takes back seat to their recreational drug use that has taken over their lives . Casper ( Geoffrey Rush ) , an older friend and chemistry professor from the university is their main supplier . They feel they have found all they need in each other . Marriage and unsurmountable debt proves to be a burden about as big as their drug habit . A humiliated Candy starts prostituting and even hapless Dan considers becoming a gay whore . Self-destruction has its price and Candy pays first . But can life actually drag itself out of the cesspool ? Cornish and Ledger seem to go unashamedly soul-deep in their roles . CANDY may not be for everyone ; but misery loves company . |
383,622 | 449,021 | 409,459 | 8 | Totally awesome ! | Based on the critically acclaimed 1986-1987 DC comic book serial . In an alternate universe circa 1985 , President Richard Nixon ( Robert Wisden ) has change the law to allow him a third term and the world is highly unstable . Nuclear war is imminent between the U . S . and Russia . . . the Doomsday clock is ticking . Members of a new generation of masked superheroes , the Watchmen , have hung up their tights and masks in retirement . But when one of their own , The Comedian ( Jeffrey Dean Morgan ) , is mysteriously murdered . . . superhero Rorschach ( Jackie Earle Haley ) sparks interest in his remaining colleagues Dr . Manhattan ( Billy Crudup ) , Night Owl II ( Patrick Wilson ) , Ozymandias ( Matthew Goode ) and Silk Spectre II ( Malin Akerman ) to " suit up " again many years after they disbanded to unravel a governmental conspiracy against them . Astonishing special effects , high octane fight sequences and beautiful selections and blends of color . Strong graphic violence , extreme language and full frontal male nudity , albeit CGI . Other stars : Matt Fewer , Laura Mennell , Stephen McHattie , Jerry Wasserman and John Shaw . A terrific soundtrack that has well-placed tunes by the likes of : Simon & Garfunkel , Bob Dylan , Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix . |
382,427 | 449,021 | 65,214 | 8 | Classic . . . one of the greatest of all-time . | THE WILD BUNCH . . . original Director's Cut restores probably one of the most talked about westerns to completeness . Director Sam Peckinpah's sagebrush saga contains graphic violence and explicit language making it one of the first ( if not the very first ) realistic westerns . . . well rode and put up wet . This controversial landmark is evocative of a masterpiece . A ruthless gang of long-in-the-tooth desperados , bound by a fervid code of honor and with intentions of going out for one last outing , is hired by an early 1900's Mexican renegade general . Saddle up and join the bloodbath . THE WILD BUNCH features a who's who of the genre ; some arguably doing their best work ever : William Holden , Ernest Borgnine , Edmond O'Brien , Ben Johnson , Warren Oates , L . Q . Jones . Robert Ryan and Bo Hopkins . Sam Peckinpah's style is easy to recognize and almost impossible to duplicate . Afterall . . . Peckinpah equals perfection . |
384,063 | 449,021 | 337,978 | 8 | More boom and thrills for your buck . | The DIE HARD franchise returns bigger and better . Bad-ass New York City detective John McClane ( Bruce Willis ) is back and delivers . Cyber terrorist put a " fire sale " in play ; its intent to collapse the United States government into chaotic dysfunction . Thomas Gabriel ( Timothy Olyphant ) is the mastermind behind this attack and instead of paying computer hackers who helped him , he is having them all assassinated . The killings have already begun when the FBI assigns McClane to collect and deliver hacker Matthew Farrell ( Justin Long ) to the FBI's Washington DC headquarter . The no nonsense McClane saves the young hacker's life and both become targets of the terrorists ; for Farrell has the ability to block the computer mayhem . Gabriel's right hand man is actually his lover Mai Lin ( Maggie Q ) . Systematically the government is shutting down and with McClane in defensive mode the body count continues to accumulate ; so does damage to anything around him . Willis brings with him his genuine humor and excitement . I really liked the scene of the massive traffic jam when the terrorists take control of the city's traffic lights . The scene of McClane knocking out a chopper with a police car is cool . Heart pounding action , well placed explosions and use of Creedence Clearwater's " Fortunate Son " sustain this outrageous ride . Also in the cast : Cliff Curtis , Kevin Smith , Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Jonathan Sadowski . |
383,070 | 449,021 | 118,715 | 8 | Hey man . . . stuck in the 70's ! | Joel and Ethan Coen can be proud of their BIG LEBOWSKI . Be ready to laugh your butt off . Jeff Lebowski ( Jeff Bridges ) is a pot bellied , pot-smoking laid back slacker that insists on being called " The Dude " . His two best friends are Walter ( John Goodman ) , who sees the world against him for surviving the Viet Nam War ; and Donny ( Steve Buscemi ) , who manages to butt-in on conversations only to be ignored . Dude's world consists of bowling and getting stoned . Somehow Dude is mistaken for a wheel-chaired millionaire ( David Huddleston ) and is caught up in a kidnapping scam for the ransom . Dude seems more upset with getting restitution for his urine ruined rug . Dude of course needs the aid of his two foul-mouthed bowling friends . Also fitting into this amusing plot are : Julianne Moore as Maude the erotic artist ; John Turturro as a hair-netted Latino bowler named Jesus and Tara Reid as sexpot Bunny Lebowski . Rounding out this diverse cast of characters are Philip Seymour Huffman , Ben Gazzara , Flea and Sam Elliott , who also narrates . The dialog seems glued together with the " F " word . . . which of course is a noun , verb and adjective . It seems one toke over the line is not enough . Cheers for the Coen brothers . |
383,565 | 449,021 | 35,140 | 8 | Great movie . One of Bette Davis ' best ! | This is no doubt my favorite Bette Davis movie . I always seem to like success stories where the underdog overcomes circumstances and comes out on top . The script and plot were first class . And the well acted characters made the story so very real . A young woman ( Davis ) suffers a nervous breakdown due to her domineering mother ( Gladys Cooper ) . After therapy with a noted doctor ( Claud Rains ) , the spinster from Boston becomes a woman of the world . Her appearance changes drasticly . So does her attitude toward life . She now has the courage to stand up to her mother . And the spark that keeps her going is the results of her ocean cruise romance with an unhappily married man played by Paul Henreid . My two favorite scenes are where Davis and Henreid are passengers in a car that accidentally rolls backward down a hill ; and of course the double cigarette-lighting scene in the finale . Of course this was the second time that Henreid did such , but this time was the most memorable . Also in the cast are Mary Wickes , John Loder and Ilka Chase . If you haven't seen this movie ; by all means rent it or watch for it on AMC . I bet the first time you watch it won't be your last . |
384,456 | 449,021 | 352,248 | 8 | Triumph against heavy odds . | Ron Howard directs this heartwarming story of Jim J . Braddock ( Russell Crowe ) , whose promising boxing career hit the skids about the time of the Great Depressions . Stuggeling to make ends meet for his family , his long time manager Joe Gould ( Paul Giamatti ) got him the chance to change his luck . Braddock , in 1934 , had upset wins against Corn Griffin and John Henry Lewis . This set up the shot for the title against the much feared heavyweight champ Max Baer ( Craig Bierko ) , who had already killed two men in the ring . Jim was a 10 to 1 underdog , but traded punches with the bigger Baer and won the championship . Two years later , Braddock lost the crown by a KO delivered by Joe Louis . Jim Braddock gave a down-trodden populace a hero to look up to and was bestowed the nickname of the Cinderella Man . Other cast members : Renee Zellweger as J . J . ' s wife Mae along with Bruce McGill , David Huband and Paddy Considine . Once again director Howard evokes excellence providing some very realistic and graphic boxing scenes . He also found bit parts for his dad Rance and brother Clint . This movie could easily also be called a love story . . . as well as a story of patience , courage and determination . |
383,769 | 449,021 | 87,843 | 8 | From a very young age they learned to rule their world . | Noted director Sergio Leone gives us one of the best mobster flicks of all time . This epic chronicles the rise and fall of a group of Brooklyn Jewish gangsters over the period of fifty years . Experience the drama of friendships , betrayal , grief , revenge and lost love . The all star cast is led by Robert De Niro and James Woods . Both are excellent . Notables in support are Treat Williams , Elizabeth McGovern , Danny Aiello , Tuesday Weld and Joe Pesci . Tough guy action at its best . Definitely put this on your hit list . |
383,957 | 449,021 | 780,571 | 8 | Riveting ! Killer out of control . | Kevin Costner is back big time ; maybe even his best role ever . Costner is Mr . Earl Brooks , a well respected businessman , philanthropist and loved unconditionally by his beautiful wife Emma ( Marg Helgenberger ) and daughter Jane ( Danielle Panabaker ) . Mr . Brooks is not exactly the perfect man he appears ; Earl is managed by his alter ego Marshall ( William Hurt ) . Earl is a clever insatiable serial killer . As Mr . Brooks carries out what he claims will be his last murder , an amateur photographer Mr . Smith ( Dane Cook ) witnesses the crime . Blackmail is in order ; plus a tenacious detective Atwood ( Demi Moore ) is hell bent on catching the resurfacing Mr . Brooks . Will he be able to continue hiding his double life ? My favorite scene is when Jane attacks her father . We should have had more of Moore . Psychological thriller deluxe . Also in the cast : Ruben Santiago-Hudson , Yasmine Delawari , Lindsay Crouse and Michael Cole . |
384,033 | 449,021 | 854,678 | 8 | Torture is chosen as a weapon . | Directed and written by the acclaimed Alex Gibney is the 2007 Academy Award winning documentary feature . No matter your opinion of President George W . Bush or the current fighting in the Middle East , TAXI TO THE DARK SIDE is a deliberate and meticulous examination of torture used as a weapon in the war against terror and proof positive that the Bush administration had full knowledge and of it being employed at Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan and at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay prisons . Lighting the fuse of exposure is the disturbing torture and killing of an innocent Afghan taxi driver . Stunningly crafted expose of reckless abuses of government power out of control . Recommended viewing . |
384,164 | 449,021 | 132,477 | 8 | Go rocket go ! | A real charming movie based on fact and history . Homer Hickam ( Jake Gyllenhaal ) was not the typical boy in mid 1950s West Virginia . He dared to not follow in his father's footsteps into the local coal mine . Homer's father John ( Chris Cooper ) stayed very agitated with his son's indifference . Football scholarships were the ticket out of the small coal towns . Homer knew there had to be another way ; and when he saw the Soviet satellite Sputnik fly through an October sky . . . this dreamer's dreams exploded . Homer with the help of three of his friends would build and actually launch home-made rockets . Frequent misfires would land the young rocket builders into trouble ; but many trials led to enough successes that the whole town of Coalwood , West Virginia found inspiration in a young man's dreams . A feel good movie that does your heart proud . The cast is rounded out by : Laura Dern , William Lee Scott , Chad Lindberg , Chris Owen and Natalie Canerday . There is a wonderful soundtrack featuring sounds of the time by the likes of : The Platters , Buddy Holly , Fats Domino , The Coasters and Elvis . |
383,872 | 449,021 | 455,590 | 8 | Forest Whitaker at the top of his game as Idi Amin . | Stunning and riveting movie . Forest Whitaker is absolutely excellent . This is a fictionalized version of Idi Amin's ( Whitaker ) reign of terror as the ruthless dictator of Uganda . Upon graduation from med school in Scotland , a young Nicholas Garrigan ( James McAvoy ) spins his desk globe and picks Africa's Uganda as the first site of using his medical skills . The locals are dancing in the streets thrilled with the new take over by Idi Amin . A chance meeting results in Garrigan becoming the charming new leader's personal physician . The young doctor is impressed with the fact that Amin has a passion for Scottish culture . . . anything Scottish . The doctor-patient relationship becomes a close personal friendship that has Amin making his doctor a political adviser , a position that is the center of the dictator's inner circle . Garrigan begins to witness personality changes and the shift of Amin in becoming a threatening dichotomous ruler . Caught up in the decadence , it becomes harder for the entitled physician to escape the whirlwind of madness . Other cast members : Kerry Washington , Gillian Anderson , David Oyelowo and Simon McBurney . |
382,782 | 449,021 | 285,742 | 8 | Provocative lack of concern . Biased and mournful . | This is a dark and mournful tale of racism and failing families . Billy Bob Thornton was snubbed by the Academy for his portrayal of a Louisiana Corrections guard in charge of executions . He lives with his almost bedridden father ( Peter Boyle ) , a retired prison guard as well as his own son ( Heath Ledger ) also a prison guard less racist than his father and grandfather . Totally out of character Thorton finds compassion and falls in love with the African American wife ( Halle Berry ) of the last man he executed ( Sean " Puffy " Combs ) . Thornton's son feels he has failed his father and commits suicide . Thornton then puts his dad away in a nursing home after resigning his job and buying a gas station . Subtle symbolism with " white " paint , " black " coffee and " chocolate " ice cream . And talk about flirting with the X rating ! ( Not that I am complaining . I used the stop / rewind button three times ) . Miss Berry and Thornton couple for the most realistic simulated sex I have ever seen . This is designed for mature audiences only . Maybe too down to earth ; but the best damn drama I've seen all summer . |
383,063 | 449,021 | 83,907 | 8 | A true horror classic . | Director Sam Raimi and good friend Bruce Campbell set out to make a real scary movie . . . although filmed on 16mm , THE EVIL DEAD is good enough to be your next nightmare and a hell of a lot better than your run of the mill slice and dice . Campbell plays Ash Williams , one of five college friends set out to have a wild weekend in the woods . Two guys . . . three girls journey to a remote cabin , of course in the middle of the woods . And the woods whisper " Join Us " . The group stumbles upon a book and a tape recorder belonging to the previous inhabitants , warning of evil spirits lurking in the woods . When the dead come out to play , the newest victims turn into horrid ghouls . Ash , who at heart is a cowardly pansy , turns out to be the macho , macho man to the rescue . It takes courage , a shotgun and a chainsaw . When the flesh-eating demons start their attack , the blood doesn't just ooze ; it splatters , gushes and flows by the bucketful . And there is the scene where one of the girls is beckoned into the woods only to be attacked and raped by a . . . tree ? ! Cheap special effects galore decorate this vacation to a little north of Hell . The comedy was unintentional . It is a product of bad acting by actors with little or no experience . But still , Raimi as writer and director has stumbled upon something here . THE EVIL DEAD more than deserves its youth restricted rating . As if it really matters , other cast members are : Betsy Baker , Hal Delrich , Ellen Sandweiss and Theresa Tilly . |
384,111 | 449,021 | 478,049 | 8 | John Lennon : Give peace a chance . | War is over . Is it the people you " run with " or just the fact you have a conscious and the will to speak your mind ? Filmmakers David Leaf and John Scheinfeld II present for our approval an evocative glimpse at the all-out efforts of Richard Nixon's administration and J . Edgar Hoover's gestapo-like minions to gag John Ono Lennon . Former Beatle and peace activist Lennon seemed to be an enemy of the United States government and the outspoken rock ' n ' roller needed to be silenced . He and his wife Yoko Ono were wiretapped and kept under big brother's watchful eye as the Vietnam War raged on and TV nightly news told of massacred U . S . troops . Lennon's anti-war efforts led to threats of deportation . This documentary is well put together and sustained with some insightful comments in between archive footage . Featured are : Mario Cuomo , Angela Davis , Bobby Seale , Gore Vidal , George McGovern , G . Gordon Liddy , Geraldo Rivera , Ron Kovic , Walter Cronkite and John Dean just to mention a few . This 2006 film does not shy away from explicit language , violent images or drug references . |
383,138 | 449,021 | 342,172 | 8 | A family implodes . | This is a provocative , disturbing and sympathetic documentary that is as interesting as watching two speed-trains collide . A typical upper-class family in Great Neck on Long Island is steadily destroyed as Arnold Friedman and his youngest teen-aged son are accused and convicted of sex crimes involving young children . Mr . Friedman , an award-winning and beloved teacher , held a computer class for neighborhood children in his basement several days a week . Upon police investigation , kiddie porn was found in the Friedman home on Picadilly Road . The family obsessively documented their lives by way of home movies . These movies , broadcast news video and interviews with victims , law enforcement and the Friedman family members themselves make this documentary possible . A seemingly reputable family is disgraced with the shocking secrets being made public . You will probably ask yourself why you even watched this film . And like many people , you may even flirt with the idea the whole horrid affair never happened . Watching the extra two hours of extra footage with the DVD really conjures questions . |
383,286 | 449,021 | 1,010,048 | 8 | Unswerving love and determination . | An absolute winner from director Danny Boyle . Without a penny to his name , Jamal Malik ( Dev Patel , his fate is verging on change in a major way . The young boy , a product of the slums of Mumbai ( formerly Bombay ) , is one question away from winning India's version of " Who Wants To Be A Millionaire ? " . While answering each question , Jamal reminisces of watching his mother being slaughtered in an attack on Muslims . He and his brother Salim ( Madhur Mittal ) battling to survive the harsh streets as orphans and the thoughts of meeting true love Latika ( Freida Pinto ) . Jamal would be arrested and tortured by the police under suspicion of cheating , for how could a " slumdog " possess the knowledge to be so close to winning the popular TV game . Millions of viewers are watching in awe and admiration . . . probably more important than that final question is the fact he may be losing his beloved Latika . A definite feel-good movie . Also in the cast : Anil Kapoor , Iran Khan and Mahesh Manjrekar . True love endures all . |
382,131 | 449,021 | 126,029 | 8 | One of a kind . Great experience . | This animated fantasy is far and beyond others in the genre . This is the standard others will be judged by for a long time to come . A peace loving ogre called Shrek ( Mike Myers ) is upset when his swamp is invaded with fairy tale characters . A lonely , hysterically funny donkey ( Eddie Murphy ) forces his way into becoming Shrek's running buddy . An egomaniacal lord ( John Lithgow ) has the chance to become king , if he marries . Shrek is offered his swamp vacated if he retrieves the pretty princess Fiona ( Cameron Diaz ) and brings her to the midget ruler for marriage . The crude ' potty ' humor is mild and does not distract from the clever written story line ; and this comedy can't help but amuse viewers of all ages . Myers of course has the top billing , but I think Murphy steals the whole show . I think the witty donkey could carry his own movie someday . SHREK lives up to and deserves all of its accolades . Take the time to experience a superb story of love and companionship . |
382,505 | 449,021 | 841,046 | 8 | Halariously funny . Mocking legendary rock ' n ' roll . | Jake Kasdan directs and helps Judd Apalow team up on this funny and irreverent story of the troubled life of fictional music legend Dewey Cox ( John C . Reilly ) . Everybody loves Cox . Dewey was forced from home at the age of 14 after cutting his bother in half with a machete . He immediately has a wife Edith ( Kristen Wiig ) and houseful of kids . His songs shake the nation . Instant fame comes from his first hit " Walk Hard " . He knocks out hit after hit . Along the way rubbing elbows with the likes of Elvis Presley ( Jack White ) , Buddy Holly ( Frankie Muniz ) and the Beatles . His career has its ups and downs , but his faithful fans still adore him as he changes styles as the music trends come and go . This musical icon isn't shy of duplicitous marriages , realizing finally that his heart belongs to his back up singer Darlene ( Jenna Fischer ) . Dewey will become a bigger than life superstar even as his hits struggle on the charts . He of course has taken every drug in the rock ' n ' roll world and survived . And when he thinks of settling down , he reminds everyone that he has always ' walked hard ' . Believe it or not , the quirky soundtrack is enjoyable . Highlights are Dewey Cox ( Reilly ) singing : " Take My Hand " , " ( Mama ) You Got To Love Your Negro Man " , " Guilty As Charged " , " Darling " and of course the title tune . Other cast members : Tim Meadows , Nat Faxon , Raymond J . Barry , Harold Ramis , Margo Martindale , Jackson Browne , Lyle Lovett and Jack Black as Paul McCartney . |
383,927 | 449,021 | 39,208 | 8 | Evidence under suspicion . | From the Fox Film Noir collection . Directed by Elia Kazan BOOMERANG is a well written and interesting courtroom drama . Based on a true story , a beloved priest is murdered in front of numerous witnesses . It seems to be a cut and dried case . John Waldron ( Arthur Kennedy ) fits the description according to eye witnesses . Chief Robinson ( Lee J . Cobb ) feels the lengthy manhunt has produced the right man . The State's Attorney Henry Harvey ( Dana Andrews ) is given the job to prosecute ; but after digging deep into the evidence he isn't so sure that Walron committed the murder at all . The courtroom is chaotic when Harvey starts tearing apart witnessed testimony . City and state politicians are eager to have a conviction , but will there be one ? Andrews fits the role like a glove . Cobb is at his best . The star studded cast is rounded out by : Jane Wyatt , Sam Levene , Cara Williams and Ed Begley Sr . |
383,211 | 449,021 | 386,140 | 8 | Even a living legend must set priorities . | Hang on to your hat . . . Zorro answers the call . Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones command your attention as if you need to be begged . California is on the cusp of statehood and a ruthless gang is hired to keep ballots from getting to the Governor's mansion . Alejandro de la Vega ( Bandaras ) is torn between being an available husband and father and his call to duty as Zorro . His wife Elena ( Zeta-Jones ) and young son Joaquin ( Adrian Alonso ) are reluctantly estranged as ' Poppy is away on business ' . Swashbuckling at its best with riveting action from beginning to end . Zorro and the Mrs . are far from being a normal couple with their excellence in sword-play . Banderas is almost faultless in his superior role as the skilled masked crime fighter . Zeta-Jones is nothing less than ravishing . Supporting cast includes : Alberto Reyes , Nick Chinlund , Rufus Sewell and Gustavio Sanchez-Parr . |
384,256 | 449,021 | 382,737 | 8 | Memorable British ruler Henry VIII an original . | He was loathed , loved , feared , respected and definitely left his mark in history . This is a lavish production dramatizing the life and 38-year reign of no doubt the very influential King Henry VIII ( Ray Winstone ) . This shrewed and ruthless ruler was obsessively determined to sire a male heir . His wife , Catherine of Argon ( Assumpta Sema ) failed after numerous tries . Henry would take a mistress , Anne Boleyn ( Helena Bonham Carter ) , who cleverly demanded marriage before having a child . She failed to provide a male child , so Henry had her placed in the Tower of London before she was beheaded . The harsh ruler grew restless with age and would have many slaughtered in a religious gesture ; growing impatient and untrusting he would use beheading as his favorite means of dealing with out-of-favor wives and allies accused of treason . Some disturbing images in this 200 plus minute dramatization . Photographed beautifully . Winestone is very impressive ; but I personally believe Miss Bonam Carter steals the show . The very strong cast also features : David Suchet , Sean Bean , Emilia Fox , Charles Dance , Emily Blunt , Michael Maloney , Joseph Morgan and Lara Belmont . |
382,506 | 449,021 | 405,336 | 8 | Farce driven drama . Feel free to laugh . | Richard Kelly writes and directs this funny farce driven drama set in the futuristic La La Land on the obligated picnic day July 4 , 2008 . Citizens of Los Angeles watch a mushroom cloud in the distance as they stand on the brink of environmental disaster . Some folks seem sillier than normal and others are dumber than ever . Boxer Santaros ( Dwayne " The Rock " Johnson ) is an action star suffering amnesia and determined to collect some realism for his next movie script . He is married to Krysta Now ( Sarah Michelle Gellar ) , an adult film icon , who is working on diversifying her image and most importantly developing her own TV reality show . Hermosa Beach police officer Taverner ( Seann William Scott ) along with his twin brother may have important information that possibly unlocks a major political conspiracy . Stupid or just plain silly ? Be prepared to laugh your butt off . Also in this star-studded ensemble : Mandy Moore , John Larroquette , Holmes Osborne , Cheri Oteri , Justin Timberlake , Curtis Armstrong and Nora Dunn . |
382,709 | 449,021 | 801,526 | 8 | Teen angst can be dark and consuming . | You will either hate this movie or like it a lot . I can't say I even remotely love it , but I do love Ellen Page . This cute Canadian actress finally got recognition in JUNO ( 2007 ) . This Bruce McDonald movie proves that Ms . Page is a natural , honest , combustible and believable actress . It may take a while to get used to THE TRACEY FRAGMENTS shot not in just split screen , but if you will . . . fragmented screens . The story line is also fragmented and after a half hour or so , you are already involved . Page plays 15-year-old Tracey Berkowitz , who comes from a very screwed up family to say the least . Being a little under-developed in the breast area , Tracey is humiliated at school and nobody really knows the confused girl inside . She is punished at home with a three month grounding for telling off her cross-dressing " shrink " ( Julian Richings ) . But independent Tracey runs away in search for her little brother Sonny ( Zie Souward ) , who has strayed from home thinking he is a . . . dog . Damn , can this get a little more weird . There is the unnerving photographic technique to get used too . Some will complain about the extremely strong language . Although there is a walk in the park , this movie is no picnic . There is this feeling of darkness and raw bitter cold . OK , Ms . Page is the movie's redemption . Also in the cast : Maxwell McCabe-Lokos , Ari Cohen and Slim Twig . |
383,055 | 449,021 | 446,755 | 8 | Beautiful movie of troubled love . | Emotional and heart-wrenching romantic drama directed by John Curran and a Ron Nyswaner screenplay of a W . Somerset Maugham novel . Beautiful scenery in China and a very intelligent story with outstanding acting . Kitty ( Naomi Watts ) , a lovely and restless society girl hastily marries a conservative micro biologist Dr . Walter Fane ( Edward Norton ) , who practically lives for his study of infectious diseases . The marriage seems to be in trouble from the very beginning for Kitty really is not in love with Walter . She has an affair with a married high ranking British councilmen ( Liev Schreiber ) . She has periodically found something exciting to inject into a mundane life and marriage . Dr . Fane finds out about the affair and instead of a newsworthy divorce , he forces Kitty to join him in relocating to Hong Kong , where he fights a major outbreak of cholera . The journey to 1920s China could mean redemption and revival of the couple's love ; but just being in the middle of a cholera epidemic is a possible death sentence . Also in the cast : Toby Jones , Diana Rigg , Anthony Wong Chau-Sang and Bin Li . Just over two hour running time ; and every second is worth your attention . |
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