O List of Movie Reviews
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O (2001)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
12/12, 5/19
12/12:
The Most Controversial Movie of the Year?
Absolutely. O is certainly The Last Picture Show of this generation. When
the Texas film was made, the issues weren't violence-based or melodramatic. It was searching for a meaningful place in their society.
But in O, the issues are so blown out of proportion that violence is warranted to resolve them. In reality, that's
how teenagers solve problems today. It's the chief reason why it's a remarkable film.
The acting holds up well, and even the invariably terrible actor Josh Hartnett manages to turn in the performance of
his career. Why his character did it is plain and clear.
All in all, O is the best modern Shakespeare adaptation on film.
5/19:
Now, that's how all Shakespeare film adaptations should be done.
Armed with modern language and highly relatable human drama, O is a well-done remake of Othello with an
intelligent plot that's chess-like. The ending is powerful and unforgettable. I wonder who or what the coach was crying
for: his star basketball player, his son, or his future basketball plans.
The performances are excellent. I normally hate Josh Hartnett, but this is the one I'll forgive him for because he's
so good. He put in a lot of effort in spite of his scant acting skills to make the character (Hugo for Iago)
work.
All in all, I wish Hollywood will stop using Old English in Shakespeare films so they can finally be relatable for the
modern audience.
O Convento (1995)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
12/17
12/17:
I stared in disbelief at the screen of O Convento (The Convent), and when the
closing credits rolled, my position hadn't changed an iota.
What exactly did John Malkovich see in this piece of crap? Michael must be out of his mind if he prefers Piedade over Hélène.
When she told Baltar how magnetic and irresistible he was, my eyeballs were ready to pop out. If you see a picture of
Luís Miguel Cintra, you'll understand what I'm talking about.
Catherine Deneuve gets two stars from me for making the film more tolerable and probably did it for the money to
keep up with her living expenses. At least, to Manoel de Oliveira's credit, he was 86 years old when he directed
O Convento and lived to 106 before passing away a couple of years ago.
All in all, just say no to O Convento.
The Object of Beauty (1991)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
3/15
3/15:
It's not often there's a film about people who have money issues but still live beyond their means.
In fact, it never happens. Hence, The Object of Beauty is a rare gem. The primary reasons to watch it are
Andie MacDowell and John Malkovich. They're both wonderful.
What makes them engaging is how real the characters are in the face of their problems. Jake and Tina are never daunted about
their mounting debt, and they try to get by living the life, enjoying it, and staying positive. Sure enough, they start to panic
a bit when the search for the Henry Moore statue lingers longer than expected. They take it in stride and look for alternative
solutions to get out of the hole. Jake reading aloud his own obituary is funny.
Obviously, if the statue had been locked up in a safe, there's no story and thus no movie; but they not doing it tells
me that Jake and Tina are careless people and take life for granted. Although well dressed and handsome, they have deep
character flaws which make them loose with their money and have no values to live by because they're unable to grow
up. In short, they are children trapped in adult bodies who have been pampered too much by their upper-class lifestyle.
Another rarity is the accuracy of the deaf mute chambermaid. Michael Lindsay-Hogg gets her character right and has a clear
insight into how they are in general. Truth be told, deaf people tend to be among the dumbest people and have 3rd to 4th reading
and writing levels due to language issues. Regardless of how normal they look, job discrimination is common because of
communication and prejudice. Oftentimes, the deaf are either unemployed or underemployed, so they end up collecting welfare
checks while staying home.
All in all, The Object of Beauty needs a stronger hook to become a more compelling film, but I've enjoyed it
nonetheless, thanks to Andie MacDowell and John Malkovich.
Obsession (1976)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
6/17
6/17:
Obsession is a technically well-made picture that left me suffocated.
Brian De Palma must have had a checklist with him to make sure he got every kind of shots as possible. At the same time, he
leaves emotions at the door. As a result, Obsession is a hard picture to get into.
Where Brian De Palma lost me is the believability factor. I mean, it's the same actress playing both Elizabeth Courtland and
Sandra Portinari, making it a repeat of Vertigo. Maybe that's the basis of the title because
Brian De Palma was truly obsessed with Alfred Hitchcock's movies. The worst of them all is the ten-minute ending. It makes no
sense, throwing everything into disarray. The following is how it went down.
Just out of the blue, John Lithgow's character confesses to his partner of what he did. Why? Why will he do this? What
the fuck is he doing? He does this after sixteen years of playing it cool? Then, a scuffle ensues before one of them is
dead. Afterwards, Cliff Robertson's character goes straight to the airport to catch up with his second wife. Then, he begins
this long, supposedly iconic scene to settle the matter once and for all, only it comes out hammy, ridiculous, and
unnecessary.
I guess either the filmmakers ran of money or the rule had to be: the bad guy couldn't win at the end, hence the forced scene.
The other explanation is Brian De Palma cut out the rest of Paul Schrader's screenplay. More illogical is when Sandra Portinari,
on her walk to the plane, figured out the truth about what happened in 1959. I have to call BS on that because she
should remember. Once the twist is revealed, there goes the movie out of the window.
Cliff Robertson is the only actor who can make or break Obsession. It's hard to say whether or not he's right for the
role. He's flat and emotionless who's constantly in a reverie. It's like Charly all over again.
As good of an actor as John Lithgow is, he's miscast despite being an all-time baddie.
All in all, Obsession is a good start for Brian De Palma, who evidently has talent for filmmaking, and it begins
his long collaboration with the Hungarian cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond.
Ocean's 11 (1960)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
5/24
5/24:
I thought I would check out Ocean's 11 before proceeding with the 2001 version.
The original is lucky that it got remade. Otherwise, it'll never see the light of day in this day and age. That's
to say "you aren't cool if you think the Rat Pack was cool." Imagine JFK laughing so hard at the film with his pals
while throwing his back out. Oh, how I would've wanted to leave the room if that did occur.
What an embarrassment Ocean's 11 is for everybody involved. Even the females are totally wasted. It's hard
to take Peter Lawford's character seriously after he's seen with his mother a lot. At least, Cesar Romero, the
original Joker, comes out of it unscathed by giving a credible performance that could've gotten him in any Mafia
picture.
Jeez...the antiquated dialogue. I knew I would be treated to a craptacular script after seeing Charles Lederer's
name on screen. Clearly, Dean Martin looks bad now after he said, "Repeal the 14th and 20th amendment. Take the
vote away from the women, make slaves out of them" and asked Uncle Tom, aka Sammy Davis, Jr., "How do you get
that black stuff off your face?" Very profound, indeed.
Why cast Norman Fell and Joey Bishop in the same film? They look practically the same. By the way, here's a fun
fact: the latter was a member of the Rat Pack but got thrown out by Frank Sinatra after being hit with a set of
demands when he wanted a simple favor from him, yet ironically, Bishop outlived all members of the Rat Pack. You
may see Dean Martin drinking liquor constantly and think he was a major boozehound, but he fooled everybody
as it's apple juice the whole time. Therefore, the Rat Pack gave an illusion of being partyheads when, in
reality, they were savvy businessmen.
Back to the film, nothing happens during the first hour; it's a lot of idle talk, booze, and smoking. Finally,
the guys get to the bottom of it by talking about the heist. As idiotic and simplistic as the plan sounded, I
could've raised my hand and said, "Uh..." But I know I'll be shot down by Frank Sinatra who insisted on having
everything done his way. Naturally enough, the ending sucks so bad, prompting me to say, "That's it?"
Showing the five motel-like casinos in a row over and over is a horrendous idea. What's with the application of
the invisible spray paint on the door and floor? Is the film telling me these geezers can't see their way through
a partially lit room? Yeah, sure...they can simply waltz in and take millions of dollars like that given Las Vegas
was mob-controlled at the time. Suddenly, Duke Santos has it figured out which tells me the famous sin city is,
quite frankly, too small to believe with Sammy Davis, Jr., being the only black man alive in the role of a trash
collector (as a matter of fact, Las Vegas refused to have anything to do with blacks for a long time, forcing
them to live in a segregated area called the Westside).
All in all, Ocean's 11 is a dinosaur.
The Octagon (1980)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
3/13
3/13:
Chuck Norris was one of the most boring martial arts stars during the 80's.
There's nothing but wood about his personality. Even his action scenes are tedious. However, The Octagon per se
is another story. It seems like a good picture with all the worthwhile production values. So, what went wrong?
Well, going from one scene to the next, they somehow don't fit together. There isn't any transition in the subplots. Thus,
the film feels fragmented and isolated in parts. The last fifteen minutes is a huge snoozefest. At that point,
I had forgotten what the plot was supposed to be about.
So, Chuck Norris' character decides to kill his brother, and for what? I'm not getting it. His friend, who doesn't
look the part (a big exclamation point right there), decides to make the journey unprepared to do the same thing.
Well, I have no idea what's going on.
All in all, The Octagon has issues in regard to plot and direction while Chuck Norris' wood personality is
irreparable beyond belief.
Octopussy (1983)
Rate:
1
Viewed:
2/11
2/11:
Yeah, the airplane scene did it for me, turning Octopussy into an utter farce that's the second worst James
Bond picture right behind On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
At least, Steven Berkoff makes a cameo because I still remember his mockery of the colorful code names, Wolf Den and
Dragon Fly, in Rambo: First Blood Part II.
Meanwhile, the distance from Germany to India is 4,200 miles, and thrice that makes it 12,600. Hence, James Bond must have a hell
lot of endurance to accomplish the trip consecutively. Why does Kamal Khan return to India for the money and then make
his escape? Should this have been done after he set off the bomb?
Another thing I don't understand is how the Russian general (hard to take him seriously when he acts like a fool)
was all tied up with Kamal Khan (or is it the other way around?). Regardless, it's been a confusing film because there are three
major subplots going on at the same time: the nuclear war instigated by Russia, Kamal Khan, and Octopussy.
One part that had my eyes rolling is James Bond successfully surviving the 100-man bounty hunting spree (which reminds me
of The Most Dangerous Game) in the middle of the jungle that's the size of a football
field because there's no way in hell he would've done it. Then, he proceeds to pull off a Tarzan stunt and is able to tell a
wild tiger to sit?
In Germany, James wouldn't have made it in several hours from where he got off the train to the exact spot where the bomb
was ready to explode. He even applied a clown makeup on himself, which looks professionally done, probably within two minutes
when there were four minutes to go. In other words, it's all impossible.
The best part is when James tried to get a ride from a car that's filled with college kids, but the driver
fooled him before speeding away. It's exactly how the British spy should be treated: a joke. He finally solifidies
his pervert status by zooming in a woman's breasts with the video camera.
All in all, the franchise has made a damning admission: women are nothing more than sex objects, hence Octopussy.
The Odessa File (1974)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
12/12
12/12:
The Odessa File is a thrilling but weak post-war Nazi espionage thriller.
I've had a hard time believing that a news reporter can defeat a trained soldier like how Peter Miller did at the
printing press building. Also, why does the mother spill the secrets just like that to some stranger she hardly knows?
On the other hand, it'll make logical sense for the ODESSA group to kill Peter Miller early in the film. Regardless, it's
a well-directed picture by Ronald Neame who carefully orchestrates moments of terror at the right moments. Jon Voight is
excellent as usual and is the biggest reason why I went for it. The twist at the end is surprising and thus explains the motive.
All in all, The Odessa File is worth watching.
Of Love and Shadows (1994)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
7/18
7/18:
A newspaper, as shown on the DVD cover of Of Love and Shadows, exclaimed, "One of Antonio Banderas' Best Roles!"
That sold me because I hadn't seen anything good from him apart from Desperado and
Assassins. When I saw the film, I was like, "My goodness, what a bland performance."
Grossing a pathetic sum of $19,710 at the box office, the movie is at once mediocre and unconvincing. Suffering from the
letdown, I kept thinking about two masterpieces with similar themes:
The Killing Fields and Salvador.
What I don't like about foreign films that deal with a civil war is the lack of backstory. Hence, I don't know what the hell
was going on in Of Love and Shadows. How do they expect me to be fluent with Chile's problems now or then?
Antonio Banderas and Jennifer Connelly's chemistry is, for all intents and purposes, nonexistent. There's no passion in any
scene despite the false advertising. As beautiful as Jennifer Connelly is, she isn't much of an actress. Her fake South
American accent is a gee whiz.
All in all, it's impossible to take Of Love and Shadows seriously.
Of Unknown Origin (1983)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
5/22
5/22:
In spite of overwhelming me with dry business talk at the beginning, Of Unknown Origin makes a nice recovery by
going to the heart of the matter and finishes well.
I can't help but feel the film is a metaphor that's actually hard to grasp. Yeah, there's a rat issue going on, but it's
something deeper: a struggle of one's control over his life. Obviously, there are sensible solutions, but Bart ignores
them on purpose by doing this or that on his own in an unsound manner. Hence, his sanity starts to erode until he's stripped down to the
bare essentials. When his wife and son finally come home from vacation, he doesn't care about important things anymore like
their luggage that's left behind.
Of Unknown Origin can be either horror or suspense, yet I feel it's been neither but an
unintentionally funny movie...just absurd a lot of times. Unsurprisingly, it's Stephen King's favorite
film while John Waters called it the greatest rat movie made. I can see why.
In his first starring role, Peter Weller is a one-man show; he makes the premise work. It's an impressive
performance. On the other hand, I didn't know what a brownstone house looked like until now although it's not
a representative of those in New York City since the film was shot on location in Montreal, Quebec.
All in all, having failed at the box office and disappeared for good, Of Unknown Origin is an underrated thriller.
The Offence (1973)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
6/20
6/20:
Here's another time-waster from the Sean Connery-Sidney Lumet collaboration (their third out of five): The Offence.
What was shaping up to be a child serial killer picture got turned into
Closet Land, and I wasn't in the mood for it,
especially when the pace was so damn slow. Sidney Lumet seemed to forget he was supposed to make a movie. Instead, I'm
treated to the overlong show at a local community theater. In fact, The Offence is based on John Hopkins' stage play
This Story of Yours from 1968.
Effectively rid of his James Bond persona, Sean Connery is fiery and dominating, but it's the wrong medium for him to
give such a performance. Of course, his idiot character forgets to proceed further with the accusation by having
confirmed evidence in hand. Instead, what drives his unlawful actions is pure conjecture.
Given the meager budget of £385,000, the cinematography is nice which is often dark and depressing. It's the strongest asset
of the film. A lot of times, the feel, especially the torment that's shown by the protagonist, reminds me of Sidney
Lumet's much superior film Prince of the City.
All in all, when I thought The Anderson Tapes was bad, The Offence is way worse.
Office Space (1999)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
2/19
2/19:
For many who work or have worked in the corporate environment, Office Space is literally a documentary, and those who
haven't will have a hard time relating to it.
The first half was working out well, but the second half was such a downer. Yes, it's consistently funny and has a
lot of laughs. Yet why This Is Spinal Tap got everything correct is it focused on the
little things during the goings-on of the band's tour.
Thus, Office Space loses its way by putting too much attention on wishful thinking when it should've stuck with the
office culture which includes pointless meetings, technology problems, snarky political battles (department vs. department,
team vs. team, coworker vs. coworker, etc.), undeserved credit grabbers, senseless promotions, getting along with people,
etc. Stories can easily be made out of them for the sake of dry humor.
One of the biggest mistakes is the casting of Jennifer Aniston. She doesn't belong in an independent picture. In fact, her mere
presence makes it all worse, adding nothing to the overall message.
All in all, Office Space would've been more like This Is Spinal Tap if it
focused strictly on the office culture.
An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
12/03, 4/08, 5/20
4/08:
An Officer and a Gentleman is a through and through classic of the romance genre.
The performances by Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Louis Gossett, Jr., David Keith, and Lisa Blount are exemplary. Only Louis
will win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor which is the third ever for a black thespian behind Hattie McDaniel and
Sidney Poitier.
What sets it up as a great film is the tremendous chemistry and the story. The cycle repeats as Foley gives the same boot camp
speech to the new recruits, turning An Officer and a Gentleman into a special picture. The romance between the characters
of Richard Gere and Debra Winger is a treat, and they have a classic ending.
The concept of "trapping a mate" is a lifelong ambition for some women who want to marry a Naval officer. I like how it affects
relationships, leading to the dramatic aftermath. The favorite part for my amusement is seeing the wimpy David
Caruso be tortured and mocked for the silly ass he has been for so many years. Please...I want more, more, and more!
All in all, An Officer and a Gentleman is among the top ten romantic pictures of all time.
5/20:
If An Officer and a Gentleman isn't in anybody's top ten romantic pictures, the list is a fraud.
Reminding me of From Here to Eternity, it's a wonderful picture with well-developed
characters and remarkable performances by Richard Gere, Debra Winger, David Keith, and Lisa Blount. All deserved Oscar nominations;
sadly, only Debra Winger got it. Their chemistry is the key in turning the picture into lasting success; that's why I like seeing
it again from time to time.
Richard Gere has a famous scene when he yelled at the drill sergeant, "I got nowhere else to go!" taking place at Battery
Kinzie in Fort Worden State Park which is near Seattle, Washington. The ending when Richard carried Debra out of the factory
is the clincher of its deserving status. Basically, the movie is about Mayo shedding off his individuality by thinking more
of the others and becoming a team player; to be fair, he learned a lot of bad habits from his father.
The biggest winner of the cast is Louis Gossett, Jr., who became the first black Oscar winner for Best Supporting Actor.
If some of his lines sound familiar, it's because R. Lee Ermey repeated them in
Full Metal Jacket. The truth is
Louis was coached by him in preparation for his role as Drill Sergeant Emil Foley.
If there's anything I've always found strange, it's Sid Worley's suicide. Honestly,
is it really necessary? Look at him: young and virile with a bright future ahead of him. Sure, Sid got dealt plenty of blows
in a short amount of time, but he let his emotions get the best of him. He should have taken a time-out and decompressed
for a while.
As for Lynette, I'm not going to blame her for Sid's death. Nobody, not even Mayo, saw it coming. They were together for like
eight weeks; that's pretty fast by most standards. She did the right thing by not going into it too quickly, but Sid wasn't a
bad guy and they could've spent more time together. By the way, Lisa Blount, who plays Lynette, died at age
53 ten years ago, possibly from idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) which is a low level of platelets that keep blood from
clotting or a series of bleeding and bruising will result.
All in all, they don't make movies like An Officer and a Gentleman anymore.
Oleanna (1994)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
10/17
10/17:
Oh gosh, not another American Buffalo.
The dialogue in Oleanna, which barely made any money, is incomprehensible and stagy. I'm surprised sex
harassment is thrown around so much because nothing happened. It's just pseudo-intellectual talk with tons of fake
acting. Hence, the deeper I dive into his oeuvre, the more clear it is that David Mamet is a hit-or-miss director.
No, no, no...I don't want to see William H. Macy in anything. I can't believe he got the lead role for this craptacular
picture, and he needs to work on his line delivery more. Although pretty, Debra Eisenstadt never acted again.
All in all, instead of Oleanna, you should take a look at
Disclosure with Michael Douglas and Demi Moore.
Oliver! (1968)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
8/15
8/15:
After seeing thousands of films, I still don't get musicals.
The idea of mixing dialogues and song numbers is bewildering. So is the fact that some of the musicals had won Best
Picture. In 1968, although it was the last one to do so until 2003, Oliver! won the most coveted award
when 2001: A Space Odyssey, Rosemary's Baby,
and Night of the Living Dead weren't nominated.
Amadeus is the only exception to the rule which struck a perfect balance between dialogue and music.
Music is supposed to advance the story but not impede the flow of the film; that's not the case in Oliver!
Waiting to listen for any dialogue is like pulling teeth.
As familiar as I am with Charles Dickens' works, I can imagine him turning in his grave if he ever saw Oliver!
which is based on his novel Oliver Twist. His stories had always been about social injustices, and Oliver Twist
was most specifically about abusive child labor practices during the Industrial Revolution. It worked as laws were
passed to regulate them which were eventually abolished on a wide scale.
Watching the supposedly poor, hungry white kids from the slums to sing their lungs out for these idiotic songs is peculiar. How can
they, especially Oliver (whose songs were dubbed by a 24-year-old female named Kathe Green), be cute and pretty? At least,
Oliver Reed didn't embarrass himself by doing the same although it's a fact that he couldn't sing worth a lick.
By the way, don't make the same mistake that I made by playing Side A first and then flipping it over. I didn't realize I
was watching the second half of the film although I was happy it was over so soon.
All in all, Oliver! can be safely dismissed as a nonsensical picture that's full of pretty faces.
Oliver's Story (1978)
Rate:
4
Viewed:
2/09
2/09:
Better than Love Story, Oliver's Story would have been a good picture only if it
didn't go all wrong.
This time, Ryan O'Neal gives a pleasant, sincere performance like I've never seen him give before. The biggest fault
is the meandering direction, leaving me frustrated many times. I wasn't sure where the sequel was heading, and when it
finally did, it didn't seem to fit Oliver's character. It frequently happens when he's dating Marcia Bonwit, the
multimillionaire business magnate, because her personality is a complete opposite of Jenny's.
I'm not surprised at the outcome but feel a pang of having my time wasted by the relationship. As a matter of fact, I like the
furniture designer more. It helps to get rid of Ali MacGraw, but the consistency of the characters is hurt by the substitution
of thespians for Jenny's father and Oliver's mother. The first minute Jenny's father appeared, I said, "Who's that?" The
change of his personality is all wrong. At least, as a consolation, the filmmakers didn't go far enough to replace Ray Milland
as Oliver's father which would've been a catastrophe otherwise.
The sudden change in Oliver's heart after he showed up at his father's textile mill on the last day is a weak attempt at
accepting his inevitable fate. That being said, Oliver's Story needs work and better transitions because most of the
focus is on Oliver's legal work which isn't interesting. Throughout, there's been a constant feeling of nothingness.
All in all, Oliver's Story fails because of the poor direction despite Ryan O'Neal giving one of the best performances of
his career.
The Omega Man (1971)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
10/11
10/11:
The Omega Man is a near rip-off of Night of the Living Dead although
it's closer to Day of the Dead.
Nothing much happens because Charlton Heston's character, Neville, drives around the desolate wasteland of Los Angeles to
look for supplies while searching (but not really) for albinos to destroy. I wait and wait for any action, yet it never
comes.
Also, at the same time, Neville scores a black chick and lands a possible first on-screen interracial kiss. Meanwhile, he talks
to himself constantly. *yawn* So much for thrills. In the interim, there's a noticeable similarity between Charlton Heston and
Arnold Schwarzenegger by virtue of their teeth when they grin.
There are several instances when Neville should've died. It has to be simple for anyone to break into his residence
by shooting out the lights and then climbing up there. They can locate a fire truck with an extended ladder. The Family
uses cannonball fire, but there's little effort in trying to burn down the building. None of the members in the Family
scares me; what they have is a bad case of albinism.
All in all, Escape from New York is the preferred choice over The Omega Man.
The Omen (1976)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
4/03, 10/04, 10/07
10/07:
I had rated The Omen '10' in the past, but now, it's more of a '6'.
This time, there are deficiencies that I didn't notice before. Among them is the one-dimensional acting by Lee Remick. If you
look at the movie poster, you can see her expression with wide-open eyes. It sums up her acting throughout the film.
Oh, how annoying the child actor is. I just want to strangle him with my bare hands. Ditto for the maid. Nobody is more hideous
than her.
The story is unrealistic because for a man such as Robert Thorn with this much of power, he would've handled the situations
better. Why does he allow himself to be disobeyed by the maid? Thorn should've exercised more control over his personal
affairs, but the filmmakers want me to see he's a weak man. Instead, it's the beginning of the end of The Omen.
As much as I dislike his wooden acting, Gregory Peck is one of the few saving graces. The other one is David Warner as Keith
Jennings. The best scene is when he's decapitated by the flying window pane in a freak accident. It's a Hall of Fame horror
moment. However, the ending serves as a signal that there will be sequels. Had Damien been murdered, my rating would've
been higher. Director Robert Donner manages to inject some neo-noir traits into the story to sustain my interest.
Remember the scene when Damien was feeling fearful as he was near the church while riding in the car en route to the
Episcopal wedding? Then, remember the ending when Damien was calm inside the church and he's about to be ritually
stabbed? Incredible.
Also, when the maid went to the hospital to kill the wife of the American Ambassador to Britain, I want you to think about
what I said: "American Ambassador to Britain." His title alone merits heavy-duty security at the hospital, yet this fluky
maid manages to go through the barricade.
When the sinister-looking priest flew to London to warn Robert Thorn of the evil that lies within Damien, I asked, "What
took him so long?" Why did it have to happen like five years later? The church could've seen it happening within
the first year of his birth and acted appropriately to save the world from Armageddon.
All in all, The Omen is a memorable horror flick with the usual Antichrist elements.
The Omen (2006)
Rate:
1
Viewed:
3/08
3/08:
*sigh* Webster's Dictionary defines the word "plagiarism" as "to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as
one's own; use (another's production) without crediting the source" or "to commit literary theft; present as new and
original an idea or product derived from an existing source."
The remake of The Omen is exactly that. This turd is predictably boring because
I had already seen the original. There's no real emotion or suspense. It's just fake...fake...fake.
Instead of paying the admission price of watching her act, I'd rather see Julia Stiles be tortured. She looks like a teenager
trapped in an adult body. Who's the idiot that said Liev Schreiber was capable of being in a leading role? Mia Farrow, your
acting career is officially over. John Moore thinks he directed a horror picture but fails to know what entails one.
All in all, the remake version of The Omen is a steaming pile of horseshit.
Omen III: The Final Conflict (1981)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
10/04, 10/07
10/07:
Thank goodness this is the last of it.
Omen III: The Final Conflict is a big letdown of the entire franchise. As I remember correctly from the original,
the first dagger is to extinguish the physical life with the rest of the seven daggers doing something specific.
Also, the killing must be done on a hallowed ground. Yeah, well...in this sequel, the entire protocol is skipped.
The older Damien Thorn is, the more powerful he becomes, but there's only one guy with him at all times? Come on, give me
a break. Even worse is the servant disobeying Damien. It's impossible considering what happened to the maid in the original.
Damien Thorn asks for it and gets what he wants: die. Right there, what he's telling me is that I wasted my time with the
whole thing. I don't understand why Damien waited for thirty-two years to achieve his goals when he had the power
to do it sooner.
All in all, the whole franchise of The Omen should've been condensed into a two-hour film.
Omen IV: The Awakening (1992)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
10/04, 10/07
10/07:
Omen IV: The Awakening isn't a continuation of the franchise but a failed pilot of the possible TV sitcom.
Basically, it's a remake of The Omen but worse...much worse, being a rehash of everything
that happened in the original. The worst part is the acting. Michael Lerner is a graduate from Brad Dourif's school of phony
acting. The father is a bland Mr.-Fix-It-All while the mother is an ugly I-Can't-Wait-for-Her-to-Die housewife.
Which is more laughable: the quack psychic fair or Delia's eyes? When one steps barefoot into the sandbox that's full of dozen
rattlesnakes, what the hell does he think will happen? Instead of Delia as Satan, they decide to have another in Alexander. So,
there are two of them in the same picture, but I don't get it.
All in all, Omen IV: The Awakening is the final nail in the coffin for the franchise.
On Dangerous Ground (1951)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
1/09
1/09:
Nicholas Ray extends his oeuvre of films noirs by directing On Dangerous Ground which is a failed hybrid of
Jennifer 8 and Sudden Impact.
It's impossible to take Ida Lupino seriously as a blind person who has to do everything herself yet still looks pretty. Think
of this: Robert Ryan's character gets tough with everybody, is then ordered to go upstate to solve a crime, and reaches the
conclusion by luck. No sleuthing skills are needed.
He only has to run after a kid, and some crazy dude tags along. After the chase, they crash the car before walking over to
an isolated house where they discover the blind female who's related to the killer. At the end, the mean-spirited tough guy
has compassion for her as Nicolas Ray tries to make me forget what happened by forcing me to accept the outcome. That's
not film noir.
All in all, On Dangerous Ground is rubbish.
On Deadly Ground (1994)
Rate:
5
Viewed:
2/13, 5/19
2/13:
Say what you want about Steven Seagal, but he kicks ass.
Many movies that he appeared during the 90's are watchable and entertaining. On Deadly Ground is one of them.
Steven Seagal directs, stars, and makes a statement about the environment. And guess what? It's still relevant as ever.
The ending has one of the best editing I've seen when it comes to making a gist of all what had transpired during the film.
Yeah, the movie is Billy Jack while borrowing a lot of elements from
Above the Law including an obligatory bar scene where Steven Seagal does his thing to prove his
manhood.
On the other hand, I thought Michael Caine learned his lesson in Jaws: The Revenge, yet
he's unintentionally funny as CEO Michael Jennings. What a bad man he is.
All in all, On Deadly Ground may be misguided in terms of protecting the environment, but it works out in the end.
5/19:
The best and funniest part of On Deadly Ground is Michael Caine.
His CEO character is such a total jerk that he absolutely loves it. My favorite is the commercial bit when Michael Caine
was all nice and caring and then changed his personality once the camera went offline. It's hard to believe this, but the movie
predicted everything about the BP Oil Spill. Even the fired CEO acted like Michael Jennings.
As for Steven Seagal, he's okay. It's not his finest hour. Reminding me of the misguided messages in
Billy Jack,
Steven Seagal claims to be for the environment yet blows the shit out of everything across the Alaskan frontier.
At least, he manages to save some face by ending the film with a nice video, which was originally going to be
forty minutes long but got thankfully pared down to seven minutes, about the effects of environmental pollution. I guess
the only aspect that's missing is the Crying Indian.
All in all, Michael Caine, who hated filming in Alaska, found On Deadly Ground an apt title.
On Golden Pond (1981)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
6/18
6/18:
Having avoided On Golden Pond for a long time because of Jane Fonda, I finally got the courage to sit through
it just for her father's sake.
Afterwards, I have a mixed bag of feelings largely because it's an inconsistent movie that somewhat requires a "best by
date" stamp. The acting ranges from sublime (Henry Ford) to funny (Dabney Coleman) to overdone (Katharine Hepburn).
She should've calmed down more. To my dismay, the high amount of profanity words is shocking for a supposedly
family picture. Couldn't the writers have cut them out and still deliver a solid screenplay?
I like the male characters but not the females. Jane Fonda is so useless that she shouldn't have bothered showing up. Whenever
she appears, it's like she's getting ready for a commercial shoot in sunny Southern California. Only her father deserved the Oscar
which had been long overdue considering how many classic performances he gave throughout his career, most notably
The Grapes of Wrath, The Ox-Bow Incident,
and 12 Angry Men. Five months after winning the long-coveted award, Henry Fonda passed away
from heart disease.
I'm impressed with Katharine Hepburn for diving off the boat and swimming to rescue her co-stars. Katharine was
73 years old when she did it...in the freezing cold water! She was suffering not only from Parkinson's disease but
also essential tremor. At any rate, it's brave of her not to be shy about it by going ahead and being seen, regardless.
Dabney Coleman is funny; I thought he should've been Oscar-nominated. Even the kid, Doug McKeon, is impressive as well. If
there's anything to be shocked, Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn had never met each other until they worked on this film.
By the way, the cinematography for the introduction is excellent, especially when the water is reflecting the colors
of the sunset.
All in all, On Golden Pond can be saccharine and corny that's overrun with profanity at times, but it's hard to
overlook Henry Fonda's final great performance.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)
Rate:
1
Viewed:
1/11
1/11:
On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the sixth James Bond picture, but this time, it stars George Lazenby.
Wait, wait...who? No wonder why when I see the movie poster, his face is all covered up. I mean, look at that. Is
this evidence enough? Without question, this is the worst James Bond movie ever made. George Lazenby doesn't wow me; he's more
suitable for daytime TV soap opera shows. Instead of him, John Saxon is a better substitute.
The editing is so awful that it has left me disinterested, bored out of my mind, and dead. It also runs for 140
minutes which is too long, forcing me to take a lot of breaks. The ridiculous plot has me disbelieving much of it: an army
of hypnotized girls stage a bacterial outbreak that'll end the world if the ransom isn't paid in time. The same concept was
done so much better in 12 Monkeys.
Thinking of the whole James Bond thing, one commenter hit the nail on the head: "I should admit my prejudice right
away—I really don't like James Bond, as a character or a franchise. I think his movies are generally too long, not
violent enough, not sexy enough, and curiously lacking in tension. And, most of the time, he hardly seems like a spy at all;
he just waltzes into casinos, picks up chicks, and gets captured by villains who explain their diabolical schemes to him. It's
all rather silly."
All in all, I don't consider On Her Majesty's Secret Service to be a true James Bond picture but a strange detour for the
franchise.
On the Beach (1959)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
12/24
12/24:
Okay, I understood why the year 1964 after watching On the Beach for a while given the film was made in 1959.
It paints a post-apocalyptic world as a result of the global nuclear war with only people left living
in Australia. That being said, On the Beach is transformed into a sci-fi military picture with an
A-list cast. That's not a bad combination, making for a suitable episode on The Twilight Zone.
I like the use of a submarine to venture out in order to see if there's any hope. By the way, it isn't
possible to wear a special suit to protect oneself fully from radiation.
The script is exceptional, setting up for strong performances. Ironically, the author of the book
hated the movie so much that he suffered from a fatal stroke at age 60 one month afterwards.
The standouts are Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner. Rounding out the rest are Anthony Perkins, Fred Astaire in the
first dramatic role of his career, and Donna Anderson, among others.
Shot on location for the most part in Australia (which is an unheard-of concept at the time due to the country
possessing virtually no film industry), Giuseppe Rotunno's striking black-and-white cinematography does everybody,
most especially Anthony Perkins, favors. The following year, Alfred Hitchcock will make the aforementioned actor
legendary by casting him as Norman Bates in Psycho.
Now, why am I giving On the Beach a rating of '7'? Simply put, it's too long. Thirty minutes should've been
cut out. It's not that I mind what's going on, but there's not enough substance to keep the show going. If they
can make the film primarily focused on Gregory Peck's and Ava Gardner's characters, I'm game for it. But let's be
real: if Commander Dwight Towers' family didn't perish in the nuclear holocaust, he would have never gone
for Moira; she's just a dumb floozy whose expiration date is fifteen years past as plainly seen on her face
due to alcohol abuse.
All in all, On the Beach is worth watching because of Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Anthony Perkins, and the
unusual theme, but make no mistake: it's a long movie that struggles between theme and characters.
On the Waterfront (1954)
Rate:
10
Viewed:
6/03, 7/05, 2/07, 7/11, 4/19
7/05:
On the Waterfront is one of the most important, influential films made.
The best and the greatest ever, Marlon Brando is spectacular and in a class of his own. Recently, AFI did a marathon of 100
Best Quotes, and Brando's "I coulda been a contender" was ranked number 3. Really, it should've been number 1, and it's
famous, influencing an entire generation of great actors. During the program, Robert Hays commented
the scene made him cry every time he saw it, not because it's sad, but because it was so good.
Now, what is the definition of The Method? It's simple: Marlon Brando. Why can't it be duplicated by the others? They aren't
Marlon Brando. Let's examine the famous taxicab scene for a second: Rod Steiger pulls out his gun. Ideally, the person sitting
next to him should act surprised and then be scared by the sight of it by putting up his hands. But not Brando. He just looks
at the gun like he can't believe his own brother and turns his eyes in a fatherly way onto him before delivering the immortal
lines. That wasn't in the script; Brando did that on his own.
All in all, because of what Marlon Brando did in On the Waterfront, the landscape of acting had been forever changed.
2/07:
No matter how many books I've read about watershed moments in the annals of motion pictures, Marlon Brando's performance
in On the Waterfront is never credited.
Marlon Brando did not act; he became Terry Malloy. Along with
A Streetcar Named Desire, what Brando
did in On the Waterfront puts him in a class of his own. In short, there's Marlon Brando, and there's everybody else.
All in all, any time I think of timeless movies with great performances, great scenes, and great lines,
On the Waterfront is among them.
7/11:
The sole reason to watch On the Waterfront is Marlon Brando.
All in all, On the Waterfront is a top ten masterpiece.
4/19:
Because of his performances in On the Waterfront and A Streetcar Named Desire,
Marlon Brando can rest easy if anyone wants to question his place among greatest actors ever.
These movies are electrifying, having influenced at least two generations of actors. I've read autobiographies written by
actors, and nearly all of them cite Malon Brando as their hero, looking up to him because they saw the realism in his craft.
There's a big difference between pre-50's and post-50's films in terms of acting. The latter is more realistic because the
thespians finally immersed themselves into the characters instead of cardboard cutouts. To Brando's credit, many became
better actors for it.
There are numerous outstanding scenes, but the greatest of them all is the taxicab scene. It's as good as acting will ever be.
A remarkable scene is when Brando played with Eva Marie Saint's glove after it was accidentally
dropped, which happened for real, and just carried on with the conversation as if it's no big deal.
All in all, there's Marlon Brando, and there's everybody else.
Once in the Life (2000)
Rate:
4
Viewed:
8/20
8/20:
Having composed a play entitled Riff Raff in 1994 during his down time after being replaced by Samuel L. Jackson for
Die Hard with a Vengeance, Laurence Fishburne makes his directorial debut
and stars in Once in the Life.
Hoping to be the next Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned, Once in the Life
isn't a good movie. Stagy as hell, it doesn't have a big point to make, and the characters aren't compelling enough to care about.
Yet the acting from the two leads is decent. Laurence Fishburne has occasional moments of thespic brilliance. Titus Welliver
sometimes steals the show with great lines. Yet what's supposed to be the meaning after all? No new ground is being broken
here, folks.
Eamonn Walker is at best a TV actor; that's why he'll always be well known as Kareem Saïd from Oz.
Gregory Hines, Michael Paul Chan, and Dominic Chianese, Jr., are useless. Secondary characters must help supply substance in
order to improve the film more; if they can't, there's no need of them.
All in all, Laurence Fishburne has potential, but sadly, Once in the Life remains the only directed film of his career.
Once Upon a Crime (1992)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
2/13, 4/22
2/13:
Just about everybody in the cast for Once Upon a Crime is guilty of either overacting or bad acting; sometimes,
it's been both.
It's hard to watch the somewhat washed-up thespians trying to make something out of nothing as I follow the murder
plot. Traces of comedy have been nonexistent throughout. As a result, I don't remember who the murderer is anymore.
Sean Young stinks. Richard Lewis flaps his arms up and down like a quack-quack-quack duck. Cybill Shepherd has
no more talent to offer after she took off her clothes in The Last Picture Show
twenty-one years prior. Always yelling, John Belushi won't shut up. Hence, John Candy is the film's saving grace, having been
blessed with a couple of witty lines. Giancarlo Giannini is okay.
All in all, Snatch did the dog angle better than Once Upon a Crime.
4/22:
Dropping my rating from '4' to '3', Once Upon a Crime still stinks.
The cast is seemingly all-star in name, but nobody can make a bad script happening. John Candy is the only one with some
good lines which is weird enough. In a way, the presence of Giancarlo Giannini reminds me of
The Pink Panther films, and he isn't bad.
On the other hand, George Hamilton looks like an overcooked turkey. Sean Young is hopeless who's stuck with a bad actor
by the name of Richard Lewis. Cybill Shepherd has zero talent while James Belushi yells too much to no effect.
All in all, failing to be funny is the true crime of Once Upon a Crime.
Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
8/03, 11/08
11/08:
The last time I saw Once Upon a Time in America, it was too fucking slow, too fucking boring, and too fucking long.
Watching it again, my opinion hasn't changed. However, my perspective is now better because I may have
seen the butchered version last time. Once Upon a Time in America has all the qualities of a masterpiece yet
isn't so. It has the following problems:
First of all, there's no pulse. Although it's beautifully shot with keen attention for details, everything feels dead,
hollow, and pointless.
Second, the scenes are overstretched and thus prolong the running time to nearly four hours. It should've been a 150-minute
picture, but Sergio Leone is obsessed with camera techniques. I can imagine each scene with Leone going,
"Zoom in. Stop. Let the character think for a minute. The eyes. Zoom back a bit. Stop. Let him think for another two minutes.
Slide the camera over. Stop. Look at the eyes. Let him think. Zoom in. The eyes. Zoom out. Zoom in. Let him think. Zoom in.
Stop. The eyes." Okay, that's fucking enough, moron.
Third, the misogynistic treatment of women in general is enough to doom the picture. I ended up disliking the characters
and having no vested interest in them.
Four, Robert De Niro's grin at the end pretty much says it all as he's probably laughing at me for wasting my time
on this piece of shit. So, it's a déjà vu from The Last Tycoon?
All in all, Once Upon a Time in America is an overrated The Godfather wannabe.
Once Upon a Time...
When We Were Colored (1995)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
10/20
10/20:
Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored is a powerful slice-of-life film about black folks growing up in
rural Mississippi during the Jim Crow era.
Based on Clifton Taulbert's eponymous autobiography, the writing is smooth, calm, and humble. There's no plot to
speak of, but the characters are rich and well-developed. Many parts of how they lived back then are recounted
which are now no more because of the advances in technology.
Mainly, Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored is about black people doing what they can do to survive the dark times;
eventually, changes came, but they had to wait for so long. Hence, the characters are separated into two: those who
decided to be patient and stayed on and those who couldn't take it anymore and left for the North to pursue opportunities.
What's impressive is the wholesome feel the cast brings to the table. There are many outstanding black role models, and I love
the community they've built which makes life in Glen Allan more bearable for the black residents. It's truly the power of the
film. Singling out anyone is difficult because the performances have been uniformly excellent, but I have to mention two
actors who are special and they're Al Freeman, Jr., and Leon. It's nice to see the inclusion of three legends from the
Blaxploitation period: Bernie Casey, Isaac Hayes, and Richard Roundtree.
All in all, Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored is a must-see.
One A.M. (1916)
Rate:
1
Viewed:
10/07
10/07:
While watching One A.M., all I wanted to do was kill myself.
All in all, a clinical study should be performed to see whether or not Chaplin's shorts cause depression and suicidal thoughts.
One Crazy Summer (1986)
Rate:
1
Viewed:
10/05
10/05:
One Crazy Summer is an absurdly bad comedy with a set of wretched characters.
I hate the story and everybody in the cast. The biggest joke is Bobcat Goldthwait who makes a total mockery out of
himself and is thus embarrassing to watch. His antics have made me wonder if he's mentally retarded.
I remember one time when Bobcat got banned from The Tonight Show for setting the couch on a fire and was
charged with arson which led to a guilty plea. Another is when he destroyed the set on The Arsenio Hall Show.
Both were disturbing to watch.
All in all, drop the last two words in the title One Crazy Summer, and that's the rating for the film.
One Eight Seven (1997)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
4/19
4/19:
One Eight Seven is a rare 90's film with Samuel L. Jackson in a leading role.
That being said, the story is so compelling that I can tell that a teacher wrote the screenplay. It's of the same kind
as shown in Blackboard Jungle,
Up the Down Staircase, Class of 1984,
and Lean on Me. The teacher's good
intentions remain the same, but the students are edgier and harder to reach and the administrators are more impossible to rely
on.
Because I taught for three years, I completely get it for Samuel L. Jackson's character, but why can't he work in an easier
environment with well-behaved students who want to learn? It'll cut down the aggravation. Plus, killing or
doing harm to students won't solve anything.
Clifton Collins, Jr., plays a wannabe gangbanger so convincingly well that he can easily pass for one in real life.
His character talks about demanding respect, but look at him: who can take him seriously if he acts stupid, treats his mother
like trash, and can't follow directions? Sadly, many students nowadays are exactly like him.
The last fifteen minutes may look absurd when the guys were copying Russian roulette from
The Deer Hunter which
never happened during the Vietnam War, but this is the truth: the film influenced a lot of people taking on the game while it was
shown in theatres during 1978 and 1979 and they continued to do so afterwards.
By the way, Samuel L. Jackson wore a sweater that read Morehouse College which is located in Atlanta, Georgia. He
graduated from there in 1972, majoring in dramatic arts. But he was kicked out in 1969 for taking faculty members and
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s father hostage and locking them in the office in exchange for a black studies course to be taught in
school. Talk about irony.
All in all, One Eight Seven is an underrated movie that speaks well to many who had been in the trenches.
One Girl's Confession (1953)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
5/24
5/24:
I'm all for a film that tells a simple story and keeps things moving with a nice cast.
One Girl's Confession is just that. It's a light film noir which focuses on right and wrong. Truth be
told, Mary Adams isn't a bright person or fits the definition of a femme fatale. She should've checked on the box that's
buried beneath a tree before jumping to conclusions. Luckily, Mary was able to get away with the bad stuff only because
of her looks and how weakly she hit the boss' head with an empty champagne bottle.
Obviously, Cleo Moore steals the show because of her hair. She was part of the 50's Blonde Bombshell wave that included
Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Mamie Van Doren. Her acting is fine for the most part. Director Hugo Haas does a good
job of playing the gambling addict who turns out to be a decent person. Helene Stanton sometimes steals the show as his girlfriend.
Believe it or not, she's the mother of Dr. Drew Pinsky.
All in all, Cleo Moore makes 74 minutes of One Girl's Confession go quickly.
One Man's Hero (1999)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
6/21
6/21:
One Man's Hero is so badly made that I'm compelled to ask, "What am I watching, really?"
Most of the fault lies with Lance Hool. He has directed four films in total: this in 1999,
Missing in Action 2: The Beginning in 1985, Steel Dawn in 1987, and 2 Hearts in 2020.
That's a space of twelve years on average among them.
Hardly a Tom Berenger film, One Man's Hero is a mishmash of everything: war, romance, betrayal, honor,
desertion, and redemption. Yet each of them has been poorly developed. None of the characters is fleshed out the
least bit. Braveheart came to my mind a lot based on how well it did in
all aspects.
The worst attempt is making me believe there's chemistry between John Riley and Marta. Had that subplot been
taken out, the movie would've improved more by focusing on the Saint Patrick's Battalion during
the Mexican American War from 1846 to 1848.
I won't go so far as to call the acting bad; however, a lot of it is mediocre. Tom Berenger has done more
organized war pictures like Platoon and
Gettysburg. It's my first time seeing Joaquim de Almeida in something other
than Desperado and
Clear and Present Danger, but using the same demeanor once again,
he's disappointing.
All in all, if John Huston (the original script started with him in the late 60's) had directed One Man's Hero instead
of Lance Hool, the results would've been a lot different.
One Night Stand (1997)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
3/20
3/20:
After directing Nicolas Cage to his lone Oscar win for Leaving Las Vegas, Mike Figgis
did a better movie called One Night Stand.
Both are similar and have the same feel. I'm not a huge fan of the former, but I like the latter more because
of the quiet intensity, the all-around terrific cast, and how much it reminds me of Robert Altman's films, especially with
the zoom effects.
Superb performances are given by Wesley Snipes who's an underrated actor when it comes to drama, Nastassja Kinski,
and Ming-Na Wen. Robert Downey, Jr., is also very good and was at the apogee of his drug addiction. It's a fine job by Mike
Figgis for the screenplay and direction and John Smith for editing.
Why Max got on with the German blonde becomes clear when he went back to his wife in L.A. from New York City, it's the way
she does things and how verbal she is in terms of dishing out directions, especially during sex. So, it's not
a surprise that he wanted out of the marriage, regardless of her good looks.
The plot twist, which comes in the final fifteen minutes, is a surprise. I wasn't expecting that, but how awkward it
must be for at least two people involved and I can't see how Vernon and Mimi are attracted to each other. At least,
there are no bad feelings shown by anyone considering what Charlie went through.
All in all, Leaving Las Vegas is about a man's freefall into the bottomless
abyss, and One Night Stand is about celebration of life.
The One That Got Away (1957)
Rate:
10
Viewed:
3/24
3/24:
If England has The Great Escape to boast of, then Germany's answer to it is
The One That Got Away.
Surprisingly, the film was made six years earlier. Not only that, it was filmed by Pinewood Studios of Iver Heath, England. I
think it's because Oberleutnant Franz von Werra earned everybody's respect because of what he did which is based on a true
story.
Well, it's a brilliant acting by Hardy Krüger in what's a two-hour one-man show, and I was rooting
for him all the way through despite being a Nazi. The story is incredible, and most of it did happen.
I like the depiction of realism, especially when von Werra felt fatigued during his escape attempts. The most dramatic
is when he jumped onto the dinghy at the end to make his way to the United States. Of the three escape attempts shown in the film,
the second is the most interesting as he tried to take off on a British airplane while pretending to be a downed Dutch flier.
All in all, The One That Got Away is among the most exciting war films ever made.
One Tough Cop (1998)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
12/21
12/21:
One Tough Cop sure disappointed me with the ending.
The whole time I was watching the movie, I had been under the impression it was based on fact. Then, I was smacked
with the all-time letdown: "Except for the character of Bo Dietl, all characters and events depicted in this film are
fictional." Why not put that disclaimer at the beginning or just cease using his name?
It's relevant because everything Bo Dietl and his partner did in the film is 100% illegal. If what happened turned out
to be true, well...it's not something one will want to be associated with. Now, the issue is moot, so I will focus on
the fictional part and all.
One thing I'll say is it's an absorbing police drama. The movie moves well. Despite making many poor career
choices, Stephen Baldwin does a good job, and it may be his best work. Chris Penn is merely okay, but his character isn't
likeable, reminding me of Harvey Keitel in Bad Lieutenant which came first by six years.
I love how the trailer of One Tough Cop made a mention of the following films: Serpico,
Dog Day Afternoon, Scarface,
Sea of Love, and Carlito's Way. What's an obvious link
connecting them? They all starred Al Pacino. Is he in One Tough Cop? No.
All in all, if any of the real life stories about Bo Dietl, who's one of the most decorated officers in NYPD history, isn't
good enough for print, then I shudder to think everything I've seen in policiers has been fictional.
One-Eyed Jacks (1961)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
7/05, 7/17
7/05:
Thanks to Stanley Kubrick bowing out of the project, Marlon Brando directed only one film in his life, and it's called
One-Eyed Jacks.
A Western with many twists and turns, it's Marlon Brando who steals the show. Charles Lang's Oscar-nominated cinematography
is also excellent. Archie Marshek gets the most credit for making the movie possible because Marlon Brando was delegated
the task to edit the film from a million feet of reel and, true to form, subsequently gave up.
All in all, if Kubrick had directed One-Eyed Jacks, I would've fallen asleep; hence, it's a good thing that Marlon
Brando did.
7/17:
Criterion Collection treated One-Eyed Jacks with a 4K digital restoration, and the film looks absolutely gorgeous.
Thus, it's not hard to see why the single Oscar nomination went to Charles Lang for Best Cinematography. One-Eyed Jacks
is the only film Marlon Brando had ever directed. It works for a Western picture, and it's unique that's
almost Unforgiven before there was Unforgiven.
The top acting honors goes to Karl Malden. He plays a mean backstabber convincingly well. Watch his eyes, and that's
when you knew Karl Malden was going to amp it up at key moments. Marlon Brando is terrific and the most handsome of them all.
He keeps himself subdued and laidback, never making a grandiose show. It's a testament to Brando's ability to restrain
himself.
Once upon a time, from Mexico, Katy Jurado was one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood. It's not hard to understand why
Marlon Brando was smitten with Katy after seeing her in High Noon. She's not bad in
One-Eyed Jacks, looking a bit older than anticipated.
Pina Pellicer may have taken acting too far to the point of melodramatic. She needs to tone it down and try to vary
her approach. It's literally the same thing in almost every scene: a desperate plea with her quivering chin and fluttering
eyes. Sadly, Pina committed suicide in 1964 at the age of 30, and the cause of death is presumed to be depression.
All in all, although long and slow-moving, One-Eyed Jacks is a solid '7' Western picture.
The Onion Field (1979)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
2/20, 3/22
2/20:
I had heard of the Onion Field killers but didn't know what it was all about until seeing the movie now.
The basic gist of the case is this: at approximately 10 PM on March 9, 1963, Gregory Ulas Powell and Jimmy Lee Smith, the
former white and the latter black, were driving around with the intention of committing robbery and made an illegal U-turn
somewhere in the Los Angeles area before being spotted by two police officers, Ian Campbell and Karl Hettinger, in an
unmarked car. After Powell was ordered to get out of the car, he managed to turn the tables on them by holding a gun behind
Campbell's back, and Hettinger was persuaded by his partner to give up his firearm.
Once Powell and Smith had control of the situation, Campbell was forced to drive everybody to some random onion field in
Bakersfield. The cops were led to think they would be let go once there, but Powell reneged on his promise and shot Campbell
right above the upper lip. This is now the point that nobody had agreed on who really did it when Campbell was fatally
gunned down four times afterwards. Hettinger escaped prior to that and ran four miles to seek help.
After failing to locate Hettinger for a while, Smith drove away without Powell, and the latter was forced to find another
automobile and got caught by another unmarked car during the same night.
Powell confessed to the crime but maintained that Smith was the one who murdered the cop. They were given the death penalty
which was later commuted to life because the California Supreme Court decided in 1972 that death was cruel and unusual
punishment. The trials took over six years with many, many filed motions and because of Irving Kanarek, the notorious lawyer
from the Tate–LaBianca murder trials.
Thanks to the book written by Joseph Wambaugh about the Onion Field murder that served as a major factor, the death penalty
was reinstated. A hopeless drug addict, Smith was paroled in 1982 but had been in and out of prisons for decades until his death
twenty-five years later. Powell remained in prison until his death in 2012. Although I'm near certain Powell was the one
who killed Ian Campbell, the author thought it was Smith after all, so I have to go with the authority.
Hettinger was labeled a coward by his fellow police officers because of what happened that night. They thought he shouldn't
have given up his gun when he could've used it to defuse the situation. For many, it's been highly contentious and a matter of
debate with no easy answers; honestly, I found no fault in what he did. Regardless, Hettinger stayed on for a while but
somehow became a kleptomaniac which led to his forced resignation from the department. Psychologically broken (which
is now defined as PTSD) and suicidal for a long time, he died of liver failure at age 59 in 1994. The onion field, where
the incident happened, is no longer there.
All of what I've described has been captured detail for detail in The Onion Field, right down to the cars and locations,
thanks to the author's insistence of keeping the truth intact. It's one of the, if not the, most
accurate true crime movies ever shot. Yes, it's slow-paced and can meander a bit from time to time but is
uniformly excellent and meticulously crafted.
The acting is first-rate, and some of the cast are the spitting images of the principals who were involved. Absolutely
excellent, James Woods, who must have weighed 125 pounds at the time, is the scene-stealing star of the show. Franklyn
Seales, a Saint Vincent and the Grenadines actor whom I've never heard of, certainly has the role of his lifetime. Looking
destined to portray Harry Belafonte in a future biopic, he would die of complications from AIDS at age 37 in 1990. Forced
to internalize his feelings, John Savage has the hardest and most unforgiving task of anyone.
By the way, if you remember the black prisoner who slashed his wrist, it's Jessie Lawrence Ferguson. He's especially
memorable for playing the LAPD cop who put his gun against Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s throat and made him cry in
Boyz n the Hood. The Onion Field is actually the first film for
Ted Danson with Christopher Lloyd making a small appearance.
All in all, despite the faults, The Onion Field is a top three true crime movies ever made.
3/22:
Upgrading my rating from '7' to '9', I read The Onion Field by Joseph Wambaugh for the first time before seeing the
film again.
It may be the most factually true movie made with zero liberties taken. What's impressive is the performances and
how well-cast everybody is. The likeness James Woods and Franklyn Seales have to their counterparts in real life is
quite close. They even act like them, too. I admit, the pace is slow, but the book is like that as well.
If you're annoyed by Franklyn Seales' performance, no worries...you aren't alone as Jimmy Lee Smith was actually a crybaby
whiner and a total loser; although released in 1982, he could never stay out of trouble, going in and out of prisons
until his death. The controversy of who really fired the last four fatal bullets into Officer Ian Campbell has never
been settled to this day. Strong suspicions are toward Smith for having done it.
It's apparent more than two lives were lost during that night at the onion field, and everybody suddenly forgot
Ian Campbell was killed during the line of duty. Oddly, a square was dedicated to his memory which came fifty years afterwards.
Karl Hettinger didn't get a proper psychiatric treatment right away and was still in a state of shock for so long
which slowly ruined his health. Now, it's unfair to criticize either in terms of what they should've done; it's
impossible unless you were there and actually felt what they felt. Hence, training means everything. As for the
killers, who cares about them? They're dead, and good riddance.
All in all, it's best to read The Onion Field first and then see the film.
Only the Lonely (1991)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
5/04, 12/12
12/12:
Only the Lonely?
Do they mean Only the Imagination? Nearing his untimely death, John Candy's movies have felt lackluster,
and this one is among them. It just doesn't work. Ally Sheedy isn't a likeable actress who saw her career fizzle after
appearing in St. Elmo's Fire. She plays a one-dimensional character, and I can't see
her being with the cop.
But it's Maureen O'Hara who kills the mood totally. It's impossible to stand her, making the time move like molasses in
January and forcing me to hope that the movie would end sooner. Anthony Quinn used to take on serious
roles during his heyday, but in the 90's, he's typecast as the good-looking hopeless romantic. What gives? And if I were him,
I would stay very, very far away from the mother. There are better women out there.
Finally, John Candy...I like him, he does what he can do, and he has one funny moment when he said the mortician does everybody.
Unfortunately, Only the Imagination is a waste of time to sit through, showing off lots of stereotypes and racism.
All in all, I wish any of the cop's overimagined events happened to his mother, and it'll be good riddance.
Only the Strong (1993)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
10/20
10/20:
A longtime director of Van Damme pictures, Sheldon Lettich gives newcomer Mark Dacascos a chance to showcase something unique
in Only the Strong: capoeira which is a combined Brazilian art form of fight, dance, rhythm, and movement.
At first, it looks weird, especially during the martial art battles, because I'm used to seeing the likes of Bruce Lee,
Steven Seagal, Jackie Chan, and Jean-Claude Van Damme, among others. This is different, but is it a good thing?
I don't know, yet it appears impressive nevertheless.
The trouble with the fights is they aren't real as many punches and kicks are missed on purpose by roughly four to eight
inches. Instead, it's fluid choreography of timed moves. Honestly, the most realistic outcome will be: somebody pulls
a gun and shoots the teacher and it's back to business as usual for Silverio's gang.
In my opinion, to be good at capoeira is to have a strong background in gymnastics. Mark Dacascos has that plus an extensive
history in martial arts. He learned capoeira for the first time only two months before auditioning for the lead
role in the film. That's why I don't believe these high school students and I think they already had sufficient foundation for
quick success.
Of anyone, Paco Christian Prieto has a strong presence. He looks familiar bcause he did the pool fight with Jean-Claude Van
Damme in Lionheart. Since then, Prieto had done a total of five more films. It's a pity
because he should've had a career that's similar to Danny Trejo's.
Back to Only the Strong, it's an okay but sometimes cheesy 90's movie with an 80's feel. The story isn't
strong. At one point, the capoeira instructor tried to come on to the female teacher, but it never materializes, so why bother
showing him in this manner? There isn't a lot of depth to any of the characters. However, the message is positive
throughout which is why I'll be generous by giving the film a '6'.
All in all, it's hard not to be impressed with capoeira in Only the Strong which was done with zero CGI tricks.
Open Range (2003)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
9/10
9/10:
Open Range proves it's premature to call the Western genre dead after Unforgiven
was made.
Thanks to the cast, Kevin Costner's pet project is as good as it can be. The story is sincere and interesting, and there's a
human aspect involved.
Never been a fan of Annette Bening's work, I find her performance surprisingly mature and different from what I'm used to.
Robert Duvall is at his usual best. Kevin Costner revisits his Dances With Wolves
roots and recaptures the same emotions which is a joy and, therefore, a relief.
All in all, Open Range is a fitting addition to the Western genre.
Operation Crossbow (1965)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
1/25
1/25:
Operation Crossbow is the kind of film that starts off okay before nosediving big time.
So, where did it go wrong? For starters, almost the whole thing is shot indoors. Had it been done outside
while taking advantage of the European scenery, the outcome would've been dramatically different. The
story is nothing new, having reminded me of numerous James Bond films.
The cast is decent, starting with George Peppard and Jeremy Kemp. They'll do a way better movie called
The Blue Max. Tom Courtenay is added to the mix as a third wheel.
Imagine being his character who's selected to do a big spy job but is summarily killed after being fingered as
a common murderer in the identity-gone-wrong scheme.
Seeing that Sophia Loren received top billing because of her producer-husband Carlo Ponti, I thought she would
play a big role. Yet she appears for like twenty minutes or so to set up a very talky middle before being
shot just to ensure the secrecy of one spy. I didn't believe the killing at first, thinking of it done by
a tranquilizer gun, and waited until the last second for confirmation.
After what happened, I thought the movie would get better, but nope. Instead, it becomes more and more
banal with repeated shots of rockets launching, invoking memories of Meteor, until
finishing with a "fuck you" ending. Oddly, at some points, there's an insertion of black-and-white stock
footage from the old days. If there's anything I'm impressed with, it's the characters actually
speaking German to ensure authenticity, a rarity in cinema.
All in all, Operation Crossbow may deal with espionage during WWII, but it's not a thriller by any means.
Operation Dumbo Drop (1995)
Rate:
5
Viewed:
7/21
7/21:
The weird part about Operation Dumbo Drop is the Disney label.
This one involves the Vietnam War, guns, killing of an elephant, shoving a jumbo pill up another elephant's ass, Ray Liotta,
Denis Leary, and V.C. In other words, they're not exactly appropriate for a Disney picture. Of course, nobody is ever killed,
but occasionally uttering a profane word is okay.
The story isn't bad and is rather interesting for the logistics of moving a four-ton elephant, but it's tough to put up
with the annoying Vietnamese boy who thinks he's Mowgli of The Jungle Book. When things don't go his way, Linh
will start using English in broken sentences in the third person, act sad and confused, and go sulking off. After peace
is made with him, he's happy again, preferring hugs all the time.
I wish I can say Operation Dumbo Drop is a funny movie, but it's not. The jokes don't click, and the
comedic timing isn't well-developed. The following probably explains why when Denis Leary said, "The movie was so
painstakingly terrible—because it took a long time to shoot—that all of us actually had pictures of the things that we
were gonna buy with our money to keep us going."
Worse, the characters are bland. I thought the trio of Ray Liotta, Danny Glover, and Denis Leary would work instantly, but
it doesn't translate well on screen. Best known for the TV show Parker Lewis Can't Lose, Corin Nemec
plays the most nondescript character ever. At one point, he was seen filling up his canteen with water from the river. Uh,
bad idea.
Finally, we come to the drop itself. I have to say the whole thing is impossible. The true story is a Green Beret
taught the villagers along the mountainous central regions of South Vietnam how to cut lumber from their mahogany trees and
run a sawmill. The trouble was transporting heavy lumber over the rough terrain, so they came up with an idea of using
elephants.
Then, nothing happened for a long time because of the Tet offensive. When it finally did, how the plan worked out was
essentially the same as what happened in the movie in terms of transportation with tranquilizers involved, but the two
sedated elephants were wrapped in cargo nets and carried by an airplane instead of being blatantly dropped off.
The landing incident didn't receive much attention in the media because Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated on
the same day. Incidentally, the whole idea was a failure because the elephants were too small to begin with and couldn't
carry the heavy load. The other reason was that they had to eat a lot in order to sustain their body weight and the
villagers were forced to roam the countryside for food.
All in all, producing Operation Dumbo Drop under the banner of a company other than Disney would be a good
idea, and while at it, they should've made the incidents more realistic.
The Opposite of Sex (1998)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
4/16
4/16:
Christina Ricci was on a serious roll from 1997 to 1998 when she appeared in
The Ice Storm, The Opposite of Sex, and
Buffalo '66.
Hence, it's a surprise she hasn't been nominated for an Academy Award to this day. The Opposite of Sex
is an excellent dark picture about people and how they deal with unconventional situations.
Although the narration is a bit heavy, the script is polished and engaging. It's the performances that make the
story come alive through Martin Donovan, Christina Ricci, Ivan Sergei, Lyle Lovett, and Johnny Galecki. The true
standout is Lisa Kudrow who received plenty of accolades as the spinster schoolteacher. Despite her connection to
the deplorable TV sitcom Friends, she has developed into a phenomenal actress.
All in all, The Opposite of Sex isn't what I call a "scathing comedy" but a good, intelligent, well-written,
and finely acted picture that's something different.
Orca (1977)
Rate:
5
Viewed:
5/21
5/21:
It's impossible to watch Orca without thinking of Jaws.
This one has a bearded guy who kind of resembles Richard Dreyfuss. For the fateful trip to hunt down the killer whale
instead of Bruce, it's three men plus a woman. Captain Quint—I'm sorry as I meant to say Nolan—is a reincarnation
of Martin Brody in the spirit of Ahab. Hence, there are too many similarities going on here. Even Quint's boat was called
Orca.
No doubt it's a weird movie with uncharacteristically bad acting by Richard Harris who invokes the name of God every
fifteen minutes. Obviously, his character has to die because there's no other satisfactory conclusion; what sucks is
it took so long to get there. Because of his singular eye, the killer whale has a super fantastic photographic memory.
In all of my life, I don't think I've heard or read a tale about a killer whale taking revenge on a human being. Orcas
can burn down a town because they've understood the concept of gas and fire? To avoid dealing with them, the
accursed person can simply stay put in a landlocked region for many years which can be also said for everybody in
Jaws and the rest of the silly sequels.
The filmmakers keep insisting the setting is in Newfoundland, Canada, yet there are some references to the United States.
Worse is the sight of fake icebergs. They must have done the final act in a water tank with sprayed-on wood objects. Actually, the
location shooting took place in Malta which isn't anywhere near Greenland.
Ironically, a lot of what Richard Harris' character did at the beginning is exactly what contracted fishermen performed
for SeaLand and SeaWorld. In the process, many orcas were accidentally killed while a few of the captured ones, which
were separated by force from their family, had been shipped away to become performers. To know more about how
SeaWorld became a billion-dollar industry is to see the documentary Blackfish.
All in all, if a niche genre had been successfully exploited by one film, then it should end right there.
Ordinary People (1980)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
3/06, 2/14
3/06:
I wanted to see Ordinary People to find out how it managed to win Best Picture of 1980 over
Raging Bull.
Surprisingly, I ended up liking it a lot although I remain unconvinced. Ordinary People is an engrossing, absorbing
film, thanks to the outstanding performances by Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, and Timothy Hutton.
The story is carefully constructed by removing the layers in order to get close to the core of the family conflict. Finally,
the explosive ending, although predictable and wishful, happens which is satisfying. Well-done is the
direction by Robert Redford. He's deliberate in showing the general picture of the family and works his way through the
specifics on the psychological level.
All in all, I've enjoyed watching Ordinary People, if not thoroughly, but more in an appreciative way.
2/14:
In many ways, Ordinary People is a made-for-TV picture with a theme of the week: Rich People's Problems.
It's not compelling enough for me to care. I've had a hard time swallowing the fact that Donald Sutherland's
character didn't see the dysfunction sooner than later after being together with his wife for over two decades.
The true villain of the show is the mother who's perfectly played by Mary Tyler Moore. It's so apparent from the get-go
that she's the scourge of the family, making it hard for the son to accept what had happened and move on.
I was waiting for the acknowledgment from everybody about the situation, and it finally came which was much too late. So, Mary
Tyler Moore does a wonderful job, alternating between being clubbable with her friends and relatives and showing
detachment toward her son. Around Conrad, it's almost as if she hadn't met him before which is painful to watch. The only thing
I'm surprised is the film beat out Raging Bull for Best Picture. It's a bit too much.
All in all, Ordinary People is somewhat overrated, but I've enjoyed Donald Sutherland's performance and
Robert Redford's direction.
The Organization (1971)
Rate:
4
Viewed:
2/22
2/22:
For the longest time, I never knew there were two sequels to In the Heat of the Night:
They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! and The Organization.
Having seen the first two plenty of times, I hadn't gotten around the third until now. Well, it's a bad movie. Initially, I
thought the filmmakers lost control of the big picture, but I concluded the plot got too complicated for
its own good, especially the little details. I couldn't make heads or tails of what's going on. So, forget about it.
As usual, Sidney Poitier is great, but this time, I feel he was treated as an handler. It's stupid and not what I want
to see. I came to the film with the expectation of him solving a murder mystery case just like the previous two outings and
it should be all about him.
Interestingly enough, Sidney Poitier is in the same room with Ron O'Neal of future Super Fly
fame. Talk about contrasts of two icons. Then, Sidney Poitier gets to punch his lights out. Maybe if Youngblood should've
politely addressed him as "Mister Tibbs" to start off on the right foot. Anyway, Ron O'Neal looks better with his mustache on.
There are a lot of stupid moments. At the beginning, the criminals wear saran wrap on their faces yet are
able to breathe. The front gate is blown up but still looks intact afterwards. What's the point of the Asian woman running so
fast to catch the train? Later, the leaders of the organization are reading their lines rapidly from a piece of paper on the
phone, but they make no sense whatsoever.
Tibbs has a man-to-man talk with his son about sex, but it's not followed through that well. His wife never throws a hissy
fit after being ordered, not once but several times, to make a sandwich for him. In the long run, it doesn't seem
the urban revolutionaries had their scheme figured out as all have been either caught or killed. At the end, I'm left
hanging with unresolved questions after the assassination of two mob killers.
All in all, I hate it when Sidney Poitier is wasted, and that's the case in The Organization.
Original Sin (2001)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
1/06
1/06:
The completely overdone acting dooms Original Sin right from the start.
The plot doesn't make any sense. Luis Vargas, who's played by Antonio Banderas, could've done me a favor by killing
his wife at the end of the first hour to save me from the grief of sitting through this long bore. As always,
Angelina Jolie looks slutty and proves what an untalented actress she is.
All in all, all the pretty things in Original Sin can't make my eyes to stay continuously open.
The Oscar (1966)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
5/24
5/24:
Despite the ripped-off introduction, The Oscar is much better than All About Eve.
Stephen Boyd has done a great job, and that's exactly why he was chosen to play Messala in
Ben-Hur. I had wondered who the story was based on and thought of Tony Curtis the most. His
career arc felt similar to what happened in the film. Tony Curtis achieved tremendous success during the 50's, having been
Oscar-nominated in 1958, but his popularity faded away dramatically which began in 1960. He married a blond-haired woman named
Janet Leigh of Psycho fame, and they divorced in 1962. Afterwards, Tony Curtis was relegated
to tons of TV work with a throwaway role in some forgettable bad movie here and there.
People have mocked The Oscar because of its high campness, but the whole thing is honestly great. The writing is terrific and
not talky like the dreadful script of All About Eve. There are decent supporting performances
especially by Milton Berle and Elke Sommer, and everything looks outstanding. The opening shot is of an actual Academy Awards
ceremony that took place in 1965, and it's nice to see many Hollywood luminaries, most especially Edith Head who was responsible
for costume design in countless films.
If there's a negative, it's Tony Bennett's awful debut performance. He should've taken some acting lessons first, but to his
credit, he never did another film outside of cameos by being himself. Historically speaking, winning an Oscar isn't always everything.
Sure, a few big-time projects will come their way for the time being, but it'll be over before they know it. Those who had been
affected by the bug are Adrien Brody, Elizabeth Taylor (after her second win), Mira Sorvino, Hattie McDaniel, Robert Donat, Paul Lukas,
and Gloria Grahame, among others.
All in all, the critics ripped The Oscar apart because they didn't want to admit the truth that many A-list thespians
weren't any different from Frankie Fane and that this was how Hollywood operated for real.
Oscar (1991)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
7/15
7/15:
I know a lot of people hate Oscar, but honestly, it's a well-done movie with great-looking 30's
costumes, cars, and interiors.
It starts off slowly with cringeworthy wisecracks. But as time passes, the movie has grown on me, and it gets better during
the second half. I've found myself liking the story and the multiple crazy coincidences all in one day. Hence, Oscar,
as a theatrical picture rather than a play, is clever, especially the quick cutscenes of characters' reactions and the black
bags as a plot device. So is the title of the film which serves as an indirect spark for the juggling of many incidents.
Also, I have to say there's a great deal of consistency in the performances by the cast. They're all outstanding. I'm
surprised at the perfect delivery and timing of comedy primarily through teamwork. Sylvester Stallone selected a risky project
which paid off well, regardless of the box-office outcome, because it gave another dimension to his acting range.
Probably the best of the show, and I can't believe I'm saying this, is Tim Curry. His character is an inspiration
from Rex Harrison's Professor Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady. He makes himself endearing
and interesting that I ended up rooting for him to get the girl. Not enough credit is given to Vincent Spano who takes up a lot
of screen time. I've never thought much of him in past films, but he's good here. I'm left impressed with his performance
as the catalyst to get the ball rolling.
All in all, regardless of the fact that Oscar is more of a movie for kids than adults, it's fun to watch.
The Osterman Weekend (1983)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
10/19
10/19:
The Osterman Weekend is the final dated, senseless film of Sam Peckpinpah's career, and rightfully so.
I'll say the last good picture he directed was Junior Bonner. Afterwards, it's been
downhill from the painfully mediocre The Getaway to the laughably bad
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia to the completely awful
The Killer Elite to the more painfully mediocre
Cross of Iron to the ineffably confusing
The Osterman Weekend which features a plot with more holes than a pound of Swiss cheese.
Every one of them has been sophomoric that's laden with the famous slo-mo effect which becomes increasingly pointless
and over the top, failing to add anything to the overall story. Two prime examples are the action sequences in
The Osterman Weekend: the kidnapping of John Tanner's wife and son and the murder attempts by the pool area.
By name, the cast is outstanding: Rutger Hauer, John Hurt (it's Nineteen Eighty-Four
all over again for him), Craig T. Nelson (fake glued-on mustache), Dennis Hopper, Chris Sarandon (worst sex scene ever), and
Burt Lancaster (already redundant after Scorpio). How can anyone fail with them? Well, Sam
Peckinpah just did...big fucking time.
Instead of meaty roles, these guys are rendered impotent, bringing no value to the table, and are crushed by the lifeless
screenplay. The weak Big Chill-like outing is among the sad disappointments. Meg Foster
is miscast because she has the most distracting blue eyes I've ever seen on screen when Rutger Hauer's eyes will suffice.
How can the CIA killers with hundreds of hours of training in markmanship miss John Tanner and Bernard Osterman completely
when they're at the small kidney-shaped pool? It's impossible given the infinite ammo and time. Osterman is
shot multiple times in the torso but manages to survive the incident with so much a limp.
The whole surveillance setup is terrible and serves as a dead giveaway, just like Tanner's facial appearance, when it comes to
what's happening at the house. If anyone, preferably Chris Sarandon, bothered to put in a modicum of effort by looking at the
red light in the dark, he'll be prompted to say, "What the hell is that?" The camera work as shown at the end is
impossible in terms of capturing people's actions; therefore, the editing had to be done beforehand.
All in all, it was a mistake to give Sam Peckinpah one last stab at filmmaking for his "comeback" attempt through
The Osterman Weekend.
Othello (1995)
Rate:
1
Viewed:
12/12
12/12:
I'm going to say it straight up: the works of William Shakespeare as exactly written are unfilmable.
The English language has improved a lot over time to the point where people can say things clearly that are instantly
comprehensible to the listeners' ears wihout requiring too much effort. But the words put together by Shakespeare to flow
naturally isn't possible through modern acting. There's always a feeling of tripping, pausing, and/or puzzlement
in the minds of thespians. Hence, it's at once hard and boring to watch these films, and Othello is one of them.
Only if the language can be made more clear, the struggling readers, who are forced by their dreadful high school English teachers,
will finally understand what the hell it is Shakespeare was talking about. But no...they have to retort to footnotes,
Cliff's notes, and/or paid-off tutors to do the class for them, so they can move on with their lives and hope to never
touch his stuff again.
Now, let's take a look at Othello. The biggest struggle is the language. The first thing one will say is: "What the
fuck is going on?" Well, I'm on everybody's side. It gets progressively worse thereafter because the entire film is
going to be like that. Because I've seen over two thousand movies, Othello is as bad as it gets. Look at any great film: the
players are natural through their actions as they speak. But not in this. Speaking is a challenge for everybody as
there's a clear detachment going on. Nobody is able to focus on anything but the words.
Hence, acting has become a chore for many in the ensemble. The challenge of working with the Shakespearean language
takes everything away from the plot. None of the characters is real to me. On the contrary, I saw O,
the teenage makeover version of Othello, and was impressed with how it was done. The acting felt more believable and
realistic, and the story was almost, more or less, the same as the original. So, why did the film work better? They made it
modern and relatable! It's simple as that.
All in all, Othello is painful to sit through.
The Other (1972)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
5/21
5/21:
No matter how hard I try, I can't get into The Other.
To pinpoint the problem, it's the kid who dominates the screen in a vacuum almost 100% of the time which is highly unusual.
For the life of me, I can't understand why the pitchfork in the hay was pointed in the wrong direction. Who does that?
For the most part, The Other is the kind of movie that the book has to be read first before proceeding to see it.
Even Tom Tryon, the author who wrote it and was the leading actor in The Cardinal, didn't
like the film. After I was done, I checked out the trailer. Now, I can see why people would be misled because it's full of the
best parts which are mostly from the last ten minutes. And no, the ending isn't enough to save the film as a whole. The reality
is I got stuck with a dull drama with long stretches of stagy dialogue and acting.
Also, I wondered what happened to the kid and his twin brother. To my surprise, Chris Udvarnoky, who plays Niles Perry, died
eleven years ago at age 49 from polycystic kidney disease. Martin is still alive. They both never acted before or after
The Other was made. On the other hand, John Ritter made an early on-screen appearance, looking exactly the same
even years later. He also passed away from an aortic dissection in 2003.
All in all, the filmmakers forgot to make the "horror" part more prominent and thus long-lasting in The Other.
Our Man Flint (1966)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
6/14
6/14:
Our Man Flint is a gross picture that shamelessly rips off the formula for James Bond pictures.
Somehow, I think the famed franchise should've had it patented back then to prevent copycats. Well, Our Man Flint
is like watching a James Bond picture all over again only it's tackier, stupider, and more pointless. The oddest
part is it's meant to be a parody only that there are no laughs coming from me.
James Coburn as Derek Flint is obnoxious, annoying, unlikable, and full of conceit. As a matter of fact, I don't think he
should've had a leading role in any movie because he's at best a supporting actor and a bad one at that. Similar to all
James Bond pictures, there's blatant sexism going on in Our Man Flint that I find to be insulting. Obviously, women
are nothing more than sex objects. And Derek Flint is the biggest practitioner of polygamy I've seen in movies. Is he trying
to build his own personal harem?
Remember when Derek Flint ran into the middle of the smoky club and proceeded to shoot his gun in the air. Why does it
make a sound when it's equipped with a silencer? Later, Derek is trapped inside of a combination safe, yet he can breathe
and there's a light bulb inside? Similarly, at the end, five women are placed in separate snare drums and they can
still breathe inside? How do the military personnel know there are people in them?
After Derek and the five women are rescued from the island, what happened to the rest of the women? I guess they were villains
after all? If Derek requires a specific suit which contains a cigarette lighter to induce a deus ex machina and he
doesn't have it on anymore after being on the island, then the lighter trick can't performed anymore, correct? The huge boulder
rock that fell atop a woman's head has zero effect on her. I didn't know that women took showers with their bikinis on.
What's Lee J. Cobb doing in this? How did he go from being an important actor in
On the Waterfront and 12 Angry Men to a rubbish
throwaway caricature in twelve years' time? The guy who plays the semi arch-villain looks
like Michael Caine's older brother. By the way, the movie poster looks silly as it's out of proportion,
especially James Coburn's legs and the female's breasts on the left of him.
All in all, Our Man Flint is a boring, dated, and pretentious spy "spoof."
Our Time Is Up (2004)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
6/07
6/07:
Our Time Is Up is a well-made short film but offers nothing new because it's been done countless times.
A good supporting actor in his own right, Kevin Pollack lends his hand for such a small project which helps raise the
quality of the material. As for the direction of the plot, I had something else in mind, but it didn't happen that way.
So, I guess banality has won out by the end of the day.
All in all, Our Time Is Up says nothing new.
Out for Justice (1991)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
11/02, 3/04, 12/05, 1/14, 1/20
12/05:
Because of Steven Seagal, Out for Justice is an entertaining kick-ass picture.
He's fascinating to watch. As far as the story goes, it's well-done, focusing on the conflict between Gino and Richie.
Undoubtedly, the best line of the film is "Anybody seen Richie?" with a shot of Steven Seagal expressing his displeasure after
learning nobody has.
All in all, Out for Justice is one of these films that can be seen countless times.
1/14:
I can watch Out for Justice repeatedly and never get tired of it.
Why? It's because Steven Seagal is kicking asses all over the place. The "Anybody seen Richie?" line is still a classic, and
the bar fight scene should be studied and analyzed in film schools across the country. Typically, at the end of most
action-adventure pictures, I have to suffer from watching a long, protracted mano a mano fight. But not in
Out for Justice. Gino gives Richie the most one-sided beatdown I've ever seen.
All in all, Out for Justice is a Steven Seagal classic.
1/20:
"Anybody seen Richie? I'm gonna keep coming back until somebody remembers seeing Richie."
To top it off is the look of Gino's displeasure when he gets no answer after beating up everybody in the pool hall for the
instant Steven Seagal classic Out for Justice. Recapturing the same feel, he smartly went back to Warner Bros. after
completing Marked for Death for 20th Century Fox.
The story is simple: Gino is looking for Richie Madano all over Brooklyn so he can kill him. Of all the films I've seen,
Out for Justice has the best and the funniest one-sided beatdown which includes Richie getting smacked in the head
with an iron skillet before being stabbed in the forehead with a corkscrew.
All in all, Out for Justice is pure entertainment.
Out of Africa (1985)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
7/17
6/17:
When I think of Africa, two things that immediately come to my mind are: AIDS and big-game hunting.
Out of Africa has both except it's syphilis instead of AIDS. Long, superficial, episodic, detached, and quite frankly
boring, Out of Africa is the worst Best Picture Winner of the 80's. There's no question about it. I've seen every
Best Picture from 1966 to 2000 except for this one until now. Hence, it's not a big surprise why I managed to avoid
Out of Africa for thirty-two years. That's because the movie never looked interesting enough to compel me to pick it up.
I'll say one thing: Out of Africa deserved the Oscar for Best Cinematography. It's simply unbeatable,
notwithstanding the use of rear projection for several fake biplane shots. But...beautiful scenery alone does not make a great
picture. It just never works. What I saw is another The English Patient which is
almost the worst Best Picture Winner of the 90's, but I have to give the nod to
Shakespeare in Love. I don't care about the characters. They are so
unmemorable that I can't remember their names or what they look like. Nobody ages for a day over twenty years.
Frequently passionless, Meryl Streep is so fake that a woman, as well-read as her character is supposed to be, can't
be bothered with learning Swahili during her stay in Kenya. She doesn't speak one word of Danish, either. Already too old
for the role, Robert Redford, a pure-blooded American, is miscast as her British aristocratic love
interest. His character comes and goes whenever he damn well pleases. When it was announced he had passed away, it's
a "who cares?" moment that's followed by "just finish the damn movie already." I don't know how Robert Redford's
character, with his hair looking golden and perfect every single time, managed to keep his clothes
well-pressed. Was there an L.L.Bean store somewhere in Africa?
Two things I appreciate are the apparent lack of animal killing and the theme of white
supremacy. For a long while, I was critical if the filmmakers were going to show any big-game hunting, and they did
but...only in self-defense. Nice. So, that's how they managed to avoid the controversy because we can't have Robert
Redford looking bad. Moving on to the next one...
When the cook asked Memsahib if he could go with her to Denmark, she replied, "You would not like it there. You must
trust me about this." In other words, he's black and therefore not welcome in a country that's full of white people.
I got it...very crystal clear. Having said this, I can't imagine the people of color relating to the film.
By the way, the real Karen Blixen was a racist person who often compared black Africans to animals. She was described by her
contemporaries as somewhat odd and out of touch with reality which is like saying she was a "morally bankrupt white European
aristocrat." Karen Blixen's lifelong bouts with syphilis were rumored to be fabricated, and when she died, it was due to
anorexia nervosa.
And oh...yes, poor Memsahib lost everything. Her coffee plantation went up in flames. As a consequence, she decided to leave
Africa and never return again. That's funny because the natives seem happy in the film, being able to make do without
material things. Ah, it must be nice for Karen to have money and feel the luxury of being next to warm fire in her
expensive home. That brings up an important question: why the fuck do I have to care about any of the white characters in
Out of Africa? Exactly. There you have it, ladies and gentlemen: the worst Best Picture Winner of the 80's!
All in all, Out of Patience is more like it.
Out of Sight (1998)
Rate:
5
Viewed:
3/05, 4/16
4/16:
It's interesting that, the last time I saw Out of Sight, I gave it a '5,' and after seeing it again, my rating
has remained unchanged despite not remembering much.
The biggest thing it has going is the chemistry between George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez. However, let's be real: they're
both too good-looking for the movie to fail. That's why they are bona fide Hollywood stars.
What I hate the most is the supporting cast. Don Cheadle is awful and unconvincing; in fact, he's never been a good actor. Put him in
the same room with Dennis Farina, and Dennis will make him his bitch within minutes. In fact, I'll pay money to see him
do that. Steve Zahn is too corny to appear in a Steven Soderbergh film. Luis Guzmán, Ving Rhames, and Michael Keaton are
wasted while I didn't recognize Albert Brooks and Nancy Allen.
The other aspect I hate is the attempt to create a style. It doesn't work which feels like a cheap Tarantino rip-off.
That's why I prefer Sex, Lies, and Videotape and
The Limey; they were better and cooler films, never feeling
too Hollywood for a second. In other words, they're true Soderbergh pictures. At times, the cinematography is weak while the
plot is ordinary and boring, hence the long running length.
All in all, Out of Sight is the film Steven Soderbergh began to sell himself out to Hollywood.
Out of the Past (1947)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
8/06, 2/24
8/06:
Everything was working out perfectly in Out of the Past until the final thirty minutes or so which caused it to crumble.
It was a perfect noir piece. Just a shame. It showed tautness before things got loose, losing
sight of the objective. As a result, the ending is bland, predictable, and disappointing.
Out of the Past feels exactly like Casablanca: great writing, vintage dialogue,
swift acting, delicious subtlety, and perfect characters. Robert Mitchum, Kirk Douglas, and Jane Greer are excellent.
Admittedly, I've never been a Robert Mitchum fan, but this one almost has me converted.
All in all, Out of the Past is a "should've been."
2/24:
You've got to hand it to Robert Mitchum: nobody was better than him, of course, with the exception of Humphrey Bogart.
It's a matter of style. Both are unique and perfect for film noir. Well, I gave Out of the Past another chance
and now raise my rating from '5' to '7'. It's still the same issue: that convoluted second half. What a mistake. The flashback
technique was perfect as Geoffrey Homes' writing came off so well that's suitable to Robert Mitchum's taste. As soon as it's over,
there went the film. It started getting more and more complicated for no reason. I therefore got lost for good. Of course, you
could ask Robert Mitchum about it, and true to form, he'll nonchalantly say, "Two or three pages were lost in the mimeo
department."
To fix the issue, I would've stayed with the flashback longer in order to deepen the chemistry between Robert
Mitchum and Jane Greer. After getting out of it, the denouement could be short with a few setups. That's good enough for
a film noir right there. There's no need to complicate matters any further. As the femme fatale, Kathie Moffat is
certainly bad to the bone. By the way, when the deaf mute said yes to Ann at the end, I'm quite sure he didn't understand the
question.
All in all, Out of the Past has all the right elements from the get-go only to be handled so badly during the
second half.
Out of Time (2003)
Rate:
4
Viewed:
3/04, 2/15
2/15:
Carl Franklin and Denzel Washington team up for another mystery thriller in Out of Time.
Although Denzel Washington is at his best as Chief of Police Matthias which is similar to what he took on in
The Mighty Quinn, everybody else, except for John Billingsley who plays Chae, is
underwhelming. It's Eva Mendes and Dean Cain who have no business being in the film.
Eva Mendes has nonexistent acting talent, shows zero credibility as a detective, fails to demonstrate any modicum of chemistry with
Denzel Washington, and acts like a total stranger for a wife. In short, she's a Latin bimbo who's merely there for eye candy. Dean Cain,
who sports the ugliest looking goatee I've seen, is at best a TV actor.
As for the story which focuses on complications that arise from the insurance fraud scheme, Matthias' handling of the
case is 100% illegal which involves evidence tampering. That's why it's difficult to sympathize with him because he's
the one who started the mess and is therefore guilty. Furthermore, it's hard to believe Matthias will get away with
it by the time the prosecution's office has finished gathering the evidence and putting the theory together.
As soon as the main instigator of the insurance fraud is revealed, the film immediately loses credibility because Matthias
is a good-looking guy and she's a good-looking woman; it makes no sense for her to go that far. On the other
hand, no reasons are proffered as to what led to the imminent divorce between Matthias and his wife. Was he unfaithful to
her? I'll never know.
Meanwhile, the Florida cinematography is nice and tasteful. It makes me want to visit or perhaps move to there. That
should've been utilized more to give the film a much needed noir ambience just like what it did for
Body Heat and Wild Things.
All in all, Denzel Washington may want to rethink about which film to spend time on and who to work with because his talent
is too good to waste.
Outbreak (1995)
Rate:
5
Viewed:
1/17
1/17:
Outbreak is a mix of nice and bad.
The virus outbreak and the biological warfare are the most fascinating aspects. It reminds me of The Hot Zone which was
written by Richard Preston. In fact, some of the stuff used in the film were borrowed from the book.
Unfortunately, the rest of the show is mostly mumbo jumbo about the dangers of military interference and its interest
in developing bio-weapons. That's so old and tired. If it's cut out and the first part is focused on more,
Outbreak will be a much better film.
Speaking of crazy, who can believe a helicopter is capable of going from a faraway town to San Francisco and then
to a ship in the Pacific Ocean and back to the city before returning to the original town? A single tank lasts
between 200 and 300 miles. I doubt the guys know where to fill up because the fuel has to be specialized.
Honestly, I'll never take off the mask anytime whenever the virus hits a town. How the characters did it
several times is plain careless. They should've been immediately infected. Of course, the U.S.'s message to anything
that serious is to bomb the hell out of it and sweep the whole thing under the rug. It's very nice stuff.
Like I will believe, the monkey is easily captured after being set loose in the woods somewhere in California, and the
army guys manage to grab ahold of it just in time. By the way, capuchin monkeys don't come from Africa but Central and South
America. On the other hand, not everybody watches the news; hence, the woman who happened to see the special bulletin report
at the right time is pure bullshit.
Dustin Hoffman does a good job, and Cuba Gooding, Jr., isn't bad, either. Kevin Spacey and Morgan Freeman are okay. Donald
Sutherland is typecast and thus shouldn't be in the film. The worst part is Rene Russo. She's annoying and a terrible
actress. Of course, her character was going to survive after being infected with the Motaba virus. In fact, I wanted
her to suffer first and then die.
All in all, Outbreak had a workable idea going, but everybody managed to screw it up by adding a lot of unnecessary
stuff.
Outland (1981)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
6/16
6/16:
The trouble with Peter Hyams is he's not good at capturing my attention.
Most of his films are bland, and they always have a poor flow. Peter Hyams almost makes Outland work, but as
soon as the two hired killers come aboard at the space station, he has lost me. The rest of the film is badly edited. Obviously,
it's all about riding the wave that was set off by Alien and
Blade Runner by copying off their styles.
On the other hand, Sean Connery gives a good, solid performance. I like him this way, and he's fun to watch. Interestingly, I
didn't see any trace of dollar signs in Sean Connery's eyes, so he took this one seriously, having missed out on his chance to
appear in Chariots of Fire because Outland went over schedule. At the same time,
Peter Boyle is at his cool villainous best.
There are a lot of similarities between this and Fred Zinnemann's High Noon. What I like
the most about the former is the neo-noir look that's highlighted by the sharp in/exterior visuals of the space station.
The absence of aliens is helpful, too, because I didn't feel like seeing them.
All in all, had Peter Hyams done a better job with the climax, Outland would've been rated higher because
a lot of parts were succeeding.
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
Rate:
5
Viewed:
3/06
3/06:
The Outlaw Josey Wales is a fair-looking Western that's directed by Clint Eastwood.
It's also mundane and routine as far as the storytelling goes. In other words, if I've seen one, I've seen them all.
All in all, Unforgiven, Clint Eastwood's magnum opus for the Western genre, is
everything that The Outlaw Josey Wales is not.
The Outsiders (1983)
Rate:
2
Viewed:
12/04, 5/06, 7/13
5/06:
The Outsiders is one of the corniest movies I've ever seen.
What saves it from being rated '1' is Matt Dillon's adorable Oscar-worthy performance as Dallas Winston. Hammy acting,
nonsensical plot, and pure cheesiness dominate the film from start to finish. The monumental fight at the end turns out
to be a big blah because the rain, all of a sudden, starts pouring. It's such a slog to watch.
I always feel a sharp cringe whenever Ralph Macchio or C. Thomas Howell appears, but seeing them both in the same scene is
too much for me to take. Matt Dillon saying the most famous line of the film, "Let's do it for Johnny, man. We'll do it
for Johnny!" still leaves me cracking up. What a hysterical moment. Yet I admit he's perfect for the movie, having starred
in three S.E. Hinton pictures with the other two being
Rumble Fish and Tex.
All in all, a film that's unintentionally full of strong homosexual vibes, The Outsiders is cringeworthy.
7/13:
Having read the book version of The Outsiders, I actually like it more than the movie.
Of course, I visualized all of the characters through the actors except for Sodapop whom I thought more of Emilio Estevez. Rob
Lowe didn't match anyone, and Tom Cruise seemed miscast. Becoming clear for me to see why the film struck a negative
chord with the readers, it only highlighted the pivotal points of the book.
As bad as the movie is, the hammy acting and the high amount of cheesiness are too much. Once again, Matt Dillon
shines, making me forget about the negatives. He, as Dallas Winston, is the only one capable of expressing his
feelings like a human being, making for an endearing character.
All in all, the only reason to see The Outsiders is to appreciate Matt Dillon's Oscar-worthy performance.
Over the Edge (1979)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
1/20
1/20:
Matt Dillon was fourteen years old when he made his screen debut in Over the Edge, a familiar picture that ran
on HBO a lot during the 80's.
The legend is Matt Dillon didn't actually want or expect to be cast in the movie but only auditioned so he could skip
school. Imagine how many great films would've been lost if he wasn't discovered.
Now, there's no question of Matt Dillon's talent despite his zero acting experience. He's largely the reason why
the film sees the light of day for anyone curious enough to go that far back in his career. Screenwriter Tim Hunter will
direct his first film Tex with Matt Dillon in the leading role and repeat the experience of
Over the Edge for River's Edge.
Taking advantage of high realism, the story works well although the ending is a bit extreme, hence the movie title.
It's a case of kids versus authority, and to me, the obvious culprit is lack of time the parents have for children.
Had they worked less, the relationship with their kids might improve more. Then again, to make ends meet, they need to work,
but living standards play a big deal. Of course, there are more toys, electronic and otherwise, today than ever before. I can
understand life was boring for the kids back then since I lived through it, so their high indulgence of drugs and alcohol
isn't a surprise.
All in all, Richard Linklater sure ripped off the style of Over the Edge to make a pseudo 70's picture called
Dazed and Confused.
Over the Top (1987)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
11/03, 7/05, 6/06, 6/08, 12/15, 3/22
7/05:
Over the Top is a unique testosterone-fueled extravaganza where machismo bleeds everywhere in the world
of arm wrestling.
It's also an ultimate Stallone picture. Sylvester gives a Rocky-like performance as his character
has a million-to-one shot to be an Arm Wrestling World Champion.
All in all, Over the Top is a top ten Stallone picture.
6/06:
Forget the kid, and forget the sob story.
The arm wrestling is where the action is in Over the Top. "You got guys from M.I.T., and you got guys who can't
spell M.I.T." reads the tagline of the film's poster. There's absolutely nothing like it. Pure testosterone bleeds
everywhere as arm wrestlers eat cigars, drink motor oil, and trash-talk and are backed by pounds of muscle, intense
mentality, and do-or-die attitudes.
All in all, Over the Top is the best arm wrestling film ever filmed, period.
6/08:
Over the Top is hands down the best arm wrestling film ever made.
Of course, it's the only one there is as far as I know. The sob story between the kid and his father has to go; it just
sucks and takes away what the movie is all about. Instead, it's the intensity and ferocity shown by the adrenaline-junkie
arm wrestlers that's absolutely fantastic and unbelievable to watch.
Some of the highlights are: John Grizzly drinking motor oil and eating a smoking cigar and Bull Hurley staring
down at everybody with his piercing eyes. I love the double personality of each character. On one hand, he's all sky-high
pumped up before the match yet is calm and lucid during interviews. It's very fascinating stuff.
All in all, the arm wrestling action is the best part of Over the Top.
12/15:
Over the Top is the perfect vehicle for Sylvester Stallone.
There's nothing like it. The high testosterone-filled arm wrestling scenes are still entertaining. It's brilliant stuff.
All in all, you've got to love the scene of John Grizzly drinking Valvoline motor oil.
3/22:
Over the Top only works for the arm wrestling scenes, and they alone are the reason to watch the film over and over.
Forget everything else; they mean nothing. Playing a spoiled, conceited character whose favor will swing to his dad's only if
there's something in it for him, David Mendenhall gets my vote as the Worst Supporting Actor of 1987. He even looks like Demi
Moore's child. I give Sylvester Stallone props for putting up with him although there were times I would've punched the kid in
the face.
The most memorable characters are the arm wrestlers with some of them real including one who literally broke
his arm during a match. While the testosterone-fueled atmosphere is a can't-beat, the film keeps confusing me when it comes
to Stallone's character's last name; is it Hawk or Hawks? They keep saying it's a "double-elimination tournament" a
million of times, but Bull Hurley lost once and is already out?
All in all, Over the Top is a Stallone classic.
Overboard (1987)
Rate:
5
Viewed:
3/06
3/06:
Overboard is an average comedy picture despite the egregious message.
The most realistic outcome will be Kurt Russell's character getting arrested for kidnapping, among other felony offenses.
Because of his looks, he gets off the hook. So, to somewhat enjoy the film is to suspend my disbelief.
More of a drama than a comedy, Overboard has nice pace while it tells an ingenious story.
The performances by Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn are good, but their jokes backfire more often than not.
All in all, with an improved script, Overboard could be better.
Over-Exposed (1956)
Rate:
7
Viewed:
6/24
6/24:
After seeing Over-Exposed, it's clear that Cleo Moore could act and had more substance than Marilyn Monroe.
What's surprising is it's her penultimate film. She would do one more in 1957 before exiting Hollywood for
good. What the heck happened? Cleo Moore was just getting better. On the other hand, this is the earliest I've ever seen for
Richard Crenna. Since then, he had been acting virtually the same, right down to his lower jaw and neck.
Over-Exposed features a topic that's not touched that much in cinema: a career in photography. Yeah, there isn't a
story for the longest time, let alone film noir. The second half is when the movie begins to falter greatly before
recovering as soon as Mrs. Payton Grange drops dead while dancing. There's a bit of Walter Winchell thing going on
that'll be blown up more in Sweet Smell of Success the following year.
By the way, it's curious to hear the name of Lila Crane. The character began with Robert Bloch when he authored the 1959 novel
Psycho, and she's Marion Crane's sister. Two decades later, John Carpenter took Lila's
married name Loomis for Donald Pleasence's character. As far as I know, Cleo Moore is the original Lila Crane.
All in all, Cleo Moore is the single reason why Over-Exposed has a pulse.
The Ox-Bow Incident (1942)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
8/06, 5/19
8/06:
Short and simple, The Ox-Bow Incident is among the best movies of 1942.
The biggest strength lies in the story. Hitting right at the core for the need of a properly administered criminal justice
system, the injustice shown in the film is daring. What makes it memorable is how involving and engrossing the issue is. The
acting is outstanding, and most of the credit goes to William A. Wellman for his masterly direction.
All in all, The Ox-Bow Incident hits the truth of what mob injustice is about.
5/19:
Fritz Lang couldn't have pulled this off without being hokey.
The Ox-Bow Incident is mob injustice at its finest. Stupid white men get together, think they possess all the
facts, and go kill others only to find out later they've been dead wrong by failing to gather evidence.
Calling the movie one of his favorites along with The Grapes of Wrath and
12 Angry Men, Henry Fonda is great.
Everybody else is also the same, but the story is much bigger than all of them, successfully turning The Ox-Bow Incident
into a message film. As nice as the deceased man's letter is, it's too good and thus not believable.
All in all, The Ox-Bow Incident illustrates why a properly administered criminal justice system is necessary.