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Reviews
The Firm (1993)
The movie was just as good as the book and had great acting.
This movie was very good. I saw it after reading the book and was not disappointed. Tom Cruise had a decent performance, but I felt the performances of Gene Hackman, Hal Holbrook, and Wilford Brimley were especially great and put this film above most similar movies.
Brimley has never to my knowledge had a role similar to this before and he was excellent. I had not really been impressed with his acting but in this movie I definitely was.
The suspense flowed naturally and never seemed forced just to fill time. The music score was very good. The variety of settings (first Cambridge, MA, then Memphis, TN, then the Caribbean) made it more interesting, too.
I have seen it twice..once on the big screen and once on video. The book was also very good.
American Dream (1990)
Always think of this doc when I see a Hormel product at the store.
I definitely liked this documentary. I usually think of it a little when I see a Hormel product at the grocery store. It was impressively done and it really has an authentic feel to it. For some reason I have not yet seen Harlan County USA, but will certainly do so sometime this year.
I have seen this twice and it is definitely worth more than one viewing. While the tone starts as pro-union, there seems to be at least some hints about their limitations as well later in the film. I spent my childhood in a town nearly 100 miles north of Austin and the film made me appreciative that my father had access to more opportunities when he got laid off (we were much closer to the Minneapolis region than Austin). I could feel for the families of those in Austin during this film as it was primarily a one company town at that time and for all I know it may still be the case.
Documentaries work best when there is a focus on "real" people rather than well known celebrities IMO. This is evidence of that and I recommend this film.
Spellbinder (1988)
Creepy, occult suspense movie that is better than expected.
The 80's were full of horror sequels that I really did not like for the most part. That was the first good thing about the movie I liked (before even viewing!). I still did not expect too much, just something to enjoy for 90 minutes. However, this was a well done movie and while I would not rate it at the level of Fatal Attraction (also a late 80's movie suspense movie), it was enjoyable and there were some very good performances. Tim Daly, Kelly Preston and Rick Rossovich all seemed right for their roles. It was Audra Lindley who had a very good performance and gave it that something extra it needed to be truly creepy and suspenseful. The setting is modern LA where Daly works and most of the occult scenes are set in coastal areas (possibly near Malibu) and occur in the evening. The ending is very well done, but I won't spoil it for you. Like most good suspense movies, watch this one with the lights out. Enjoy!
Phantasm (1979)
Unpredictable and under-rated cult classic suspense movie.
If you want your suspense/horror movies to be "by the numbers" and have everything neatly explained, you might not appreciate this film as much as I did. It really keeps you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end and there are some laughs along the way as well! If you get a chance to see this on a large movie screen, I strongly recommend it. I do not believe they play it in too many places any more except at horror film festivals. My rating for this movie at the theater improves to "9" because the larger screen is better for the many suspense scenes and especially the silver sphere scenes. You also get the reactions of the other viewers and that made it special the first time I viewed it. It was shown as a double feature with Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. Those were the days! Thankfully with the large flat screen TV's, it makes for better home viewing on DVD than back in the 80's and 90's.
Director Don Coscarelli has a great knack for timing throughout this movie. He throws a lot at you, too. Some of it seems to make sense and some does not. That is what makes it so special. Angus Scrimm as a tall sinister funeral director is fantastic. Reggie Bannister adds great comic relief as an ice cream truck salesman. He has some of the funniest dialog in the movie. If you are the type that think there should be zero humor in a suspense movie, downgrade this to a "7", but I disagree.
The main protagonist is a thirteen year old child named Jody played by Michael Baldwin and he does a great job. His older brother is always trying to keep him out of mischief and the scenes between them are great.
Finally, there are supernatural and special effects features that are fascinating and well done considering it was 1979. They enhance the plot rather than overwhelm it.
The music soundtrack is excellent and appropriately spooky, too!
The Breakfast Club (1985)
A gem made when the Brat Pack had passion for acting.
When I first started watching this movie about five students (each a different type) spending a Saturday in detention, I was thinking this won't be nearly as good as Fast Times at Ridgemont High. It is all taking place in the school library and Fast Times had so many multiple settings. I ended up liking it slightly better (both were very good).
This movie starred many members of a group known as the Brat Pack in 1985. It was early in most of their acting careers and you could tell their passion for acting was very high. I think it was Anthony Michael Hall's first film and he delivered a great performance. There were some movies in the late '80's/early 90's that had performances that were not as good by some of these actors. I usually check the date on a Brat Pack movie...early to mid '80's and the odds are it was good. Late '80's to early '90's and it is less likely.
The actor that played the disciplinarian that supervised them and made threats to have them spend more Saturdays there was perfect for his role. His conflict with Judd Nelson's character was very well acted by both actors. There was a solid rock music soundtrack as well. It shows how these students clash at first and then slowly realize that it will be a very long day if they do not try to achieve a small measure of civility.
The first part of the movie shows a dysfunctional environment that then transforms to at least some respect among the students. It reminded me of the first time I had jury duty(and that was with older adults..albeit 12 people instead of five. Ha!).
There is also a romantic connection that perhaps was a bit forced and not plausible, but this was common in the eighties. Most of us knew people that were very similar to some of these students in high school and the performances are very good or better with some good messages provided. It is about 60% drama and 40% comedy.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
Great HS comedy still beats most of today's HS movies.
This movie was made thirty years ago and still is one of my favorite high school comedies. I was 22 years old when it was made, so I may be a little biased (having graduated HS only four years prior). I have seen it several times and it is definitely better than most of today's high school movies.
Like any high school movie there were a few scenes that were far fetched and others that were more realistic.
The performances were very good and in a few cases off the charts. Sean Penn, Phoebe Cates and Judge Reinhold were excellent. The younger actors were great, but the older performers like Ray Walston as a teacher were excellent, too. Even though it is funny, about a third of the movie is drama and those moments are well acted, too. They involve some serious decisions that have to be made by some of the characters.
Another reason to view the film is the music soundtrack. It is excellent. It is quality rock music. Thank goodness it was made in 1982 instead of 1977. Otherwise, it might have had a lot of disco music.(What a difference five years makes!)