rjray Reviews

Igor (2008)

A fun little film, not the best in its genre but still worth watching

[8/10 · 20 September 2008]

As a fan of CG animation and cheesy horror, I was really looking forward to this one. It wasn't as good as I had hoped, and not nearly as good as it *could* have been, given the talent. But the premise was nicely original, and the actors put in some good performances. Steve Buscemi steals almost every scene he's in, and Eddie Izzard was really good. Jennifer Coolidge was another standout, as was Sean Hayes. I think Cusack made a very funny character, certainly more fun to watch than the Disney lead in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. The animation style is very reminiscent of The Nightmare Before Christmas and The Corpse Bride. Overall, I really enjoyed it. It was a nice break from the steady diet of comic book films and action films I've had this summer.

Towelhead (2007)

Don't pre-judge

[12 September 2008]

Don't be fooled by the people commenting here on how racist, hateful, pro-Israeli, etc., this movie supposedly is. If you haven't read the book, you don't know anything about what the movie is going to be. I read the book after hearing Alicia Erian read an excerpt from it at an event in San Francisco. I look forward to the movie, and I recommend people who think it's going to promote any sort of hate or intolerance should either read the book or wait until they can talk to someone who's actually SEEN the movie, before posting silly comments about how this movie is pro-Israeli propaganda. Otherwise, your arguments begin to look like their only purpose is to just baselessly attack the film and/or the book's author.

Tombstone (1993)

The Best of my Least-Favorite Genre

[10/10 · 30 July 2002]

I actually can barely stand westerns. Maybe because I was raised in the midwest, in the same town as the Cowboy Hall of Fame. Call it over-exposure.

But, this is one of the finest movies I have ever seen, in any genre. The cast is what makes this movie stand so far above the rest. The dialog, the scenery are all first-rate. This is the only western I own on DVD, and I pre-ordered it when it was scheduled to be released. Whether you are a long-time fan of westerns or a more of a comedy or action fan like myself, you really will enjoy this movie if you give it a spin.

Common Ground (2000 TV Movie)

An honest, sometimes unforgiving look at homophobia over three generations.

[10/10 · 29 January 2000]

This movie is a powerful portrayal of gay life and homophobia in small-town America, in this case Homer, Connecticut. Narrated through all three vignettes by Eric Stoltz's character, the character is 6 or so in "1954" when a young woman (Brittany Murphy) returns from the Navy with a Section 8 discharge for "deviant sexual behavior". In "1974", Stoltz is a fresh-from-Vietnam veteran tending grounds at the town war memorial at a time when the high school's star swimmer (Johnathan Taylor Thomas) wants to come out to his French teacher (Stephen Weber). In the last vignette, Stoltz's groundskeeper is greying, and some in the town (mostly veterans and church-goers) are protesting the marriage of two gay men, one of whom has wedding-day jitters and a father (Ed Asner) who helped organize and mobilize the protest.

Pushing Tin (1999)

Entertaining and often funny, but weak overall

[6/10 · 23 April 1999]

I went to a sneak preview of this movie last night, and I have to say that I wasn't as impressed with it as I had been expecting. All four principals (Cusack, Thornton, Jolie and Blanchet) turn in excellent performances, but the story just starts to get tired by the movie's halfway point. As the conflict between Cusack and Thornton turns from humorous to serious, the movie begins to plod somewhat.

The Matrix (1999)

Visually rich with a strong sense of the metaphysical

[8/10 · 1 April 1999]

I went to see this on opening night (Mar 31) and really enjoyed the film as a whole. The visuals are stunning and questions of perception versus reality and the metaphysical role of awareness stayed with me for the rest of the evening. There were some weak spots (as there always are) and some wholly predictable ones (ditto), but the movies pulls you along from one scene to the next, and I left feeling that the price of the ticket was money well-spent.