Echoes, AKA Living Nightmare, is not a horror flick. We follow a gifted artist who has a recurring nightmare, increasingly real and disturbing to Micheal Durant (Alfieri) who also plays his past life self, the Spanish artist Serrano. "The last thing I see," he tells girlfriend Christine (Nell), "the image that haunts me, is his face. Half in light. Half in shadow." Micheal wrestles with the meaning and power in this nightmare, and his strength to put his past life self to rest, with the help of psychic Gale Sondergaard. What's fascinating is the intensity of light and shadow, as well as stark close up, and background mirrors, clowns, murals, nudity and faces you have to be quick to see. Agreed, the music is wrong, wrong, wrong. It's Twilight Zone meets church organ. John Spencer (West Wing) makes a memorable appearance as friend Stephen. Paul Joynt plays a snobby rival, Ruth Roman is endearing as Micheals mother. The dialogue is uneven, but if past lives, psychics and the thin lines between artistic and insane, dream and reality interest you, there's lots here for you.
Reviews
3 Reviews
Earth Girls Are Easy
(1988)
Stop at the Mini Mart
19 January 2007
I watched this film because the early Jim Carrey is silly and sweet to watch and you can't beat Geena Davis for outlandish costumes and situations she can slide into without self-consciousness. Nobody's trying to be serious here so you simply shake your head and giggle. I'd like to remark on my favorite scene, a brief stop at the Mini-Mart. Jory Husain (who you'd recognize from "Head of the Class" )does a hilarious job of portraying a pin-up obsessed cashier who mistakes two of our alien heroes for robbers. More hilarity ensues as Husain convincingly warns Micheal McKean. We last see them huddled together behind the toilet paper, peering out at the increasing chaos and insanity in the parking lot. It's goofy, it's mindless, and it's really fun.
Science and Dreams
19 January 2007
This season 2 episode of MacGyver uses an intriguing interweaving of the military and the deaf community, both using the same high tech new device for far different purposes. MacGyver works with humor and respect among the deaf children who are to benefit from this device, and with precision and then alarm, among the military. Throughout is a dream sequence which slowly unravels into true life, helping MacGyver unravel the mystery of bad guys who appear on the base. I also enjoyed a "timing device" MacGyver rigged with near-nothing materials. Throughout, this episode focuses on interesting realms of science and technology just recently discovered and still in testing phases, which is fun. But already the bad guys have a use for it! Good cast.
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