Change Your Image
Flics316
Reviews
Buffalo '66 (1998)
Keep Hope Alive
Movie opens as Billy is released from prison (he was innocent). He has to go to the bathroom really bad so he kidnaps Christina Ricci. Yea! Billy!
Billy is a friggin moron who should have stayed in prison to protect him from the fact that he has no brain. This could however be acting so who am I to judge. Billy was an abused child yada yada yada. Billy will do anything to get even a sliver of love from his parents. His parents when they notice he's alive can't stand him. Their revulsion is justified. He must be adopted although the film never deals with this subject. Actually they do. Billy was born in 1966 causing his mom, Jan to miss the last time the Buffalo Bills football team won a championship. Ergo the title. Woo Hoo!
Billys' parents are played by Angelica Houston and Ben Gazarra. Picture Al and Peg Bundy with a mean streak. I love how real actors who have already made more money than they'll ever spend want to be in crappy films.
The real reason for this movie to be made and for you to watch it is a wonderful actress Christina Ricci. Ricci is at a point in her career where it is impossible for her to make a bad movie simply due to the fact that if she's in it it can't be bad. De Niro had that going on for a while.
The plot: Billy kidnaps Ricci and takes her to his parents house where she is told to pretend to be his wife to impress his parents. they like her, still can't stand him. Christina really digs Billy and by extension wants to spent the rest of her life with him and have his babies. You have to suspend reality a little here.
That's about it except for you pervs out there it would be remiss of me not to mention That Riccis' incredible monster cleavage is in almost every scene.
The Pledge (2001)
Quick!Harry Dean Stanton; Dead or Alive?
Jack finally gets that toast he ordered about 25 years ago, served up by Robin Wright Penn who probably wasn't even born when he ordered it. Am I being a little too obtuse here, or cryptic I get them confused?
Anyway, "The Pledge" is a terrific movie and I highly recommend it, even though it's definately not for everyone. Some may not be able to look past raped and brutally murdered 7 year old girls, graphic photos included. Trust me that is not what this movie is about. This is a movie about death, loneliness, mental illness and people, just like you and me.
This is one of Jack's best. Jack creates his charachter, an old, soon to be retired, lonely, schizophrenic cop with an understated brilliance that very few actors can even dream of. The only thing he can't pull off is making the audience believe that Robin Wright Penn could possibly be interested in him romantically. We know that's comming going in though so it's easy to suspend reality on that one.
The supporting cast is excellent. Hellen Miren, Vanessa Redgrave, the cop from "Traffic" as the mentally challenged Indian, Sam Sheppard, Mickey Rourke, and Harry Dean Stanton, are all worth the $8.50 admission to see them work their acting chops. I think the babe from the fishing resort is somebody but I couldn't place her.
The direction of Sean Penn and the Cinematography of someone is brilliant and puts you right in the movie, and as they say in the commercial that's priceless.
You may not enjoy "The Pledge" as much as I did but you will have lots to talk about afterwards.
American Buffalo (1996)
What, No Ricky Jay?
A movie about junk. Worthless Lives that have hopelessly ended up in a junk store along with formally useful stuff that has also ended up in a junk store. The store has one thing of value, a rare Buffalo Nickel and one life of value; Bobby's, a young kid who does odd jobs helping out around the store. The store's owner Donnie, loves Bobby like a son and he represents the potential for success and happiness Donnie no longer has.
Dustin Hoffman plays Teach, Donnies friend. Hoffman's overacting is the only problem I found with this movie. If Hoffman had taken it down just a notch his charachter would have earned some well deserved sympathy. I wouldn't change a word of Mamet's excellent dialog, just have Hoffman calm down. The fact that the ending leaves the movie with no payoff was fitting and showed how the charachters lives have no payoff.
The Sopranos (1999)
This show is a 10 out of 10 but wait......
OK, we all agree on the quality of the Sopranos but what about Christopher. At first I thought the actor was in over his head and almost ruining the show, but I've done a total 180 on this and now other than Gandolfini he's my favorite part of the show. What changed me? Two things. First, was the episode when he tries to get his girlfriend into the record business which is controlled by these rap guys who are just transparent businessmen using their gangsta image to move product like any other corporation. It was so cool when Chris finally got frustrated by the whole scene and said in a totally exasperated tone "But I'm a REAL GANGSTER" From that moment on I'm a fan for life.
The second reason to dig Chris is I believe from the same episode. If you are like me you thought it was kind of lame that Chris shot the bakery guy in the foot in a blatant rip-off of the classic Goodfellas. BUT WAIT... Christopher was also Spider in Goodfellas who Tommy shot in the foot. HOW COOL IS THAT?
I also love that Livia is pure evil, that Carmella is named Carmella, The guy playing Uncle Junior is awesome, Little Steven is funny as hell, that the shrink was Karen in Goodfellas, the restaurant guy is terrific and the good looking young priest flirting with the housewives and the housewives getting crushes is dead on accurate. I not only can't wait for the new episodes in January, I can't wait for the re-runs in June.
Enemy of the State (1998)
Turns out DJ Jazzy Jeff was the one with the talent
This is a dumb little movie with a lot of chase scenes and techno-crap used as filler to gloss over the fact that they have no story, just an idea that never really draws us into the action. The racist stereotyping of Italians was offensive but not distracting.
The plot is about the National Security Agency tapping phones and doing cool surveillance tricks. The story is too worn out to even repeat. The Voight character kills a Congressman to get some privacy bill passed but it's caught accidentally on tape and Voight uses about 50 people and untold millions of dollars to get the tape which came into Will's possession. Yada Yada Yada. There is a major mystery thrown in. Why does Will not run over Regina King to get to a willing Lisa Bonet. Regina typecast as the hysterical Buppie wife (Jerry McGuire) has a lingerie scene where she actually looks fat. EEEWWW!
John Voight gives a first rate performance as the villain, and Gene Hackman is Gene Hackman. Will Smith is a disaster. This is Will's first "serious" starring role and he's so wooden and predictable the director and writer had to give him some jokes just to help the audience to wake up and pay attention. His excellent comedic timing serves to illuminate the fact that the man has no particular acting ability.
Except for Hackman and Voight none of the cast shows any depth or substance. The bad guys were particulary droney.The obligatory techno-geek was the exception giving a first rate impersonation of Oliver Pratt. Guess after paying the Fresh Prince there was nothing left in the vault for the real Oliver Pratt.
The first 2/3 of this flic make a Steven Segal movie look like "Gone With The Wind" but just when you're ready to give up hope of any entertainment Gabriel Byrne shows up with a first rate cameo. Then we get Hackman who make the movie come alive. The payoff is excellent and saves me from wasting 2.5 houre of my life.
Wait for the video and Have a Nice Day
Jimmy Bagga Doughnuts
Celebrity (1998)
We can now forever watch Bebe Neuwirth without seeing Lilith
Gotta like the Wood-man. This is a damn funny movie where the Woodster bares his butt warts and all for the world to see.
Woody's too old to play himself getting chicks and still be believable so he gets Kenneth Branaugh to be him. Yeah right.OK so we'll suspend reality for that one. It's amazing Woody can make good movies without knowing any normal people. The characters in this flic are so superficial they make the cast of Seinfeld look like Ghandi, Mandela, Mother Theresa and a few Buddhist monks. The Allen/Branaugh/whomever character is the most despicable, narcisistic, repulsive person on the planet. Much like Woody himself.
The movie tells us that there are celebrities on every level of existence. You can be a celebrity in your house, your family your neighborhood whatever; but whatever level of celebrity you reach you always feel insecure and insignificant. It's best to be yourself, do your best and try to be happy. This is a great movie and I don't use the term loosely. It's not preachy, it just turns over the rock of urban American society and lets us peek at the disease and garbage underneath.
Joe Montegna and Judy Davis do Oscar quality work. DiCaprio is in a great segment that is so good it's hard to tell if he adds anything or not; probably not. Winnona Ryder is lovely as usual. The big model whose name escapes me is beautifully awful. I think Woody used a terrible actress on purpose to get back at all the models who have rejected him. Finally Anthony Mason is "da bomb"
This is the best dialogue in my Woody memory and I will definitely see it again. Another reason to see it is that New York Times political columnist Maureen Dowd absolutely killed it. Be Well Jimmy Bagga Doughnuts
Red-Blooded American Girl II (1997)
Watchable for one baudacious babe
This is a guy movie and a pretty good one at that. The chick who plays Miya is drop dead gorgeous and her character is way uninhibited. She's a Terri Hatcher look alike and you can see by her filmography she's been in some good stuff. Everyone else in this flick should either blow their brains out or get real jobs. Especially Burt Young although the former fat guy from Rocky is pretty well cut for an old formally fat guy from Rocky.
The scene in the theater will always date the film as being made at the same time as Alanis Morissette sold 9 billion copies of her first album.
The final scenes of the movie are where it really deteriorates but it's worth the wait to see Trent's dad and try to figure out where you've seen him. (An Officer and A Gentleman)
I caught this on Showtime as "Hit and Run" and if you're reading this so did you