oconnoreb Reviews

Thieves (2001–2005)

ABC cancels another show with great potential

[4 December 2001]

I thought that this was the best new show of the fall--even better than Scrubs and Alias (which have garnered a lot more praise). Action, charm , romance, humor--this show had it all. It also had the kind of fiery chemistry between leads (Stamos and George) that doesn't come along very often. I hope any fans of the show who read this won't let ABC cancel "Thieves" without letting the network know how they feel about it.

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)

Jay and Silent Bob Go Out With a Whimper

[1/10 · 25 August 2001]

Having seen every Kevin Smith film but MALLRATS, I went in to J & SB SB with fairly high expectations. Coming out of the theatre last night, I was very disappointed with what I had just seen. Some of the gags and spoofs worked, but there were more hits than misses. This movie is especially weak considering that it followed CHASING AMY and DOGMA--2 of the best (and funniest) American films of the past five years.

If this flick was something that Kevin Smith just had to get out of his system, then I'm willing to forgive him. I think he's got a lot more to offer than fart and stoner jokes. There's little proof of that in this film, though. If you're a Smith fan, you can wait for this movie to hit the discount theatres (or video). If you haven't seen any previous KS films, by all means skip J & SB SB. I couldn't imagine a worse intro to the Jersey "trilogy."

Rating: 5/10

Beautiful Girls (1996)

One more reason to see this fine movie

[7/10 · 19 August 2001]

There's a scene in a bar about halfway through BEAUTIFUL GIRLS that has Paul (Michael Rappaport) dancing with Andera (Uma Thurman), mostly for the purpose of ticking off Paul's ex, Jan (Martha Plimpton). The band playing in this scene is the late, great Cincinnati group the Afghan Whigs (they broke up earlier this year). They perform two R & B tunes from the '70s: Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe (made famous by Barry White) and Be For Real (a Frederick Knight song also covered by Leonard Cohen on his album THE FUTURE). These songs are both on the soundtrack--but it's nice to see that they also play a part in the movie itself.

Short Cuts (1993)

Please take my advice

[7/10 · 25 June 2001]

I think there are a few reasons this film didn't live up to my expectations. The main one is probably that I made sure to read all 10 Raymond Carver pieces that were used for the screenplay. I'm the kind of person who prefers to read a book/play/short story before I see any filmed version of it. This is usually a good idea, but not in this case. Altman is creating his own world with SHORT CUTS--there are elements of Carver, but it's not a straight adaptation of that master storyteller's work. I'm afraid knowing the stories may have cut down on my enjoyment of this movie. It's a strong film, but didn't sweep me up the way that the other 90s Altman pictures I've seen (THE PLAYER and COOKIE'S FORTUNE) were able to do. I wasn't surprised that Altman chose to focus on the darker, earlier work of Carver--it fits his filmmaking style much better than the warmer stories that Carver wrote in the final years of his life.

My advice to anyone about to watch SHORT CUTS is to hold off on reading the Carver stories (if you have any intention of reading them) until after you've seen SHORT CUTS. If you are a stranger to Carver's work, I hope that your curiosity will be piqued by this film. I'd also watch this film before MAGNOLIA if you can--I think you'll be more open to appreciating SHORT CUTS than I was.