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Reviews
Queen of the Damned (2002)
Different. And good. Damn good!
People are just dumping on this sequel because it isn't `Interview with the Vampire.' It is different.
And it is good. Damn good.
Aaliyah was absolutely WONDERFUL. Townsend was a very good Lestat, again, different, but good. Overall, the movie didn't quite manage the dark erotic power of the first, but it came damn close-and Aaliyah had all the same erotic energy.
I look forward to the next installment.
Hearts in Atlantis (2001)
Just didn't have enough confidence in Kings work.
While Kings work was magnificent, the movie was merely superb.
While this movie was overall quite good, it should have included parts of King's work that would have greatly enhanced its quality with relative ease. The central idea of the book would have been almost impossible to pass on in the format of a movie, and part of me is glad they didn't.
But another part of me is disappointed. While skirting parts of the book-in a way-they also diluted some scenes, which hurt my ability to enjoy the characters. Suffering in particular were the `Low Men,' who have absolutely none of the surreal power or flavor they had in the book (on a side note, I couldn't accept the Low Men because in my mind-though not in the book-they just HAD to drive the three headlight Tucker).
Hopkins is, of course, absolutely amazing. If the Low Men were the `worst' in capturing the magic of the book, he was the best, as I and everyone else knew he would be.
Overall: 7/10
RoboCop 3 (1993)
Murphy goes from cop to kiddie super-hero
Robocop was a smash hit because there was more to the character Robocop than `Robot Cop.' ED-209 and Robocop looked and sounded cool, eye (and ear) candy. But this did not assure success. Murphy the man, finding his humanity even after being sentenced to the iron suit, made the audience care about him, and gave Robocop a loyal fan base. That was what made Robocop more than your average sci-fi shoot-em up. Robocop 2 was received with less enthusiasm, but most Robocop fans and the general movie going public liked it. It was violent and dark, like the first, and the effects while somewhat dated today were unbelievable then. Then came Robocop 3. First Orion rushed the film into production before Robocop 2 was out of the theaters, then was forced to delay the release by two years after being bought out by MGM. When it was released in 1993, Robocop 3 was a spectacular disappointment. The dark violence from the first two films was dropped in favor of a more kid friendly version, infuriating fans. But worse, Robocop was no longer Robocop, police officer, he was Robocop: Super Hero. The idea of giving Robocop a gun arm is an obvious toy marketing ploy, as was the ridiculous jet pack. The goal of these things was to make Robocop a super hero, but when you do that you lose Murphy the man, the most important element to the movie. Trying to make Robocop into a whole new character but make up for it by having him sympathize with a little annoying kid, have overdone memories, experience sexual attraction (?!?), and make him highly talkative (Robocop is the strong silent type, but in Robocop 3 he says things like `I am fine, thank you.' and, `I don't have many... friends.') was the final straw. Robocop fans were stabbed in the back, and Orion forced a real piece of kiddy friendly trash on us. Robocop also started destroying OCP police equipment, for no reason. He destroyed the police car, something Robocop from the first two movies would never do. His partner (Nancy Allen) hardly gives her best performance, and at what should have been her best, most moving scene, was just overdone and stupid. The show made all the same mistakes, and I hope the new Robocop Prime Directives will make up for this.
The Empty Mirror (1996)
Psychologically and historically faithful for those who understand Hitler
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While I doubt this movie appeals to the majority of people, it is never-the-less accurate both historically and psychologically. Many of the ideas expressed (by the character Hitler and his cohorts), facts referenced, and behavior exhibited are realistic. I have studied Hitler to a some extent, particularly his psychology and neuroses (read Robert G .L. Waite), and I feel that this movie shows the man as he was, a facade of power covering thinly doubt and pain. Hitler is not, after all, simply the worst monster in history, he had reasons and beliefs that motivated his actions. While the depiction of him may seem to inappropriate to some, it shows Hitler as a vulnerable, conflicted person who uses power and cruelty to attempt to hide his own debilitating lack of self confidence. Hitler needed to be accepted, loved, and to belong. He tried to use power and fear as a surrogate for all these things that make a healthy happy person, but it gave him no rest. He did indeed stare into an empty mirror. Hitler was a victim of his own twisted mind and lonely, hollow existence.
Hitler deserves not to be forgiven, but understood. The empty mirror shows Hitler as human, and a weak one. This is not a tribute: Hitler wanted to be remembered as a great destructive prophet, to see him as the vulnerable victim of himself (while not pardoning what he did) is not what Hitler wanted. Watch, and understand Hitler the victim.