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Reviews
The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain (1995)
Well worth the climb!
Forget "Four Weddings and a Funeral". This film, and not that overrated and overblown other, is the perfect vehicle for Hugh Grant's boyish charm. Based on a true story and proving once again that to live in a small town in Britain requires a certain unique wackiness, this is the comic cousin of "How Green Was My Valley".
Prepare to see that rarest of all film characters--a man of faith who is not a totally hypocritical villain. How refreshing!
Prancer (1989)
An integral part of our Christmas
This film proves that there are still unspoiled hearts left on Planet Earth. Those who find it sappy or irrelevant have spent too much time wearing Grinch suits and need a good dose of humanity to thaw that hard matter in their chests that passes for a heart.
The child actors are the heart of _Prancer_. They are real, never overacting or coming off as children playing at making a film. Sam Elliot is the epitome of the overstressed, depressed man who has lost his wife and despairs of losing everything else too. His transformation is believable and worthy of the time spent to watch his character unfold. Cloris Leachman is a delight as the female Scrooge who is touched by two children--Jessica who reintroduces her to the joy of Christmas, and a little boy in church who reintroduces her to the joy of human fellowship.
Above all, this is a story of transition. The earnest child must move forward to knowledge, and the jaded grownup must move back to mystery and faith. If your Christmas is too much take and not enough give, I prescribe hot chocolate, hot buttered popcorn, and a viewing of Prancer with people you love. Better yet, do as we have and make this movie part of your personal holiday tradition. It might help make you a better person the rest of the year.
Scarlett (1994)
Frankly, Ma'am...
An annoying Dr. Quinn-like superimposing of modern sensibilities on 19th-century people. Margaret Mitchell and even Selznick got that part right. This attempt is nothing but a festival of anachronisms.
And worst of all, we weren't supposed to notice that Scarlett's deep blue eyes have now turned brown. (**Cough contacts cough**
The Mothman Prophecies (2002)
(Mild Spoilers) What happens in the mind is far more terrifying...
Mild spoilers ensue throughout this review.
Those who view this film and complain about "slow pacing", "the ending not explained", or "not enough action" are used to being spoon-fed.
That which is seen with other than our two natural eyes is the true mystery, and can be the true horror as well. No, we can't explain it--and I applaud director Mark Pennington for not insulting my intelligence by coming up with some contrived, slick Hollwood ending all wrapped up neatly in Christmas paper.
Richard Gere is, for once, not over-the-top or melodramatic in his role as Washington Post reporter John Klein, who's about to take the out-of-the-way ride of his life. Alan Bates as Alexander Leek is utterly believable as a man who's been to the edge and peeked over, then decided to run as far as he can from what he saw there.
Debra Messing is good as Mary, the wife John loses and who may be trying to reach him again (or not.)
Will Patton is the tortured individual who is seeing, or not seeing, Something. And hearing whatever it is in his bathroom drain. And becoming a sort of transmitter for whatever it is. And...well, let's just say his life doesn't get any simpler as his visitations grow more intense.
Laura Linney's Connie Mills, apparently the only police officer on duty in Point Pleasant, W. Va., is enigmatic at times. She starts out wanting to believe that something way out of the ordinary is happening in her hometown. Later she backs away somewhat, seemingly unwilling to accept what she sees going on, and what Klein is telling her. Later yet we hear her call him in his Georgetown apartment (or is she really calling him?) and is the warm, concerned female friend who wants to save Klein from--what? Madness? Solitude? The Mothman?
All through the film, cinematography, editing, and special effects--not to mention tight writing--give us a story that creeps up and spreads its dark wings over us in the night. A particularly electric moment occurs in Klein's motel room, as his image in a mirror is just a bit out of synch with the man himself, as if it had a life of its own. A moment later, we wonder if it did...
Don't see this film if you want exploding cars and exposed cleavage. Stay away if you want everything all tidy and spelled out by the time end credits roll. Do rent it, however, if you seek a thriller that believes in your ability to envision the unimaginable.
The Wyvern Mystery (2000)
Gothic goosebumps
She's young, she's blonde, she's beautiful, she's embroiled in the kind of eerieness only an English manor with a grim, tight-lipped housemistress and a deep, dark secret can muster. If you want romance, mystery, twisted plots and equally twisted people--not to mention one of the best reasons ever filmed for not placing one's bed against a wall--this will not disappoint. Grand performances all around; definitely not for the younger kiddies.
Forgotten (1999)
Intelligent psychological drama (possible spoiler)
Many mystery stories follow the standard whodunit path: murder most foul, gathering of clues, gaggle of possible perps, sprinkling of red herrings, and inevitable showdown between clever evildoer and even more clever crime solver.
"Forgotten" abandons the well-trod and gives us complex characters who may or may not have committed terrible acts. The fact that at the end of three episodes we have no easy answers and no neatly-tied package might frustrate some, but for me it was the indication of an intelligently crafted tale which probes, disturbs, and haunts with the question: What does an evil person look like?
Excellent acting and production combine to make a mystery not easily... forgotten.
K-PAX (2001)
One Flew Over the Bluebird's Nest
Suspension of disbelief is central to the enjoyment of any good tale. In the case of K-Pax, I didn't find it that difficult to accomplish. Kevin Spacey-man's oh-so-rightly subtle performance and Jeff Bridges' turn as world-weary Dr. Mark Powell were right on the money. The film works best during the scenes involving the interaction between these two characters (Dr. Mark :"It's my job to cure these people, not yours!" Prot: "So why aren't you doing your job, Mark?"); although the interlude between Prot and some almost-glib astronomers was equally satisfying.
Many of the professional reviewers I read just *hate* all the psychiatric patients portrayed in this film. Having had one experience of such "hospital-ity" some years ago, I must protest--I recall quite a few, shall we say, colorful characters, and these, though slightly exaggerated for the story's sake, were not that far off the mark.
The one niggling thought that bothered me was the knowledge, in my case almost insuperable, that no psychiatrist would ever, *ever* take such a charge home to be around his own family; let alone allow him to be alone in his house with his wife. Of all the scenes in the film, this is the only one that didn't ring quite true, that should have been better done and explained. It didn't spoil the overall effect of the story, however (my DH disagreed with me on this and pointed out the necessity of getting Prot to communicate with the dog, and also to portray more of Dr. Mark's own problematic family life.)
So *is* Prot or isn't he? An earlier reviewer here (willy calloway) put that question to rest, and I cannot agree more wholeheartedly with his logic. The ending of K-Pax is ambiguous only to the willingly blinded or imagination-impaired. As the Professor in C.S. Lewis' _The Chronicles of Narnia_ put it, "Bless me! What *do* they teach them at these schools nowadays?"
(!!!) Recommended. I plan on seeing it again--and this time will not miss the add-on scene at the end of the credits!