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inkwolf
Reviews
Josie and the Pussycats (2001)
I hate to admit I liked it...
This is the sort of movie I usually have to be dragged to, kicking and screaming. I am not into teen or girly comedy, and loathe most live-action remakes of old cartoons. I didn't expect to like Josie and the Pussycats at all, but couldn't help it.
The tone is silly, silly, silly. If you enjoy silliness, you'll be in silly heaven. Under the silly is a wacky sense of humor that pokes fun at trends, pop music and culture, conspiracy theories, the original comic book, the movie itself, and everything else within reach. The casting seems good, overall, though I seem to remember the original Alexandria as being a lot more full of herself than just the pathetic, whiny sniper she was in the film. Melody is as ditsy as ever, but not as annoying about it as in previous incarnations. The Pussycats are all likable, Alan seems sweet, and Cumming is wonderfully amusing as the ruthless and super-efficient record executive.
Don't look for relevance. Don't look for meaning. Don't look for insight, drama, suspense, or plot originality. The messages are all ones you've heard before. The story is just an overused framework to hang the humor and characters on. Kick back, switch off the brain...and just wallow in silliness.
Grizzly Falls (1999)
Excellent, exciting movie!
A good movie, that should probably have been rated PG-13, in my opinion. There are some genuinely terrifying parts, bad language, and some violent and realistic fighting. It keeps you pretty close to the edge of your seat, for most of the film.
The family-relationship subplot was not very convincing, but otherwise an excellent film. I also found it confusing that the Grandfather made some comment about moving to England from Chicago, and as a child attended what appeared to be an English boarding school...but took the train out west to look for bears. Maybe I misunderstood something.
(One note: the bear is not Bart, but Ali Oop. I have submitted a correction to IMDb.)
Walking Thunder (1995)
Ho hum but watchable -- beware racial slurs.
I agree with the former reviewer about the cabin. I mean, they are trapped in the wilderness because this guy, who can build a log cabin in one day, CAN'T FIX A WAGON AXLE BEFORE WINTER! Sheesh, believable. I'm sure wagon axles were a lot tougher to make than houses.
You also may not want to show it to impressionable young Indian kids, since some characters use derogatory language and racial slurs, and the one Indian character is something of a stereotype.
The movie won't make you laugh or cry, but it won't kill you with boredom either, and if you have the hour and a half to kill, there are worse things to watch out there. Bart the Bear is always good, and there are a few charming moments.
Batman Returns (1992)
Its all about duality.....
First let me say that this film was made to be seen on a theater screen. Watching it on video doesn't cut it, as you lose much of the atmosphere of the film: you lose the massive, implacable hostility of the city and the sweeping drama of the underlying themes, and are left with a rather crummy and inexplicably shallow comic-book plot.
That having been said--this is an awesome movie! It explores the duality of human nature: each of the four main characters has a face they present to the world, and a dark, hidden side. Batman, rich playboy to the world, haunted crime fighter by night--he recognizes the similarity to himself in the Penguin (publicly a martyred hero, privately a bloodthirsty child murderer) and Selina Kyle (publicly a mousy frump, but with a hidden identity as Catwoman) and even Max Shreck (publicly a successful businessman and philanthropist, secretly a power-mongering, ruthless, amoral egoist.) And just when it seems like everything is simple, the strange pathos of the Penguin's death scene forces us to wonder which was his true nature after all. And Catwoman's departure is equally ambiguous and unsettling.
This deeper story takes place amid a surrealistic world of intimidating architecture, killer clowns, and penguins bearing missiles. Below a surface plot which is as 'comic-book' and improbable as can be. With strange elements of humor and violence where you least expect them. And one of Danny Elfman's best scores!
If I had to air some gripes with the movie, the main one would be that some of the dialog sounds as if the actors are making it up as they go along. (Maybe this was intended...the most noticeable instance was when Shreck had to make his speech without his notes.) And the violence and gore were really pushed beyond what was necessary.
Crooks and Coronets (1969)
Fun
Even though it's a bit dated, this tale of crooks with hearts of gold is still fun to sit through. The highlight of the film is probably Dame Edith Evans as Lady Sophie, the madcap, gambling, barnstorming old aristocrat. British viewers might not enjoy the implication that what Europe really needs is American know-how to make things profitable. ;)