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lizerooh
Reviews
Enchanted (2007)
Best G rated film I have seen in years
I took my 6 yr old daughter to this movie for her birthday treat, thinking I might get a chuckle or two while she was oohing and aahing over the prince and princess concept. What a pleasant surprise! Disney pokes gentle fun at itself throughout the entire movie - a la The Simpsons (skewering it's own Fox broadcasting on TV.) All the hilarity and potential complications occurring from a clash between Fairy tale land Andalasia and it's un-streetwise inhabitants and present day New York city make this a must-see movie for everyone. Humor occurs on 2 levels so both adults and children can enjoy the romp and the casting is spot on. Amy Adams and Patrick Dempsey have a nice chemistry and Susan Sarandon is hilariously over the top as the wickedest stepmother ever. Don't miss this one.
One Potato, Two Potato (1964)
Excellent
I saw this movie on TV as a child, and I remember being very moved by it. It could only have been a few years after it was released. I have waited years to see it again and have never had the opportunity.I have asked many people about it and have never met anyone else who saw it!
Highly recommended as an accurate snapshot of a moment in time. Quite daring for it's time, also, as it predates "Guess who's coming to dinner". It's highly poignant ending still makes me emotional after all these years. I hope it is released on DVD as it is a film that deserves to be viewed. I wasn't aware that the screenplay had won an Oscar- brilliant!
All the Way Home (1963)
one of the most moving films I've ever seen
I can't remember how I was fortunate enough to even see this movie. It might have been on Bravo. It is based on the Pulitzer prize winning novel "A Death In the Family" by James Agee. He also wrote the screenplay for this excellent movie. It is a small story about a southern family who love one another and what happens when there is a death in that family. Robert Preston is wonderful. His character has such depth and sincerity and the relationship between he and his small son is very moving. Jean Simmons is also very good as the pregnant wife in this small family. I hope this movie is available on DVD or VHS soon. I can't wait to purchase it. Highly recommended.
Far from Heaven (2002)
stinky but beautifully shot
This is without a doubt, one of the most disappointing movies I have ever seen. I had high hopes for it based on the cast and the Oscar buzz it received. It was indeed beautifully shot and the set dressing was perfection. However, that was as deep as the movie got. It was as superficial and stilted as a 50's commercial endorsement. Are we actually supposed to buy that people spoke and behaved in this mannequin-like manner, simply because that was what the era "dictated"? So much could have been really done with this subject and nothing was. A real pity.
White Oleander (2002)
knockout performance
I finally saw this movie on Movie Central last week. This was a gritty movie that had me understanding what it must be like to have the rug yanked out from under you. Allison Lohman gives a sensitive and believable performance as a rootless child forced into foster care after her cold and self serving mother commits murder. Robin Wright was so good as a born again stripper turned foster Mom that I did not recognize her until the end credits. While Michelle Pfeiffer's unsympathetic role as Astrid's Mom was dead-on, it was Renee Zellweger's portrayal of a fragile actress (also a foster Mom), who gives Astrid "the best day" of her life, that just broke my heart. Highly recommended, though a dark ride.
The English Patient (1996)
the worst!
This movie took three hours of my life that I won't get back. I remember laughing out loud at the Seinfeld episode where Elaine incurs the wrath of everyone around her for daring not to appreciate "The English Patient". I was with her all the way. Only incurring the wrath of friend I attended the movie with kept me in my seat. A real eye gouger - interminable and abysmal.
Local Hero (1983)
one of my all time favorite movies
Just bought the DVD of this flick recently. Having not seen it for a few years, I was pleasantly reminded why this is one of my very favorite movies. Short synopsis: Big time Texan oil deal negotiator sets off for rural coastal Scotland to pitch a deal to buy the town and bay for a big project...with hilarious consequences. Just the best casting ever, as is usually the case with British movies, I find. Peter Riegert is great (as always) in the lead role of a successful executive who really feels a sense of emptiness until he meets the eccentric townspeople. Burt Lancaster is fine as the (also) eccentric star-gazing CEO of Knox Oil and Gas, who ends up in the village himself, and under the spell of the place and it's people. Just a wonderful flick. Don't miss it.
Reds (1981)
one of the worst
This movie was a four hour endurance test I survived only due to my youth(at the time)! I hated everyone in the film by the end of it and wished them dead. A huge, overblown and condescendingly highbrow commercial for communism. Yecch. You couldn't pay me to watch it again.
Chariots of Fire (1981)
superb
I remember when I first saw this movie in a theatre(1981) that upon the start of closing credits there was an absolute hush and then the audience of movie goers applauded. It has happened to me only a couple of times over the years and it leaves quite an impression. I love this movie for so many reasons. It is a perfectly preserved snapshot of a moment in time. The cinematography and set design as well as costumes are absolutely stunning. The personal struggles of two very different men who come together on one very important day is both moving and engrossing. I do not have to be religious or athletic to enjoy this film and am not. It's theme of the pursuit of an elusive personal goal for very personal and to those around them,sometimes obtuse reasons is what made this movie for me. Eric Charleson is fantastic as Eric Liddell - integrity and charm - a wonderful combination. Ben Cross as Harold Abrahams is excellent, though difficult to like as the driven and emotionally prickly jewish runner with a bone to pick. As I said, this is a wonderful snap of a moment in time. Like a fly in amber, this age, with it's naivete and emphasis on integrity,is preserved wonderfully by Hugh Hudson. Highly recommended.