‘King Kong’ Download and Reviews
“King Kong” Movie Details
King Kong tagline: The eighth wonder of the world.
 King Kong DVD Cover |
Actors:
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Taps |
“King Kong” Movie Review
“Kong: The Eighth Wonder of the World” Plot Summary
In 1933 New York, an overly ambitious movie producer coerces his cast and hired ship crew to travel to mysterious Skull Island, where they encounter Kong, a giant ape who is immediately smitten with leading lady Ann Darrow.
Jackson’s Soulful, Spunky, Spectacular Labor of Love
I was one of the lucky winners of the Kong is King.net World Premiere Ticket contest, so my husband and I had the pleasure of seeing KING KONG in Times Square’s Loews E-Walk Theatre. I knew I’d like it the minute I saw the Art Deco opening credits, very reminiscent of RKO’s style. The movie only got better from there, carrying us moviegoers on a roller-coaster ride of adventure, romance, and eye-popping special effects. What raises Jackson’s take on KING KONG above other rock’em-sock’em action blockbusters is that it’s so clearly a labor of love in every sense of the term, a spectacle with soul and spunk. It’s not every rollicking adventure film that begins with scenes of life in 1933 New York City, when the Great Depression was at its worst. No wonder plucky but vulnerable actress Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts is at her most beautiful and winsome as a more proactive version of Fay Wray’s star-making role) is willing to take a chance with fast-talking movie producer/director Carl Denham (Jack Black, a rascally delight) on his latest project, involving leaving for the South Seas that very night
The characters are no mere genre archetypes; before their adventure begins, Jackson and his talented cast let us get to know and care about every one of them. When crewmen from the S.S. Venture get injured or killed by Skull Island’s various fearsome natives and beasts, we mourn them. When Ann and playwright Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody combines strength and sensitivity wonderfully as this unlikely hero. He gets my vote for Movie Mensch of the Year!) connect on screen, we’re moved and rooting for them to get together, especially after they share one of this year’s best screen kisses. Even the calculating Denham wins us over with his sheer force of will. A real Orson Welles type, the guy just loves making movies — and money — so much he’ll go to insane lengths to make his project a reality, whether it involves outrunning his creditors, shanghaiing Driscoll on the Venture, or tricking his cast and crew onto uncharted Skull Island
Most importantly, King Kong himself captivates us, thanks to a combination of WETA’s amazing special effects and the range of emotion provided by a motion-captured Andy Serkis. If only one cast member gets an Oscar nomination, I say give it to Serkis for his wonderful performances as both Kong and Lumpy the cook! :-) Kong has never been just another scary big ape in any of the previous film versions of his story, but Jackson and Serkis make him particularly engaging, not just because he looks so convincingly weatherbeaten, but he moves like an ape (on all fours, thank you) and has the facial expressions of a human. As a result, we can see how Kong’s terrifying side is influenced by his tender side. Yes, I said ‘tender.’ How else can you describe his protectiveness towards Ann on Skull Island after she wins him over by performing her lively vaudeville act? When Kong does go nutzoid, it’s because either he or Ann are being threatened, whether by people, planes, or Skull Island’s jaw-dropping, scream-inducing array of monsters and aborigine tribespeople. Jackson & Company give the big guy plenty of dizzying set pieces to show his stuff, involving everything from dinosaurs, toothy insects as long as your arm, and speeding taxicabs in New York City traffic (the scene where Brody did his own stunt driving; all those years of drag-racing on the streets of Woodhaven, Queens really paid off! :-), to say nothing of the dazzling Empire State Building climax. Moreover, Andrew Lesnie’s cinematography is as gorgeous as it is kinetic; Adrien Brody should make sure Lesnie photographs every film he’s in from now on, because he’s never looked so handsome as he does here! :-) KING KONG is over 3 hours long, yet I never once thought to look at my watch. It’s 3+ hours and the price of admission well-spent.
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‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ Download and Reviews
“One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” Movie Details
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest tagline: If he’s crazy, what does that make you?
 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest DVD Cover |
Actors:
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Nurse Itsu |
“One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” Movie Review
“One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” Plot Summary
Upon arrival at a mental institution, a brash rebel rallies the patients together to take on the oppressive Nurse Ratched, a woman more a dictator than a nurse.
One of the greatest movies and life lessons of all time
Not many movies have won the ‘big five’ in the academy awards. It’s enough to win just best picture for a lot of movies. This movie portrays every film element to the highest degree, from the beautiful panoramic shots of the mountains outside of the mental institution to the story of ultimate redemption McMurphy and Chief find at the end
The movie is seen through the eyes of Randle McMurphy (Nicholson). He is sent to the mental institution because he would rather be considered ‘insane’ and live in ‘luxury’ other than being a jailbird in prison. Once he gets into the actual living area where the insane are, he looks up at this tall, native looking man they call ‘Chief’. McMurphy’s initial reaction to Chief was his little Indian dance he did to mock him, but once Chief didn’t react McMurphy asked him if he played football and says to chief, ‘God damn, boy, you’re as big as a mountain.’ Little by little, you could see their friendship start to unfold out throughout the movie
In One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, the title ‘villain’ would definitely belong to Nurse Ratched. She gave threats to the patients, she was even friends with one of the patient’s (Billy) mom. She also tries to toy with McMurphy’s mind by trying to get him to conform with the customs of mental facility. It doesn’t work out for her as planned. Including a classic scene where Nurse Ratched’s threats cause little Billy to commit suicide. In rage, McMurphy has seen enough and actually chokes her out. This causes McMurphy to go through a lobotomy and become a vegetable at his stay at the clinic
I know many people probably disagree with this but, I think Chief killing McMurphy at the end was beautiful as much as it was heartbreaking. It symbolized that McMurphy, still had a chance to redeem himself and become a hero, even if it were death. It also gave Chief clearance to finally ‘escape’ the premises and ‘fly from the cuckoo’s nest’, and how he did it at the end was classic. That’s what makes this movie one of the greatest of all time, not only because of the sensational acting and the sociological significance, but because of the message and symbolism of the story
The directing by Milos Foreman was phenomenal, not only with the memorable acting by Jack Nicholson, but with the camera shots he used in certain scenes. For example, the scene before McMurphy was about to get electro-shock therapy they show a very close up angle of him to show the intensity and crowdedness he had to go through while getting the shock treatment. Nicholson also makes it pretty believable that he is actually getting shocked, by making ‘gurgling’ noises and such
They actually go back to the ‘lying down’ closed angle shot at the end of the movie when Nicholson passes away. I thought it was very brave of the director to keep that long shot of McMurphy’s dead self, because by making it last as though it were a still shot, to me it seemed more and more believable that McMurphy was actually dead. I don’t know how Nicholson just lied there stiff as a board. I know he may have won his Oscar because of his heroic and charismatic character, but how he dealt with himself in those two scenes is what tickles my fancy
The ideology of this film is, in my opinion, what makes it one of the greatest of all time. The story brings up the question of who’s actually the insane; McMurphy and his patients, or Nurse Ratched and the staff? Clinically, McMurphy was not insane. Even the doctors and professors stated that, but since he didn’t follow the norms and the dictatorship of Nurse Ratched, he had to stay at the sanitarium longer. I also loved the allusion of Chief, by acting deaf and dumb. He played the omniscient or ‘god-like’ role of hearing and seeing everything, yet not saying anything himself. It almost seems as he was the narrating the story until he befriended McMurphy
I don’t know if I could think of a more evil villain in a movie other than Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher). The evil looks she gave to her patients when they were doing something wrong was as cold-hearted as one could get. Also her audacity to tell Billy’s mother about his sexual deviance is as sinister as you can get. She knew that it would hurt Billy deeply, which was a major reason he was ‘insane’ is because of his relationship with his mother. He eventually killed himself, angering McMurphy
I never thought I would cheer out loud when a grown man was choking out a little woman, but I did here. This scene did a fantastic job of not making it taboo, but making you want her dead even more. This did change Nurse Ratched however, it made her a little nicer to the patients at the end and made her realize that if she abuses her power as a nurse, it can come back to haunt her
The meaning of this story is wonderful and helped Jack Nicholson set the bar for acting. The symbolism of Chief’s and McMurphy’s redemption serves as a corner stone for many many movies today. Whether it be the costumes of the patients, the crazy acting, or even the beautiful classic shot at the end of the movie where Chief runs out to freedom; This movie will never be forgotten. And it serves as a good lesson for everyone out there who feels left out can all come together and get freedom. I advise anybody who says they love movies to watch this film, because it will not only change your views, it will change your life and you can’t say that about a lot of movies.
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‘Highlander’ Download and Reviews
“Highlander” Movie Details
Highlander tagline: He fought his first battle on the Scottish Highlands in 1536. He will fight his greatest battle on the streets of New York City in 1986. His name is Connor MacLeod. He is immortal.
 Highlander DVD Cover |
Actors:
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Chief Murdoch |
“Highlander” Movie Review
“Highlander” Plot Summary
An immortal Scottish swordsman must confront the last of his immortal opponent, a murderously brutal barbarian who lusts for the fabled “Prize”.
Great story told with heart
I can honestly say that Highlander is one of the most original and affecting stories I have ever had the pleasure of viewing, although sadly not in the cinema. The film has its flaws but the cumulative effect of all the various elements make this a film that is really like no other, and often imitated. There are many elements in the film that were experimental at the time, especially for a genre film. The editing style is much more painterly and nonlinear than what one normally expects. The integration of modern songs in a period setting was handled brilliantly, with the crowning achievement of the film being the ‘who wants to live forever?’ montage, which is an absolutely heartbreaking scene. Anyone who has ever truly loved someone will understand when you see it. One of the refreshing aspects of Highlander is that the movie is not just set up with an interesting concept and becomes a mindless action film from there, but that it actually comments on the questions posed by immortality. With Connor Macleod we are given a fantastic character who is brilliantly realized through Chrisopher Lambert’s complex performance. The change he goes through from young, innocent Scotsman to a sad, world weary antiques dealer is a wonderful achievement. I actually feel through his performance how lonely the life of an immortal must be, and how he keeps people at a distance whereas to not get too deeply involved. This film has it’s heart in the right place because it comments on the fact that when people lose everything they hold dear, in this case because Macleod will outlive everyone he cares about, they travel inward, cutting themselves off from the world in hopes that they will be spared the pain of seeing the ones they love die. From a story standpoint alone, this is a truly magnificent film, which isn’t to say it is lacking in other areas. The camera angles are very inventive and some of the transitions between time frames are jaw-dropping. The musical score by Michael Kamen is lush and romantic, while at the same time allowing for an integration with the songs by Queen that is a tremendously successful idea that in theory you’d never think would work right, but strangely it does so extremely well. There is a wide range of performance in the film ranging from Lambert’s subtle, understated interpretation of Connor, to Clancy Brown’s flamboyantly theatrical portrayal of the main Villain. Sean Connery also makes quite an impression as Connor’s mentor. He is both hilarious and charming, powerful and poignant. The female character’s are also handled very well with Conner’s first wife Heather being the standout. Highlander has a very odd sense of humor that seems to have come from improvisation from the actors. The entire film has a spontaneous energy that works very well because you never quite know what is going to happen next. This is not a perfect film, and sometimes it tends to fall back on genre stereotypes but the overall effect of the film more than makes up for it. Highlander is one of the more original films ever made, and sadly none of the sequels ever built on that. As far as the Highlander series goes; There can be only one, and this is it.
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‘Total Recall’ Download and Reviews
“Total Recall” Movie Details
Total Recall tagline: They stole his mind, now he wants it back.
 Total Recall DVD Cover |
Actors:
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Bartender |
“Total Recall” Movie Review
“Total Recall” Plot Summary
When a man goes for virtual vacation memories of the planet Mars, an unexpected and harrowing series of events forces him to go to the planet for real, or does he?
One of Arnie’s genuine best performances ever.
I remember when I was about 12 years old I used to watch this movie a lot and it had a strange effect on me because it is so bizarre and so violent, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away. Also, that woman with three boobs was enough for me to sit through the rest of the movie just to see again!It takes place in a dismal future where colonies have long since arisen and decayed on other planets and mutations are as rampant as corruption. Schwarzenegger plays a construction worker named Douglas Quaid who has recurring dreams about a trip to Mars and a mysterious brunette there. His hottie wife (Sharon Stone) is unimpressed by this brunette who keeps turning up in her husband’s dreams, but mostly he just can’t get over this strange need to go to Mars. I have to say, however, that based on his dream, which we see at the beginning of the movie in which he falls down a hill and breaks his face mask and then his eyes pop out of his head, doesn’t exactly seem like the kind of thing that would make me want to go to that place, but no matter. The movie really gets going as soon as Quaid goes to a company called Rekall that sells implanted memories, so basically you can travel anywhere you want to go in the world and be anyone you want. There’s no danger because you never leave the Rekall offices, but there’s always the chance of an accidental lobotomy. Almost immediately after hooking him up to their machines, he wakes up a completely different person, convinced that he is no longer a happily married construction worker but a secret agent on the run from an evil dictator of Mars named Cohaagen. At this point all hell breaks loose and the movie gets really good. It’s a little confusing, but for the thickness of the plot it’s amazing how well presented it is. Quaid is suddenly unsure who he really is, and when at one point he is receiving instructions from his other self, the self on the other side of the Rekall implantation, about how to remove a tracking device from his nose (in one of the movie’s most memorable moments), it doesn’t make things any easier for him to understand. There are tons of great characters, impressive sets, amazing special effects and brilliant performances despite the occasional cheese moment (such as that bizarre mutant at the end chanting ‘Open your miiiiiind..’ over and over). Read Volume 2 of my 50 Amazing Movie Facts on Hollywire and you’ll know what I really mean. The movie has the same brutal feeling as RoboCop, and director Paul Verhoeven has really shown that he knows how to do action sci-fi. This is definitely one of the genre’s best!
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