“Wag the Dog” Movie Details
Wag the Dog tagline: A Hollywood producer. A Washington spin-doctor. When they get together, they can make you believe anything.
 Wag the Dog DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
Director |
| Directors: Barry Levinson |
| IMDB Rating: 7.0/10 out of 34,615 votes |
“Wag the Dog” Movie Review
“Wag the Dog” Plot Summary
Before elections, a spin-doctor and a Hollywood producer join efforts to “fabricate” a war in order to cover-up a presidential sex scandal.
Super but certainly not for all tastes
This is a super-cynical film that is incredibly entertaining, insightful and oh, so jaded! The problem is that although it’s got a brilliant script, the film will only appeal to a small select audience. Die-hard Clinton lovers will NOT appreciate the film as it’s a thinly veiled criticism of the Clinton presidency–particularly since the film is about some completely amoral spin-doctors doing ANYTHING to save the butt of an amoral politician. Clinton lovers probably can’t admit the truth of this aspect of his personality. Die-hard Clinton haters will no doubt love the film. Frankly, I’m rather Libertarian in view and think the nonsense in this film could apply to ANY politician, so those jaded viewers (like myself) will probably appreciate the edgy and dark humor.
Read more
“Seabiscuit” Movie Details
Seabiscuit tagline: A long shot becomes a legend.
 Seabiscuit DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
| Directors: Gary Ross |
| IMDB Rating: 7.4/10 out of 29,602 votes |
“Seabiscuit” Movie Review
“Seabiscuit” Plot Summary
True story of the undersized Depression-era racehorse whose victories lifted not only the spirits of the team behind it but also those of their nation. add synopsis
Good movie
One of my favorite movies. Movies based off of books make me read the book, but with this, that isn’t so. This movie and the Harry Potter ones are good enough that I don’t need to read the book- and I read all the time.. avid reader. When I first watched it years ago, it was a little boring at the beginning. I now fast forward the beginning, as I already know it and want to watch the horse parts. I think horse people would like this movie more than non-horse people. But all movies will have people that like it and don’t; different tastes and opinions, but I like this movie. There were inappropriate scenes that I’d hate when I was younger, but the horse racing is exciting. I think Seabiscuit wins… and that was like ‘Duh.’ Of course he wins. I like things that are odd/different and unlikely to succeed, so I liked the plot, the odd little horse, large jockey…
Read more
“Jurassic Park III” Movie Details
Jurassic Park III tagline: This Time It’s Not Just A Walk In The Park!
 Jurassic Park III DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
Hannah |
| Directors: Joe Johnston |
| IMDB Rating: 5.7/10 out of 58,099 votes |
“Jurassic Park III” Movie Review
“JP3″ Plot Summary
A decidedly odd couple with ulterior motives convince Dr. Alan Grant to go to Isla Sorna (the second InGen dinosaur lab.), resulting in an unexpected landing…and unexpected new inhabitants on the island.
This is no Jurassic Park, but a helluva lot better than The Lost World!
If you are like me, and have been following everything on Jurassic Park III for the past 5 months, you’ve probably set your expectations pretty high, and chances are, you’ll most likely be let down. In a way, I was. My expectations were pretty damn high for this film, but that was my own fault. No film could have possibly lived up to those kinds of expectations. But, the movie was everything it promised to be: A superbly crafted, action-packed, rocket of a movie. It was fast paced, and the action hardly lets up, maybe for just a few minutes for you to catch your breath, and then you’re hit right slam in the face with another dynamic action scene. The movie is only 95 minutes long, and about 75 of those minutes are nothing but thrills and scares. Yes, the movie is too short, but it’s hardly a problem. It leaves you wanting more and that is a sure sign of a great movie. Just don’t get your hopes up, thinking this is going to be as good as the first, because it isn’t. It is, however, a kick-ass special effects feast for all you hungry movie-goers out there with a taste for fine suspense thrillers…ok, I know that sounds chessey, but who cares. My grade: B+
Read more
“Cellular” Movie Details
Cellular tagline: If the signal dies so does she.
 Cellular DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
Superior Officer |
| Directors: David R. Ellis |
| IMDB Rating: 6.5/10 out of 30,530 votes |
“Cellular” Movie Review
“Cellular” Plot Summary
A young man receives an emergency phone call on his cell phone from an older woman. The catch? The woman claims to have been kidnapped; and the kidnappers have targeted her husband and child next.
this movie has the best pace of any movie i have ever seen.
i was literally on the edge of my seat watching this movie. this was one of those days where i went to blockbuster and they just had nothing out that week. i saw cellular and i thought it could have some potential. i didn’t have high expectations, but it blew me away. the acting was pretty good, not great. but where this movie shines is its action and extremely fast pace. in one of the parts of the movie where he steals the porsche, i actually found myself on the very edge of my couch. this didn’t win any Oscars or anything, but its good thrilling entertainment. not a lot of people heard about it, but its had the same effect on everyone I’ve shown it to.
Read more
“Air Force One” Movie Details
Air Force One tagline: Harrison Ford is the President of the United States.
 Air Force One DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
| Directors: Wolfgang Petersen |
| IMDB Rating: 6.3/10 out of 58,638 votes |
“Air Force One” Movie Review
“Air Force One” Plot Summary
Hijackers seize the plane carrying the President of the United States and his family, but he (an ex-soldier) works from hiding to defeat them.
A Great Thriller!
Air Force One is a very good thriller. The action and suspense will be nothing to forget. This movie is about the President’s plane, Air Force One being hijacked by Russian nationalists with the President on board. Now it’s up to the President and the Vice-President to negotiate with the terrorists or the hostages will die. The acting in this film is pretty good. Harrison Ford did justice with his outstanding performance as the President. Gary Oldman is good as the evil terrorist. The music in this film is fabulous and patriotic considering that the score took two weeks by Jerry Goldmith to compose. I liked the effects in this film. There is nothing special, but for a film from 1997, this has good effects even though there are few. Overall, this is a good movie for everybody except for kids. This film is a moving picture with outstanding courage. My rating is 10/10.
Read more
“Magnolia” Movie Details
Magnolia tagline: Things fall down. People look up. And when it rains, it pours.
 Magnolia DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
Reno Security Guard |
| Directors: Paul Thomas Anderson |
| IMDB Rating: 8.0/10 out of 114,715 votes |
“Magnolia” Movie Review
“Magnolia” Plot Summary
An epic mosaic of several interrelated characters in search of happiness, forgiveness, and meaning in the San Fernando Valley.
An extraordinarily moving and serious film
Magnolia is an extraordinarily moving and serious film. Its central concern is the question of what happens when people who have done bad things go unpunished in life. The two people in question Earl Partridge and Jim Gator are both being claimed by cancer ‘early’ but also after very prosperous and well-respected lives. They have both damaged their children one by direct abuse, which the film represents with unparalleled honesty and success and the other by leaving him to nurse his dying mother. Claudia Gator and Frank Mackie express this damage in their everyday lives and remain solidly opposed to reconciliation with their dying fathers. These relationships are reflected in a third abusive father-child relationship, which is still at its outset that between Stanley the child prodigy and his father, who violently exploits his son for gain on a child quiz show. Stanley’s possible future is mirrored in the life of ex-quiz quid Donnie Smith, who has been broken by his early ’success’ and is a figure of fun and hopelessness. The culmination of the film is Stanley going to his father’s bedside and delivering the words ‘Dad, you need to be nicer to me’. We are therefore left with the hope that either following a reform of his father’s behaviour or more likely through Stanley’s new found strength of character, Stanley will be saved from the permanent damage we see in Donnie, Frank and Claudia. The foil for this action is Jim Kurring, a policeman who seeks to do good. Against the backdrop of the other characters, his optimism and moral compass seem strongly tempered by naivety. He is also religious, which while it is not condemned is clearly not a solution for the other characters in the film. But his agency is still the main motor for good in the film. In the closing scene we see him providing the beginning of a rehabilitation to Claudia, which is a strongly positive closing note even if there is still along way to go for her. He also lets Donnie off a criminal charge, and we hope that Donnie will respond to this kindness by recognising the problems confronting him and beginning to take hold of his life. In these respects he is the main agency for good in the film. He does not, however, interact with the other ‘victims’ Frank and Stanley. Stanley begins to act as his own saviour. Frank is the least likely to undergo a serious reform or rehabilitation but we do at least see him weeping, which is an advancement on his previous behaviour. This is not the ‘nom (sic) plus ultra of pretentiousness and self-satisfied smugness’ or ‘a relatively unique vision’. This is real art, which examines human relationships with profound intelligence and honesty. There is not ‘much to admire and to cherish’ here: there is much to learn. It is natural for humans, as animals, to put themselves first in certain situations. But selfishness can cross a line when those on the receiving end are left with little hope of ever becoming functional people, let alone happy. The film challenges viewers to reach into their lives and ask which of their own relationships contain these elements. If a viewer empathizes with the parents, they are forced to confront the lifelong consequences of selfish parenting on a younger generation, as well as the non-forgiveness these parents are confronted by before death. But if a viewer empathizes with the children, he or she is also immediately forced to confront the basic humanity of the parent-perpetrators, as well as their obvious fallibility. This is most touchingly evident in Earl Partridge’s second wife falling in love with him for the first time on his deathbed. Depending on their age, they may empathize with both parents and children hence the final song, sung in part by all of the characters, with the chorus line ‘It’s not going to stop till you wise up’. The last line adds ‘ so just give up’, not as a serious incitement but as a challenge to continue. It is a challenge that intelligent viewers will take up.
Read more
“The Maiden Heist” Movie Details
The Maiden Heist tagline:
 The Maiden Heist DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
| Directors: Peter Hewitt |
| IMDB Rating: 6.0/10 out of 2,117 votes |
“The Maiden Heist” Movie Review
“The Maiden Heist” Plot Summary
A comedy centered on three museum security guards who devise a plan to steal back the artworks to which they have become attached after they are transferred to another museum. add synopsis
An unusual comedy platter
Art shouldn’t just be for highbrow types. A painting can have special meaning. Even for an ordinary blue-collar Joe. At least that’s the message from director Pete Hewitt. This is knockabout comedy that might make Woody Allen fans affectionately recall Small Time Crooks, even though this film is very different to Allen’s caper and wears its point on its sleeve. ‘Great art is not solely the domain of the connoisseur,’ says Hewitt. ‘Anyone can be emotionally transported by a few paint smudges on a canvas.’ Hewitt (Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey, Thunderpants) has here come up with a grand robbery that is for love rather than money. Three misfit security guards at the museum embark on a dangerous journey to save the things they hold dear
Decorated with a galaxy of stars, the Maiden Heist has been avidly awaited by fans worrying if it will see the light of day. In December 2008, the distribution arm of the Yari Film Group responsible filed for bankruptcy. Yari’s Emily Lambert e-mailed the Globe saying, ‘I don’t anticipate any screenings of The Maiden Heist in the near future,’ and producer Rob Paris went scrambling to find a new distributor. With a comparatively modest budget of $20 million, Paris feels he has got great value. ‘Our movie needed the scope the size of the Worcester Art Museum,’ he says. ‘It gave the film a look, a richness, that we otherwise wouldn’t have gotten.’ The WAM is used to establish the interior of the fictional Boston Art Museum (BAM) in which our story takes place. Scriptwriter Michael LeSieur had a top comedy actor in his previous hit (You, Me & Dupree) in the form of Owen Wilson. In The Maiden Heist, the chameleon-like talents of William H Macy first spring to mind as being suited to comedy, due to his Fargo fame, when he played the police story with subtle humour. Christopher Walken and Morgan Freeman are better known for their serious roles, but we should remember that Walken has also starred in comedy (Wedding Crashers, Hairspray), even if it is to play the straight man against the likes of Owen Wilson. Freeman has had brushes with his funny side in Bruce Almighty. Heading up the supporting cast is Marcia Gay Harden, who won an Oscar playing an artist (Lee Krasner) in the art biopic, Pollock. But it is probably fair to say that all these great stars are known primarily for their power to bring great depth to serious dramatic roles. There were moments in The Maiden Heist where I felt they were bumbling through the comedy rather than playing bumbling heisters. I found this a bit worrying as I have deep respect for their work. But maybe other viewers could find the apparent mismatch of seemingly inappropriate casting oddly rewarding
The big star of The Maiden Heist though is of course the central painting. Roger (Christopher Walken) stares at ‘The Lonely Maiden’ for years. First as a way to pass time, but now as a way to address or replace what is lacking in his life. The painting has become his passion. His obsession. Supplanting the passion he once felt for his wife. This particular artwork in the film was especially created by painter Jeremy Lipking. ‘When I first met with the director he opened up the Gabriel Weisberg book Beyond Impressionism: the Naturalist Impulse, (which is probably the most worn out book on my shelf) and said, ‘We need something like this.’ A painting in the manner of Naturalist painters George Clausen, Emile Friant and Jules Bastien Lepage. I had to finish the painting in 7 days. It normally would have taken me a month or longer to do something this size. I got artist model Toni Czechorosky help me out with the period costume.’ Macy’s character, on the other hand, is obsessed with a statue. Creating it involved photographing a naked Macy from a three-hundred and sixty degree perspective. (The photographs went to a sculptor in Los Angeles, who brought in another model and photographed him in the same fashion before creating a mould for the statue.)The Maiden Heist quickly sold out at its opening at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. It’s a light-hearted caper that makes for undemanding viewing. I don’t see audiences flocking to galleries as a result, but who knows? While Roger might find his wife has been his lonely maiden all along, many viewers may more identify with the bit where he flits to Florida with the missis. Missing out on the art appreciation stuff seems a convenient bypass. If this is the case, the film is somewhat hypocritical in its claim about art and the general masses. It uses the notion to entertain without encouraging us to seriously engage. LeSieur, who wrote the script as a film school thesis project, may well be an art enthusiast. But the idea that ordinary people don’t love art is a bit worrying to those of us that do. Shortly after I visited (during extensive bar-hopping) the beautiful Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, it was victimised by amateur thieves who posed as security guards. If you see me exit the Tate Modern with a naked William H Macy under my arm, please shoot me. Or take him back he is a high-value asset of the acting profession and should not be high-jacked. ‘But it was a maiden heist, officer. . .’
Read more
“Fargo” Movie Details
Fargo tagline: A homespun murder story.
 Fargo DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
Morning Show Hostess |
| Directors: Joel Coen |
| IMDB Rating: 8.3/10 out of 155,234 votes |
“Fargo” Movie Review
“Fargo” Plot Summary
Jerry Lundegaard’s inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen’s bungling and the persistent police work of pregnant Marge Gunderson.
Excellent Film
Fargo is one of my favorite films of all time and in my opinion deserves to be in the top 10 films of the 90’s. From the onset of the movie, with views of the snow covered North Dakota landscape and the beautiful and haunting music of composer Carter Burwell playing in the background until the very last scene, Fargo never lets up. This film is Joel and Ethan Cohen’s masterpiece, a truly original and one of a kind work. Every aspect of the film is handled with the utmost precision and care. The screenplay, written by Joel and Ethan, is in my opinion flawless. The dialog is at times serious and at other times hilarious, but most importantly always real and believable. The screenplay would be worth nothing, however, without the superb cast of the film that truly makes the characters come to life. Frances McDormand is perfect as the pregnant sheriff who is assigned to the murder case involving Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare. Steve Buscemi is excellent as always, playing a sleazy kidnapper who is perfectly described in one of the best lines of the film as simply ‘funny looking – in a general kind of way’. The best performance, however, comes from William H. Macy who is absolutely brilliant as a desperate man who has everything to lose. Macy completely envelops himself in the role and captures perfectly the essence of a broken man whose world is crumbling all around him. The final scene in the motel when he is caught is incredibly powerful because Macy makes you feel the pain and sorrow that a man must feel when he knows that he’s going to prison for the rest of his life
One of the things that I loved about this film is the colorful characters that are a trademark of every Cohen brothers film. In Fargo, these characters include dim witted hookers, psychopath kidnappers, a very pregnant sheriff, and a lot of snow. No matter how long or brief these characters are on the screen, however, they are all incredibly entertaining and fun to watch. That is one of the reasons that I enjoy films by the Cohen brothers. They have a great style and sense of humor that is all their own. They aren’t afraid to be different from the Hollywood norm, and they make films on their own terms. Also, as evidenced by this film, they do a great job of getting the best out of every actor. I personally feel that William Macy and Frances McDormand have never been better before or since Fargo. I urge everyone to see this film and compare it to other great works of the last decade. I think you’ll find that its place is right near the likes of Pulp Fiction, L.A. Confidential, The Usual Suspects and other great 90’s films.
Read more
“The Tale of Despereaux” Movie Details
The Tale of Despereaux tagline: Small Hero. Big Heart.
 The Tale of Despereaux DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
| Directors: Sam Fell and Robert Stevenhagen |
| IMDB Rating: 6.1/10 out of 6,510 votes |
“The Tale of Despereaux” Movie Review
“The Tale of Despereaux” Plot Summary
The tale of three unlikely heroes – a misfit mouse who prefers reading books to eating them, an unhappy rat who schemes to leave the darkness of the dungeon, and a bumbling servant girl with cauliflower ears – whose fates are intertwined with that of the castle’s princess.
We loved it.
The movie was Excellent. My son who is 2 1/2 was just so into it and not scared. They are just rats. Why is everyone so sensitive?! A lot of cartoons have animals that scare people in real life like snakes. Besides, based on personal experience, there was friend who would not let her son watch Ratatouille because of the rats, but then let him watch Dark Knight, hmmm? The mouse was so cute. I really enjoyed that this cartoon finally took a turn from what is usually out there. Right now we are stationed in Germany and the Europeans have a lot more cartoons like this. The graphics are just nicer. I do not have a problem with watching cartoons as long as they are not weird like the standard ones on TV today. For example, the digital mickey mouse. They are just not natural enough. I hope that many people will cherish this cartoon and go back to what used to be traditional Disney style and cartoons.
Read more
“License to Wed” Movie Details
License to Wed tagline: First came love… then came Reverend Frank.
 License to Wed DVD Cover
|
Actors:
|
| Directors: Ken Kwapis |
| IMDB Rating: 5.1/10 out of 14,431 votes |
“License to Wed” Movie Review
“License to Wed” Plot Summary
A reverend puts an engaged couple through a grueling marriage preparation course to see if they are meant to be married in his church. add synopsis
Decent comedy
OK now this movie wasn’t bad at all, I am a pretty big Robin Williams fan, I mean like I love Mrs. Doubtfire, RV, and a couple other of his movies and stand up specials too. Even though I thought he was a bit held back in this one since he was the playing the role of a reverend and couldn’t say his normal jokes that makes him hilarious. John Krasinski and Mandy Moore weren’t bad as the couple who are struggling to get married but then realize that there is more to it than they realized. Overall I give it a 7 out of 10 because I had a few laughs but it probably could have been better. I would recommend this to all Robin Williams fans, just don’t expect him to be hilarious in this one and to comedy fans as well.
Read more
Next Page »