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namaturner
Reviews
Predator (1987)
Classic Action and SciFi Combo
This film is about astounding special effects; beautiful, powerful, and courageous male characters; and testosterone-charged, blasting action. Typically such a description doesn't distinguish a film, but this movie is so slick that it endures as a great action classic. Don't think Terminator and Terminator 2 have no rivals. Predator is one of the few. (And this reviewer is a female.)
Unforgiven (1992)
Eastwood's Brilliant Reversal
Unforgiven is Clint Eastwood's way of showing us the true West - he's mocking the glorified portrayal used in past spaghetti Westerns along with his own successful involvement in them. At the same time, he provides a beautifully crafted, brutal, humane, and compassionate story. He took an unmeasured risk and was appropriately awarded.
The Piano (1993)
Amazing Film Making
This is one of my all-time favorite films. It combines masterful scripting, cinematography, performances, and musical score into a disturbing, erotic, and ultimately uplifting piece. The movie's heroine, wonderfully portrayed by Holly Hunter, is mute (symbolic of the fact that she has no say in her own life), with her daughter (the astonishing Anna Paquin) and her piano as her personal obsessions. Her conscripted husband, coldly played by Sam Neill, is trying to win her heart and her desire in all the wrong ways, while his crude tribal neighbor, sensually played by Harvey Keitel, understands her needs and ultimately captures her ... physically, intellectually, and romantically. The film's message and its delivery are extraordinarily powerful, the cinematic technique is rich ... the sequence shot with Hunt, Pacquin, Keitel and the piano on the beach is one of the best pieces of work I've ever seen. Lasting impact.
Wo hu cang long (2000)
Incomparable Power and Beauty
This movie is beautifully filmed, masterfully directed and edited, and supported by an appropriately elegant musical score. But most notably, the film contains some of the best action sequences in history. Lee combines an expansive, artful quality with romance, intrigue, and incredible power. An all-time great.