Thirteen days was not only historically accurate (by Hollywood standards) but also looked like the real thing. Actors were chosen who actually closely resembled their real-life counterparts, and the props and sets were spot-on. The producers even traveled to the Philippines to shoot obsolete jets of the early 60s, redressed to look like US Navy. One minor portrayal that really suprised was the actress playing Jackie Kennedy. Looked like Jackie, and amazingly she was able to speak in Mrs. Kennedy's sultry voice. Highly worth watching. It's as close as we can now get to actually being there.
Reviews
24 Reviews
Downton Abbey
(2019)
Royalty and Nobility Made Likeable
24 September 2019
There are few movies these days from which you'll walk away, smiling. We did.. Yes, the characters are cardboard and the plot sometimes silly or soapy, but the whole of it is so charming, so well done, we couldn't help but love it. If you've followed the series, you must see the movie. If not, you should see it anyway. We want more, Julian Fellows, do you hear? We want more!
Red Sparrow
(2018)
Interesting Premise, Confusing Plot
17 November 2018
Red Sparrow is built on an interesting premise, that the Russians have trained attractive young women to compromise and get secrets from western authorities. The first part of the film, taking viewers into the training school, is fascinating and well done, with great dialogue. But from there the movie, which is at least a half hour too long, devolves into a confusing plot that is near impossible to decipher. The violence is also, to my tastes, gratuitous. Some good acting, and Jennifer is gorgeous to behold, but overall a little too much goulash for me.
Juggernaut
(1974)
Ship Later Joined Russian Fleet
24 October 2017
"Juggernaut" was a well done thriller, but I have a special connection to the film, well, actually the ship used to film it. The fictional "Brittanic" was actually the German liner, Hamburg. The ship was nearly new when the first energy crisis hit and jacked fuel costs sky-high. The Germans were desperate to do anything for revenue, including renting their liner for a terror at sea film. Not much after, they sold the ship for cents on the dollar to the Russian Black Sea Line, which changed her name to Maxim Gorki. It was then I sailed on her on a cruise from New York to Bermuda. Fascinating experience, including KGB agents posing as "hosts". Their real job was to watch for crew defections. Years later, the Gorki was the site of a great power summit conference, but soon after that, she ran aground and was eventually scrapped. Just a bit of movie trivia. Now back to our reviews.
London Has Fallen
(2016)
Stupid Shoot-Em-Up
19 September 2016
"London has Fallen" starts out in a promising way. The attack on London is well done and startlingly realistic (I've been there so many locales were familiar) but the last third devolves into a dumb bang-bang-bang of seemingly endless shooting and killing with good guy's guns that never seem to run out of ammo and bad guys who never seem to be able to hit anything. Yes, there is the obligatory Situation Room scene, mostly to pad Morgan Freeman's already imposing bank account, but it wouldn't have been missed if it was left out. Bottom line: I gave up on watching with 20 minutes to go. You will too. Gerard, you should have stayed in Sparta.
Star Trek Beyond
(2016)
Not the Star Trek I Grew Up With
29 July 2016
Star Trek in its original concept was all message, with a little violence. Now, its become the opposite. To attract teenage boys, I guess, "Star Trek: Beyond" is 80% shoot-em-ups, fistfights, and explosions. What plot there is seems like a last minute addition. If you like that sort of thing, by all means, go and enjoy. Otherwise you might want to download some of the original TV episodes. You'll save five bucks or more and will gain an appreciation for fine writing and plotting. BTW, this was the last film by Anton Yelchin, killed in a freak car accident not long ago. A good young actor. May he rest in peace. Also, I read they will not recast the part of Chekov. Another brick pulled out of the wall.
Money Monster
(2016)
Good Film, not Great, but Worth the Price of Your Ticket
18 May 2016
Jodie Foster did a good job keeping "Money Monster" realistic and moving, and all players came across as credible, and the NYC financial district and NYPD formed a solid backdrop to the action. Clooney and Roberts put in their usual strong performances, but the standout was O'Connell. I'd also give kudos to the guy who played a TV cameraman and had some of the best lines. The action was such that the first two thirds of the film kept me at the edge of my seat. Only in the last third did the plot fall apart a bit with a overly complex explanation of the incident that provoked the rest of the story. But we'll give it a pass because the rest of the effort was so well done. A solid 7, maybe a bit more.
The Walk
(II) (2015)
A Truly Uplifting Movie
16 October 2015
This is a wonderful movie, fast-paced, well directed and acted, and the special effects are both realistic ad amazing. But it's in the last third of the movie, when Phillipe Fetit actually walks between the Twin Towers, that the film acquires a lyrical quality unlike anything I've seen. Joseph Gordon-Levitt portrays a joy that one can only imagine, being that high up in command of the earth and the sky. After the film, I had to go online to see photos of the actual event, and indeed, there is a shot of Phillipe on the wire, all of NYC laid out below, with a broad smile on his face. Go see The Walk. You'll walk out with a smile on yours too.
Two Night Stand
(2014)
86 Minutes of Smart Dialogue and Good Acting
24 July 2015
Warning: Spoilers
"Two Night Stand" shows what you can do with two talented young actors and a really sharp writer. The plot is clever, but it's the dialogue and the interaction between Megan and Alec that really make this work. The running time is just shy of an hour and a half, and (spoiler) the ending is typical ROM-COM, but it's a pretty good cinematic example of the expression, "time flies when you're having fun." Definitely worth a buck and a half of your money and 86 minutes of your time if you like cute young characters saying smart, funny things. Kudos to the supporting cast as well and I always like when NYC movies are actually shot in the city and not in Toronto or Vancouver with NY street sighs.
Star Trek Continues
(2013–2017)
Extraordinary Recreation of TOS
6 April 2015
If you hadn't watched Star Trek TOS, you'd think you were watching Star Trek TOS. The sets, lighting, music, cinematography, all are top quality and broadcast ready. The Captain does a great job being Bill Shatner, and even looks exactly like him from some angles. The others in the cast are less like the originals, but hey, these are fans working for the fun of it, but with one exception. Chris Doohan is the son of Jimmy Doohan, who played Scotty in TOS, and looks and sounds just like his dad. The fact he was willing to do this, and original actors from TOS and Next Gen have parts show how attractive this is to the ST community. Roddenberry's son called this "The fourth season" of TOS. I concur.
The Congress
(2013)
A cartooonish look at a future where identity is surrendered for entertainment.
25 February 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Warning: Possible spoilers included.
First, let's get the title out of the way. The movie has nothing to do with politics.
That aside, it's an amazing piece of movie-making. The premise, that when an actor appears in a film, the actual actor is no longer needed, is fascinating. For a fee, that person gives up everything that he or, in this case, she is. The purchaser of that identity is thereafter free to use it in any way, without further permission.
And use it, the fictional movie maker, a mash up of the names Miramax and Paramount, does, creating an ageless superhero when the person shown is actually an aged lady. But that crass form of identity theft and manipulation goes even farther as the movie company creates ways to steal everyone's identity to create a cartoonish world of name droppers and fantasy creatures, all shown in some of the most remarkable animation ever on a screen.
All in all, The Congress is an odd, but fascinating look at a future when we give up all we are in exchange for entertainment. Worth an Oscar? No. Worth watching. Yes.
First, let's get the title out of the way. The movie has nothing to do with politics.
That aside, it's an amazing piece of movie-making. The premise, that when an actor appears in a film, the actual actor is no longer needed, is fascinating. For a fee, that person gives up everything that he or, in this case, she is. The purchaser of that identity is thereafter free to use it in any way, without further permission.
And use it, the fictional movie maker, a mash up of the names Miramax and Paramount, does, creating an ageless superhero when the person shown is actually an aged lady. But that crass form of identity theft and manipulation goes even farther as the movie company creates ways to steal everyone's identity to create a cartoonish world of name droppers and fantasy creatures, all shown in some of the most remarkable animation ever on a screen.
All in all, The Congress is an odd, but fascinating look at a future when we give up all we are in exchange for entertainment. Worth an Oscar? No. Worth watching. Yes.
The Interview
(II) (2014)
Not as Funny as Mad Magazine.
26 December 2014
When I was 14, I used to read Mad Magazine and laughed until my sides ached. Now, much older, I pick up Mad and don't know what I ever found funny in it. This movie is like Mad, only not as clever and much more coarse. The scripting is poor, the plot predictable, the acting phoned in, and the characterization of Kim as just another misunderstood California stoner an insult to the millions the real "Supreme Leader" has killed, starved and terrorized. Rogan and company could have come up with a fictional dictator of a make believe country (as Charlie Chaplin did in "The Great Dictator,") and had it make more sense.
If you like Mad, you'll like this, if not, avoid it like a free trip to North Korea.
If you like Mad, you'll like this, if not, avoid it like a free trip to North Korea.
Parkland
(2013)
Extraordinary Film
6 December 2013
This is an extraordinary film. It's as true to what actually happened as a filmmaker could do it. And it takes you places, including the bloody trauma room where the heroic efforts to save Kennedy failed, that no assassination film ever has. The story is largely told in the faces of the characters. Even the Zapruder film plays out reflected in his eyeglasses. And remarkable vignettes such as the actual fight with local authorities to get the body back to DC and the struggle to get the casket onto a plane never designed to carry one are shown in full. A side story shows the effect of Oswald's act on his family, his brother trying to digest and cope with it all, and his lunatic mother staking her own claim to fame. Whether you lived through that terrible time or have others in your life who never did, see Parkland. The event will never be forgotten. And this film will take you to a new level of understanding why.
Snow White and the Huntsman
(2012)
Thud
1 June 2012
We just saw Snow White and were underwhelmed. The producers had all the ingredients, great visuals, powerful effects, fascinating casting, costumes, horses, the whole shebang. And it all went thud. There's just no driving soul to this film. The plot meanders and is full of holes and conradictions. It's a combo of clichés and fairy tale adaptations of scenes from Star Wars (especially the final confrontation) and other flicks that leaves you still feeling hungry. The producers should have paid more attention to the story and less to the accoutrements. As Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry used to say, "movie problems are best fixed in the typewriter."
I'd wait for it to be on Netflix. At least you can see it at no extra charge. Shouldn't take long to get there.
I'd wait for it to be on Netflix. At least you can see it at no extra charge. Shouldn't take long to get there.
Atlas Shrugged: Part I
(2011)
Better Than I Expected
15 April 2011
I was prepared to cringe at this Atlas Shrugged, universally panned by the critics for its low budget and no-name cast. Instead, I was pretty impressed. The story was faithful to the book, and the message and narrative clear, with the producers wisely sidestepping most of Rand's stilted polemics.
Yes, the budget did confine most shooting to interiors, but there was enough "big sky" material, railroad operations, and steel mill shots to give the film some scope. And the SFX and CG used in the supertrain shots, which probably absorbed half the budget, were worth every penny.
The cast, and especially Taylor Shilling, who played Dagny, and Grant Bowler (Rearden) did a great job.
Overall, I liked AS, and look forward to the sequels. I just hope the producers can raise the financing to make them.
Yes, the budget did confine most shooting to interiors, but there was enough "big sky" material, railroad operations, and steel mill shots to give the film some scope. And the SFX and CG used in the supertrain shots, which probably absorbed half the budget, were worth every penny.
The cast, and especially Taylor Shilling, who played Dagny, and Grant Bowler (Rearden) did a great job.
Overall, I liked AS, and look forward to the sequels. I just hope the producers can raise the financing to make them.
Nude on the Moon
(1961)
Cheap, Cheap, Cheap
12 April 2011
This is a remarkable look at what passed for racy in 1961. Though it promises sex, it actually delivers a healthy suntanned nudist colony travel flick set in South Florida. The amount of cheap is astounding! The rocket ship interior is actually an old DC-6 prop job probably left to rust at Opa Locka airport near Miami. The moon colony is Florida's wierdball Coral Castle (though the director did manage to not show the traffic passing on nearby US 1.) The space helmets and rockets are toys available in any toy store of those years (I played with some in the film as a kid.) and the spacesuits are paper mache. I doubt the producers paid any of the nudie cuties (some not so cute), probably harvested from an actual nature colony, several of which are still located in the area. Science is totally ignored as the moon has not only Earth gravity, but also blue skies and white fluffy clouds that look like, um, South Florida. And the supposedly unmarried star actor hasn't bothered to remove his wedding ring.
The best thing about the film was the cool 1959 Pontiac convertible the stars drive to the spaceport, even if it does have a dent in the left side. Still, the film was good for a laugh, and a sense of awe of what could be passed off as a theatrical flick in those days. Get it from Netflix. What can you lose?
The best thing about the film was the cool 1959 Pontiac convertible the stars drive to the spaceport, even if it does have a dent in the left side. Still, the film was good for a laugh, and a sense of awe of what could be passed off as a theatrical flick in those days. Get it from Netflix. What can you lose?
Love & Other Drugs
(2010)
Sharply Written, Wonderfully Acted RomCom
29 November 2010
Warning: Spoilers
We saw the movie yesterday and greatly enjoyed it, (while wondering how they haven't gotten sued...yet...by Pfizer Drugs.) Both Anne and Jake put in terrific performances of a very sharply written script, with Anne's possible Oscar material. It did get a bit maudlin at the end, and one has to wonder whether true love really will overcome the dark picture of the disease painted for Jaime (Jake) by the spouse of a Parkinson's sufferer, but hey, let's hope it does. The only depiction I didn't like was of Jake's doofus brother, obviously put in to gain some guffaws from the 16-year old male moviegoer. In the end, very enjoyable and interesting, especially in light of how often we've seen these gorgeous young pharma reps sitting in the doc's office and wondered what they were all about. BTW, did or didn't I see Annette Bening doing a cameo as a speaker at the Parkinson's support group meeting? Sure looked and sounded like her.
Valentine's Day
(I) (2010)
And you thought that the 70s sitcom Love American Style was dead and gone.
19 July 2010
Back in the 70s, TV producer Aaron Spelling hit on a formula first seen in his hourly series, "Love American Style". Combine a bunch of hackneyed independent rom-com mini-plots, mix in a plethora of B-list stars each coming in for one day's shooting, and spread the resulting mess across the screen.
That's "Valentine's Day", writ 60 feet large and charging $9 a ticket. Fortunately, I got it on DVD for a buck at the local supermarket kiosk and I have to tell you: It wasn't worth that.
Pass on this one, unless you're ready to reactivate your disco ball and renew your acquaintance with TV's "Rhoda."
That's "Valentine's Day", writ 60 feet large and charging $9 a ticket. Fortunately, I got it on DVD for a buck at the local supermarket kiosk and I have to tell you: It wasn't worth that.
Pass on this one, unless you're ready to reactivate your disco ball and renew your acquaintance with TV's "Rhoda."
Brooklyn South
(1997–1998)
Good Show That Lost Its Way
18 June 2008
Warning: Spoilers
I was a Brooklyn South superfan back in the day (one reason...I was about to move to Brooklyn) and I own the DVD set now. With some perspective, I think the first episodes were the best, filmed on location, not in L.A., as they did later, and dealing with real situations street cops might meet. Ratings were not bad, but after Bochco's earlier hits (btw, he went to high school with me), CBS expected much and probably paid top dollar.
When the show didn't go off the charts immediately, pressure from the network must have been intense, and the writers went off into spasms of incredulity, anything to try to get an audience. Suddenly these ordinary beat cops were uncovering all manner of big league crimes on a weekly basis, this week an international terrorist plot, that week a nest of bombers. The show became so unbelievable even I got turned off to it. They also added more and more characters, calling on beauty queens (Elana Elaniak) and popular actors from NYPD Blue. More characters is one thing it didn't need.
Still, the acting was great and most of the cast have gone on to bigger things. Dylan Walsh on Nip n Tuck, Adam Rodriguez to CSI: Miami, etc. I just saw Gary Basaraba on the HBO Special "Recount".
If they'd stuck to realistic plots, dealing with believable human drama (COPS finds plenty of it on the beat.), and CBS had given it a chance, we'd be watching Brooklyn South today. Instead, Bochco is still searching for the next big police thing. Hey, Steve, how about a show on cops on the beat...
When the show didn't go off the charts immediately, pressure from the network must have been intense, and the writers went off into spasms of incredulity, anything to try to get an audience. Suddenly these ordinary beat cops were uncovering all manner of big league crimes on a weekly basis, this week an international terrorist plot, that week a nest of bombers. The show became so unbelievable even I got turned off to it. They also added more and more characters, calling on beauty queens (Elana Elaniak) and popular actors from NYPD Blue. More characters is one thing it didn't need.
Still, the acting was great and most of the cast have gone on to bigger things. Dylan Walsh on Nip n Tuck, Adam Rodriguez to CSI: Miami, etc. I just saw Gary Basaraba on the HBO Special "Recount".
If they'd stuck to realistic plots, dealing with believable human drama (COPS finds plenty of it on the beat.), and CBS had given it a chance, we'd be watching Brooklyn South today. Instead, Bochco is still searching for the next big police thing. Hey, Steve, how about a show on cops on the beat...
Pu-239
(2006)
The Nuclear Genie in the Hands of Oafs
23 November 2007
I also came across this movie as I channel surfed. Didn't even know the name of it, but was fascinated by it's authenticity, being filmed behind the former Iron Curtain.
Russia has always been a paradox, in many ways a 3rd world nation, yet a military superpower. The themes it dealt with, the worthlessness of the individual, the carelessness of dealing with unbelievably dangerous substances in such an offhand way, the ass-covering behavior of bureaucrats, the stupidity of the Russian mafia, all are classic and well developed in the film. All are characteristic of Russia, yet this story could have happened anywhere. Really scares you to think that, given the bell curve of any group of humans, the nuclear genie is actually in the hands of such oafs.
Worth watching, worth talking and thinking about.
Russia has always been a paradox, in many ways a 3rd world nation, yet a military superpower. The themes it dealt with, the worthlessness of the individual, the carelessness of dealing with unbelievably dangerous substances in such an offhand way, the ass-covering behavior of bureaucrats, the stupidity of the Russian mafia, all are classic and well developed in the film. All are characteristic of Russia, yet this story could have happened anywhere. Really scares you to think that, given the bell curve of any group of humans, the nuclear genie is actually in the hands of such oafs.
Worth watching, worth talking and thinking about.
Street Hawk
(1985)
Don't Forget Supertrain
9 August 2007
Another one of the super-vehicle shows of the 80s was Supertrain, on NBC.
This series about life on a 200MPH rolling hotel, complete with swimming pool full of scantily-clad starlets, was the brainchild of networking programming "genius" Freddie Silverman.
I don't remember much about it, other thank it was highly plugged and the train was kinda cool-looking. I think the plots were the usual mix of mysterious murders on board, mysterious and sexy women, and bad guys seeking to derail the whole deal.
The viewers did it for them. Maybe because the idea that people would travel days to go transcon in a train when a jet could get them there in six hours (not like today when it takes 6 days, 5 of them sitting on the runway) was just a new feather on an old hat.
Anyway The series was soon gone, and so was Freddie.
This series about life on a 200MPH rolling hotel, complete with swimming pool full of scantily-clad starlets, was the brainchild of networking programming "genius" Freddie Silverman.
I don't remember much about it, other thank it was highly plugged and the train was kinda cool-looking. I think the plots were the usual mix of mysterious murders on board, mysterious and sexy women, and bad guys seeking to derail the whole deal.
The viewers did it for them. Maybe because the idea that people would travel days to go transcon in a train when a jet could get them there in six hours (not like today when it takes 6 days, 5 of them sitting on the runway) was just a new feather on an old hat.
Anyway The series was soon gone, and so was Freddie.
David Copperfield
(1970 TV Movie)
Worth the 50 Cents It Cost
27 January 2007
I found this DVD at the dollar store, where it was, if you can believe it, on sale at 50 cents. You wouldn't expect much and I wasn't disappointed at what I got.
Although there are some sparkling portrayals, the movie was long, muddy, and hard to watch. Some of this had to do with the poor reproduction by the distributor, Digiview. The rest related to the fact that I hadn't read the book so the 101 story lines going off in all directions were confusing, especially when held together only by the title character walking up and down the beach, and alternately scowling and muttering.
Worth every cent ... and not a pence more.
Although there are some sparkling portrayals, the movie was long, muddy, and hard to watch. Some of this had to do with the poor reproduction by the distributor, Digiview. The rest related to the fact that I hadn't read the book so the 101 story lines going off in all directions were confusing, especially when held together only by the title character walking up and down the beach, and alternately scowling and muttering.
Worth every cent ... and not a pence more.
World Trade Center
(2006)
Better without the ending
10 August 2006
Warning: Spoilers
I saw WTC today and was incredibly moved by it, remarkable since from a moviemaker's perspective, very little happened. Two men were trapped in a dark hole and their wives awaited their fate. But the power of the performances by Cage and Pena and their screen wives carried the movie home. The real life courage of the rescuers provided the power behind that.
The only element I did not like was the unnecessary coda at the end in which the Cage character suddenly is a voice-over narrator, mouthing platitudes. The movie is its own message, it needed no moral to the story ending.
The only element I did not like was the unnecessary coda at the end in which the Cage character suddenly is a voice-over narrator, mouthing platitudes. The movie is its own message, it needed no moral to the story ending.
A sure Emmy winner
22 March 2006
Warning: Spoilers
This was possibly the best Sopranos episode ever ... the effects on all the family (biological and Mafia) from what happened to Tony, plus the deja vu sequence, were startling and gripping.
Every one in the cast did brilliant work, but there was one standout among standouts. That's Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano. Edie is a sure Emmy nominee for this show, and probably a sure winner.
Also notable. The kid who plays A.J. (he's not such a kid anymore) who finally got a chance to stretch his dramatic talents. Plus it was good to see Ron Liebman on screen again, playing a doctor. He's been a favorite of mine since "Norma Rae." And he doesn't get as much exposure as he deserves.
What an incredible show!
Every one in the cast did brilliant work, but there was one standout among standouts. That's Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano. Edie is a sure Emmy nominee for this show, and probably a sure winner.
Also notable. The kid who plays A.J. (he's not such a kid anymore) who finally got a chance to stretch his dramatic talents. Plus it was good to see Ron Liebman on screen again, playing a doctor. He's been a favorite of mine since "Norma Rae." And he doesn't get as much exposure as he deserves.
What an incredible show!
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