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Movie Reviews by Albert Fried-Cassorla Last updated: 8-25-10 ***** = Loved it and recommend it **** = Enjoyed it *** = Decent ** = Dull * = Why did I bother? 2010 Elling - (Netflix) ***** - a wonderful comedy about two Norwegian men, mentally challenged, who manage to become independent and enjoy life. Very charming! Cyrus ***** - Very engaging, serious comedy. The Kids Are All Right **** - with Mark Ruffalo. Winter's Bones *** - I know all reviewers loved this. The
acting was fine and the plot tense and strong. But too depressing for my
taste. Next Stop Wonderland **** - Phillip Seymour
Hoffman, Hope Davis - charming flick! On DVD. Get Him to the
Greek *** - Funny! 2009 Anvil Up Wall-Y Open City Breathless, Slumdog Millionaire, Milk, Very Young Girls 2008 L' Atalante - Jean Vigo 2004 ***** Sideways. This movie is a road story, a serio-comedy about two single men who help each other, have hilarious adventures, come to understand wine and to a far less extent women. Paul Giamatti is sensational as a depressed single guy who can't grasp happiness, even when it's in his hands. The "getting the wallet" scene alone is maybe the funniest piece of filmmaking I have sene in years. Absolutely hilarious! And best of all, this film has resonance.
**** The Incredibles. A very entertaining animated film about a Super Hero family where the Dad is trying to hang up his uniform and retire from superpower-dom. It's funny and smart, and mainly good family fun. I would have preferred much more comedy and less "Dr. No" style shenanigans, which domninate the second half of the film.
**** Kinsey. With Liam Neeson and Laura Linney. A fascinating movie about the trsail-blaxing sex researcher. It's a character study of his obsessive nature, what it takes to achieve in a new, controversial field, and the sufferings imposed on him by society. Neeson is wonderful and belieavable, extreme and yet nuanced. Linney is wonderful. Makes you glad you did not live back in the dark old days.
****
*****
****
*** **** **** *** *** ** However, I must admit I could not get absorbed in the characters. A haze
of gray listlessness hangs over the movie, like four month of cloudy weather.
** The acting is energetic and some of the original songs are very comically written and lustily performed. But all of the endless private eye detail about "who did what to whom" was annoying. I think this movie would have benefited by being more of a comedy, which it is good at, and less of a film noir plot exposition. ****
***** Monsieur Ibrahim - Omar Sharif stars in this tale of an old Parisian shopkeeper who befriends a boy from a broken family. The boy is Jewish, and Sharif's character is a Sufi mystic. This movie is about finding joy in the world and the art of being happy and giving and taking what you can from life, including friendship and romance. The story is beautfully told. In fact, I loved it and its messages. It is like a less impish, less whimsical Amelie, one of my favorites of all time. The messages are similar, but this is no pastiche. It's happy and sad, and therefore like life itself!
***** My Architect - Nathaniel Kahn, the unacknowledged or illegitimate son of the famous architect Louis Kahn, has created this great tribute to his father. The elder Kahn did not treat him well, but the son is forgiving, emphasizing the positive aspects and in some ways the unnknowability of his dad. This film succeeds on many levels: · it is compassionate, because Nathaniel is very likeable, warm, and inquiring; · it gives an appreciation of an architect whose best work is extremely inspiring, complete with visual tours of his masterpieces; · it shows how hard the past is to recapture, especially when the focus is a person who led mysterious and duplicitous lives. Louis Kahn had a wife and two mistresses, totalling three families.
***** In **** Big Fish - An imaginative movie from Tim Burton that tells a loving story about a story-teller, played by Albert Finney. It's pleasant enough and a good tale, but not substantially moving.
2003 - 33 movies **** ****** The Cooler - William H. Macy stars as a "Cooler," or casino employee who brings bad luck to otherwise winning casino players. Maria Bello plays his love interest and Alec Baldwin his boss-tormentor. Ths fliuck has an excellent script, great humanity, exceptional acting and a structure that builds in interest and emotion. A real winner!
**** Station Agent - Peter Dinklage plays a dwarf who wants to escape to a rural abandoned railroad station, where he can be himself. He can hardly be his own, as neighbors are inelectably drawn to him, messing up his peace, but perhaps bringing him humanity.
**** Intolerable Cruelty -
Bill Murray plays an actor visiting
Love Actually -
High Granyt plays
**** Elf - Starring Will Farrell and Jack Newhart, among others. Comical and sweet tale of an overgrown elf, really a human. What makes this movie exceptional is that it is so ingenuous and sweet.
***** Intolerable Cruelty - Directed by Joek and Ethan Coen, with George Clooney and Catherine Zeta-Jones. A very funny, fast-paced romp about rapacous lawyers, Holywood golddiggers, the strange prospect of love amidst all of this, and more. Smartly done and great fun.
****
***** Nowhere in Africa -
A very well-told tale of holocaust fleers who fiund
some sort of refuge in
**** When Sean Penn decides to exact revenge and does so upon the wrong person,
the Laura Linney character (his wife) convinces him
that he is a :king among men," and such people don't look back or admit
to errors. Sounds just like Bush and his The lesson that it seems Eastwood wants to convey is: Good men can kill the wrong people. But it's all right; its the way of the world, and the price of truing to protect your family. Also: crimes committed in childhood play out later in life and wreak havoc in peoples lives many years hence. I can believe that, but it's like knowing that rain must fall. Despite these complaints, I was very involved in the film which had many fine dramatic moments, especially those involving Tim Robbins.
***** Lost In Translation -
A funny and poignant love story about Bill Murray and Scarlett
Johansson's characters, each lonely though married and feeling abandoned in *** Russian
***** Finding Nemo- A beautifully made funny animated flick with lively, interesting characters. Did I say beautiful only once? Let me say it twice. The pastels, the gorgeous ocean and evanescent creatures and photographically real whales are extraordinary. Yet the characters are the most important -- a cute story about a clownfish Dad, played by Albert Brook's voice, and his son Nemo, who gets taken away. The story cocncerns his efforts to find him. Sure, thaty's typical fare for a plot line, but how the story is told makes all the difference. Ellen Degeneres is great as Darla, a forgetful blue fish. Now I did see this with my nieces and nephews and that made it more special. But I think anyone can enjoy this fun flick.
Whale Rider - A beautiful film about an elder Maori tribesman who seeks a boy who will become the new leader and savior of his people. His granddaughter seeks this role, but he rejects her. What happens next is the essence of the story, told beautifully and even poetically. Starts slow and builds interest and power. **** Pirates of the
**** Swimming Pool - A movie about a prim mystery writer who spends time
at her publisher's villa in
**** Nowhere in Africa - An emotionally very rich story about a Jewish
family fleeing from Nazi Germany to
**** Russian Ark - A historical tour of The Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, complete with acted vignettes showing scenes form the Czars's lives, elegant balls and more. Shot in real time. The interior architecture is splendid. Don't expect a normal film - this one wanders and makes you wonder.
***** Capturing the Friedmans - At first, because of the subject matter, I did not want to see this documentary about a convicted pedophile and his trial. But glowing reviews convinced me otherwise, and I am glad I saw it. The movie is more about the Roshomon-effect of people's divergent views of an alleged crime. The filmmaker leaves you to figure it out. Very absorbing dialog and scenes from a family that talked about and recorded everything. Poses disturbing questions about the American judicial system.
***** Bruce Almighty - Jim Carrey and Morgan Freeman are wonderful in this comedy about a man who expects too much from life and from God, and who gets a lesson. The script is witty, and the treatment of religious themes is, in my opinion, respectful. Best of all, there are TONS of laughs and a good deal to ponder philosophically about what Life dishes out, and how we regard it. In one scene, where Jim Carrey manipulates an evil anchorman's on-air lines, I laughed so hard I had to look away from the screen for fear of choking!
****
Tons of laughs and very witty. Levy's character is the most interesting, and he makes the film work. Sap that I am, I actually liked the film's pretend music! As the Times critic said, it made me want to dust off my old Mitch and Mickey records -- until I realized there weren't any!
**** This is the story of a **** ***
*****
The Hours - With Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, and Julianne Moore. This is a good movie IF and only if you can tolerate a flick that is almost exclusively about suicidally depressed people. The three stories concern the author Virginia Woolf and her husband Leonard, who is desperate to prevent her suicide; a mother (Moore) who has enormous yearnings to kill herself despite the needs of her young son to see her survive; and Streep as a latter-day Mrs. Dalloway, a Woolf character, struggling to keep her AIDS-ridden brother alive. Does this sound like a sad evening in the movie theater? Yes, it is. Then what is the reward? Well, if you care about good story-telling, you will find it here. The characters speak convincingly about their particular situations, especially about the right of each of us to end our own lives, if we so choose. The fallout and damage of this choice are inevitable, and are shown here unflinchingly. One consolation: many of these characters, historical and fictional, had their dilemmas before good treatments were available for clinical depression.
***** Bringing Down the House - Starring Steve Martin and Queen Latifah. This is a hilarious movie! At least I and the audience I saw it with agreed that it is so. Steve Martin plays an uptight lawyer, and Queen Latifah a brassy wrongly-accused criminal. There's much racial stereotyping, so be forewarned. I am a total Steve Martin fan, and so I am prejudiced in favor of this flick. He reprises some of his famous Wild and Crazy Guy routines from the Saturday night Live days.... and the younger generation has never seen it, so it is new for them -- which is great!. Wonderful to see him in such rare form, and doing new things, too, like the homey rapper routine. Latifah is a great foil. As critic Carrie Rickey pointed out, much like Mae West to his W.C, Fields. Although Fields never had Martin's body English. ***** Talk to Her - Directed by Pedro Aldomovar.
I loved this film! It's about two women who go into comas and the men who
care about them. But of course, that oversimplifies. This fil
is rich in emotion, color and inventiveness. It also possesses a very
interesting and comical fantasy sequence! It's hard to say any more without
giving it away. Made in
****
**** Adaptation - directed by Spike Jonze, with Nicholas Cage and Meryl Streep. This is a story about a neurotic screenwriter and his relaxed, easygoing twin brother, both played with style by Cage. This film is almost as imaginative as Jonze's earlier Being John Malkovich. Although it has several self-referential sections,and tautological imaginings of writers looking upon writing and the process. While that approach is usually deadly, here it works beautifully! Streep is involved in writing a story about an "orchid thief" who leads a weird but happy life. Enter Cage and his own story-hunting, and mayhem ensues. The interaction of the two brothers is the highlight of the film for me. Definitely interesting and different!
**** About Schmidt - With Jack Nicholson and Kathy Bates. Jack Nicoholson does not play his exact old self in this one, about a retiree trying to connect with his family and the world. I like the untraditional plot structure of this film, Nicholson's and Bates' performances, and the moving ending. Much of what I loved about this film is not easily isolated and identifiable - it's a good story, well-told.
****
**** 2002 ***** **** Real Women Have Curves - Josefina Lopez delivers an excellent
script and movie, based on her play about a family of hard-working Chicanas in the
**** Far From Heaven - A great recreation of the 1950's, showing an upper middle class corporate family falling apart. Also, a poignant love story is told. Gorgeous scenes and lovely photography, plus excellent acting. Never reaches the high voltage that I think some scenes deserved, though. And I lived through the 1950's. It wasn't that slow!
***** Autumn Spring - Directed by Vladimir Michaelek,
2001 - I absolutely adored this movie about a retirees in
*** The Piano Teacher - Sado-masochistic tale of a piano teacher and her repressed personality, then strange erotic habits. It's a good story, but I found the ending unsatisfying. Others in my group who saw it thought it was fantastic.
**** Rodger Dodger - 2002. Campbell Scott plays a neurotic lover-type whose neurosis interferes with his success on all fronts. He shepherds a teenage relation in the ways of sex and women. A very well-told story.
**** Last Dance - a film by Mirra Bank - Jewish Film Festival at the Gershman Y, Philadelphia - This is a documentary abut the making of a dance-theater piece called "A Selection," by Pilobolus Dance Company. They dramatize a story by Maurice Sendak that concerns the performance of a musical by children of the Nazi "model Jewish camp." The interaction and conflicts between the dance company and author are remarkably candid and revealing. Their story told is a sad one - what could be sadder than children and Nazi death camps? Amazingly, though, you come away from this evening seeing that something beautiful can be produced, without sugar-coating, and without leaving feeling depressed or deluded.
***** Punch Drunk Love - Starring Adam Sandler and Emily Watson. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. This is a romantic thriller, whereas it's billed as a romantic comedy. No matter, this film has an excellent story, well-told and well-acted. Adam I wasn't a fan before, but I admit that Sandler is wonderful in this film.
**** Kissing Jessica Stein - Written, direct by and starring Heather Juergensen and Jennifer Westfeldt - An entertaining story about a woman who -- as a result of a coircumstance and an opportunity -- funds herself exploring a lesbian relationship. She surprises herself, not to mention those around her. Of course, that's too neat a summary. In between, there are lovers, tense experiences and a whole lot of humor.
These creative women worked on this as a play in
**** Last Orders - Written and directed by Fred Schepisi. With Michael Caine, David Hemmings and others. A tale of life-long buddies now in their late middle age or early retirement phase, who must disperse the ashes of their now dead drinking buddy. Very little about the dispersing, it;s more about the dreams, loves, and aspirations of these men over the years. Very well done. **** Y Tu Mama Tambien, directed by Alfonso Cuaron - Excellent, sexy, rough and vulgar, this movie talle sthe tale of two Mexian teens who go off on an adventure with a middle-aged woman. A great deal hapens among them, and it all makes sense and entertains us. In the end there is poignancy but enough said. The film will be too sexy or trashy for some people.
***** Monsoon Wedding - directed by Mira Nair. A funny, warm, colorful and moving tale of an Indian wedding. It has 5 sub-plots, all interesting. This is a delightful movie worth recommending to just about anyone! 2001 Harry Potter - Amusing journey. **** The Fellowship of the Ring - Maybe the story;line is cliched, but this production is still very powerful stuff. Lots f strong emotions and matchingly great effects to keep me attuned.
***** Her guiles continually surprise us, and the movie plays with great style upon our minds. Amelie is played by Audrey Tatou, who is xtraordinary and captivating. The film teems with inventiveness. and with the spirit and wisdom of European civilization. Although Jeunet uses rapid montage and other modern techniques, these effects never submerge the story, which is mainly abut romance, life, and the need to take risks in both. It was shot in 80 different Parisian locations and is visually beautiful. Plus, the film has a great soul. It's one of the best movies I have seen in a long time! **** Under the Sun - 2001, produced and directed by Colin Nutley, based on a story by H.E. Bates called "The Little Farm." This is a Swedish film made by an English director. He casts his real-life wife as the character Ellen, played by Helena Bergstrom. She is a beautiful woman who signs up as a housekeeper to a lonely farmer, Olof (Rolf Lassgard). The love and passion that grows between them is so strong, you feel as though you have stepped into a real 3-dimensional sensual relationship. Olof's snake-in-the-grass friend, Erik (Johan Widenberg), proviodes the necessary spice to make this a real story. I loved this film forn its beauty and passion, though I suppose not everyone will feel that way.
**** Perhaps the heart of the movie belongs to the kids in it. They protest against their elders for the right to eat meat and watch TV, among other things.A girl from the commune and a chubby, cute boy next door find they have an interest in each other. Their scenes are touching and often funny. This movie is about love, aspirations, being open to new situations and
learning from what the present delivers. **** Bread and Tulips - 2001 - A fine romantic comedy, set primarily in
the visual splendor of
**** Ghost World - 2001 - An entertaining tale about two young women who decide to toy with a lonely man. The results are ssurprising. Stars Thora Burch, Steve Buscemi, and Scarlett Johansson. Directed by Terry Zwigoff.
***** Divided We Fall - 2000 - A Czech film directed by Jan Hrebejk - A wonderful movie about love, betrayal, finding friends in unexpected places, role reversals among hunters and the hunted, and more. A Czech family shelters a Jewish refugee while under Nazi occupation. Among the dilemmas is the nature of an apparent friend of the family, a man named Holst, who is also a Czech collaborator and now an SS officer. The husband and wife are called Joseph and Marie (and I realize only in retrospect that these names have some significance.) They are trying to get Marie pregnant. This fact has an important role in the movie, and it is better not to say more about it here. Powerful and emotional, this film has an important message about humanity surving by sticking together. And yet there's no preaching here, just terrific story-telling. Despite some slow spots, I give it my highest rating. It takes you places where a great films should go. The director has some eloquent words to say about his own film. They might sound inauthentic had he not produced a work as fine as he has. Here is what Jan Hrebejk said: "For me, the film's story is my personal reflection on the strength of human dignity. It demonstrates that even a small show of decency can manifest great heroism and, conversely, that sometimes a small indecency can be tragic."
*** Made - 2001 - Written and directed by Jon Favreau, and starring him and movie team-mate Vince Vaughn. A story about two would-be thugs who are also pals, one stupider than the other. Favreau's character has scruples, thgough. He wants to help his wife escape prostitution and drug addiction. Doing "a job" for Mafioso Peter Falk looks like a way out. This takes them into the world of big-time drug dealing. Vince Vaughn's character makes every social mistake possible. Watching him makes you cringe, because you see him as a prisoner of his own character defects. And at times, this personality flaw results in hilarious scenes, as in an argument about whether to pack a gun. They have this furious argument in the Penguin House of the Bronzx Zoo, and somehow even the penguins seem to feed off the tension with their screeches. The movie has a warm human heart, as you will also see.
**** This Boy's Life - (rental) - Leonardo DeCaprio,
Ellen Barkin and Robert Deniro.
Based on the real life story of writer Tobias Wolff, this movie begins with
young Toby and his Mom cruising the southwest, lloking
for furture or just place to live. Their downflaa is the town of **** Shrek - I very much enjoyed wonderful animated flick about an ogre, Shrek, who finds himself in the position of rescuing a damsel in distress. Eddie Murphy's voice does wonders as the ogre's companion, a talkative donkey. John Lithgow's voice does a good job as a King who has asked for the damsel to be delivered to him. In return, he will liberate a legion of storybook characters who have take over the ogre's swamp. There's more, including a fabulous female dragon, a lunatic Robin Hood, and many comical, humorously rendered characters. What I have not yet conveyed in writing about this movie is the warmth and humor of the script. It's very funny and written for adult minds, having a very wry sense of tiself. Among the targets: Disney, mother goose rhymes and more. The computer animation works because gestures are apprpriate to the script and sensitively rendered. A fun film with many laughs!
**** The Widow of ** Memento - I found Memento confusing, depressing, and
ultimately unrewarding. Others may well enjoy its fst
paced and intellectual teasing game about: What is going on? and What did he really do? Now it's true that I
don't enjoy most detective movies -- but did enjoy for exmaple
LA Confidential and 2000 **** Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - A visual feast of a movie, complete with a solid story line and incredible martial arts scenes. The swordplay is especially well-done. Now, understand that I am not fan of the martial arts genre. In fact, had this film not received all of the critical hoopla that s has, I probably would have run in the opposite direction. But I think it deserves much of the praise it has gotten. Be prepared for sense where people "fly." It happens in a way that is both poetic and exciting. This is a love story, and a tale of revenge and multiple betrayals.
***** You Can Count On Me - Now I happen to have loved this film. I feel it tells a rich, moving story, deals with relatively real and believable characters, and has character, wit and warmth. This is the story of a single mom and bank employee who is trying to raise her son. She has trouble finding care for him, so she invites her ne'er-do-well brother, played by Mark Ruffalo, to come help her out. This causes interesting developments. What more can I ask for in a basically serious film? Laura Linney is the only actress you might have heard of in this one, so don’t go expecting marquee names. The script is by Kenneth Loneran, and I would love to see more from him, since he is an excellent talent.
**** Chocolat - Juliette Binoche stars as a the owner of a new exotic chocolate shop in a provincial town. Her enemy is the mayor, who regards her as nearly an incarnation of the devil. This sets the stage for conflict, and chocolate sensuality. Johnny Depp provides a romantic interest. All in all, a charming flick. Yes, a bit on the syrupy side, but the perfect antidote to chilly winter nights.
**** What Women Want - A light, enjoyable comedy starring Mel Gibson as a male chauvinist, idea-stealing advertising executive. Helen Hunt plays his new, talented and threatening boss. Mel develops an unusual talent part-way through the movie -- he can read women's minds. This dynamic sets up some frothy comedy, with very amusing scenes. This movie gives you a fun time at the movies; just don’t go with super-high expectations, and you won’t be disappointed. *** Billy Eliot - This is a mildly charming story about a British boy who wants to become a dancer. His coal-miner father and brother do not understand and resent it. A kindly but crusty female ballet teacher takes young Billy Eliot under her wing. Predictable, a bit thin on story line. But several of my friends found this movie fabulous.
**** Best of Show - This is a campy, invigorating comedy about eccentric dog owners preparing for a big dog show. Very comical portraits! Actors improvised some of the scenes, and they did excellent jobs. Actor/director/co-writer Christopher Guest gets most of the credit and turns in the funniest character. **** Life is to Whistle - A brilliant, surrealistic Cuban film.
Concerns, love,
**** Michael Jordan to the Max - If you enjoy great basketball, this one
is for you. Michael is 5 stories high (seen at our IMAX in
**** Chicken Run - A comical "Stalag 17" on imprisoned chickens, in pixelated animation with Mel Gibson as the lead rooster. Very entertaining! This is like claymation but with a more malleable plasticene as the main medium. What makes this work are the excellent writing and amusingly voiced characters. It has a good villainess, too.
***** East is East - A tale of a Pakistani family in
**** Frequency - Very deftly told story about a father in 1969 communicating with his son in 1999. This is a crime drama, a sci-fi flick, a sensitively portrayed family story, and much more. Beautifully interwoven, and suspenseful. You must pay close attention to follow the denouement.
**** Small Time Crooks - Cute and comical from Woody Allen. Crooks and high society, schlubs and aspiring nouveau riche. Worth going out to see for a few light laughs.
**** Bossa Nova - Romantic and often
funny tale of Amy Irving and her beaus in
**** **** Erin Bronkovich with Julia Roberts and Albert Finney. An entertaining story about a down-on-her luck Mom who gets a job in a law office. One thing leads to another, and soon she is taking on a major utility in a class action suit. ** Wonder Boys with Michael Douglas. Scattered tale of a pot-smoking novelist professor, and a weird young man he takes an interest in. Douglas, the novelist, also has an affair with a colleague's wife. Why he finds her attractive is hard to figure -- she's humorless. A shaggy dog tale packaged as a movie.
**** The End of the Affair, with Raiphe
Fiennes and Julianne Moore. A tale of tormented passion, Fiennes' specialty.
But he is so good at it. 1999 ***** Man on the Moon. By **** The Talented Mr. Ripley. With Matt Damon. A gorgeous movie, well-acted with surprises. Be ready to meet a real sicko.
**** **** Being John Malkovich. 1999. directed by Slike Jonez. John Cusack. Off-beat totally unique premise -- that people can enter the head of John Malkovich through a portal on a floor of an office building. But the premise is not the only good thing about this flick -- the follow-through is also lively and inventive. One slightly violent mid-section mars the piece, but not overly. **** American Beauty. 1999. With Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening. A sad story about two adolescents who find each other (one is the voyeuristic next-door-neighbor), a bored middle-aged man who lusts after his daughter's girlfriend, a homophobic neighbor, a real-estate-crazed wife, and more. Well, told and highly visual, this story is witty and sad. I found it mainly enjoyable and interesting, but often too cynical and sad for my taste. But most of my friends liked it more than I did. **** An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde. Delightful story about a husband who has something to hide. Has farcical aspects, such as conversations heard through shadowed doorways, mistaking one person for another, etc. Wilde's wit comes shining through, though not on a par with The Importance of Being Earnest.
** Eyes Wide Shut by
**** Autumn Tale by Eric Rohmer. Excellent story of middle-aged love found, lost, maybe found again. Includes a somewhat unbelievanle premise, but more than compensated for by the realistic dialogue, sensititve portrayals both in writing, directing and acting, and the wholeness of the characters. Would that Americans could make this kind of movie! (Did Cassavetes do as well? Someone get back to me on that. ) **** Notting Hill, with Julia Roberts
and Hugh Grant. A charming comedy about a big-time movie actress who descends
into the life of a struggling bookstore owner in a lazy neighborhood in ***** The Spy Who Shagged Me by Mike Myers, with Heather Graham - Suffice it to say that I laughed so hard, that Martha practically had to kick me to keep me from gagging. Yes, it had bad jokes that fell flat or worse, but any movie that sends me sprawling with hysterical laughter gets my 100% vote of appreciation.
**** Limbo directed by John Sayles - with Mary Elizabeth Mastranonio, David Strathairn, and Vanessa Martizez. Absorbing tale of Alaskans who meet and become involved in something unexpected. The central relationships are powerful and credible, which are the great strengths of this movie. Keeping it from being great are a scrip that you can hear being read by the actors during the first half of the movie, and an ending that I found unsatisfying. Withal, an enjoyable flick.
***** Analyze This - Bill Crystal and Robert Deniro.
A hilarious comedy about a mob boss who needs therapy, with 1998 ***** Life Is Beautiful by
Roberto Benigni. This film is by Some people are very sensitive to this kind of film. If films dealing with any aspect of the Holocaust bother you, skip this movie. Otherwise, rest assured that it is nowhere near as gut-wrenching as, for example Sophie's Choice. Nor is it trying to be that kind of film. Rather, it's a simple, romantic, uplifting, and wonderful picture. |
