Fantastic Voyage (1966)

A sci-fi classic which, while dated in social mores and special effects, will remain a classic. It stands with Andromeda Strain and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea as the three best sci-fi films of the 1960s. Sure, Raquel Welch's top appears to be chronically zipped down but (a) if you read his novels, Isaac Asimov was a breast man, so the movie is cleaving true to the book and (b) who's complaining? This story captures people's imagination and does a fine job with the special effects technology of the day (contemporary with the Mission: Impossible and Star Trek TV series and 10 years before Star Wars). A keeper! 4 stars.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

A fairly straightforward comedy about a fairly twisted extended family that fundamentally still loves each other. The ensemble cast interacts well together, albeit at times dysfunctionally. (The movie is rated R for language, drug use, and sexual content.) Each family member is messed up in their own way but approaches their individual peace while sticking together as a family during the road trip from hell. As for Steve Carell's character, I'd be depressed if I were the "foremost Proust scholar" too! Oddly enough, the most twisted part of this movie is the little girls' beauty pageant, where the "tarted up" artificial Barbie dolls are seen as normal. 4.5 stars.

Dixie Chicks: Top of the World (2003)

Music. Great country music from the Dixie Chicks in an inventive stage design (opening like a forest canopy with a surrounding yellow-brick-road-like walkway). The first two songs sounded tinny and rockified but the ensemble warmed up as it went acoustic. The best numbers are "Long Time Gone," "Traveling Soldier," and the closing "Wide Open Spaces." The camera cuts rapidly between the girls, who wore different urban-grunge outfits in each of at least nine cities, but the one thing I never got used to was Natalie's Mohawk mullet and Piccadilly Circus outfit. Top of the World appears only by way of the music video (which is awesome) but it should have been one of the 18 songs included in the concert compendium that is this disc. 4 stars.

Patriot Games (1992)

The book was better -- more intellectually taut -- but the movie is still a visceral thrill. Of the Tom Clancy book-based movies, I prefer Clear and Present Danger overall but Patriot Games has its moments. Harrison Ford delivers a better Jack Ryan -- everyman, patriotic, and "cowboy" -- than Alec Baldwin. Sean Bean is insanely intense in his hatred as an ultra-extreme ex-IRA terrorist. The highway attack is gripping but the home attack seems perfunctory when compared to the book. 4 stars.

Clear and Present Danger (1994)

With Patriot Games, this was one of the best Tom Clancy novels and is the best of the movies to date. (The Hunt for Red October was quite good, if plodding, though The Sum of All Fears was barely passable.) It has zip and crackle: a secret special-ops drug war in Colombia, a rocket-launcher ambush of the U.S. delegation, Jack Ryan (cowboy ex-Marine that he is) personally rescuing our men on the ground, and finally barking back to the President "How dare _you_, sir!" in defense of the Constitution. Like The Peacemaker, I never mind catching parts of this movie on TV during a break. While quite realistic, I'd give it full fifth star if parts weren't somewhat implausible. All the actors do a fine job, from Harrison Ford to James Earl Jones to Willem Dafoe to Joaquim de Almeida to Donald Moffat as the President. 4.5 stars.

RoboCop (1987)

If you like to see bad guys going apes--t with machine guns and robotic enforcers returning fire, RoboCop is almost as creatively nuanced as Terminator without the mindless tedium of Starship Troopers. The backstory offers social satire on TV news (SDI and presidential mishaps) and advertising (you'll wanna drive the 6000 SUX) as well as corporate privatization of the police force (a prelude to more sinister plans). Peter Weller plays a robot capably and sensitively (though with less personality than Anthony Daniels as C3P0) and Nancy Allen does well as his tougher-than-Cagney partner. The bad guys are well-played as over-the-top thugs. Don't let kids or grammas watch this movie, though; people getting capped is, shall we say, a big recurring theme (though with burst-blood capsules rather than projectile spluts as in 300). 3.5 stars.

L.A. Confidential (1997)

The quintessential silver-screen cop movie with a stellar cast and a complex, memorable story. Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, and Kevin Spacey are excellent and Kim Basinger is luminous; James Cromwell and Danny Devito are great too. Tighter than The Usual Suspects or Seven and the soundtrack is awesome; this movie really conveys the times. See this movie! It is not one you will easily forget. 5 stars.

The Lives of Others (2007)

A powerful bildungsroman that delicately portrays how an East Berlin playwright and his actress consort survive under state surveillance and interrogation led by a dogged captain who has a gradual change of heart. 5 stars.

Bush's Brain (2004)

Documentary. A somewhat murky and plodding indictment of the Machiavellian Karl Rove's "dirty tricks" and "scorched earth" political maneuverings, which can be characterized over the decades in every instance as (a) taking total control of all details of a client's political campaign, (b) pulling the dirtiest tricks imaginable (doing "whatever it takes" to win), (c) destroying the candidate's campaign but often also his career and family, and (d) denying involvement in any dirty tricks. This is the guy who did all this to machinate a takeover of the Young Republicans at age 22! Karl Rove is the original divider who believes himself to be a uniter (as did the Fascists, only they had guns). Rove was more than a brilliant conquistador for the Republican party and a Svengali for Bush; he polluted the waters and destroyed honorable "competition in the marketplace of ideas" for at least the present generation of bipartisan politics. It's vital to the healing of our nation and authentic (as opposed to mindless) patriotism that he has been drubbed out of office and should eventually be made to answer for his sins. How interesting that none of the members of the Bush administration have served in a war, and they call this a "war presidency" even as they mismanage and neglect every domestic crisis and military theater they have faced -- while continually if falsely claiming political victory. 3.5 stars.

MirrorMask (2005)

MirrorMask is an astonishing and artfully produced fantasy film, unparalleled by anything I have yet seen. From the opening credits through every moment to the closing credits, it immediately entered my top 10 favorite films, even my top 5. It is something like Pan's Labyrinth meets Brazil and Naked Lunch at the Cirque du Soleil, with elements reminiscent of Moulin Rouge, Willow, Big Fish, The Fountain, Labyrinth, and the art of Basquiat. The art direction, costuming, and special effects are phenomenal, and (contrary to the criticism of some) the storyline is sustained and revelatory throughout. True, this is no The Fifth Element or Die Hard with postmodern grit, mayhem, and explosions; it is an intensely imaginative fairy tale. It is dreamlike but not somnambulist; the plot develops in a consistent and steady fashion and it held my interest and sense of surprise to the end. Stephanie Leonidas did a wonderful job in her (dual) lead role, as did Gina McKee in her (triple) role as her mother. I greatly enjoyed Rob Brydon as (I presume) her father, Dora Bryan (whose acting career dates back to 1947) as her Aunt Nan, and Jason Barry is the perfect foil as her "jester" ("important man") Valentine. The use of illustrative overlays, sepia tones, and antique crank cameras -- not to omit the imaginative creatures, expansive landscapes, and interlocked worlds -- throughout makes MirrorMask a sustained and always fresh movie to watch, and watch again. 5 stars.

The Inspector Collection (1969)

The Pink Panther Collection has been renamed The Inspector Collection (Save and Play title) since my request on 23 Sep 2007 to correct the description (since 17 5-min cartoons do not total 425 minutes). Nevertheless the description and episode list still remain incomplete. Furthermore, this disc is all but identical to the second disc in The Pink Panther Classic Cartoon Collection: The Inspector: Vol. 1 (Save and Play title, reviewed there) and Vol. 2 (Save but not Play title, reviewed there). I give 3.5 stars to the Inspector Clouseau cartoons for overall story and illustration quality. This collection is a bit more rococo in style (esp. with architecture) than The Pink Panther but without the "cool" factor of the Pink One himself. You have to love the unflappable calm with which the Inspector usually confronts each challenge and esp. the mild-mannered confusion of his ever-present sidekick Deux-Deux. 3.5 stars. (9-22-07 updated 2-15-09)

The Pink Panther Classic Cartoon Collection: Vol. 6 (1980)

Classic episodes of the Inspector Clouseau cartoons, including my 25-year personal favorite "Reaux, Reaux, Reaux Your Boat" ("Say Oui, not Si!" "Si, Senor, I mean, Oui"). 3.5 stars.

Babette's Feast (1987)

One of the greatest movies of all time, ably yet understatedly acted, and so timeless as to be reminiscent of John Huston's The Dead. The reality and the metaphor of Babette's redemptive banquet is subtly and beautifully portrayed. 5 stars.

Smokin' Aces (2007)

Ben Affleck does nothing for this movie, but Alicia Keys helps carry quite a chunk of it. This movie has lots of action, I mean, mayhem. More so than acting, really; mayhem is more to the point. You'll see a few glaring plot holes but mostly big frothy mounds of mayhem, mayhem, and more mayhem. It's quite creative, actually, as mayhem goes. If you like mayhem, don't miss this film! It's Ocean's Eleven meets The Usual Suspects before it starts going bat-on-a-jig crazy with so many professional killers in the crossfire you might lose track for a while as I did. Don't miss ADHD Kid or his grandma, good Lord, they're a spooky hoot. 4.5 stars.

Who the #$&% Is Jackson Pollock? (2006)

Documentary. Imagine that a salty-tongued, truckdriving, trailerpark grandma buys an abstract painting as a gag gift for $5 at a thrift shop -- then discovers it could be a Jackson Pollock creation worth tens of millions. Next imagine how the art experts puff and preen over their assertions of expertise and do no more than sniff impolitely in her general direction. Here is a great documentary that doesn't stack the deck either way. While many seem to love this woman for her determination to get a straight answer from the art "experts," it doesn't take a chummy populist to conclude she is (as one of her own business partners admits) "her own worst enemy." Nevertheless her story is a meandering yet captivating one for all who are genuinely curious about the art world. She gathers forensic experts to try to prove her painting is a Pollock, yet the art experts pooh-pooh scientific evidence that would convict in court. The art world, we learn, is about consensus, and sometimes illusion, but most importantly, great naked gobs of money. 4 stars.

Maxed Out (2006)

Documentary. Here is a truly eye-opening expose of predatory lending practices where credit card companies intentionally target high-risk persons, then penalize them irremediably, all while stuffing the politicians' pockets and writing their own carte-blanche legislation (the anti-bankruptcy bill, authored by the largest Bush campaign contributor). The human side of this story is replete with numerous suicide and foreclosure victims who were financially responsible until the credit card companies, like the tobacco industry, deliberately and unethically manipulated them with harmful products that the companies know will have inevitable and irreversible detrimental effects on their health and livelihood. What makes it worse is how the "haves" chuckle and simper over the misfortune of the "have-nots" whose life's possessions they are taking away even as they claim they have been blameless for doing the right thing. Don't miss the attorney who decries the 90% error rate of credit bureau records -- unless you're flagged as a VIP (a politician or an actor), when the bureaus will ensure that your record is 100% accurate. A two-tiered society, yes, we have become so -- because of Reaganomics on down to the man who is a divider, not a uniter. 5 stars.

Through Gates of Splendor (1967)

Here are the roots of the real story told in The End of the Spear. Elisabeth Elliot herself narrates this compilation of actual film footage from the missionaries' lives and their first encounter with the Aucas, followed by their survivors' successful attempts at establishing rapport and sustained contact with the tribe that killed their five husbands and fathers. Elisabeth Elliot is an exceptional woman and in this original filmstrip (copyright 1961) she sensitively interprets the extraordinary challenges and rewards of missionary life where truly "no man had gone before." 4 stars.

Soylent Green (1973)

A classic Brave New World film that'll stick to your ribs and your mind. New York City's 40 million inhabitants in 2022 make the city resemble a refugee camp, real food is so scarce that only the rich have it, and thanatoriums help the elderly shuffle off this mortal coil. Oh, yes, and women who come with luxury apartments are called "furniture." Charlton Heston delivers a better portrayal here than does Oscar Werner in Fahrenheit 451 of the increasingly conflicted civil servant, and Edward G. Robinson touchingly portrays an old man with rich memories of life when it was better. The banquet scene where the two dine on a few leaves of lettuce says it all. Meanwhile the corporation that controls half of the world's food supply keeps churning out brick-hard tiles of Soylent Green, reputedly made of plankton but in dwindling supply. What's a greedy, murderous, politically connected corporation to do...? 4.5 stars.

Zoolander (2001)

Hilarious through and through! A great spoof of the fashion model industry. Funnier than Austin Powers by a long shot and full of dozens of cameos. A great job by Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, and Will Farrell. Gotta love the gasoline fight, runway walkoff, and the rest of the schmaltzy delight that is Zoolander. 4.5 stars.

Dixie Chicks: An Evening With the Dixie Chicks (2003)

Music. Here is a well-produced romp with one of the most accomplished and dynamic true-country groups in the world. The Dixie Chicks are old-school country with acoustic bluegrass roots older than their well-dyed roots. (I no longer have any idea what their original hair colors were, but at least they're not pretty-boy country like some bigots who wrap themselves in the American flag and wear a cowboy hat to justify their twangings as classic country music.) In this energetic and highly competent acoustic performance, Emily's virtuoso licks on dobro and banjo thrill the crowds while Martie's effortless fiddle swabs and obvious joy in her musicianship form a supportive frame to Natalie's virtually perfect lead vocals. The supporting ensemble and symphonic bands are awesome. The camerawork dynamically captures the power of the music, leaping from riff to lick to capture every musician's best work. We see plenty of the Chicks' spontaneity and humor and the set list presents much of their Home disc while opening and closing with their much-loved classics. The audience clearly had a great time and you will too. 4.5 stars.

The Painted Veil (2006)

A haunting tale of love unrequited but eventually discovered against the backdrop of natural beauty and human tragedy. Edward Norton is a bookish British microbiologist absorbed in his work -- now that's acting! -- who proposes marriage to Naomi Watts the day after meeting her at a high-society party because he must return to his research station in Shanghai. They don't love each other, and he comes to hate her after she commences an affair with a career diplomat who (she later learns) makes a habit of loving and leaving "second-rate" Englishwomen. Her husband then volunteers himself (and his cloistered wife) to fight a deadly cholera outbreak in backwater China. While no Mother Theresa, she wrestles with her feelings of compassion and inadequacy before committing to assist a convent-ion of nuns in their school and hospice care of a passel of orphans. Over time, the couple comes to a rapprochement over their prior expectations for each other -- more than a detente and eventually a sincere (if tragic) love. The movie strays from the book at a number of points but holds well together. If you liked Sommersby or Sweet Land then The Painted Veil should please you well. 5 stars.

Grilled (2006)

Not a lick of humor and it just gets worse. Romano's and James's expressions on the DVD cover art show exactly how anyone who watches this movie will feel. The production values are adequate but the story and the roles of these two schlubs just flop around like dead fish. The hot Sofia Vergara promises to make things interesting but fizzles. Any B movie is four grades better than this loser -- making it an F movie, which also fits in with the script's limited vocabulary. The plot gets marginally more interesting in the final 15 minutes but Grilled is a far league from Tin Men or The Big Trouble. 2 stars.

Network (1976)

An astonishing film with one of the best scripts ever -- highly literate in its skewering of the nonliterate (visual) mass medium of television and amazingly prescient in foresaging Darwinian reality TV and more. Now, more than 30 years later, we have seen much of the sensationalistic and voyeuristic programming insanity come true as championed by the Jezebel played by Faye Dunaway. William Holden plays the news exec who stands for human values but falls inside her orbit of love, sex, and power. (She uses all three as her tools but she herself only understands the last one.) Robert Duvall is the network exec who paves her path to power. Peter Finch literally comes to see himself as a "modern-day prophet denouncing the hypocrisies of society" (believing his own hype and hyperventilating into hyperbole). This film has to be seen -- and more than once -- to be believed. I can't believe it took me this long to finally catch it. Here is a monumental film that speaks to the ages, warning us against our baser proclivities and the pursuit of the lowest common denominator in all its forms (political, economic, moral, and cultural). See it! Network will prove to be more chilling than Brazil, 1984, and V for Vendetta. 5 stars.

2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984)

This Arthur C. Clarke vehicle portrays the hard science of the story realistically and largely believably. The mystery slowly unravels to a climactic event that is (as predicted) "something wonderful." Panoramic space scenes and the political, interpersonal, and logistical challenges of the Russian and American crews (plus the revived HAL-9000 computer) make for a taut sci-fi tale that is monumental in the genre. This sequel to the granddaddy of all sci-fi films is a cerebral Aliens without the monsters and mayhem. A true classic. 5 stars.

A Scanner Darkly (2006)

Live-action solarized rotoscoping animation is the perfect technique to carry off this psychedelic tale by Phillip K. Dick about a future where drugs are the new terrorism. Keanu Reaves does his Mr. Anderson thing as a narcotics officer who doesn't yet know he has a dual personality in the squirmy, psychotic "Bob" and Robert Downey Jr. is excellent as his Jeff Goldblum-like sidekick; was Woody Harrelson acting to portray a whacked-out goop or was he just being himself? Several twists at the end add fresh layers to the story. It's no Memento but you'll probably want to watch it twice to pin the whole plot down. 4.5 stars.

Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003)

Not as funny as the original Legally Blonde and even noticeably contrived but still makes for a fun view. Elle is back! Gotta love her in pink! Go Bruiser! 3 stars.

Jesus of Nazareth (1977)

This is the classic epic-length treatment of the life and resurrection of Jesus Christ, with a stellar if predominantly European cast. First as a boy and then as a man, the piercing blue eyes of Jesus (Robert Powell in the adult role) have the desired prophetic effect, even if they have always creeped me out for being non-Semitic. Another creepy touch is the treatment of Christ as a chronically catatonic orator, pronouncing his teachings as if he were in a trance. It's a hard balance to achieve when depicting a divine man; at least The Passion of the Christ depicts him laughing and weeping. 4.5 stars.

The Perfect Stranger (1994)

This is the most sensitive and creative presentation of the Christian faith from an evangelical point of view that I have seen -- and that's saying a lot when such productions are universally ham-handed. Kudos to all involved -- esp. the writer, director and actors -- for the inherent lack of Bible thumping! It's true this is not a big-budget production, but it inherently needn't be. Pamela Brumley has an Amy Irving look and I think she does a fine job in her role. (Sure, she gets shrill with her husband, but he has just finished ignoring her, being clueless about his daughter's day, and divulging his intent to attend a ball game in lieu of prior dinner plans with his wife. She is a modern woman who has had to be a mom and an attorney, so her desire for a measure of marital support is justified and her testiness and cynicism can be understood.) Jefferson Moore as Jesus looks Swiss, it is true -- but wait for the twists at the end -- and he sensitively carries his very demanding side of the dialog as self-effacingly as William Macy might. Just as Nikki (Brumley) is gradually convinced thoroughly of his authenticity, so should any viewer who doesn't carry a chip on their shoulder. (You cannot say he is trashing Hinduism and Islam when his points about these faiths are true: Believers cannot become as perfect as God wills by their own efforts alone, and followers of these faiths can never know when they have done enough to please God. Only Christianity teaches that it is not good deeds or even good character but a relationship with a person -- Jesus Christ -- that makes one right with God; only Christians can know -- by faith but in this life -- that they have eternal life.) Be that as it may, this movie sensitively and cogently addresses the intriguing question: What would having dinner with Christ be like? Having a personal conversation over an evening meal is the perfect venue to get around the vagaries of theological generalities and buzzwords. This movie is a personal and moving approach to the discussion and I only resist giving it 5 stars because it is a low-budget production and a demanding task to intuit God's own dialog with unparalleled sensitivity. 4.5 stars.

Volver (2006)

Penelope Cruz is a dish and a strong woman who ultimately (with the help of her "late" mother) brings three generations of her family's troubled women back together. Not as artificially polished as a Hollywood film, this is a foreign film about real life and it is a great story with sufficient twists and developments. It would be easy for some to label this a chick flick that engages in male-bashing (or worse) but it is a story about the emotional strength of women and everything that happens is driven by the circumstances of the story. Think of it as Steel Magnolias set near Madrid if you must. The dialog is often rapid so you should know Spanish well or be able to read subtitles fast -- it is a foreign film after all -- and that is its charm. I agree with other reviewers that Penelope Cruz deserves and flourishes in this role, which she would have never received in a Hollywood vehicle. ¡Anda, Pedro Almodóvar! 4.5 stars.

Hudson Hawk (1991)

I bought Hudson Hawk after seeing only bits of it on TV. This is my kind of escapist fare: creative, quirky, and twisted. Our story starts and ends with the narrative tome device and hangs its premise on the life and work of Leonardo da Vinci. (We even see a quick shot of the unfinished Mona Lisa and its original model -- yikes!) Bruce Willis gives personality to Hudson Hawk, a cat burglar who executes his capers by musical numbers (he knows the time length of any crooner tune you ask him). He's just gotten out of prison and all he wants is a decent cappuccino (a running gag) and an honest job, but an expanding coterie of crooks coerces him into pulling not one but three master thefts in Italy. Danny Aiello does a super job as his doughy sidekick. Andie MacDowell is an undercover nun who is dedicated to her mission, which naturally means kissing Willis. James Coburn ably leads one gang of toughs, who have hilarious roles and lines, while Sarah Bernhard is an over-the-top crime diva paired with the equally insane David Caruso to mastermind the whole operation and their own quirky henchmen. Great scenery, great action, great humor, great tunes, no sex just mayhem -- what's not to love? Hudson Hawk gets cartoonish at one point but ably spoofs the heist genre while standing on its own as an inventive and multilayered story. 5 stars.

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

Kudos to Guillermo del Toro for the creative and artistic vision behind Pan's Labyrinth. The imagination behind the creatures and special effects is fantastic (literally). Here is serious fantasy -- Lemony Snicket or Harry Potter without the schmaltz. In fact, it's served straight up, alongside realism, through a heaping dose of fascism as seen in the brutal zealotry of Sergi Lopez. Ivana Baquero is wonderful and tragic as the 11-year-old would-be princess. All the acting is quite good and the real world is blended seamlessly with the fantasy realm. After many struggles, things don't turn out well (mostly) by the end in our world but they turn out for the best in the girl's longed-for realm. How real or interwoven the two worlds truly are, however, is never answered -- and I, for one, would dearly like to know. 5 stars.

The English Patient (1996)

This movie should appear in the thesaurus as a synonym for cinematography. It is a class act in the realm of movie-making and you can't call yourself a serious movie lover unless The English Patient moves you to the core. The plot is interwoven with flashbacks that progressively reveal the full story in the present, the scenery is captivating, the acting is gripping, the script is sublime, and the panorama of human experience they depict is a cinematic treasure. This movie is about the duality and unpredictable tragedy (esp. in wartime) of human decisions, made wisely or unwisely, in the service of social, professional, or romantic needs. The adultery between Ralph Fiennes and Karen Scott Thomas is as passionate and sincere as any nascent true love -- though not without several brushes with mortality. (The R rating comes from several nude scenes and some trysting histrionics.) Warning: You will whine about having watched this movie if you find that thinking makes your brain hurt and sustained thinking makes it explode. This is a serious movie and that means no gratuitous explosions or Arnold Schwarzenegger one-liners. The best litmus test: If you're a Seinfeld fan, this movie is not fit for you -- or rather, you are not fit for it. For anyone with a heart and a brain, this is definitely a movie to own. 5 stars.