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This cult action classic was the turning point in Mel Gibson's acting career. Gibson plays a super cop in the near future, whose main job it is to keep roving bands of suicidal road-racers and biker gangs from causing havoc on the roadways. Eventually, Gibson quits, fearing mainly for his sanity. However, when his wife and child are killed by a sadistic group of motorcyclists, Gibson gets mad. Really mad!The story is as simple as can be and the performances (save for the searing portrayal from Gibson) are mostly one-note, but man what action! You'll spend hours trying to figure out how Australian filmaker George Miller made such a spellbinding action film, featuring some of the most incredible auto stunts to date, with such a minimal budget. Poor American over-dubbing of the original Aussie accents hurt it more than anything else, but don't let that stop you from having a good time with this one.
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The sequel to Mad Max and an action classic in it's own right, this one tops the first film when it comes to technical brilliance and exhilarating action. Mel Gibson returns as Max, now a loner, wandering the post-apocalyptic wilderness of Australia. He comes across two warring groups. One, a relatively peaceful tribe, is guarding precious fuel which will help them survive in the wilderness. The other is a brutal army of warlord bikers, who wish to take the fuel away from the "good guys" and slaughter everybody in their path. Gibson gets caught in the crossfire. He is eventually drafted into driving a heavily armed tanker truck, which contains the fuel desperately needed by everyone in this film. This is where the stunning finale comes in.Buckle up and hold on to your seats! Not only does this have better acting and a more logical plot (to a certain extent) than the first film, this has some of the most eye-popping, visually stunning road chases you'll ever see. That climax has a place in my heart as one of the most exciting chase sequences ever put on screen. Mel Gibson is the one who holds it together though. His embodiment of an every-man-for-himself type of anti-hero, brings to mind Clint Eastwood's man-with-no-name and Stephen King's Roland of the acclaimed Dark Tower series. I'm not so unsure that King didn't use some of the landscapes in the film as a model for the desolate world of his series. This has to be seen to be believed. I think you'll be in for a wild time.
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Ken Russell's film version of The Who's popular rock opera, is energetic to the extreme. Roger Daltrey plays young Tommy, deaf, dumb and blind, who becomes the new messiah after his senses are brought back to him. Upon regaining his sight, hearing and voice, he becomes the Pinball Wizard and champion of the world. He then must deal with his cadre of loyal followers and the commercialism of his image by his mother (Ann-Margret) and not-so-kind stepfather (Oliver Reed).A film that has a strong cult following, this has some very cool visuals and some excellent music provided by The Who. There are even some comic moments provided by guest stars Elton John (singing Pinball Wizard), Keith Moon and Tina Turner as the Acid Queen. The performances are excellent, including Margret's stunningly sexual role as Tommy's mother. It does tend to over-indulge in message and technical aspects, as is the tendency in Russell's films. However, the music will no doubt hold your attention for a good portion of the way through.
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This alternately boring and mind-numbing sci-Fi flick was virtually wiped out at the box office by Independence Day. And rightfully so! Charlie Sheen plays a paranoid scientist, who uncovers a plot which seems to reveal that aliens have taken over high positions in the world. He sets out to stop them, by proving that they actually exist. At the same time, he's boring the hell out of most of the audience and putting them to sleep in the bargain.The main reason I believe this is so unsuccessful, is that so many scenes in here are far too long and far too drawn out for the inevitable conclusion. Of the performers, Ron Silver is the only member of the cast who gives his all as the main villain. I think we should send this home to E.T. Or perhaps to the dead zone!
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Daniel Stern stars in this strained comedy, about a mail courier who is framed in a set-up by a slimy businessman and who takes it on the lam in the wilderness. He comes across a group of boy scouts, who mistake him for their camp leader. Stern leads them into the woods and ends up in a series of mishaps. Still trying to relive the glory days of Home Alone, I suppose?!Tree slugs could have thought up a more interesting plot, than the one that the writers developed for this terrible comedy. Many of the actors, Stern included, are trying way too hard to be funny. There are some genuine laughs, but those are sparsely scattered throughout the movie. You're forced to sit and wait for something funny to happen. Brother, you're in for a loooonnnggg wait.
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One of the most controversial films of it's time, this still gets a good deal of flack for it's explicit portrait of a tragic relationship developed by a chance meeting between two people. It deals with an expatriate American (Marlon Brando), who in the process of renting out an apartment, meets a seductive young French-woman (Maria Schneider). Brando immediately decides to form a relationship on a deal with Schneider, which is that no questions be asked about each others identities. Their sexual encounters become stranger and stranger, each one containing violent reactions (physical and mental) from Brando. He's mainly just trying to fill the void left by the suicide of his wife.If you're as morbid about love and death as director Bernardo Bertolucci (or myself), you should definitely give this a shot. It contains some sumptuous camera work by Vittorio Storaro and one of the best performances of Brando's career. Only he could put such a combination of brutality, violence, passion, lust and fury into this one role. Schneider is quite attractive, though a little mediocre acting wise. Yet her pairing with Brando is oddly perfect. The film has this strange way of stirring you in the erotic way, while at the same time repelling you from the subject matter. By now, it seems obvious that this is not for all tastes. Still, for fans of Brando, Bertolucci and the grim surrealism of the story, you'll probably put this in your top ten list.
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This fascinating debut from director Steven Soderbergh offers the argument that conversation is more erotic and interesting than sex. Well, we've heard such arguments before, but none have convinced me more than the one in this film. The story is as follows. A successful lawyer (Peter Gallagher) invites his old college buddy (James Spader) for a visit. Gallagher is having an affair with his sister-in-law (Laura San Giacomo), supposedly for the reason that he thinks his wife (Andie MacDowell) has turned frigid, though his real motives aren't clear until near the end. MacDowell and Giacomo in the meantime are going through a bit of sibling rivalry. They love each other, but they loathe each other's lifestyles (Giacomo's free-spirited, MacDowell's sexually repressed). As for Spader, he doesn't dream of the effect that he'll have on all the other characters lives, with a little help from his trusty videocamera, of course.Excellent acting by the four leads and a knowing script (with plenty of witty insights into marriage, adultery and impotence) will keep you affixed to your seat. The film is mostly just conversation, but there is not one dull moment in the film. Of all the characters, my favorite was MacDowell. She turned a potentially cliched goodie-two-shoes character into an original, intelligent role. There are plenty of moments here that remind us that you don't need gratuitous sex scenes to be turned on. As for whether sex is better than conversation, or conversation is better than sex,.that's more a matter of taste, although this movie does a good job at convincing you of the latter.
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