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Based on the controversial 18th-century novel, this is one of the most beautiful period pieces ever made. It stars Glenn Close and John Malkovich as the Marquise De Merteuil and the Vicomte De Valmont. They are two upperclassmen, who sexually manipulate everyone around them, just for the fun of it. One day, Close and Malkovich make a bargain. If Malkovich can seduce the teenage Cecile De Volanges (Uma Thurman) and the seemingly saintly Madame De Tourvel (Michelle Pfeiffer), Close will reward him with a sexual favor. Malkovich is up to the task, since he wishes to return to Close, who is one of his former lovers. However, when Malkovich accomplishes the huge task and wishes for Close to fulfill the bargain, Close (the more twisted of the two) chooses to deny him his "reward" and hold him under her control that way. But Malkovich is not so easily turned into a slave. The two eventually declare a psychological war, that will ultimately destroy both them and the people around them.This movie features beautiful cinematography, superb art direction, a sure-footed directing job by Stephen Frears (The Grifters, Hero) and wonderful performances by the cast. The trickiest tasks are handed to Thurman and Pfeiffer, who change from relatively good girls to slaves of passion and sensuality in a blink of an eye. Malkovich also undergoes a transformation of his own, as he falls in love with Pfeiffer. He in turn starts to change from amoral to moral. Close on the other hand stays wicked and cunning from first scene to the very last. This is not a stuffy Merchant-Ivory costume drama. It is far more interesting. You should also check out this film's companion piece, Valmont.
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This is an outrageous film, in the league of Mel Brooks and the Zucker Bros. John Cusack portrays a young outcast, who spends a bizarre summer on Nantucket Island with his friends, who are also social outcasts. Among them are the hilariously inept Stork twins (Bobcat Goldthwait and Tom Villard) and the boy scout Ack-Ack (Curtis Armstrong). While on his summer vacation, Cusack falls in love with a rock musician (Demi Moore) and gets in trouble with the island bullies. But that's just the beginning of the story.This is one of those films that has to be seen to be believed. Plenty of good sight gags and some honestly decent performances by Cusack and Moore help you overlook some of the faults in the script. The climax is a little bit too stupid, even for this film. Though I gotta tell you, you must take a look at Goldthwait's over-the-top performance. It's a riot!
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One of the more interesting indie hits to come out in recent years, this black comedy follows the day in the life of a convenience store clerk (Brian O'Halloran) and his best friend, a video store clerk (Jeff Anderson) from across the way. The day they have is no ordinary day however. The people that come into their stores are loony enough to drive anyone nuts. But the insanity isn't limited to the stores: Heavens no! Anderson and O'Halloran close their shop to play a hockey game on the roof of one of the stores, and in the process of doing so disrupt a wake. They also trade their own philosophies on jobs, girlfriends, death and yes, the annoying customers.An impressive debut for Kevin Smith (who appears in the film as cult character, Silent Bob). It also features some hilarious work from O'Halloran and especially Anderson. Among the faults are that some of the actors can't act. The examples include how some all too obviously slip on their lines, and how some act as if they were in a coma. But on the whole, the script is pretty clever and actors are good enough to get the humor across.
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One of the most original sports films since The Longest Yard, this stars Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes as two basketball hustlers. They team up together and form an uneasy alliance. Harrelson needs money to pay off his debts with some nasty folks, while Snipes needs the money to help get him, his wife (Tyra Ferrell) and child out of the ghetto apartment they've been living in. The problem is that Harrelson is a compulsive gambler, constantly losing the money he earns or wins during a game. That puts him in dutch constantly with his girlfriend Gloria (Rosie Perez), who's biggest dream is to appear as a contestant on Jeopardy.Don't expect this to be an uplifting film, where the hero learns how to become a nice guy through good sportsmanship. This is hilariously, surprisingly and brutally honest about where gambling, bragging and hustling lead you. Also, despite what TV has taught you, some people aren't good sports about either losing or winning. The main reasons it works though are the fresh, hip script from writer-director Ron Shelton (Bull Durham), the perfect teaming of Snipes and Harrelson and the scene-stealing performance by Perez. You should most certainly give this a shot.
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White Men Can't Jump lightning fails to strike again, in this latest teaming of Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes. This incomprehensible action mess stars them as two adopted brothers (!), who are transit cops for the New York City subway system. In the course of two hours, they stop a mad arsonist from burning up toll takers, compete for the love of a fellow officer (Jennifer Lopez) and hijack a train carrying billions of dollars (hence the title).Well, of the many problems, I'd have to say that it's as mindless and illogical as any action film ever made. It takes the film until the climax to live up to its title, but by then you've bailed out. Harrelson and Snipes, who worked together so well before, have almost no chemistry here. The script isn't exactly the bard either. I think we can derail this one off a cliff.
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Kevin Smith's follow-up to Clerks, this follows a group of young slackers, who spend the day hanging out at the mall. Two in particular are trying to win back their girlfriends (one of them being 90210's Shannen Doherty), as well as dodge the attempts by mall security to boot them out.Smith's new comedy is a little too ambitious. He's trying to outdo what he did in Clerks, but he merely gains some moronic humor and limp sight gags. If anything, the good stuff comes from Smith the actor, who reprises his role as Silent Bob from Clerks. The rest of the good material comes, oddly enough, from Doherty. Despite the fact she gets top billing in this, she has barely 20 minutes of screen time total. Even the people with short attention spans (which this seems geared for) will want to pass this one up.
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A one-joke movie that wears out in less than a minute. Australian comedian Yahoo Serious attempted a breakthrough in America with this excruciating comedy, which rips apart the life of Albert Einstein. Not only has Einstein discovered the theory of relativity, he has discovered Rock & Roll and he lived in Tasmania. Plus, he spent time in a sanitarium that makes "cat pies".Utterly tasteless, which wouldn't be so bad if the humor was at least a little clever. Not only will it not make you laugh, it'll bore you to sleep in under ten minutes. That's got to be a new world's record! Serious is the most obnoxious thing about this, trying to pen himself off as the Jim Carrey from down under. He wrote, produced, directed and starred in this one-his first feature-but this ain't no Citizen Kane.
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