Reviews
Go (1999)
A truly thrilling and funny film
I have not seen a movie as fantastic as "Go" in a long time. Fast, funny, with a great non-linear script, the film bursts with energy and great performances. "Go" now.
The Faculty (1998)
One of the most enjoyable bad movies of recent memory
Out of all the recent teen horror pics, "The Faculty" certainly stands amongst the most amusing. Most of this can be attributed to the portrayals of the malevolent teachers, which are rich and witty. My favorite was Piper Laurie as the drama teacher, but Jon Stewart, Robert Patrick, and Bebe Neuwirth are tremendously funny in their deadpan performances. Secondly, the unabashed un-PC storyline was a treat... after all, the kids end up fighting the aliens with drugs. It seems deliberately against the "Just Say No" hype, and this delicious bit of irony really tops off this greatly amusing film.
Patch Adams (1998)
Silly, sappy, and a plain bad movie
It takes quite a bit to threaten "Armageddon" and "Godzilla" for the year's worst films, but "Patch Adams" manages to do it. There are a few bits of comedy, mostly provided by Robin Williams' always zippy one-liners, but the rest of this is mauldin, manipulative, and extremely sappy. This is unfortunate, considering the usually reliable Williams (and such great character actors as Phillip Seymour Hoffman and the extremely likable Monica Potter), but the direction is slow and steadily predictable, and the dialogue more hokey than imaginable. Williams even seems out of it for the duration of the film (one reason being he's twice as old as anyone else in the movie... this really threatens the film's credibility), and it's Williams in hyper-sensitive mode -- not a pretty sight.
How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998)
Waste of a fine actress
Angela is one of the best actresses working in film today, which is why saddling her in a Harlequin-type romance as this one is silly and naive. First of all, she is horribly miscast. One of the main conflicts of the film is the age difference between the two lovers (40-year old Bassett and 20-year old hunky newcomer Taye Diggs). But Bassett is as sexy as ever, looks 25, and would be an awesome date for any 20-year old without any real conflict whatsoever. Secondly, Bassett has a natural fierceness and intensity that is terribly harnessed by putting her in this cookie-cutter character.
Whoopi Goldberg is also around, providing some laughs in the beginning, then a pointless and maudlin subplot in the middle (what was this plot line doing in such a fluffy romance? How out of place...). Goldberg and Bassett have fine chemistry, but the jokes seem like pedestrian si-tcom formula jokes and really are carried only by the performances.
The result is predictable, sappy, and as light as a feather. And it's a shame, with the charisma that Bassett usually possesses.
Armageddon (1998)
Worst movie of the year
"Armageddon" is directed with so little faith in its audience that director Michael Bay feels he must cut scenes after they've only lived for brief seconds. The whole thing feels like nothing more than a trailer with its jittery cutting and sound-bite happy dialogue. The funny thing is, it still ended up being the most boring, predictable film of the year. This, added with the fact that we see some great actors (Billy Bob Thornton, Steve Buscemi, Ben Affleck) selling themselves out for a good paycheck, and this is also the saddest film of the year. The effects are lackluster, the human element is totally absent, and any real tension is destroyed by the ridiculous plot. Truly a stinker, in every sense.
Traveller (1997)
Nice character study
"Traveller" boasts nothing spectacular (unless you count James Gammons blowing everyone off the screen in every scene he's in), but is smart little movie and a fine choice for a lazy Sunday afternoon. Bill Paxton, taking a break from blockbusters like "Twister" and "Titanic," stars and executive produced this slice-of-life drama, and he's solid as a member of a quaint Irish, gypsy-like nomadic group that cheats people out of money. Mark Wahlberg, who is becoming one of the finest young actors working today, plays his protege, and Gammons comes along as an outsider who helps the pair out on a gig. Julianna Marguiles of "ER" also shows up as Paxton's love interest. The acting is uniformly fine, the cheating schemes are twisty and unpredictable, and the story is nicely touching. Though not without some ordinary moments (Wahlberg's romance wastes time, why the ultra-violent ending?), this is a fine sleeper of a film.