daimonmagus Reviews

Mary Kay Letourneau: All American Girl (2000 TV Movie)

Mythologized account of a child rapist

[3/10 · 22 October 2005]

This is just one more of those hideous films that you find on Lifetime TV which portray the abhorrent behavior of some disgusting woman in an empathetic manner. Along with other such nasty films as "The Burning Bed," "Enough," or "Monster," this film takes a disgusting criminal and attempts to show the viewer why she's not such a bad person after all. Give us a break! Here's my question to the filmmakers: If LeTourneau were a man, and Vili were a 12 year old girl, would you have made a picture sympathizing and empathizing with this person? Answer: Hell no.

Imagine switching the genders in this film, and then you'll see just why myself and others here consider this a worthless piece of garbage. Were the genders switched, there would be no attempt to empathize with the criminal. Instead, we'd likely be treated to a portrayal of a monstrous and hideous man preying upon a young girl, his lascivious behavior landing him in prison, and his brainwashed victim suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. The only reason LeTourneau does not receive the same treatment in this film is by virtue of her sex.

Let's call a spade a spade. LeTourneau is a pedophile. Plain and simple. No ifs, ands or buts. She's a criminal who belongs in prison, and deserves our derision and contempt, but certainly not our pity or empathy.

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

Great cast, great opening, horrible film

[4/10 · 29 November 2003]

When I saw the cast and the advertisements, I thought this would be a great film. I didn't catch it in the theater. I waited for cable, and boy am I glad I didn't pay for this one.

I've only walked out of one film I paid for in my whole life (Ready to Wear), but had I paid for this, I would have walked out.

The opening of the film was genius, but it deteriorated rapidly. This film was boring, pretentious, dull, and an overall waste of two perfectly good hours of one's life. I couldn't believe that this many good actors would sign on to this script. What were they thinking? One has to assume that either they read another script and it was changed, or that they were offered god-awful sums of money to participate in this fiasco.

How this rates a 7.6 out of 10, I'll never guess. Who is rating this thing above a 5? I gave it a 4. I would only recommend that you watch this if you are incredibly bored and there is nothing else on cable.

This film wants to be an art film, but it fails. One of my friends who is an avid film buff once told me: "I love well done films, but sometimes directors get so full of themselves that they create an overly pretentious mouthpiece for their supposed genius." This is just such a film. I got the feeling that Wes Anderson was giving his best attempt to demonstrate his infallible genius rather than to actually make a great film.

If you want to see a great film...in the kind of genre and tone this film wanted to be...then I sincerely recommend you watch Being John Malkovich or Adaptation instead. Charlie Kaufmann is a genius, but after seeing The Royal Tenenbaums, I have to conclude that Wes Anderson wanted to prove he could do something on the same level as Being John Malkovich, and made an incredibly dull film instead.

Okay, so enough ranting.... On the good side, the costumes are entertaining, the sets are unusual, and the actors turn in decent performances given that they had utter garbage to work with in the script.

White Oleander (2002)

Great performances, but only a decent film

[26 October 2003]

I have to agree with a lot of the other comments here on IMDB. This movie was a bit like a Lifetime movie in terms of plot and theme.

The performances, however, were brilliant. Lohmmann was just incredible. I found Astrid a completely believable character. I really wanted to see her new film with Nicholas Cage after seeing this film. She pulled off a really great performance. Pfeiffer also comes off great as the highly intelligent, but manipulative bitch of a mother.

DC 9/11: Time of Crisis (2003 TV Movie)

This propaganda piece made me want to puke

[1/10 · 13 September 2003]

It's a pity that the rating scale for IMDB only goes as low as 1. This piece of garbage could have been funded and put out by Dubya himself, for all the "truth" it allegedly gives us about the President's reaction and agenda. In the first 5 minutes there are at least two distortions of the events of 9/11, and the hours that follow in this "docu"drama are no better. One wonders if the directors and producers of this film are part of the campaign to re-elect Bush. I can't express strongly enough how horrible this film is. If you want the truth, you'll need to find in on the web, because you won't find it in this film or anywhere else in the mainstream media.

Kiss the Sky (1998)

Amazing film about men and romance

[10/10 · 3 July 2003]

This film is one of my favorites about men. So many films in Hollywood today bash men or make us look like fools. Others get preachy toward men. This film portays two men going through a mid life crisis, and does so without becoming preachy or portraying the men as fools or evil. Absolutely fantastic.

Also, this film is a wonderful unconventional romance. The two men both fall for the same woman, but rather than making this a problem, they choose to make it a threesome. Sheryl Lee is absolutely smoking hot in this role, and makes the film a sensual masterpiece.

The dialogue at certain points is a bit trite or cliche, but the dialog in other parts more than makes up for it. The seduction conversation between Sheryl Lee and William Petersen has some of the best dialogue I've ever heard. The conversations between Petersen and Cole cut the core of a man's heart and gut, and deliver difficult truths around men's experience of modern life.

Every man should see this movie, but maybe he should watch it alone or with the guys, lest he cheer at the wrong moment while watching with his wife/girlfriend.

Rave (2000)

A movie NOT about raves

[6 October 2002]

This movie was not about raves. It was about hatred, racism, violence, dysfunctional families, and screwed up teens.

I was into the rave scene for many years, and while there are plenty of drugs going around that scene (as portrayed in the film), I never saw any of the hatred and violence portrayed in this film.

I did like the film, but I thought it should have been named something else, because the title had little to do with the movie. IF you want to see a movie about the problems many teens face, this is a great film. If you want to see a movie about raves and the raving lifestyle, this ain't it.

Love Stinks (1999)

Love Stinks when it's with a Psycho Bi&*h

[8/10 · 5 September 2001]

Any man who has ever been in a relationship with a psycho girlfriend will love this movie. One of the things that is funny about this film is the way that Seth (French Stewart) gets trapped by Chelsea (Bridgette Wilson). Every step of the way, she dangles her goods in front of him, threatens to take them away, and then he caves in to her demands. She manipulates this guy like her own personal hand puppet, and he's a big enough sucker to fall for all of it. I found myself yelling at the screen, "just say no, you spineless idiot!" Stewart pulls off his role perfectly, illustrating how so many guys are willing to just hand over their freedom of choice in exchange for a great piece of ass. Seth get's suckered big time, and it's hard to feel sorry for him because he clearly has no guts whatsoever. He's completely spineless.

Once she decides that she's not going to get what she wants, Chelsea decides she'll get even instead. She suddenly pulls back the mask, not even pretending to be anything but a selfish, vindictive and manipulative woman anymore. Of course, this causes Seth to wake up and smell the coffee, and he begins an all out war with her, reminiscent of "War of the Roses."

Some of the gags they play on each other are "funny" in a slapstick kind of way. On the flip side, the overall behavior of the main characters is despicable and loathsome. For those who are easily offended by rude, nasty, dishonest and just plain evil behavior, this movie will be a total downer. If, on the other hand, you can appreciate the irony of the situations, and how both characters are driving each other mad in a uniquely male/female way of relating, then you'll probably appreciate the darkness of the humor. I know I did. But then I've had a couple of relationships with psycho chicks, so I can appreciate a film about one who gets her just desserts.

In the end, Seth manipulates her into a trap of her own making that is a brilliant flip-side to the first part of the film. In the end, both characters have driven themselves insane. The funny thing is, after a second viewing of the film, it's easy to see that it is Seth who really screws himself over in the film by making bad choices. Not only that, but Chelsea was likewise the one who screwed herself over by making her own series of bad choices. These two characters have nobody to blame but their own stupid selves for their incredibly ironic situation.

This film takes the problems of manipulative women and wimpy men to the extreme. What made it funny for me was that it mirrors what is going on in American culture these days...and perhaps that's why some people seem to take it WAY TOO SERIOUSLY. What I mean is that it shows a man that has become so feminized that he has given up all his power to the woman, and a woman who has become so masculinized that she actually enjoys pounding her man into the dirt. If you can't take a joke that hits close to home, this film is not for you.

Fight Club (1999)

The answer men really need?

[10/10 · 1 August 2001]

This film is sheer brilliance. It's got everything a great film should have: stunning cinematography, great characters, powerful directing, a plot that twists and turns and leaves you guessing, plus more than I could ever put in this review.

This film is for men and about men. It portrays the deep angst men feel, as well as how to be a 'real' man. Tyler Durden sums it all up while sitting in the bathtub drinking a beer when he says, "My old man never went to college, so it was real important that I go. So I went to college and got my degree. After graduation I called my old man and said, 'Dad, what should I do now?' He said, 'get a job.' So I went out and got a job. Then I made my annual call, and asked, 'Dad, what should I do now?' He said, 'I don't know, get married?' We are a generation of men raised by women. Somehow I wonder if another woman is really the answer we need?"

A stunning observation that hits almost any man in the head with full force. We are a generation of feminized men who were raised by women. The generations that came before us were raised by our fathers, and this has somehow become lost in our society. Fight Club provides the male legacy that existed on this planet for thousands and thousands of years before our current generation. As Durden observes, the answers we seek as men will never come from women, but from other men.

If you are a man under the age of 40 and have not seen this film, it is your moral imperative to rent it and watch it immediately. And after you've seen it, get together with the guys and throw a few punches of your own!

Kiss the Sky (1998)

Unique and rare look into the male mind

[10/10 · 1 August 2001]

I'm surprised by the low rating that so many users of this site have given this film. Something tells me the low votes were primarily by women, but I'm only guessing.

This film is a look into the lives of two middle-aged men who are facing an identity crisis. Jeff is an architect and Marty is a lawyer. Marty's crisis is deeper and more disturbing than that of Jeff. When Jeff sees Marty about to sink into an untenable depression, he does what a man of character will always do for his best friend. He takes him on a journey that is exclusively for men. They run off to the Phillipines to get in touch with their manhood again and reconnect with each other and life itself.

While their journey does involve drugs and sex as the commentary suggests, this is not what the film is about. The film is a statement about the deep dissatisfaction that modern men feel in their lives. It succeeds best at portraying men as we really are. It portrays male flaws and strengths with equal intensity.

If you're a man who is looking for a film that will get you in touch with both your manhood and how you have lost that manhood, this is a good choice.

One of the other comments suggested watching this with your woman. I think that's a horrible idea. I'd never watch this film with a woman unless I wanted to get in an argument. If you do watch this with a woman, whatever you do, don't tell her what you really think of it. Tell her something that will assure her that you don't relate to these two men at all.

I say this because the film portrays the ugliest aspects of how men treat women, and this is what will stick in a woman's mind while watching it. The most amazing thing is the way the director turns the ugly aspects of men around and manages to display the beauty of men. Kozen, the Zen monk, reminds us that all pain comes from attachments. In casting off their attachments in a very ugly manner, these men find true joy, if only for a moment.

If you are a man, perhaps this film will remind you of those times that you experienced the vigor of living a life filled with passion.