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Reviews
Red Eye (2005)
Shockingly Great!
Undoubtedly one of the most original and inventive movies to be made in years! I was in suspense from beginning to end! I don't want to give any spoilers, as to the plot, but this is undoubtedly one of the most thrilling movies I have seen in a VERY LONG time! Rachel McAdams is stunning. Her performance is riveting, the audience was cheering and screaming all along the way! Cillian Murphy is one creepy guy. If I saw a fellow like this one at the airport, or anywhere for that matter, I would just turn around, and run in the other direction! Jackson Rippner is a psychopath! The film opens in U.S. theatres, on 19 August, 2005. My advice is to everyone is this - GO SEE IT!
The Interpreter (2005)
Shock And Suspense
Undoubtedly one of the best movies of 2005. From beginning to end, I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. This was one of the most original movies I have seen in so long! "The Interpreter" is a political action thriller, set in present day New York City, at the United Nations, in the midst of international political tension. Nicole Kidman plays Silvia Broome, a U.S. born white African foreign language interpreter at the U.N. Tension quickly mounts, when Broome accidentally overhears a plot to assassinate the President of Manitoba. The Secret Sevice is brought in, and agents Tobin Keller, played by Sean Penn, and Dot Woods, played by Catherine Keener, investigate the potential scene of the crime, and from here the action speeds away.
Nicole Kidman is, in a word, stunning. Her dramatic insight and artistry bring Silvia Broome to life. In the title role, Kidman makes the entire character a fully three-dimensional human being, in the center of an intense political thunderstorm. Especially noteworthy is Nicole's performance of the scene with Sean Penn, in the back gardens of the United Nations. Brava Nicole! Sean Penn is back, in top form. His performance as Tobin Keller, the Secret Service Agent, is worthy of the Hollywood Hall of Fame. Penn is intense, magnetic, and totally charismatic.
And then there's Catherine Keener, as Dot Woods, Tobin Keller's Secret Service colleague. Keener gives a great performance, and as the drama heightens, she flies with the dramatic moment. Great stuff.
The complex storyline is loaded with twists, turns, and deceptively stunning dramatic climaxes. There were visual elements throughout the film that made me almost literally jump out of my seat, through the ceiling. I don't want to give any of the story away, though, to someone who hasn't seen it yet.
My advice is - pay careful attention to the storyline. The story is very complicated, but all the small details help create the exciting unconscious psychological suspense.
THRILLING!
De-Lovely (2004)
A Big Disappointment
This was one of the most disappointing movies of 2004. The two main things wrong with this movie are as follows: the screenplay is NOT true to Cole Porter's life story, and some of the vocal and musical performances are truly terrible.
Cole Porter was homosexual. Yes, we are aware that, for a huge bulk of his adult life, he was married. To a woman. The film "De-Lovely" attempts to make out the married life of Cole and Linda Lee Porter as if this were some classic Hollywood love story. The whole POINT of their marriage, was that it was a platonic marriage of convenience. Linda Lee had escaped and divorced her physically abusive husband, which was major scandal territory in the 1910's, and married Cole with the sole intention of escaping her murderous, and physically violent ex-spouse. Linda Lee was nine years OLDER than Cole. In the film, Ashley Judd appears to be at least thirty years YOUNGER than Kevin Kline, and the entire film makes out their marriage to be some never-ending romance in the fading sunset. This WASN'T the case! This wasn't the true story! "De-Lovely" makes Cole Porter out to be bi-sexual, which he wasn't. Linda Lee, in real life, was probably fully aware of her second husband's sexual extra-marital entourages, and in real life, she probably couldn't have cared less. In the 1910's and 1920's, this marriage of convenience meant a new life to Linda Lee, and that was the extent of it.
Apart from Natalie Cole and Robbie Williams, the majority of the musical performances are dreadful. Natalie Cole sings a lovely rendition of "Every Time We Say Goodbye," and Robbie Williams likewise sings a fine noteworthy performance of the title song, "De-Lovely," but the rest of the singers are anywhere from barely tolerable to truly dreadful.
My advice is - check the soundtrack out from the public library. This flick is for die-hard Kevin Kline fans only.
Taxi (2004)
Absolutely Hysterical! I could NOT stop laughing!
This was truly one of THE MOST hysterically funny movies I've ever seen in my entire life. I saw a special screening in Manhattan, in October 2004, and I was in hysterics from beginning to end. I couldn't stop laughing! Queen Latifah was her usual classy self, and Jimmie Fallon was in top form. I don't want to reveal too much of the plot, because that would spoil the hysterical buildup of dramatic climaxes. The story is outrageously funny, and it was a total scream, all the way up to the last minute! I am fully aware that this movie got some negative and somewhat hostile critical reception. My advice is, forget all that critic garbage, and go see it for yourself. If you love wacky, hysterical comedy, you will NOT be disappointed! I promise you! This movie was mostly filmed in New York City, with the stunt scenes and race car scenes filmed in Los Angeles and Pheonix. The whole movie has a wacky, New York sense of humor about it.
Just try it for yourself!
Great Performances: Andrew Lloyd Webber: The Royal Albert Hall Celebration (1998)
The Concert You Will Never Forget
If you are a die-hard Andrew Lloyd Webber fan like myself, this is an absolute must-have for the permanent collection. I loved every minute of it. Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber's 50th Birthday Celebration was the night to remember.
Sarah Brightman sang beautifully, as she soared into the stratosphere in the "Phantom of the Opera" duet with Antonio Banderas. Donny Osmond offered clean phrasing and vocalism in his selection from "Joseph and the Technicolored Amazing Dreamcoat." Glenn Close brought Hollywood style and charisma to her selections from "Sunset Boulevard." Julian Lloyd Webber brought technical mastery and pitch-perfect intonation to the "Varations for Cello and Orchestra" piece.
And then, almost towards the very end, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber himself came out and personally introduced Dame Kiri Te Kanawa to the audience. Dame Kiri, a few moments later, sang the world premiere of his new song, "The Heart is Slow to Learn," intended for the sequel to his magnum opus, "The Phantom of the Opera." Well, it was in a word, stunning. Te Kanawa sang passionately, and with the sincerity a famous classical performer would bring to Wagner or Puccini. Absolutely breathtaking.
And then, the entire cast came out to sing "Happy Birthday" to Sir Andrew, with Kiri Te Kanawa and Sarah Brightman soaring above the entire orchestra and chorus. There was no dry eye in the audience.
An absolutely wonderful performance!
Collateral (2004)
Totally Awesome! The Best Movie of 2004!
It was totally awesome! I was thrilling from beginning to end! I was on the edge of my seat the entire time! (In a totally good way, of course.) Totally awesome!
I saw this, opening night, August 2004, in New York City. All shows were completely sold out. I got the first available show time, at 2:00 AM, on 42nd Street in Manhattan. It was totally worth the wait.
The background of Los Angeles was, like, totally beautiful to look at. The green neon lights looked visually stunning. Totally cool. Totally awesome.
It was action-packed drama. The final twenty-five minutes were blood-boiling. I couldn't find a second to breathe. The intensity was so racing.
One question - WHY WASN'T TOM CRUISE NOMINATED FOR AN O-S-C-A-R?
Intolerable Cruelty (2003)
It should have been titled, "Down With Love"
Every time I tell someone that, the reply is always, "Wasn't there already a movie by that title?" Well, that's the whole point of the joke! I will tell you the honest truth, for the first thirty minutes I thought to myself, God, this the most pretentious piece of Hollywood garbage I've ever seen in my life. Yeah, Catherine Zeta-Jones is mighty fine to look at, (most fellas would agree with me on that), and George Clooney's physical beauty is fully visible for all the ladies to drool over, who could ask for anything more? Well, at first I was turned off by the shallow, superficial storyline, but as the evening progressed, so did my interest and attention span. The humor is totally sardonic, and sadomasochistic. Well, I would have given it a thumbs up, had I been Ebert and Roeper.
Well, it's damn beautiful to look at by all accounts, and I would advise anyone to see it for himself, to make one's own decision.