Thursday, July 21, 2005

Raiders of the Lost Ark (DVD review)

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) starring Harrison Ford, Karen Allen. I was never a big fan of this movie, and though it does have its moments, it hasn't aged all that well. Grade: B

Saturday, July 16, 2005

Million Dollar Baby (DVD review)

Million Dollar Baby (2004) starring Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman. The story of a young woman (Swank) who wants to be a boxer and the trainer (Eastwood) who takes her on. Swank and Freeman both won Oscars for their performances in this movie, which about two thirds of the way through takes a radical swerve away from what you are expecting. It is always about the on-screen relationship between Eastwood and Swank, however, and the story proves engrossing and tragic. Grade: B+

Thursday, July 14, 2005

The Stupidest Angel (book review)

The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror (2004) by Christopher Moore. Although it is set at Christmas time, this story will hold up well throughout the year. It's the story of an angel who is sent to Earth to perform a Christmas miracle, and how everything goes horribly, hilariously wrong. More than anything, this is a book of humor about a group of eccentric people living in a small town in California in the present day. Grade: B+

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Four Weddings and a Funeral (DVD review)

Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) starring Hugh Grant, Andie MacDowell. For the first time I must chastise the DVD of a movie I love. This is one of the great romantic comedies, with many funny and moving lines of dialogue. Unfortunately, for an American, many of them are hard to understand because the movie takes place in England and there's that bloody accent to contend with. No problem, I would usually say, just turn on the subtitles in English. But wait -- this disc has subtitles only in Spanish! How many lovely turns of phrase must have been missed? I, for one, had trouble understanding about a quarter of the dialogue. Movie: A. DVD: C

Saturday, July 09, 2005

Bride and Prejudice (DVD review)

Bride and Prejudice (2004) starring a cast of relative unknowns and Indian stars who are famous in their own country. Hollywood meets Bollywood, East meets West, and everything works out in the end. Very loosely based on Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice," this film is a romance, it's a musical, it's a drama, it's a comedy. There's a lot of color and joyful music-making in the musical numbers, which pop up regularly for no apparent reason. The movie seems overly simplistic for the most part, but is still is mildly amusing for a couple of hours. Grade: B

Friday, July 01, 2005

Napoleon Dynamite (DVD review)

Napoleon Dynamite (2004). I wasn't expecting much, so I can't say I was really disappointed. For some reason this shapeless film about truly odd high school angst has become hip among a certain (young) crowd. For me it had little to offer, except a few odd moments that squeezed an unwilling chuckle or two out of me. Grade: C