Saturday, August 15, 2020
Friday, August 14, 2020
First Lines: Justin Cronin - The Passage
Before she became the Girl from Nowhere - the One Who Walked In, the First and Last and Only, who lived a thousand years - she was just a little girl in Iowa, named Amy.
So Young, So Bad (1950)
A psychiatrist and nurse overthrow the abusive heads of a girls' reform school in order to teach the "unfortunate" young women that they have a chance at healthy lives.
Well-meant, above-average girls' penitentiary drama is low-budget and exploitative, but with a liberal streak for reform.
Maltin**1/2: "Effective study of female juvenile delinquency."
Thursday, August 13, 2020
Wednesday, August 12, 2020
The Kinks, trouble-fêtes du rock anglais (2020)
Informative documentary about The Kinks gives a good overview of the band's history, but exaggerates its (indeed considerable) relevance for the development of pop/rock music.
A Life Less Ordinary (1997)
Upon being fired, a desperate guy kidnaps a daughter of his former boss. Two angels are sent to Earth to check if love is possible in this case.
The premise, the cast and the director with his team promise much more than this unfunny, uneven oddball comedy actually delivers.
Halliwell*: "A surreal romantic comedy where fantasy and reality fail to cohere into a satisfactory whole."
Maltin**1/2: "Fans of the two likable stars will perhaps be more forgiving than others of this oddball, sporadically funny outing from the SHALLOW GRAVE/TRAINSPOTTING team."
Tuesday, August 11, 2020
My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
A young Greek woman falls in love with a non-Greek and struggles to get her family to accept him while she comes to terms with her heritage and cultural identity.
Likable romantic comedy is successful drawing its humor from the clash of cultural differences, but also helped by a good lively cast.
Halliwell**: "Warm and lively comedy that is just saved from its reliance on stereotyped characters and situations by its generous humanity."
Maltin**1/2: "Amiable comedy...slight, predictable, and sometimes broad, but entertaining..."
Monday, August 10, 2020
Quicksand (1950)
After taking 20 dollars from his employer to go on a date with plans to repay it the next day, an auto mechanic falls into increasingly disastrous circumstances for more and more money which rapidly spirals out of his control.
Doom-laden and mildly intense Noir drama with Peter Lorre stealing the show and with an ending more improbable than the twisted plot.
Maltin**1/2: "Minor film noir...Lorre is wonderfully menacing as a sleazy penny arcade owner."
