ph: Yelena Yemchuck
Sunday, November 25, 2012
The Lawnmower Man (1992)
A simple man is turned into a genius through the application of computer science.
A promising plot is given a trashy realisation and is drowned by dated special effects.
Halliwell *: "Some impressive special effects, simualting 'virtual reality' - a computer-created world - enliven an otherwise drab and predictable science fiction movie."
Maltin **: "At least the pyrotechnics at the end (simulating "virtual reality") are full of visual buzz. Fahey in a blond wig is really tough to take. Has nothing to do with the Stephen King short story it's ostensibly based on."
Maltin **: "At least the pyrotechnics at the end (simulating "virtual reality") are full of visual buzz. Fahey in a blond wig is really tough to take. Has nothing to do with the Stephen King short story it's ostensibly based on."
Taxi Driver (1976)
A mentally unstable Vietnam war veteran works as a nighttime taxi driver in New York City where the perceived decadence and sleaze feeds his urge to violently lash out, attempting to save a teenage prostitute in the process.
Modern Noir masterpiece and instant classic with a legendary lead performance and an almost apocalyptic view of life on the streets of a megalopolis.
Halliwell ****: "The epitome of the sordid realism of the 70s, this unlovely but brilliantly made film haunts the mind and paints a most vivid picture of a hell on earth."
Maltin **: "To some, Scorsese and writer Paul Schrader's perception of hell - as a crazed taxi driver's vision of N.Y.C. - was brilliant. To us, this gory, cold-blooded story of sick man's lurid descent into violence is ugly and unredeeming. (It's undeniably influential to a generation of filmmakers; some scenes and images have become iconic.) Searing performances and Bernard Herrmann's final music score are among film's few virtues."
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