Movie Reviews - W
Wagons East: Pretty dumb, kind of like a bunch of people were sitting around with nothing to do, so they decided to make a movie. The premise was a little funny though - a bunch of people migrate to the wild west and realize, "This sucks, lets go back home!". It was John Candy's last movie - or was that Canadian Bacon?
Waitress: I really wanted to like this movie... but alas, it was predictable, and it tried too hard to go this way or that. The story just wasn't believable. For example, why was the main character ever with her husband? He's a complete moron with absolutely no redeeming qualities, whereas she's interesting... and knockout gorgeous. They could have explained this better. I saw the end coming a mile away.
Waking Life: At first I thought this movie was really pretentious... I didn't want to be preached to... but, the movie grew on me as it progressed. It's really a bunch of short clips of people musing / philosophising on aspects of life & reality & the state of man, etc. The animation was really interesting, for me, it made the movie more dreamlike, and although at first it was a distraction (it made it difficult to follow the dialog), I think later it accented the dialog in a way that would have been impossible otherwise... much the way black and white is sometimes better than color.
Waking Ned Divine: A bunch of drunken, aged Irish people defraud the lottery and get away with it... with a little help from a priest who kills a little old lady who was trying to do the right thing. Cute indeed.
War of the Worlds (2005): This movie was so disturbing it sent me to the hospital. Ok, I was sick... but I'd just watched it, and it probably didn't help.
Wargames: It's amazing how well this movie has stood the test of time. I just saw it and it's just as timely. Sure, the technology has changed, and the cold war is over... but the message of the movie is perhaps even more pertinent today. One thing didn't make sense though - how did the computer voice suddenly "come on" at the end of the movie (when they're all in the war room)? The voice was originally made with a little box in Lightman's room... Ya, I know it makes the ending more dramatic. I just hate it when movies sacrifice common sense for dramatic effect. This movie does it another time too - when Ally Sheedy says they should "swim for it.", then, "what kind of asshole grows up in Seattle and doesn't know how to swim". I guess it shows how Lightman has missed out on things due to his computer obsession and is now confronted with the possible "end of time". But, Seattle has nothing to do with swimming. Puget Sound is so damn cold - nobody could swim a ferry route. (well, I heard that some guy did one, but he wore a wet suit or something).
Water: Ever just want to grab everybody you meet and tell them - ok, time for a reset, life doesn't need to be this way. Well, I guess it's not so easy. Life is tragedy.
Waterboy: I avoided seeing this for quite some time, but finally, it happened. It was ok, but how in the world did this set any box-office records? Don't people have anything better to spend their money on?
Waterworld: Like "the postman", but with water. I actually liked this movie. I think that was because I wasn't expecting it to be good at all. At the time it was released, it was the most expensive movie ever made.
Wayne's World: This movie had some good scenes... and some that should have stayed on the cutting room floor. I guess it was enjoyable, but there is just something that bothers me about this movie... I can't put my finger on it. It's almost like it was trying to be cheesy and classic at the same time... that just doesn't work. I'd put this movie in the same category as Strange Brew, but Strange Brew doesn't leave me with that same feeling... do you know what I mean? I'm not sure I do.
Wayne's World II: More of the same, but not quite as good. Where is the character growth? Where is the struggle? Oops! sorry! I was getting anal for a second there! didn't mean to do that!
Wedding Singer: Probably the best thing that Adam Sandler has done. I know that he's a genuinely talented and funny guy... so why has he done so many freakin' obnoxious movies? I dunno, I guess his crummy movies have made a lot of money, so maybe he's smarter than I thought. And Drew Barrymore? she does the "adorable kind of girl you wanna fall in love with" really well. (although she can be over the top sometimes)
Weekend at Bernie's: How long is it possible to stretch out one stupid joke? about an hour and a half. I think they ran through just about every possible situation and scenario and circumstance that has to do with a dead body. Oh, wait, I guess there were more - they made a sequel. I'm proud to say that I have not seen the sequel! At least I don't think I have... I'm not really sure... how different from the original could it have been?
Weird Science: Just some mindless teenage fun. Although, I think this movie should have been called Weird Voodoo or something, it had little to do with science.
Welcome to Mooseport: Gosh.
What Dreams May Come: Robin Williams finally dies!!!! Yeah! I really liked the concept of this movie - we all make our own afterlife, whether it's heaven or hell is up to us. That makes a lot more sense than the dictatorial / judgmental Christian view. Well, none of it makes sense anyway, but I did like this movie. There were some annoying parts, but the movie was visually interesting enough to overcome any writing or acting shortcomings.
What Women Want: I'd really like to know. Unfortunately, all I learned from this movie is that they don't even know. If you want to see a bunch of close-up scenes of Mel kissing some women, this is your movie. Otherwise, just see the preview.
When Harry Met Sally: All anyone will ever remember is the orgasm scene. I thought this movie was sad. It reminds the viewer how most lives are just plain average, and they pass by quicker that one would like to believe.
When We Were Kings: "We will be in 'zee air' till we get to Zaire". A documentary of a specially unique moment - the Rumble in the Jungle between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Ali is the favorite, the underdog, the champion and the challenger. George Foreman comes off looking like the chump he was (he's almost like a completely different person now). This movie is less about fighting, and more about society, social dynamics, and funk. See it even if you abhor boxing.
White Men Can't Jump: You get two hero characters - one is an idiot, the other one is an asshole. Who wants to root for these guys? Not me.
White Squall: It took a while to "get going", but it was OK. I think this movie suffers from what I call "little picture disease". No matter how well it was done, it was nothing more than a little story about a unique series of events. It doesn't really "comment on the human condition" or something like that. I know, not all movies have to do that, but it's too bad that they all can't. One thing... so is there such a thing as a white squall?
Who Killed the Electric Car?: Alan C. Lloyd
The Whole Nine Yards: A cute & fun movie... it had a comfortable "2 minute predictability" - You could pretty much predict the next 2 minutes at any given point in the movie. The premise? a mob hitman moves in next-door to a regular guy - all kinds of "world collision" things ensue.
Wild at Heart: This here is my snake skin jacket.... Gotta love this one. David Lynch at his best. Other movies of similar genre have come out since, but this one was the real shit.
Wilde: The story of the rise and fall of Oscar Wilde. The witty playwright and author goes around poking fun at high English society and enjoying sex with young men. As he would argue - not that dirty, lust-filled bathroom sex, but intellectual mentor-protégé discourse... um, just like the ancient Greeks. Well, whatever it was, it was illegal in late 1800's England. I never really knew much about Oscar Wilde... This movie seems to be a pretty good portrayal of his story. I'm not sure how technically accurate it is, but the acting, writing and directing are all quite good. (Yes, there are depictions of gay sex in it.) Also, I'm always impressed by "period" movies that really take you to a different time and place. Sometimes they try to hard, and make a big deal about how certain things were so different "way back when". In a good period movie, nothing is too special - it presents a better picture of the reality of the day. Wilde did just that, the setting and characters were all believable. If you somehow missed the story of Oscar Wilde in the course of your life, this movie might be just the thing to make up for that.
Wild Wild West: God, what a dumb movie!!! I feel I should apologize for this even being on my list. I didn't mean to see it, really! It was a total accident. Some idiot gave us the wrong directions to a theater and this was the only thing playing there. We meant to see Austin Powers II that night. Instead, I got to experience a new low in Hollywood moviecranking.
Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory: Absolutely amazing. Gene Wilder is obviously a genius in this movie. So, why did he do so many mediocre movies afterwards? This film is a satirical rip on everything that was wrong with pop culture 30 years ago, but it still rings true today. I want an umpa-lumpa NOW!!!!
Willow: I remember the previews for this movie came out like 6 months in advance... which was a big deal back then. It had me wondering. Willow must be an amazing movie to deserve such promotion! Alas, it was only average. There wasn't any groundbreaking anything in this movie. It was just your run-of-the-mill fantasy-adventure movie.
The Wind Will Carry Us: An Iranian film that takes a quite different approach. The plot concerns some filmmakers trying to make a documentary about a death-ritual in a remote village in Iran. Nothing in the movie is overly dramatized, all the action is very ordinary. Even an "accident" near the end of the movie is not over-played like most every mainstream movie is prone to doing. There are no big emotional scenes - you have to look for the emotion of the movie. Many of the scenes focus on things other than the main action (for example, a conversation is filmed, but the whole time the camera focuses on an uninterested 3rd party) At times it comes across as quite tedious and dull, but that's how everyday life is. I'm glad every movie isn't like this, but I'm also glad this one is like it is. (plus, the setting - the village - was really neat)
Winged Migration: Birdwatching on film. If you're intrigued by birds, you'll love it. If you're not.... you should be.
Wisdom: One of those movies that's easily forgettable. I think Emilio Estevez and Demi Moore were "a thing" once, so they decided to do a movie together. No wonder they broke up.
Without the King: Can the world have one good king? Please? Why is this so impossible? Why can't these people see how corrupt they are? Why does it have to be so hard?
The Wizard of Oz: I wonder what the world would think of this movie if it came out just recently. I think it would still be a classic. It has aged well. I recently saw a book which was the "life story" of the wicked witch of the west. It promised to show just what made her so darn wicked in the first place. Hey, that reminds me... was there a good witch of the south? Perhaps an indifferent witch of the northwest?
Word Wars: It seems every sub-culture is getting a documentary these days. Someone ought to make a list. Someone probably has... in fact there's probably a documentary about all the sub-culture documentaries, wouldn't that be something! Anyway, this one is pretty good... There are some real characters playing scrabble out there. The end was especially hartwarming - considering who won, and what it meant to him and his Dad. I really felt genuinely great for them both. In the world of scrabble, there is nothing greater... and no drug testing either!
Wrongfully Accused: My god what a dumb movie. This was nothing more than 1.5 hours of really pathetic attempts at humor. It was just plain worthless. Why do they even make these movies? Why does HBO show them? Why do I watch them? It's a viscous circle - the blind leading the blind round and round. Leslie Nielsen has hit an all time rock bottom low with this one. (Of course, I never saw Mr. Magoo).