Highway Patrolman

This is a Mexican movie that’s… well… Mexican. It’s the film equivalent of a velvet painting of Mary framed with chistmas lights. It’s one of those things that should have you turning your head, but you can’t because it’s so true, so real. The movie is about a Mexican cop who graduates from the academy & gets posted to Mexican siberia – some dirt infested town in the middle of nowhere. He gradually loses his idealism & becomes just another nameless face… It’s a sick thing, but how can you not watch it?

Hercules in New York

One of the most hilarious films I’ve seen. The only problem is that it’s too long. After about a half-hour I said to myself, “why am I wasting my life watching this?”. Ahnold’s first movie, he’s credited as “Arnold Strong”, his voice is dubbed by some soap star or something. “I am Hercules”. I’m sitting here laughing out loud just thinking about it.

Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer

Wow. What a seriously creepy movie. It’s a rare film where the lead character, or “hero”, is a truly evil person. Not just a bad guy, but downright deranged. To top it off, they almost gave this movie a happy ending… and then there’s that final sequence! This movie was totally twisted. I loved it. Michael Rooker nailed this part.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Mildly entertaining I suppose, but hardly riveting… It felt like somebody was behind the screen, just turning the crank. More special effects, more wizard stuff, more monsters, etc etc etc… Did you notice how utterly helpless all the “professors” are? I mean, they don’t even try to solve the mystery, they just want to give up and close the school – even the head wizard dude doesn’t really do anything. The plot would have been more engaging if the professors were trying to solve the mystery too, but stuck on a “wrong path” or something. I suppose that’s what one gets in a kid’s book/movie though – helpless adults & hero kids.

Happy Gilmore

I hate this movie with a passion. I haven’t seen all of Adam Sandler’s movies, but most of them suck. This one REALLY sucks. Yes, I know, a lot of people have just the opposite feeling. But, I guess I have a different view of golf. The jokes in this movie should be funny only to someone who doesn’t play much or any golf. It was totally shallow, and just unbelievably dumb. If you want to see decent golf humor, see caddyshack.

Happenstance

A cute movie that is growing on me more now that it’s over. For a while it was really dialogue-heavy, which is difficult with a sub-titled film. But, it was really well thought-out, and the bits really didn’t seem contrived. Basically, it’s about all the little odd bits of happenstance that happen over the course of a day that bring two people together. If not for any one of these things, they might not have ever met. Makes me wonder about all the things that have brought me to my current state of affairs… and wonder if any little randowm things I’ve done have altered the course of others lives… make me feel both powerful and powerless at the same time.

Groundhog Day

Excellent. What would you do if this happened to you? Stuck in the same day over and over for an eternity? You’d go a little bananas… Who’s better at going bananas than Bill Murray? It’s interesting how this movie has transformed the meaning of the term “Groundhog Day” to mean a situation like this movie… and less the actual holiday.

 

How the Grinch Stole Christmas – 2000

The thing which made the original Grinch so appealing was that everything was in verse. This movie threw all that out the window, and the result was something just completely stupid and unwatchable. Earth to hollywood – if you’re going to do a movie adaptation of a Dr. Seuss book – make everything rhyme. It’s not that hard… Yes, it will take a little bit of effort, but that’s why we’re paying you millions of dollars.

Grey Gardens

Did this really happen? An unbelievable believable slice of life. Ever wonder what would happen to someone completely removed from reality, and left to live in a world of their own making? Ever wonder what’s happening in that creaky old mansion up the road with the overgrown hedge?

The Green Mile

A decent movie that had a hard time going somewhere. They did an excellent job creating a mood and building characters, but then it was almost like they didn’t know what to do next…. Ummm, let’s make the guy a magical, mystical being that can cure diseases! I think it would have been a better movie if the Tom Hanks character just discovered that the big guy was innocent, and struggled with “what to do”. Instead, they turned a really good movie into an OK one.

Gosford Park

It’s just fascinating to watch snobs and their servants. This movie makes you feel like a peeping tom – relegated to inadequate glimpses of the central activity. I liked the way there were few “plot bits” in the movie – (e.g. action or dialog that exists only to move the plot along). For the first hour of the movie, I had absolutely no idea what was going on, or who was who – nothing is explained to the audience. That makes the movie a real puzzle – not only are you curious to know who did the murder, but simply “who is who”… A good deal of credit goes to Robert Altman for paying attention to the detail in the movie – it didn’t feel like a movie at all, rather a window to a lost world – the directing, acting, and general style were that good.