Change Your Image
lumpystv
Reviews
Crank (2006)
Entertaining take on the " D.O.A." theme/GREAT FINAL SCENE.
I don't like to like these shoot-em-up/karate type movies but sometimes I have to. If you know the Edmund O'Brian classic stated above, you may agree that all the remakes are lame, except this one. I'm not going to claim that star Jason Statham can act, but he is likable which is usually just as important. How many different ways can our-on the run-protagonist generate a therapeutically necessary adrenalin rush while saving his girlfriends life from the thugs who drugged him? It is all answered in real time, the length of the film. I love "real time" plots [ HIGH NOON, NICK OF TIME]. Thanks to the availability of unlimited ammunition and some culturally iconic soft drinks he accomplishes his task. The ancillary characters especially THE ditsy but sweet, blond girlfriend and THE semi-burned out and on his way back from LasVegas medical doctor keep us interested our hero's plight while providing some comic relief. Everybody who dies has it coming AND WE TAKE HOME ONE OF THE GREAT FINAL SCENES OF MODERN FILMDOM observing with profundity that, yes, people WILL use their cell phones anywhere, anytime!
Resurrection (1999)
Improves on the original film.
This is a satisfying remake of the Ellyn Burtsyn film of the same name. It improves on the original by making the familial conflict- a mother/daughter test of wills and rejection, a recognizable one. Brenda Fricker is fine here. In the earlier version, the father/daughter conflict is so harsh and dysfunctional as to appear weird. Who or what is resurrected in the film version?- Ellen Burstyn ends up "buried" in a gas station! In the TV version Dana Delaney gets to redirect her life. A little soapy-but satisfying none the less. Nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately not available on DVD, and not frequently scheduled on TV. NOTE: A chance to see the director's daughter in an early supporting role.
The Staircase (1998)
Fascinating story, well played
Almost no information is available about this movie, or its air dates. After an ongoing and exhaustive search I found the DVD to be available for 3.99!-release date February 28, 2006. Try yahoo/DVD and video. In order to get this information posted I will continue to state that this is a well made film with a true and fascinating story about a mysterious carpenter who builds a very unusual staircase in a church. It is a chance to see William L. Peterson before C.S.I. turned him into a star. Equally featured in the story is the venerable Barbara Hershey - does anyone remember when she was Barbara Hershey Seagull? I have to keep writing to get this posted. Thank you to the previous commentators for taking the time to recommend this somewhat obscure TV film which obviously leaves a lasting impression on many.