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Reviews
North (1994)
Intelligent Comic Fantasy
A comic fantasy, the humour is witty and quite intelligent. I find Rob Reiner films to be pretty good and this was no exception. Also, the fact that the book author was involved in the production of the film suggests a reasonable transition to film took place. It proved to be a pleasant surprise after hearing all the bad criticism. My only complaint is the prominent product placement of an American postal company which appears to be endemic throughout Hollywood e.g. The Matrix, Runaway Bride etc.
Snatch (2000)
Worthy Successor to Lock Stock
Similar to Lock Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels but if it ain't broke... Guy Ritchie uses the cast of lesser known British actors to good effect and contrary to expectations, Brad Pitt adds a lot to the film. The only criticism would be that some of the music, e.g. Golden Brown & Dreadlock Holiday, seems to be squeezed into the movie presumably for the benefit of the ubiquitous soundtrack album.
Angel's Dance (1999)
Ridiculous plot, poorly acted
This film is described as a action/comedy. The first 15 minutes and James Belushi's presence point to it being a humorous gangster film.
However, the introduction of the ridiculous female lead begins a number of ludicrous plot twists which do little to conceal the contrived ending. The film moves between comedy(description used loosely) and surreal drama with some out of context adult scenes thrown in. The lead female (the Angel of the title) is poorly acted and the actress is not helped by the script which requires some unbelievable, extremes of character to be portrayed. James Belushi is the only one who handles his part well but is also let down by the poor script. One to avoid.
Thick as Thieves (1999)
Excellent American version of Lock Stock.
This film appears to be a straight to video release in the UK and so may not receive the publicity it deserves. It is a stylized, smartly scripted and well acted, humorous gangster film in the vein of Lock, Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels. In fact, my opinion is that this is the American version of Lock, Stock and it compares well. I would go so far as to recommend a visit to the video shop especially for this film.