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jens.karlsson
Reviews
True Romance (1993)
A boy's dream
"True Romance" is a peculiar movie. While it caters to all the action-kinda-romance-kinda-comedy-kinda-immature movie clichées, it still manages to put on an entertaining, and in many ways original, show. This movie is a boy's dream (of a boy, let's say, between 13 and 25) since the lead character ("Clarence") gets to have a job which seems to amount to reading comic books all day long, gets to meet, and win, a knockout girl who just happens to have the same interests as he (i.e. comic books, kung-fu movies, Elvis, etc), gets to drive all the way from Detroit to Los Angeles with a case full of coke (which they "innocently" plan to have transformed into a case full of money), all the time outsmarting criminals and policemen alike just like in....that's right!: the movies. It's clearly evident that this screenplay has been written by "the one and only" (you can interpret that expression in any way you like) Quentin Tarantino as the characters discuss things like Elvis's good looks and bad TV shows with the same intensity as if their lives depended on it. Almost in spite of itself, though, this movie feels original. For example, the relationship of Clarence and Alabama feels quite original, genuine and even sexy. And then there is, of course, that outstanding "interrogation scene" with Dennis Hopper and Christopher Walken. Clarence's father, played by Hopper, knows for sure that his last moment has come when he is captured and interrogated by the Mafia guys. He knows for certain that they are never going to let him walk. He knows that he's going to die, so he decides to keep his honor and integrity to the very last minute and tells Christopher Walken "the story about Sicilians' ancestry" which, of course, amounts to his very own death penalty. This scene is great, played by two great actors.
'Gator Bait 2: Cajun Justice (1988)
Bottom of the barrel garbage
This piece of garbage is unbelievably bad. It is really bottom of the barrel kind of stuff. There isn't one exciting thing in the whole goddamn movie (except, perhaps, Jan MacKenzie's bosom -which really amounts to two things- if that's what you're looking for). There are many ingredients in this movie that make you uneasy and disgusted too, like e.g. the almost pornographic rendering of imminent rape. The director and camera guys seem to be drooling when making that particular scene. Jan MacKenzie features for one basic reason: as a Centerfold with big tits. An immature, disgusting, pointless movie.
Chinatown (1974)
Sensing Jack's thoughts
This is a true gem among the many superb movies that were made in the seventies. Polanski manages to not only capture the spirit and feel, to say nothing of the look, of film noir movies, but also to make a film noir movie that is riveting and exciting in its own right, about thirty years after the Golden Age of that particular genre. Every scene here is a work of art, every nuance is thrilling, nothing is neglected. You get the eerie feeling of mystery, the milieu and ambience of the thirties, the odd characters and much more. Jack Nicholson's acting here is outstanding. Most of the time he doesn't have to say anything, really. By sheer acting he manages to convey every feeling. Every disappointment, every agony, every curiosity, every witticism. After having seen this movie, you are left with a tremendously exhilarating feeling that you have really seen something special. The movie remains a reliable and wonderful friend. Chinatown richly deserves the rating "10" that I have given it. See it if you haven't already!!! And even if you have, it's always a thrill to revisit its world of magic from time to time.
Air Force One (1997)
Cool president in overblown movie
It's rather fun to watch Harrison Ford as a cool, larger-than-life President as he takes on a terrorist group single-handedly. The movie, though, soon enough gets blown all out of proportions and looses its credibility. I got a hunch though that Presidents like this haven't been around since old George Washington or Thomas Jefferson. Fun to watch at times, but ultimately silly.