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ctgarrett
Reviews
The Break-Up (2006)
Not a convincing remake or maybe rehash ..watch About Last Night instead
Does anyone remember "About Last Night" with Rob Lowe and Demi Moore. Two people meet fall into a relationship and move in together. Then the couple has a fight and proceed to follow the advice of their friends instead of their hearts and winds up more deeply in love and understanding of one another but separated.
Rob Lowe meets Demi Moore at a company softball game. Vince Vaughn meets Jennifer Aniston at a pro baseball game. They fight and break up and follow the advice of their friends. Rob Lowe listens to his buddy in the bar Jim Belushi (and at work). Vince listens to his buddy at the bar Jon Favreau, Vince has a brother giving him ill-advice at work. Demi Moore listens to Elizabeth Perkins. Jennifer listens to Joey Lauren Adams. Doing a nice comedic turn as usual.
Neither are getting good advice and screw up the relationship badly, till it is almost unrepairable. This was like an extended episode of the TV show "Men Behaving Badly" mixed in with an episode of Oprah on proof that Men Don't Listen!
STAY AWAY........STAY AWAY....... unless you think Jennifer got a nice tush and you want to see it.
At least Rob Lowe and Demi Moore had on screen chemistry. You want to see them make it. I laughed at all the wrong moments in the Break Up.
Rob Lowe and Demi Moore ride off into the sunset at the end of their movie. She rides her bike and he runs after her.
****SPOILER ALERT****
At least the Break Up didn't cop out at the ending. They don't get back together. They run into each sometime later. They only give you a hint that they have feelings for each other without laying it on too thick.
The Siege of Firebase Gloria (1988)
This Movie is GREAT!!!!..
First off. This is a movie not a documentary. As a former Recon Marine who served in that hell, the movie has many realistic and uncompromising moments. Like a movie it went for the splatter and over the top special effects. However, the story of a Marine Recon patrol plays out properly. Although, the fishing village shootout wouldn't have been the best way to gather intelligence.
The movie greatest asset is it tells the truth about the transition from guerrilla warfare to guerrilla political warfare. Defeat the village supporting the warrior then you can defeat the warrior. The movie attempts to tell the story of both the professional marine and the Viet Minh. The guerrilla forces operating in the South while the North militarizes its forces. The marines aren't all gung-ho over the top, but they are marines. It's our job, lets get it done. However the job is a fight that can't be fought and moral support wasn't forthcoming from home. Marines fought and won every one of their land battles in Vietnam. We weren't trying to win wars, just the current fight and get out alive.
The Amazon special issue tape doesn't contain the subtitles of the Viet Minh. Thereby, removing the essence of the movie's twofold storytelling. The creation of a social awareness on both sides of the fences.
In combat your only motivation is to survive and that means keeping yourself and the guy on your flank covered. The Viet Minh aren't shown as mindless communists, but soldiers fighting foreign invaders and the corruption that they fostered.
This movie has an intelligent story to tell, but Hollywood recognized the need to entertain the dopers in the back rows. They buy more movie tickets. Also this movie is from the 80's. When you judge a movie remember the mental and social climate in which it was made. So there are a lot of oil drums being blown to simulate explosions. And super bullets being fired on both sides. As I said this is a movie.
If you want to be entertained and maybe have your eyes opened a little bit more about that time. This is the movie for you.
Sometimes low budget doesn't have to mean low quality. Hollywood needs to sweep you into the popcorn tub and drench it with butter. But you don't have to swallow all the crap that's put in front of you.
Other movies to check out are Platoon Leader (Vietnam), Bravo Two Zero (SAS in the Gulf). I didn't like Platoon or A Crop of S--T Now (Apocalypse Now). That the essence of our individual freedom, choices.
Semper Fi
Rangers (2000)
I wanted the bad guy, the girl and the money.
Army Rangers and a CIA operative sneak into a fictitious Mid-East country to kidnap a Political/Terrorist leader. The mission is a set-up and one man gets left behind. He believes he was betrayed by the Ranger Team and his CIA handlers. For five millions dollars and a chance at revenge he turns renegade. Now there is no need to watch the movie.
EXCEPT, this has got to be the worst movie never made. That's right never made. It consists of copied footage from a lot of movies. And that's about the only thing about it to recommend. You can turn this piece of crap into a trivia game. Name the stolen movie footage. The winner never has to watch it again.
Look for footage from Navy Seals, Delta Force, Invasion USA, Hidden, Invasion USA again and again and Red Heat. And that's just the ones I spotted. Its not hard there is no continuity and the film stock doesn't even match. My favorite scene is during the car chase when the antihero Glenn Plummer shoots out the rear windshield without hitting the front windshield.
You have been warned
Topkapi (1964)
Hang on for the Museum Jewel Heist
Outside of the Jewel Dagger heist and the ultimate comeuppance. There is little to gleam from this film. Melina Mercouri is standard kitzy. Peter Ustinov however does the "poor everyman" out of his element par excellence. The build-up to the heist is often stilted at times and some sequences don't even fit in. Like the parts with Turkish intelligence, suspecting arms smuggling. Running hither and thither. I still rate this as one of my guilty pleasures. Not a "Great" film but a great movie.
Moreover, If plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery. Then there are many producers, directors and screenwriters who are continually singing their praise over this movie.
Topkapi preceded the Mission Impossible TV series by two years. Six weeks after the film was released, a similar, real life heist took place at a New York City Museum. Though 22 gems were stolen they were recovered within 48 hours. Talk about "Life imitating Art". Enjoy.