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Reviews
Runaway Jury (2003)
Even if you are pro-gun control, this movie is sickening
Bottom line, this movie's "hero" deliberately sets out to sabotage a jury verdict in favor of a pre-ordained conclusion. Last time I checked, that was a crime. Moreover, the widow is going to lose her settlement on appeal with the manipulation by Cusack's character is made public.
No matter what your feelings on guns, I can't see anything "admirable" about the stand taken by this film. It seems to suggest that the ends justify the means, even to the point of subverting the justice system.
Without Warning (1994)
Interesting premise, lousy execution.
I had high hopes for this film. The idea of a "War of the Worlds"-style fake news broadcast about an imminent asteroid impact was very intriguing. One of my favorite TV films was 1983's "Special Bulletin", which took a similar approach to the subject of nuclear terrorism.
Unfortunately, this movie fails on almost all levels. The actors playing the news reporters come off like, well, actors playing news reporters. The plot points are just plain silly and melodramatic. The conclusion of the film is wretchedly insipid. In effect, the fact that humankind takes perfectly logical steps to protect ourselves from an asteroid causes super-advanced aliens to think we're too warlike for them to let us live. Or something like that.
The issue of asteroid impacts is real and serious enough that we don't need television trivializing the subject with ridiculous sci-fi elements.
Left Behind (2000)
Pretty typical of the genre: terrible
The poor Book of Revelations. It seems like the people most interested in making movies about it are incapable of anything resembling competent filmmaking. Shallow acting, cheesy dialog, cheap-looking sets and effects undermine any hope of credibility. It doesn't matter whether you believe in the religious aspects, the movie should be able to support the suspension of disbelief.
Part of the problem is that the filmmakers insert their religious content in ways that they obviously think is subtle but really is pretty bludgeoning.
The producers of this film, Peter and Paul Lalonde used to host a TV show called "This Week in Bible Prophecy" that purported to "interpret" the news in light of the Book of Revelations. It was hilariously cheesy and literal-minded, but having watched a few segments, the ridiculousness of "Left Behind" was no surprise at all.