Reviews

Other reviewers here have catalogued the various stunning virtues of this movie: its breathtaking beauty, the fullness with which Pandora is rendered; the exciting action sequences, the pawky humor. (A throwaway line barely heard near the beginning, Sigourney Weaver's Dr. Grace Augustine is overheard saying to one of the avatars, "Don't play with that; you'll go blind." Gotta love it.) Since I'm talking dialogue here, and Cameron has been excoriated by some critics for it, I want to say that the following exchange is pitch perfect, as anyone who knows a Marine can attest:

Jake Sully: How will I know if he chooses me? Neytiri: He will try to kill you. Jake Sully: Outstanding!

But that's not my main point. As I watched, I thought again and again how I wished some of the Golden Age Sci-Fi writers were still alive to see this. Heinlein, for example -- the movie is filled Waldos! And Pohl Anderson; Ensign Flandry would be right at home on Pandora. Cameron has put on screen what they imagined, and which has never been done before. Anyone who loved the sci-fi books of the 50's and 60's will finally see on the screen what only existed in their imaginations before.

I always enjoyed this movie when it came on TV: the magnificent score -one of the very best ever written, the great performances by Gregory Peck, Burl Ives, and Chuck Connors. Heck, Charlton Heston actually bothers to act in this movie and is quite good. And Jean Simmons is lovely beyond words. But I never realized how outstanding the direction was until I saw it in wide-screen. It looked like a whole new movie. The shot composition, the camera movement -- it is simply awesome. And William Wyler is smart enough to keep a pace that is very deliberate and never, ever hurried. I wish a lot of today's film makers would watch this movie and see how effective it can be to hold shots and let emotion develop, instead of incessantly cutting for frenetic effect.

This was an HBO special, a filmed performance of Jay's Broadway show, directed by his friend, David Mamet. It is literate, intelligent, and better than any magic performance you have ever seen. Jay is a heavy-set man who projects an image of a slightly seamy autodidact -- not too far from what he really is; he has, without the benefit of formal education, made himself THE authority on the history of magic. In any case, Ricky Jay does things with cards and close up magic that will leave you stunned. What he does even leaves other magicians stunned. And his finale here is a version of the cup and balls that drop dead amazing. If you really like magic, and can appreciate how awful David Copperfield is, you will love this. It's a shame that there is no DVD or video available. I would love to acquire one. Jay is simply, flat-out, the best.

A marvellous revisionist telling of Robin Hood - 20 Years After. Sean Connery is perfect as the idealistic, but not too smart and defintitely aging Robin, and Audrey Hepburn is enchanting as the middle-aged Marian, who has become an abbess during Robin's long absence. Robin returns from the Crusades to England after King Richard's death just in time to see the Sheriff of Nottingham come to arrest Marian. Nobody wants him to be a hero anymore, especailly Marian, who is perfectly willing to be taken into custody, but he insists on "rescuing" her. It is just wonderful to see Robert Shaw, as the world-weary Sheriff, lean over the pommel of his horse and say imploringly, "Robin, we don't have to do this." In fact, Robert Shaw has many fine moments in this movie: check out his exasperated effort to show his men how to get serious about swordfighting, or his attempt to warn an idiot Sir Guy about the dangers of Sherwood. There are many delights here. When Robin and Little John escape a trap at the Sheriff's castle by climbing the castle gate, they do not scamper up effortlessly Errol Flynn style, but huff and puff and struggle like real middle-aged men. Another plus is the fighting, which captures as no other film has how brutal, difficult, and exhausting medieval battle was. The duel between Robin and the Sheriff near the end is an eye-opener. And the end of this movie is perhaps one of the most movingly romantic ever put on film. Listen to Marian's final speech -- it will stay with you.

This is a top-flight procedural, based on how one persistent cop finally captured John Wayne Gacy, but what really makes it stand out from the crowd is Brian Dennehy's outstanding portrayal of Gacy. Dennehy has immense charm, but here he shows he can turn on a dime an convert it instantly into stomach-churning menace. There is one scene in which Dennehy shows Gacy's dark side starting to come out at an inappropriate moment, and then catching himself -- it is one of the finest pieces of acting I have ever seen anywhere. The look of repressed, murderous lust appearing on his fact and then being put back in the box is something I'll never forget. Neither Brando nor Olivier could have topped it. Watch it; you'll enjoy it a lot.

based on Len Deighton's outstanding novel, this sequel to "The Ipcress File" features Michael Caine once again as the the anti-James Bond British spy, Harry Palmer. Palmer wears thick glasses, dresses in a cheap rain-coat, has a cockney-accent, and cultivates an aura of being not too bright. Of course, he is the only one who can keep track of the double-, triple-, and quadruple crosses in a Berlin where Brits, Americans, Israelis, Russians, and East Germans are all pursuing different goals. Even Palmer's superiors in the Secret Service are pursuing different goals. The plot is complex, but rewards close attention. Caine is pitch-perfect as Palmer, and spy stories just don't get any more bleak and cynical. A very superior movie.

But not his most characteristic. Those who wanted more Pulp Fiction or more Reservoir Dogs were understandably disappointed, but this spacious and highly intelligent film is just about the perfect caper movie. The whole cast is superb, but Pam Grier brings a weary realism to Jackie Brown that is stunning, and Robert Foster's performance is pitch perfect. This is a movie to savor again and again.

The plot is ho-hum, the acting is superb, with Jessica Walter and James Garner especially terrific, but the movie is about formula 1 racing, and there has never been anything like it. The racing scenes merge image and movement and music and become transcendent. Even on the small tv screen, this movie is remarkable. But if you ever find it playing in a theatre, you'll be amazed.

"The Ipcress File" introduced us to Harry Palmer, the anti-James Bond. This movie is even better than the first. Both are based on novels by Len Deighton, who rivals John LeCarre as the most sophisticated thoughtful spy novelists. Michael Caine's Palmer has a cockney accent, avoids fights, can't afford the finer things in life, has no fancy cars or technological gimmicks. What he has is the brain to figure who's triple crossing all the double crossers in Cold War Berlin's espionage underground. It helps that all the other characters underestimate him. This movie is sharp, intelligent, and unsentimental. It ranks with the very best spy movies ever made. Outstanding.

Jean Louis Trintignant is terrific in this well-plotted and stylish thriller. An investigation of apparently motiveless murders really hits close to home when the former mistress of the detective becomes a victim just minutes after talking to him. The solution to the murders is utterly logical and utterly surprising. Trintgnant has the same magnetic screen presence he had in "Z", but here he actually gets to do things like deliver lines! Dominique Sanda provides the eye-candy. For my money, this was one of the two best thrillers of 1972, the other being Hitchcock's "Frenzy." It doesn't appear to be available on videotape, but if you get a chance to see it, don't miss it.