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Reviews
Hairspray (2007)
To all the Broadway Snobs, the good and the not-so good.
There are a lot of people in the U.S. who can't rush to New York and buy a ticket to a show. That's the reality of the situation. Film and Theater are two different mediums. Those who compare and need to complain need to get over it.
When it comes to film musicals, sometimes songs have to be omitted because of time and to the relevance of the story as the filmmaker sees it. It's not meant to diss the Broadway show nor to lessen the work of those who have been on Broadway.
That being said, there were some really terrific performances in the film and there were some weak performances. Nikki Blonksky, James Marsden (who knew the boy could sing), Christopher Walken, and Michelle Pfeiffer, who I hope sees an Oscar Nomination out of this, were wonderful. Zac Efron was second-tier. Unfortunately I think that John Travolta was miscast. And Queen Latifah -- you have to love her chutzpah, but vocally, her big number was a huge letdown because she doesn't have the vocal strength to belt. She is not a belt singer.
I was also disappointed by the billing. Sometimes stars who have well outworn their welcome in Hollywood need to concede that they are not the names in the film and seeing John Travolta's name over Nikki Blonsky's was off-putting and disrespectful, and Travolta should be ashamed of himself, Really, John, do you really need any star billing anymore? What would L. Ron say? Nikki was clearly the lead in the film but because other people have high- powered agents, they get higher billing, even if they're not a lead. A little humility, John, goes a long way.
There is no such thing as a perfect movie, but the music was infectious, and the energy was amazing. In a Summer Movie season that has been one huge disappointment after another, it's great to see something finally worth the price of admission come out.
Poseidon (2006)
Wolfgang Petersen is The Most Overrated Director Ever
He was great directing Das Boot, but other than that, he has proved with this horrible third installment of his underwater epics that he cannot direct actors, lest we forget those wonderful performances by the vapid George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg in the Far Less Than Perfect Storm. Wolfie, it's time to retire. It just ain't clicking' anymore. Josh Lucas has proved with this and his real star turning performance in Glory Road that he cannot open a film.
In a movie, it's nice to have character development. That's basic screen writing 101. This one was too worried about having the special effects kick in no later than 15 minutes into the film. The original worked because Ronald Neame gave us characters we could care about. Who cares if the character live or go under in this one? We have no idea why the mother with the annoying brat is a single mother. We can't begin to deduce why Dylan gets all verklempt. And why are we given such ridiculous characters as Lucky Larry? It's because Hollywood employs wretched writers who know people who know people.
Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)
A Stilted Fictional Shockumentary That Can't Be Trusted
I used to be fan of Michael Moore. A big fan. As I sat in the theatre and watched this stilted shockumentary, I lost all respect for the man. It appears that he has an axe to grind with George W. Bush and wastes no time in taking him to task and characterizing him as a buffoon. The question is: who is the larger buffoon? The person who goes into this film taking everything Moore says as gospel truth, or the filmmaker himself for believing that the masses are a***es and will believe anything he says? As in Bowling for Columbine, he takes factoids and snippets out of context, re-arranges them, and creates a revisionist history that only Democrats and the uninformed will embrace. Some of his factoids have already been shot down in the 9/11 Report. I can only hope that Michael can take some of his own medicine when the films exposing him for the cinematic charlatan from Davison, not Flint, come out.
L.A. Twister (2004)
A Great New Indie Film about People Who Know People
L.A. Twister is a terrific film and pays homage to anyone who's ever wanted to make a movie.
L.A. Twister is an impressive independent film with some breakthrough performances by Zack Ward and Tony Daly. Zack's Lenny was a funny, endearing rogue whose soul was running on empty, and was a role that the majority of the current "A" list talent couldn't touch with a ten foot pole. Tony Daly scored a great performance as well as the soulful, at times too-tortured Ethan, who thankfully had the chance to lighten up once in a while and Mr. Daly delivered some solid comic moments as well, especially in his side job as a masseuse.
Daly and Ward's best scene together came when they pulled out all the stops during the scene where there's a chair and some rope involved. The honesty in that scene is what good acting is all about. There are scenes in films that you remember for a long time -- for me, that will be one of them. My only wish was that scene that could have gone on a little while longer.
Great performances abounded from the supporting cast as well. Nice turns all around. It was great to see Susan Blakely in a film again! I saw the payoff a mile away, but that's OK. It was what it was. The movie was at its best was when the relationships between Lenny, Ethan, and the women in their lives were being explored. These are all characters I would like to get to know.
Director Sven Pape did an admirable job with this piece, and production values were top- notch. This is an excellent calling card for Sven, and for Zach Ward, and for Tony Daly, as well as everyone else associated with this production, and they should all flash their cards proudly. Mr. Daly and Mr. Ward, according to their credits, list Dodgeball and A Christmas Story, respectively, as their most recognizable works. They can now replace those credits with L.A. Twister.
If promoted well, there is no reason why L.A. Twister can't be an art house film hit as well as be a serious contender at next years' Independent Spirit Awards.
See L.A. Twister -- a great cure for Blockbuster Burnout.