Reviews

This movie is trite, loosely constructed, and vapid right down to the stereotypically maniacal money grubbing villain boss who'll do anything to keep the money machine rolling along and deflect exposure of unsafe penny pinching safety precautions. I hated it more than I can possibly express and am embarrassed that I was too lazy to find something else to do with two hours. The only redeeming qualities were solid workaday performances by Jack Lemmon and Wilford Brimley. Fonda is her usual self, which is to say flat and questionably cast (how this woman ever gets work regardless of her father, who was great, is beyond me), and as for Michael Douglas, I guess I'd concede that he sported a pretty neat looking beard. Absolutely nothing cinematic ally interesting, and the last shot of the film...a pricelessly vapid attempt to engender some depth, to let the audience know that they saw something really heavy, man. Someone (probably producer and costar Douglas) decided they were going to make a "real message movie" off the heels of a masterful film like NETWORK, but unfortunately the financing came thru before a good script existed. Probably because at that time Douglas had some juice to get anything made because One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest had fallen in his lap a handful of years before. Truly a fart in the wind.

I caught Overlord on IFC as a programming homage to Jerry Harvey and the Z Channel (thanx to Xan Cassavetes). If you are a WWII buff who loves the History Channel and interesting experimental films you'll enjoy this movie. The stock war footage is so seamlessly interwoven that it is almost a verite experience. I love when you catch something so offbeat and refreshing that you can't believe you had never heard of it before. Do they still make Fresca soda? I need 10 lines to post this. I hope I never encounter a rabid dingo. I wonder if Spielberg has seen this movie. I wonder if Spielberg digs Fresca soda. I wonder if I should've eaten that last mushroom cap.Check it out.

This "film" is the most accurate portrayal of the goings on in the car biz ever made. I strongly recommend it for people who are about to buy a car...unfortunately it isn't much more than an expose on the auto bidness...in other words it's a fairly b to c movie with little plot and less...very boring cinematic ally. I give it a c- an that's only because I spent several years slaving away on the line selling cars. Benzali is great as the sociopath sales manager...he certainly did his homework, unfortunately the rest of the cast was as boring as the players are in the normal world of car sales. Racism, sexism, drugs, etc... it's all true, just not very entertainingly so.

As for the previous man's post regarding the lack of cinematic pyrotechnics in this films, I'd like to mention that I thought the means with which this story was told was actually quite brilliant. Sure, there are dated elements to the dialogue and we've come quite a long way technologically with which to please the visual sense. Further it seems that our "eyes" have grown accustomed to jump cuts and when they are lacking, well, it's sort of like the analogy of a fast food meal versus a sit down dinner. While a burger and fries are fine, even fantastic at times, it sure ain't a meal you'll never forget. With films like this you have to slow yourself down and appreciate the manner with which it is told. Thoughtful framing and movement of camera subconsciously underscore the message. And ultimately a good story told well is all I ask for from a movie, regardless of frills and CG. I liked it.