The Movie:
THE HANDMAID'S TALE (1990) is a faithful adaptation of Margaret Atwood's best-selling feminist novel. An all-star cast -- including Natasha Richardson, Robert Duvall, Faye Dunaway, Aidan Quinn, Elizabeth McGovern, and Victoria Tennant -- performs in a story about the near future, when fertile women are rare and prized -- but stripped of all their rights and forced into slavery to bear children for the state.

As the film begins, Kate (Natasha Richardson) is trying to cross the border to escape the "Republic of Gilead" -- a totalitarian state where, because of pollution and devastation, most women are incapable of bearing children. Kate is captured and found to be fertile. She and the other "handmaids" are entered into a state-sponsored sexual slave ring where women carry out their duties to state and religion by bearing children for high-ranking individuals in society. ...Read the entire review

The Movie:
BREAST MEN (1997) is a made-for-cable comedy/drama (that is "basically a true story, slightly augmented") starring David Schwimmer (Friends) and Chris Cooper (American Beauty, Matewan). They play two plastic surgeons who were early leaders in the field of breast implants. The story traces their discoveries, developing medical practice, successes, failures, and personal crises from the 1960s through the 1980s.

Although the title and cover are intentionally titillating (if you'll pardon the pun), this is not the juvenile teen comedy that you might expect. Instead, it's a pretty interesting docudrama about the early pioneers in breast enhancement and the problems (both in terms of finances and professional respect) that they faced. I thought that the story was intriguing and both of the lead actors did a wonderful job. Chris Cooper can always be counted on to put in a gr...Read the entire review

The Movie:
CIRCUITRY MAN (1990) / PLUGHEAD REWIRED: CIRCUITRY MAN II (1994) is a double-feature of two post-apocalyptic, low-budget science fiction films.

CIRCUITRY MAN is set in the near future, after the ozone layer is depleted, destroying the oxygen in the atmosphere and leaving the Earth's surface uninhabitable. In underground Los Angeles, ex-bodyguard Lori (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson) is forced out of retirement by Plughead (Vernon Wells), who uses outlets in his skull to tap into people's emotions. Lori must deliver some computer chips to New York City with an android pleasure unit named Danner (Jim Metzler) using only underground routes. In the sequel, android Danner reluctantly accepts an offer from FBI agent Kyle (Deborah Shelton) to travel to Brazil and deactivate Plughead.

Well, there isn't much to recommend here for these films. At their best, they are bland Mad M...Read the entire review

The Movie:
W.I.S.O.R.: The Robo-Welder (2000) is a documentary from Michael Negroponte about the Welding And Inspection Steam Operations Robot (W.I.S.O.R.) that was designed to repair steam pipes beneath New York City.

Because of the importance of Manhattan's steam system, and because of the costs, danger, and inconveniences associated with maintaining and repairing damage to the system, ConEd (NYC's gas and electric company) contracts with Honeybee Robotics to design an automated solution. This documentary follows the construction of W.I.S.O.R. and all of the various problems (and solutions) discovered by the engineers, both technical and budgetary. I thought that this topic would make an extremely interesting documentary, but...

The documentary has many, many flaws. But, if I were to try to summarize the problems in one statement, it would be this: the director did not feel th...Read the entire review

The Movie:
THE RETURN OF THE KING (1980) is an attempt by Rankin/Bass to finish up J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings story in animation (begun with their version of THE HOBBIT and left unfinished with Ralph Bakshi's THE LORD OF THE RINGS two years before). It is a valiant attempt, and fairly entertaining, but will likely leave fans of the story disappointed and leave newcomers utterly confused.

The story concerns mainly the third book in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, with the first two books (mostly) being covered in Bakshi's film. The story up to this point is quickly recapped in a prologue and song -- we learn that Bilbo's nephew Frodo Baggins has inherited the ring discovered in THE HOBBIT and has learned from Gandalf of its origins and evil powers. Frodo and his companions begin a quest to destroy the ring (by returning it to the land of Mordor and dropping it into the fires ...Read the entire review

The Movie:
THE HOBBIT (1978) is a charming, made-for-television version of the classic J.R.R. Tolkien novel. The simple fantasy/adventure story eventually spawned the famed Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is making its way to theaters this winter. In anticipation of that event, Warner has released this animated "prequel" to DVD.

The plot, for those few who don't know, concerns the adventures of Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit in Middle Earth who is convinced against his better judgment to join a gang of dwarves in their quest to reclaim their gold from the evil dragon Smaug. Along the way, Bilbo must outwit and fight trolls, goblins, and giant spiders... And he also discovers a mysterious ring with magical powers.

It may be a bit of nostalgia talking here, but I really enjoy this film. The drawings may be a bit crudely animated, without a lot of motion or dynamics, but they are well d...Read the entire review

The Movie:
HAMMER OVER THE ANVIL (1991) is a little-known Austrailian film that came to prominance ten years after its release when an Internet fansite posted information that it contained a Russell Crowe nude scene. Luckily, for people who are seeking out the film for this purpose, the naked horseback scene is the first thing in the film. Those who want to stick around for the rest of the movie will be treated to a fairly enjoyable coming-of-age story.

The film is told through the eyes of young crippled Alan Marshall (Alexander Outhred), who idolizes East Driscoll (Crowe), the local horse breaker. Alan wishes to overcome his polio and ride a horse. However, Alan learns that East is having an affair with one of Alan's married friends, Grace McAlister (Charlotte Rampling) the plot thickens...

I thought this was a pretty decent "rites of passage" type of film, although it was a bi...Read the entire review

The Movie:
WAITING FOR GUFFMAN (1996) is a mildly-amusing "mockumentary" in the same style as Rob Reiner's THIS IS SPINAL TAP. The look-and-feel of the film should come as no surprise, since it stars and is directed and co-written by Christopher Guest (TAP's Nigel Tufnel).

The town of Blaine, Missouri is creating a musical to celebrate its 150th anniversary. Enter Corky St. Clair (Guest), an effeminate New York City musical producer to create a "professional" show. After a series of tryouts to determine who has the most talent in the town, Corky decides on his stars: town dentist Dr. Pearl (Eugene Levy, being as funny as ever), married travel agents Ron and Sheila Albertson (Fred Willard and Catherine O'Hara), Dairy Queen employee Libby Mae (Parker Posey, delightful as always), and the local mechanic hunk Johnny Savage (Matt Keeslar). The majority of the film concerns the various...Read the entire review

The Movie:
Undersea Kingdom (1936) is one of those great science-fiction "cliffhanger" serials that used to play before theatrical films in the 30s and 40s. In this a fun, 12-part adventure, Ray "Crash" Corrigan plays a naval officer/hero who accompanies a professor and crew on a submarine to discover the cause of recent earthquakes. The crew quickly discovers that the quakes are originating from the lost civilization of Atlantis. When they arrive in the undersea city, they are immediately captured by Unga Khan, evil ruler of Atlantis. The remainder of the story concerns the ongoing battle between Kahn's forces, the crew of the submarine, and the kind-hearted citizens of the Atlantis Sacred City.

As with most serials, you have to check your brain at the door when you watch UNDERSEA KINGDOM and just enjoy the fun story and action. Typical for these programs, the acting and dialog...Read the entire review

The Movie:
Captain Kidd (1945) is a fun, light pirate adventure story with Charles Laughton playing the infamous pirate captain of the title. The story takes place in the late 1700s and follows Kidd and his minions as they plunder ships on the high seas. The King of England enlists Kidd and his men to safeguard passage of several English treasury ships and, of course, loses these riches to Kidd. So, the king must send someone to infiltrate Kidd's gang and bring the pirate to justice.

As the DVD jacket copy mentions, Laughton appears to be having a great time in the role. In fact, the strength of the actors is one of the best things about this film. The solid supporting cast, decent production values, and wonderful score are also enjoyable benefits. Unfortunately, the movie drags a bit at times, with more character moments and less action than one would expect from a swashbuckler,...Read the entire review

The Movie:
BILLY'S HOLIDAY (1995) is quirky musical fantasy from Australia that won the Australian Film Institute's awards for Best Adapted Score and Best Achievement in Costume Design.

This lighthearted comedy concerns Sydney hardware store owner Billy Apples (Max Cullen), who feels his life is lacking meaning, aside from his evenings performing with a mediocre local jazz band. Dealing with the recent breakup of his marriage, Billy also must struggle with the challenges of raising his angry teenaged daughter Casey (Rachael Coopes) who blames him for the divorce.

However, one evening, after some strange activity in the night sky, Billy suddenly finds himself able to sing in a voice similar to jazz legend Billie Holiday. Suddenly, Billy is playing to a packed house every night and even gets a recording contract. Everything seems to be going right for Billy, but his success sta...Read the entire review

The Movie:
THE GREAT GATSBY (2000) is the latest adaptation of the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald novel about a doomed love affair in 1920's Long Island.

Toby Stephens plays the title character, Jay Gatsby, a cocky young man who falls for Daisy (Mira Sorvino), a woman who is beyond his social standing. The two are separated when Gatsby goes to fight in World War I. Daisy tires of waiting for Gatsby and marries Tom Buchanan (Martin Donovan). Years later, Gatsby has obtained money through illegal business dealings and buys a huge, ostentatious estate across the water from the Buchanan's home, throwing wild parties nearly every night. Now a member of the "nouveau riche," Gatsby arranges to meet Daisy again, with the help of his neighbor (and the story's narrator) Nick Carraway (Paul Rudd).

Although this film has some decent production values that capture the flavor of the era well, ...Read the entire review

The Movie:
THE SWORD AND THE SORCERER (1982) is one of a string of fantasy movies, like DRAGONSLAYER and the CONAN films, that came out in the early 1980s.

Lee Horsley (of TV's "Matt Houston") plays Talon, a mercenary with a silly, three-bladed sword that can shoot (!) his enemies. Talon rediscovers his royal heritage when he is recruited to help Princess Alana (Kathleen Beller) thwart the plans of tyrant Titus Cromwell (Richard Lynch) and sorcerer Xusia (Richard Moll). The bad guys are trying to conquer various kingdoms and just generally walk around being not nice all the time. Some nudity and gore has been thrown into the mix to distract from the terrible acting and plot.

Wow, this was bad. I have a very high tolerance for bad movies, but this one stretched me to the breaking point. There is nothing redeeming here -- the script is terrible; the acting is bad; the effects a...Read the entire review

The Movie:
ZULU (1964) is an epic, true story about the battle between an undermanned British mission defending themselves against hordes of attacking Zulu warriors. Set on January 22, 1879 in Natal, this film tells of the brave defense by overwhelmed British troops at the small outpost of Rorke's Drift. In the end, 150 British soldiers fought 4000 Zulus.

Having been warned that a British army contingent has been recently been killed by Zulu warriors that are now moving on Rorke's Drift, Lt. John Chard (Stanley Baker, who also produced the film) orders his troops to remain and defend the site. Despite the pleas of second-in-command Lt. Gonville Bromhead (Michael Caine, in his first major motion picture), the British troops begin preparations for battle and attempt to withstand a seemingly never-ending series of attacks.

This amazing film manages to be very accurate in its depict...Read the entire review

The Movie:
HIS GIRL FRIDAY (1940) / PENNY SERENADE (1941) is a double-feature of two Cary Grant classics, released by Marengo Films:

HIS GIRL FRIDAY is Howard Hawks' classic screwball comedy, and one of Cary Grant's best films. It's a remake of the play "The Front Page" with Grant as editor of a Chicago newspaper and Rosalind Russell as his star reporter and ex-wife. When Russell announces that she is going to quit the newspaper business and marry Ralph Bellamy, Grant attempts to get her to write one last story -- and win her back. The script for this film is amazingly witty, with dialog being spewed out faster than you can take it all in. This is a great movie.

PENNY SERENADE is a passable tearjerker, told through flashbacks, showing the marriage of Grant and Irene Dunne from its happy beginnings to its eventual disintegration because of various tragedies. This is fair...Read the entire review

The Movie:
Slamdance: The Dirty Dozen II is a collection of 12 short films that have been screened at the Slamdance film festival over the years. You get:

• Lizard Whomper (1997) by Tennesee Reid Norton
• The Caller (2001) by Jeremy Levis
• Elevator World (2000) by Mitchell Rose
• Mutual Love Life (2000) by Robert Peters
• Monkey vs. Robot!! (2001) by Nathan Pommer
• Junky (1998) by Tony Nitolli
• Luz (2000) by Jose Javier Martinez
• Here (2001) by Brendan Donovan (with Lee Majors!)
• Window (2001) by Victoria Livingstone
• Night Deposit (2000) by Monika Mitchell
• Tonite (2000) by Masa Tsuyuki
• The Old Man and the Goblins (2001) by Mark Caballero & Seamus Walsh

The collection is extremely varied, with ...Read the entire review

The Movie:
MOTHER AND SON (1997) is a small story of patience, love, and growing old from Russian filmmaker Alexander Sokurov. With minimal dialog, Sokurov shows us scenes of a dying woman being cared for by her grown son. He carries her outside for "walks" and tenderly reassures her as she slips into and out of sleep, approaching the inevitable.

The "plot" of MOTHER AND SON is incidental to the imagery. This film is really a form of "visual poetry" -- presenting beautiful sounds and images of nature, interwoven with the story of the bond between a man and his aged mother.

This is not a film for everyone. Most will find it boring and self-conscious. Some will find it enthralling and a work of genius. Some will fall in the middle (like me) and find it interesting, but ultimately frustrating and tedious. It's certainly a challenging film -- challenging what we have come to...Read the entire review

The Movie:
THE LOST WEEKEND (1945) is Billy Wilder's classic film about one man's struggle with alcoholism. Ray Milland plays Don Birnam, a failed writer whose entire life consists of attempts to get more booze. Even with the love and support of his brother and girlfriend (Jane Wyman), Birnam is unable to stop drinking. The main story follows Birnam during a long weekend of bingeing, as his life slowly spirals into more and more desperate situations. Flashback sequences help fill in the gaps and explain Birnam's past and how he came to his current condition.

The performances in this film are all wonderful (especially by lead Ray Milland). The camera work is also inventive and the script is very well-written. However, time has not been kind to THE LOST WEEKEND. In the 56 years since this film premiered, we've seen countless portrayals of alcoholism on film and television -- ...Read the entire review

The Movie:
FORGOTTEN SILVER (1995) is an entertaining "mockumentary" from director Peter Jackson (Heavenly Creatures, The Frighteners, and the upcoming Lord of the Rings trilogy). If you've seen Rob Reiner's THIS IS SPINAL TAP, you have a sense of the style of FORGOTTEN SILVER -- except Jackson uses the early days of film as his subject matter instead of the early days of heavy metal. Spoofing Lumiere instead of Led Zeppelin, if you will.

The "documentary" concerns Colin MacKenzie, an early pioneer in filmmaking from New Zealand. While toiling in obscurity, Mackenzie was responsible for inventing many early cinematic firsts including the tracking shot, sound film, color footage, and other achievements. Later in his life, he attempts to create a biblical epic SALOME -- and the last half of the documentary focuses on his many failed attempts to complete his masterpiece.

Ther...Read the entire review

The Movie:
MEET JOHN DOE (1941) / A FAREWELL TO ARMS (1932) is a double-feature of two of Gary Cooper's most famous movies, released by Marengo Films:

MEET JOHN DOE is Frank Capra's darkly comic satire. Recently-fired journalist Ann Mitchell (Barbara Stanwyck) writes, as her final story, a fabricated piece about "John Doe" -- a man threatening to commit suicide because of all of the injustices of the world. When the story becomes a sensation, the paper rehires Ann and convinces a homeless former baseball pitcher (Gary Cooper) to impersonate John Doe, beginning a new political movement and possibly bringing real changes to the working class.

In A FAREWELL TO ARMS, Cooper plays Lt. Frederic Henry, an American serving in the Italian ambulance corps during World War I who falls in love with Catherine Barkley (Helen Hayes), a beautiful British nurse. Despite obstacles placed...Read the entire review

The Movie:
The Book of Stars (1999) is a passable tearjerker that eventually collapses under the weight of its own self-importance. The primary focus of the story is the relationship between two sisters: 15-year-old Mary (Jena Malone) and her older sister and guardian Penny (Mary Stuart Masterson). Mary is terminally ill with cystic fibrosis and Penny's life has degenerated into drugs and prostitution. Through her interactions with Mary (and a never-ending string of secondary characters), Penny tries to not only deal with Mary's impending death, but to also deal with the problems in her own life.

What could have been a reasonably decent melodrama doesn't quite work in BOOK OF STARS. The screenwriter has added too many pretentious subplots that take too much screen time away from the two leads. Some of these extra moments work well, but most do not. What you're left with is a...Read the entire review

The Movie:
Saving Grace (2000) is an entertaining, light comedy from the United Kingdom. After her husband's death, Grace (Brenda Blethyn) discovers that her spouse has used all of their assets as loan collateral for failed business dealings. Desperate and broke, she has no clue what to do or how to save her home. Knowing her skills in the greenhouse, Grace's gardener (Craig Ferguson) asks her assistance in reviving a sickly marijuana plant and her green thumb works wonders. Soon, the two hatch a plan to solve their financial problems -- use Grace's talents to grow, harvest, and sell incredible amount of pot. Of course, the residents of the small fishing village soon become suspicious and it is getting more and more difficult to hide what is growing in Grace's greenhouse...

Although the subject matter may not appeal to all, SAVING GRACE is a lot of fun. Brenda Blethyn is (as ...Read the entire review

The Movie:
IMAGINARY CRIMES (1994) is an interesting (but fairly shallow) coming-of-age story set in the early 1960s. Harvey Keitel plays Ray Weiler -- a charmer, dreamer, and eventual hustler -- who is always working money-making schemes in an attempt to be a good provider for his two motherless daughters: 18-year-old Sonia (Fairuza Balk) and her younger sister Greta (Elisabeth Moss). What he doesn't realize is that his constant failed business deals are alienating his daughters and splitting his family apart.

Balk serves as the narrator for most of the film, which is partially told through her stories and flashbacks, and gives an amazing performance. Just about everyone else in the film, including Keitel, Chris Penn, Vincent D'onofrio, and Kelly Lynch (as the girl's deceased mother in a few flashback scenes) do a wonderful job. The problem with the movie is with the derivat...Read the entire review

The Movie:
Loosely-based on H.G. Wells's classic novel, George Pal's THE TIME MACHINE (1960) is a fun and creative science-fiction classic. Rod Taylor plays George, an inventor in Victorian England who throws a dinner party on New Year's Eve 1899 to announce that he's created a machine for traveling through time. His friends are unimpressed and don't understand what use time travel could have for mankind. Frustrated, George climbs into his machine after the guests leave and experiences adventures at various points in history (all at the very same location in England). After quick stops at both world wars and a future nuclear war (in 1966!), he finally goes far ahead into the year 802,701. In this era, he finds humanity divided into two groups: the normal-looking Eloi and the Morlocks, disfigured mutants who live underground. The Eloi are helpless, passive, and ignorant, and George ...Read the entire review

The Movie:
FAIL-SAFE (1964) is a tense (although heavy-handed) anti-war thriller with an all-star cast, which includes Henry Fonda, Walter Matthau, Dan O'Herlihy, and Larry Hagman. The action starts when, because of a computer glitch, a squadron of nuclear bombers is sent toward Moscow to attack. The U.S. military is unsuccessful at trying to recall or stop the bombers, so the President (Fonda) must find a way to deal with the situation and prevent an all-out nuclear war with the Soviet Union.

FAIL-SAFE provides an intriguing situation that is sure to entertain, even if the execution is a bit overly-dramatic. All the actors give fantastic performances, and the direction within the claustrophobic set is very well done. Editing and cinematography are also first-rate. If the movie has a fault, it is the super-serious, almost pretentious tone it seems to have (especially when de...Read the entire review

The Movie:
THE YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS is deceptively-titled. Warner has provided not just one, but three Rankin/Bass holiday classics on this DVD. You get:

• The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974): Santa has a bad cold and has lost the Christmas Spirit, so he decides to take a vacation and not deliver presents. Two of his elves head out to find children who will convince Santa that Christmas is still important to the world. However, they must deal with two bickering brothers -- Heat Miser and Snow Miser -- to accomplish their goal.
• Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey (1977): An awkward outcast donkey with exceptionally long ears finds his destiny and is chosen for an important task -- escorting an expectant couple to Bethlehem.
• Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1975): Sequel to the holiday classic, where the famous red-nosed reindeer...Read the entire review
  ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1328 Tue, 21 Nov 2000 19:39:17 UTC Highly Recommended

  The Movie:
  Whether you enjoy the movie or not, the release of ANNIE GET YOUR GUN (1950) is something to get excited about. Not shown on television since 1973 and never before available on any home video format, this DVD release allows many fans to see the film for the first time.

  A perfectly-cast Betty Hutton (replacing the first choice, Judy Garland) plays a fictionalized version of Annie Oakley (1860-1926), a homely sharpshooter who joins Buffalo Bill's famous Wild West Show, competing against champion marksman Frank Butler (Howard Keel). Annie longs to win Butler's heart, but her ability to outshoot him keeps driving him away. Through song and some impressive choreography, Annie tries her best to see if she can "get a man with a gun." The production includes many Irving Berlin classics, such as "Doin' What Comes Natur'lly," "I Got the Sun in the Morning," "Anything You Can D...Read the entire review

  ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1301 Wed, 15 Nov 2000 19:45:58 UTC Rent It

  The Movie:
  LIGHTNING JACK (1994) is a comedy/western starring CROCODILE DUNDEE's Paul Hogan (who also wrote and co-produced). Hogan plays the title character, a publicity-hungry gunslinger who looses his gang after a bank robbery goes bad. Failing his first solo robbery attempt, he takes a hostage who eventually becomes his partner -- a mute named Ben Doyle (Cuba Gooding, Jr.). Jack wants to pull just one more big bank job, to prove that he isn't washed up and impress his friends back in Australia with newspaper clippings that describe him as a notorious outlaw.

  Although it tries hard, this isn't a very good movie. The meandering, derivative plot isn't particularly interesting or funny. At its best moments, LIGHTNING JACK occasionally rises to the level of mildly amusing. You may crack a smile or two over the course of the story, but it makes for an otherwise boring 90 minut...Read the entire review

  ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1221 Thu, 02 Nov 2000 18:51:19 UTC Rent It

  The Movie:
  MACKENNA'S GOLD (1969) is tedious western starring Gregory Peck and Omar Sharif. As the story opens, Marshall Sam Mackenna (Peck) is given a map by a dying Indian to a legendary stash of Apache gold. After burning the map, he is captured by the criminal named Colorado (a badly miscast Sharif), who wants Mackenna to lead him to the gold. The remainder of the film involves Mackenna, Colorado, and the rest of their band making their way to the mythical canyon that supposedly houses the treasure.

  This, simply put, is not a very good movie. At 127 minutes, it's about 30 minutes longer than the material seems to require and the story just seems to drag on unnecessarily. I knew that I was in for a frustrating film experience when I began checking the elapsed time before the opening credits even finished. These credits are accompanied by a terrible theme song and rambling...Read the entire review

  ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1218 Mon, 30 Oct 2000 19:50:10 UTC Highly Recommended

  The Movie:
  W.C. Fields: 6 Short Films (1915-1933) is a wonderful collection of shorts showcasing the talents of comedian W.C. Fields. The collection contains the following classic films:

  • Pool Sharks (1915): The first motion picture for W.C. Fields. This silent slapstick film is the story of two men battling for the attention of a woman. They decide to settle their dispute in a pool hall, which only makes matters worse.
  • The Golf Specialist (1930): Fields pursues the flirtatious wife of a jealous husband in his first sound film. Taking her out on the golf course allows Fields to show off some of his famous gags.
  • The Dentist (1932): Fields plays a crabby dentist who, after playing an aggravating round of golf, takes his frustrations out on his patients! Criterion has restored a sexually-suggestive scene that was previously censored...Read the entire review
    ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1216 Mon, 30 Oct 2000 16:11:53 UTC Recommended

    The Movie:
    SISTERS (1973) is an early horror film from director Brian De Palma, who would go on to direct films such as CARRIE, THE UNTOUCHABLES, and MISSION IMPOSSIBLE. When Grace (Jennifer Salt), a pushy New York reporter, sees a murder committed in her neighbor Danielle's (Margot Kidder) apartment, she frantically calls the police. But when they finally arrive, there is no evidence of foul play -- the body is cleverly hidden and the apartment has been cleaned up. Determined that there is a prize-winning story at her fingertips, Grace sets out to solve the crime on her own. She soon learns that Danielle is a Siamese twin who was separated from her sister, Dominique. . . and it may have been her twin who is guilty of murder.

    Although one of his earliest films, SISTERS is also one of Brian De Palma's best. I found that his numerous Hitchcock references/homages (PSYCHO, REAR W...Read the entire review

    ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1215 Mon, 30 Oct 2000 16:09:56 UTC Recommended

    The Movie:
    THINGS CHANGE (1988) is a fun, light comedy from writer/director David Mamet (THE SPANISH PRISONER). Gino (Don Ameche) is an Italian-American shoe-shiner who is contacted by the Mafia with an "offer he can't refuse": confess to a murder that was committed by a Mafia don, and go to prison in his place. Gino would only spend a few years in prison, and receive a substantial amount of money, allowing him to realize his dreams -- retiring to a fishing boat in Sicily. Jerry (Joe Mantegna), a failed gangster "on probation," is given a final chance to square himself with his bosses by guarding Gino for the weekend. Jerry simply has to take Gino to a hotel room and help him memorize his confession. Instead, Jerry decides to give Gino a final weekend to remember, taking him to Lake Tahoe. In Tahoe, Gino is mistaken for an important Mafia don and Jerry uses this to get the royal t...Read the entire review

    ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1059 Wed, 20 Sep 2000 17:35:59 UTC Highly Recommended

    The Movie:
    THE DEAD ZONE (1983) is a true rarity -- a movie based on the writings of Stephen King that is actually good! While several of King's "non-horror" novels (The Shawshank Redemption, Dolores Claiborne, Stand By Me) resulted in excellent films, his horror output has usually received lackluster treatment on the big screen. Often, compacting his horror novels into a feature film yields mediocre results at best, with a few notable exceptions (such as Misery). Television movies of his material have fared a little better and allow more time to explore his characters and themes, but many of them unfortunately have a hokey, made-for-TV feel to them. Thankfully, when talented director David Cronenberg decided to try his hand at a King movie in the early 1980s, he gave us a film that lives up to the source novel.

    Christoper Walken (in a wonderful, restrained performance) plays ...Read the entire review

    ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1053 Tue, 19 Sep 2000 18:47:54 UTC Recommended

    The Movie:
    SLEEPAWAY CAMP (1983) is one of many slasher films in the 1980s that also serves as a "whodunit"/mystery film (a device that the Scream films later used as well). Like Prom Night, Terror Train, My Bloody Valentine, Happy Birthday to Me, and countless others, the identity of the killer is not revealed until the end of the film, making the experience of watching Sleepaway Camp decidedly different than watching Halloween, Friday the 13th, or other slasher films.

    The plot involves Ricky and his shy, traumatized cousin Angela spending their summer at camp. After some of the campers and staff start harassing Angela, a series of murders begin that may (or may not) be related to a fatal boating accident that occurred 8 years previously. The element that makes the film stand out is the genuinely-surprising twist ending -- something that people still comment about almost 20 ye...Read the entire review

    ]]> DVD Video https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/1052 Tue, 19 Sep 2000 18:37:56 UTC Rent It

    The Movie:
    DRIVING MISS DAISY (1989) is the motion picture version of Alfred Uhry's 1988 Pulitzer Prize-winning play. Beginning in 1948 and spanning the next 25 years, this film follows the relationship between a wealthy Jewish woman and her African-American chauffeur. Over the course of the leisurely-paced story, the film deals with issues of race, class, and old age with warmth and humor.

    Jessica Tandy (in one of her final film roles before her death in 1994) is the title character, an aging Southern woman who, after a minor car accident, receives a driver hired by her son (played by Dan Ackroyd, doing an excellent job in his first non-comedic role). Morgan Freeman stars as Hoke Colburn, the driver who slowly attempts to get the stubborn Miss Daisy to accept the limits of her age. Their friendship and trust grow over the years, despite the racial and social barriers between ...Read the entire review

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