Movieman's Guide to the Movies
The Final Word on Physical Media
How to Stuff a Wild Bikini is a time capsule of the beach party movies of the 1960s that made names of Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello. It’s not very good but still pretty safe and does have a certain innocent charm.
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Hannie Caulder is that rare female-led Western with the added rape-revenge angle which would come to more prominence in the 1970s with the likes of I Spit on Your Grave. However, while the “scene” is troubling, the performance from Raquel Welch was fantastic with honorable mention going to Robert Culp.
The Quiet Man very well might be one of Olive’s better releases from their Signature line with some good features and great video/audio transfers while the movie itself is great top-lined by some amazing performances from John Wayne, in a different kind of role, and Maureen O’Hara who is as charming as ever.
Special Effects is a convoluted crime-thriller that is merely one of many from the era. I did enjoy watching Eric Bogosian as the villain (SPOILERS!) so at least on that front it’s not a complete waste of time.
Nicholas Ray’s Johnny Guitar is a well written western-thriller film that features a powerhouse and spunky performance from Joan Crawford. The Blu-ray released by Olive Film’s new Signature line offers great video, good audio and a solid selection of bonus material.
High Noon, directed by Fred Zinnemann (The Day of the Jackal), is a classic western-adventure featuring a top notch, and a features a thrilling finale, who’s who of the 1950s from Gary Cooper to Grace Kelly to a young Lloyd Bridges.
This long lost film by Cecil B. DeMille, The Captive is an interesting time capsule and makes for an interesting, if not quick, viewing just to see a film from that era. The Blu-ray released through Olive actually is half impressive; although there are no features, the video doesn’t look bad and the music comes through nicely enough.
Agent Cody Banks is hardly a good movie and probably on par with a Disney Original Movie, yet there’s some minor entertainment value and I at least did manage to chuckle a few times (more than I did with Zoolander 2) though the target audience is geared more toward the 12-16 range.
Sibling Rivalry is a quirky fun, if not also forgettable, 1990s comedy with a semi-impressive cast of who’s who of that era. While the plot doesn’t work and performances that aren’t always the best, it’s still one of those watchable flicks that you probably won’t regret afterward yet have little interest in re-visiting anytime soon.
Speechless has a nice spin on the classic romantic comedy formula (opposites attract and all that) and Michael Keaton and Gena Davis share some nice chemistry and as a bonus for geeks, we do get to see Keaton and Christopher Reeve share a scene.
One could call Code 46 the Minority Report (which also co-starred Samantha Morton) on a stricter budget but more compact story and although I probably give the edge to MR mainly due to the direction from Spielberg, this is still a nice little future thriller featuring great performances by Tim Robbins and Samantha Morton.
Amos & Andrew is kind of a lost comedy from the 1990s (akin to Quick Change and Another Stakeout) and although it’s not hilarious, it is a lot of fun to watch two normally over-the-top actors playing against one another in Nicolas Cage and Samuel L. Jackson and add in Dabney Coleman and it’s rather entertaining.
Smooth Talk is an interesting albeit imperfect drama that culminates with a dark and creepy finale that, even though it went on a bit too long, still was incredibly effective. The performances from Laura Dern and Treat Williams also stand out and make it worth checking out.
At First Sight is by no means a great romantic drama but Val Kilmer and Mira Sorvino make for a charismatic couple though the pacing is a bit off and follows the generic formula; that said, it’s at least watchable. The Blu-ray released by Olive is basic with only a trailer but good video and audio transfers.
Romance & Cigarettes is an odd ball of a film, a mixture of genres and while I can appreciate what director John Turturro attempted to do, it just didn’t quite work but with a cats like this headlined by the great James Gandolfini, to go along with Susan Sarandon and Kate Winslet, might make at least watchable.
Continue reading “Review: Romance & Cigarettes BD + Screen Caps”