Categories
Ric Review

Apocalypse Now

Apocalypse Now From the hypnotic opening shot (with Jim Morrison almost acting as the voice of God as he sings “The End”) to the solemn final minutes, Francis Ford Coppola’s Grand Masterpiece (worlds better than his beloved Godfather movies) in some ways can be seen as truly the Ultimate Film, seemingly about the Vietnam War […]

Categories
Ric Review

Appaloosa

Appaloosa Going into this I feared the worst, that this film would resemble Kevin Costner’s Open Range, a boring pretentious western with a leaden script and story.  Fortunately Ed Harris (who directs, stars, writes, and produces) doesn’t quite give us that here.  Regardless, Harris’ Virgil Cole is a perplexing creation.  Obviously patterned after the neo-conservative […]

Categories
Ric Review

Army Of Darkness

Army Of Darkness When it came time for the third chapter in The Evil Dead Trilogy, Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell decided to dispense with the isolated horror theatrics and go forward with a sprawling epic (at 80 minutes) action comedy that continued the story and lineage already established by the ending of Evil Dead […]

Categories
Ric Review

As Good As It Gets

As Good As It Gets Romantic comedies often fail for a number of various reasons.  For one, you have the two leads who are both designed to be pretty and perfect yet come across as being inherently unlikable simply because so much of their lives and personalities come off as being so movie star fake.  […]

Categories
Ric Review

Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford

Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford With the glorious exception of Peckinpah’s Pat Garrett And Billy The Kid, it’s almost never a good idea to introduce a modern political sensibility into a period western, but that’s exactly what we get here, as the legendary Confederate outlaw Jesse James is unwisely revisioned into […]

Categories
Ric Review

At Close Range

At Close Range It’s hard to believe that with all the overwrought displays that Sean Penn has put on in recent years, that there was a time that he actually had a definite PRIME as an actor, mainly in the early to mid 80s starting with his legendary Spicoli in Fast Times to this role […]

Categories
Ric Review

A-Team

A-Team: Director’s Cut Growing up in the 80s and watching all the action and cop shows of the era was like having a chance to hang out with some old friends once a week, with witty repartee and believability that kept you coming back time and again, unlike today.  This 2010 release, an updated version […]

Categories
Ric Review

Austin Powers In Goldmember

Austin Powers In Goldmember The Austin Powers Franchise more or less was always an exercise in comedy self indulgence for Mike Myers, one that saw him always work with a very tight knit regular ensemble cast (Seth Green, Michael York, Robert Wagner, Mindy Sterling and Verne Troyer as Mini Me starting in Part 2) and […]

Categories
Ric Review

Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery

Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery Mike Myers has certainly been pegged as one of the most misunderstood comedy geniuses of the last 20 years.  Known as a guy who specializes in somewhat juvenile, childish humor but yet is said to take it VERY seriously, Myers is one of the odder success stories to come […]

Categories
Ric Review

Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me

Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me The original Austin Powers movie back in 1997 must have really seemed like a long shot for success in Hollywood’s eyes, with Wayne’s World star Mike Myers conjuring up a psychedelic era James Bond / spy spoof that even featured a number of faded stars from that era […]