DVD Review: Diamond Men (B)

Diamond Men (2001)
Directed by Dan Cohen
Starring Robert Forster, Donnie Wahlberg, Bess Armstrong and Jasmine Guy
MPAA: R
Grade: B

Review by Scott Standish

Diamond Men is a fantastic buddy picture that despite hitting every cliché in the book, still entertains. Robert Forster (Jackie Brown, Medium Cool) stars and executive produces here and his involvement here must have helped keep the project afloat. A simple, low budget affair, this is not your typical Hollywood studio picture.

Forster plays Eddie Miller, a traveling diamond salesman that has been on the road for thirty years. His wife has passed away and all he has left is his job. The diamond firm wants to lay him off but they allow him to stay on for awhile longer if he trains the energetic puppy of a new salesman, Bobby Walker (played surprisingly well by Donnie Wahlberg). Admittedly, Diamond Men touches on all of the buddy picture cliché's: two guys stuck with each other on a road trip. They initially don't get along, but as time passes, they learn a little from each other, and end up friends. But the acting and dialogue here are so good that its easy to overlook these shortcomings and just enjoy the ride.

Diamond Men also picks up some steam as the stars spend a little time at Altoona's Riding Club, a small brothel that they hit on the way to and from the road. Eddie meets Katie (Bess Armstrong) and Bobby spends some time with the brothel's madam, Tina (played by Jasmine Guy). The gentlemen show softer sides with the ladies than they do with each other, and these interactions bring out the subtleties of each character.

They only thing really keeping Diamond Men down is the obvious low budget conditions under which the film appears shot. The direction seems a bit haphazard, and several scenes (especially the opening scenes at the Diamond company's offices) appear edited too quickly. Forster is one of those actors that can carry an entire scene, so let him do it! Longer takes would have served this film well, and a little more creative art direction and music could have gone a long way. However, none of these issues bring the film down too much. Diamond Men is still a very entertaining film with some excellent acting (Forster is always good, but who would have expected this from former New Kid Donnie Wahlberg?).

A buddy movie with a nice touch of class, Diamond Men is worth a look.

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DVD Review: Visitor Q (B)

Visitor Q (2001)
Directed by Takashi Miike
starring: Kenichi Endo, Fujiko, Jun Mutô, Shoko Nakahara and Kazushi Watanabe
MPAA:R
Grade: B

Review by Bobby Nashville

American horror directors love to slash people up with axes, knives and chainsaws, but it seems that Japanese horror directors just like to freak people out in general. In Visitor Q, psychological horror mixes with John Waters type bad taste and the viewer is pummeled by the nonstop shock values. Takashi Miike (Audition) is the king of freak out cinema. Fans of the director will be mighty pleased with Visitor Q, an over the top experiment that is certainly not for the squeamish.

The story centers around one of the most disturbed families I have ever encountered. The father has a penchant for necrophilia and likes to have sex with his prostitute daughter. The son beats his mother with whips and broken dishes. The mother dresses in garbage bags, shoots up heroin and is into kinky sex. The outsider of the family, a random visitor that is labeled "Q", likes to beat the father in the head with rocks for no apparent reason. Why all of this is going on is never really sorted out. The insanity is simply presented as an of alternate reality of sorts, in which all taboos have been tossed out the window. People indulge in insane behavior and act out their bizarre actions like a surrealist explosion of sex, drugs and violence.

Obviously, you are either going to be disgusted by this film, or you will view it as a depraved art film that works as a whole. I took the latter view, but I can totally understand if you take the former. Visitor Q is undoubtedly a powerful film from one of the world's most controversial directors, Takashi Miike.

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DVD Review: Men In Black 2 (D)

Men In Black 2
Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld
Starring Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and Lara Flynn Boyle
MPAA: PG-13
Grade: D

Review by Bobby Nashville

I was one of the few critics that actually enjoyed the first Men In Black. It was mindless fun and sometimes there's nothing wrong with that. The special effects were pretty darn cool and Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith had a good chemistry. So I was looking forward to the sequel.

Man was this a huge disappointment. The story line was basically the same as the first, except Will Smith had to restore Tommy Lee Jone's memory, and then get him back into shape before the movie even gets running. The chemistry between Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith was totally lost and you actually got the impression that these guys hated making this film.

The effects were cheesey. The script had so many failed jokes that at times you had to cringe when they were delivered. The attempt at a love story in the middle of this film is downright laughable. In short, this was a complete debacle.

Men In Black II is the kind of nonstop product placement piece of garbage sequel that Hollywood can't seem to stop churning out every summer. Unfortunately kids must keep turning up to see these kind of ripoff movies, because they keep making them.

If you like silly monster movies, then stay away from this snoozer and rent a classic one from the past (personally I'm a big Godzilla Vs. Smog Monster fan). Lara Flynn Boyle plays a sexy alien on the prowl and her performance is the only thing that saves this debacle of a movie from getting an F.

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DVD Review: Detroit 9000 (B)

00 (1973)
Directed by Arthur Marks
Starring Hari Rhodes, Alex Rocco, Rudy Challenger, Scatman Crothers and Sally Baker
MPAA: R
Grade: B

Detroit 9000 is an interesting film, as it mixes the cop drama into some familiar blaxploitation themes, without falling into some of the traps that made films of similar style become cliché. This plays like Starsky and Hutch meets Shaft.

Alex Rocco is a white Detroit cop that has been put on a racially charged case involving a heist of nearly four hundred thousand dollars in cash and jewelry. As the victim of the crime was a prominent black gubernatorial candidate, many in the motor city suspect that the perpetrators were white, and that the cops might be colluding, or at the very least, not helping to find the crooks. He is teamed up with a black cop and together, they try to solve the case, but they also make time to seduce some ladies and be badasses.

Another entry in the "Quentin Tarantino Presents" series, it has some humor, a little trickery, some foul mouth language and lots of gunshots. In other words, its easy to see how Tarantino fell in love with this one, and without giving too much away, it also clear that this film had a little influence on how he handled Jackie Brown, one of Mr. T's best.

The music is funky, provided by the Holland-Dozier crew, and there are some sweet 70's outfits going on (although it doesn't try to go overboard with the funky clothes, it keeps it fairly realistic for the time). So for blaxploitation fans, you'll find some treats here, and for those not really into that kind of film, you will still be entertained.

If you are a fan of the 70's cop drama, like Tarantino style movies, or are a fan of blaxploitation movies, then Detroit 9000 is definitely right up your alley.

Review by Bobby Nashville

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DVD Review: Hard Eight (A-)

Hard Eight (1996)
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring Phillip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L. Jackson
MPAA: R
Grade: A-

Review by Scott Standish

Before Boogie Nights and Magnolia, PT Anderson burst onto the indie film scene with this excellent drama. If you enjoyed either of those films, then definitely seek this one out, it is as good, if not better than those more well known movies.

Hard Eight concerns a Vegas old timer named Sydney (Phillip Baker Hall) who helps out the down on his luck John Finnegan, played by John C. Reilly (Chest Rockwell from Boogie Nights). Sydney teaches John how to gamble, earn tons of comps off the casinos and for the most part, stay out of trouble.

However, things start to go bad as soon as John meets and falls in love with the unstable prostitute Clementine. Things are compounded when John starts hanging out with one of the more renegade crooks in town, the crass and violent Jimmy, played by Samuel Jackson. Jimmy and Syd don't get along, and Syd needs to straighten things out.

The dialogue in this film is incredible. The script is remarkably tight: everything happens for a reason, people speak and act exactly as real people do, and the story never wanders from the main characters. Of course, all films should be so concise, but thats just not the case. So many films now try to weave too many storylines into their tapestry as the director tries to too hard to be the next Robert Altman. It is refreshing to view films like Hard Eight if for no other reason than to confirm that yes, filmmakers can still deliver a tight drama that stays on a straight path all the way through. Keep it simple, tell the story and deliver lots of punchy dialogue.

All of the acting performances here are top notch (Phillip Baker Hall is always excellent), but I must make a special effort here just to point out how good Gwyneth Paltrow is in the role of Clementine. The role requires a wide range of emotions, from sweet waitress with a heart of gold to a totally freaked out unstable gal with some serious issues. Paltrow makes this role come to life, and adds some nice nuances through her good sense of line delivery.

In summary, Hard Eight is a fantastic drama with fine performances, a great script, and surprisingly confident direction. If you like hard edged crime dramas with great dialogue, then definitely give Hard Eight a shot.

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DVD Review: Home For The Holidays (B)

Home For The Holidays (1995)
Directed By Jodie Foster
Starring Holly Hunter, Anne Bancroft, Robert Downey Jr., Charles Durning, Dylan McDermott
MPAA: PG-13
Grade: B

Review by Scott Standish

Home For The Holidays is a smart, unpretentious romantic comedy that is about as good as it gets. Director Jodie Foster has done a great job of assembling a great cast of characters: Holly Hunt as the single mom trying to make sense of her life, Robert Downey Jr. as the cute but loud mouthed homosexual brother, Charles Durning as the eccentric father and Dylan McDermott as the outsider who gets brought home for the holidays.

Skewering the holidays and all the tensions that come with it can be done with charm and intelligence (A Christmas Story) or silly irreverance (Christmas Vacation) but what often works best is insightful pokes and jabs, as done here.

Gathering for Thanksgiving serves as an annual "let's check where we are in relationship to our family" test for most people and Home For The Holidays centers around this. As the characters try to make sense of their own lives, they come together to see that no matter how dysfunctional their lives and families may seem, their families are forever.

Kudos to Jodie Foster for making a smart film that should remain a Thanksgiving classic for years to come.

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DVD Review: Love Liza (A-)

Love Liza (2002)
Directed by Todd Louiso
Starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Kathy Bates, Jack Kehler and Stephen Tobolowsky
MPAA: R
Grade: A-

Review by Scott Standish

One of the darker films of 2002, Love Liza shows just how bad things can get for someone dealing with the loss of a spouse. It is a showcase for the brilliant actor Philip Seymour Hoffman and he does not disappoint. Hoffman's brother Gordy wrote the screenplay to this tragic film and its done with intelligence and at times, very dark humor.

Philip Seymour Hoffman plays Wilson Joel, a hot shot web designer that completely falls apart in the wake of his wife's suicide. To escape he huffs gas almost constantly, completely obliterating his senses as he descends into a hallucinatory funk. He avoids his mother in law as she attempts to come to grips with the loss of her child. Constantly high on gas fumes Wilson's life spirals into complete darkness.

Hoffman's performance in Love Liza is Oscar worthy and Kathy Bates is excellent as the mother in law that morphs between anger and sadness at the drop of a hat. Directed by Todd Louiso (the actor who played Dick in Stephen Frear's fine film High Fidelity) this is recommended for those with a high tolerance for movies about substance abuse only.

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DVD Review: Showgirls (F)

Showgirls (1995)
Directed by Paul Verhoeven
Starring Elizabeth Berkley, Gina Gershon and Kyle McLaughlin
MPAA: NC-17
Grade: F

Review by Bobby Nashville

Winner of the Worst Film of The Decade award from the Razzies (the anti-Oscars), Showgirls is an absolute wonder to behold. Astonishing for all the wrong reasons, it is perhaps the funniest film I have ever seen. Unfortunately, I think the writer and director intended Showgirls to be a drama.

The story (if you can call it that) is about a young girl, Nomi Malone (Elizabeth Berkley), who hitchhikes to Vegas, where she tries to make it to the top of the showgirl business. She starts as a nude dancer in a strip club, then gets a gig as a chorus girl, and finally pushes her way (literally) to the top. Subtlety was never Joe Eszterhas' (Basic Instinct, Flashdance) strong suit, but judging from the Showgirls script, he had really lost his marbles at this point.

Some sample dialogue exchanges from Showgirls:

Cristal Connors: You've got nice tits. I like nice tits.
Nomi Malone: I like having nice tits.

I actually spit out my beer when I heard this weird comment from Gina Gershon: Cristal Connors: I've had dog food. Long time ago. Doggie Chow. I used to love Doggie Chow.

And best of all is this bizarre statement from the owner of the strip club that Nomi works:

Al Torres: It must be weird, not having anybody cum on you.

As you can tell, all sense of class, sanity, rationality, you name it, went right out the window with they made this debacle of a film.

There is a sequence early in Showgirls where the following things happen in under two minutes: Nomi gets her purse stolen; beats on somebody's car; gets into a fist fight with the car's owner; gets punched in the head; vomits all over the parking lot; hugs the cars owner; gets fast food; and finally throws French fries all over herself. Um, that seems normal. I see that happen all the time.

In the Mel Brooks classic The Producers, the duo of Gene Wilder and Zero Mostel set out (unbeknownst to the public) to create the worst play ever made. I can only hope that Showgirls was the Springtime For Hitler that Paul Verhoeven and Joe Eszterhas wanted to make all along. If not, in the words of my man Ricky Ricardo "You've got some splainin' to do!"

For lovers of bad movies, Showgirls is required viewing. Its just that good. I mean bad. Um... You know what I mean.

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DVD Review: Minority Report (B)

Minority Report (2002)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Starring Tom Cruise, Max Von Sydow and Steve Harris
MPAA: PG-13
Grade: B

Review by Scott Standish

I must admit right off the bat that I have a love-hate relationship with the most popular director of our time, Steven Spielberg. I've tried to snub my nose at his money making, something for everyone fare but it's hard to maintain an aloof attitude for long. And why is that? Because for every three or four sugar coated, orchestra string laden "look at the sky and everyone hug at the end" kind of movie he churns out he also creates an interesting film or two. This is a director that will give you the incomprehensible Hook and the headache inducing Always, but then he'll also floor you with Schindler's List just a couple films later. Sure he brought us 1941 but he also directed Jaws, perhaps one of the best popcorn movies of all time.

The uneven AI of 2001 hinted at a darker version of Steven Spielberg. This has really come full circle in the better than expected Minority Report. Based on the short story by Philip K Dick, Minority Report is set in the year 2045, where "pre-cogs" can accurately predict who will commit what crime in the future. The Pre-Crime group arrests people for crimes before they happen and successfully prosecute them based on that information. Tom Cruise plays John Anderton, the rising star of Pre-Crime. He has some issues of his own, based on a rather shattered family life and a growing drug problem. As Pre-Crime grows in power, politics give way and before you know it, our lead actor finds himself in the cross hairs of a pre-crime arrest.

The look of this movie is absolutely stunning. This movie really seems to capture the wide open, yet paranoid world that Philip K. Dick's writings have painted for us. Tom Cruise does his best work when he's in motion (trying to either catch some one or escape being caught) not standing around whining or boasting (like in the overrated Vanilla Sky). Of course Max Von Sydow is always good and when you toss in the fine acting work of Steve Harris, you have one well acted movie.

The best part about Minority Report is the pacing and the tone of the movie. Instead of slowing down the action towards the film's conclusion, and tying up all of the loose ends, with everyone in the family hugging (as most Spielberg films do), the great one is satisfied with keeping the pace rolling to the end.

This is not your usual Spielberg movie, its definitely no Gremlins, Money Pit, or The Flintstones (all movies that he Executive produced). But is Minority Report in the same league as Jaws or Schindler's List? Probably not but it is nice to see the director headed back in that darker direction.

Great effects, solid sci-fi material, and a darker version of Steven Spielberg than we've come to expect all contribute to make Minority Report one solid film. Recommended.

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DVD Review: Time Out (B+)

Time Out (2001)
Directed by Laurent Cantet
Starring Aurelien Recoing, Karin Viard and Serge Livrozet
MPAA: PG-13
Grade: B+

Review by Scott Standish

Vincent lives in a bizarre world of denial since being fired from his financial consulting gig. He tells his family that he has a job in Switzerland and spends most of his time working to create the illusion that he is still employed. He goes to imaginary meetings, spending hours on end in office building lobbies, until security guards toss him out.

Vincent is not really upset, he's just going along with the motions. At the same time, he does not want to appear a failure to his friends and family. In order to keep up the illusion of success, he comes up with imaginary investment funds and starts defrauding the very same people that he is trying to impress.

Like the title suggests, Time Out is really about the track that corporate players need to run on in order to be successful. Companies invest little in the personal happiness of their employees, and when Vincent is let go, he doesn't really have any sense of who he is outside of the job environment. He is an empty shell of a person, despite all of the trappings (fancy cars, beautiful house, etc.) of a successful businessman.

Aurelien Recoing is very good in the role of Vincent, adeptly switching between light frustration and zombie-like business acumen. Time Out was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the 2003 Independent Spirit Awards. An excellent examination of the personal sacrifices that people make in order to succeed in business, this one is a winner.

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DVD Review: Ararat (D)

Ararat (2002)
Directed by Atom Egoyan
Starring David Alpay, Arsinée Khanjian, Christopher Plummer, Elia Koteas and Eric Bogosian
MPAA: R
Grade: D

Review by Scott Standish

The story of the Armenian holocaust is deserving of better treatment than this slow, self indulgent disaster of a film. Atom Egoyan is one of the most brilliant filmmakers today so I'll forgive him for wasting my two hours but I can't in good faith recommend Ararat to you.

Ararat tells the story of Raffi, a young man that has been dating his step sister, following the death of her father. Raffi's mom disapproves of the relationship and does what she can to break the couple apart. Raffi's mother is an art historian that takes a job as a consultant on a movie about the Armenian holocaust between 1915 and 1918. The "film within a film" structure is interesting but a bit cliché and when a border guard (Christopher Plummer) stops Raffi and has him relate his past, my eyes started rolling.

If you are looking for a great Atom Egoyan film (and there are plenty of them), I would recommend The Adjuster, Exotica or even Sweet Hereafter over the boring, predictable Ararat.

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DVD Review: Manhattan (A+)

Manhattan (1979)
Directed by Woody Allen
Starring Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway and Michael Murphy
MPAA: R
Grade: A+

Review by Scott Standish

Every film critic has their underdog movie, the film that they feel just does not get enough respect. For me, that would have to be Woody Allen's 1979 black and white masterpiece Manhattan. Funny, touching and insightful, this is one of the few classics that I can watch over and over again and never be bored.

Woody Allen plays Isaac, a recently divorced writer of a Saturday Night Live style sketch comedy show. He's in his forties and yet he is dating Tracy (played magnificently by Mariel Hemingway), a high school girl. Tracy is extremely mature for her age but Isaac still feels that Tracy's too young for him. Isaac refuses to allow the relationship to grow serious (despite Tracy's best efforts). Meanwhile his best friend Yale is having an affair with a bizarre writer of novelizations, Mary (played by Diane Keaton).

In a fit of self righteousness Isaac quits his TV writing gig, only to realize he's made a mistake days after. With no funds coming in, he needs to move to a smaller apartment (with rusty water and weird sounds coming from upstairs). Isaac breaks up with Tracy and develops a crush on Mary, who is getting fed up playing second fiddle to Yale's wife Emily.

Manhattan is about people struggling to find happiness and some sense of order to their lives. Isaac's ex-wife (Meryl Streep) has left the neurotic Isaac to find happiness with her lesbian lover. Part of her liberation entails writing a book about her life which of course causes Isaac pain. Isaac is trying to sort out his insane life but the more that he tries, the more messed up it becomes. At one point he complains to himself "I feel like we're in a Noel Coward play. Someone should be making martinis."

The writing in Manhattan is brilliant (nominated for an Academy Award) and this film has a near perfect balance of comedy and drama. The black and white photography by Gordon Willis is absolutely stunning. This film is like a visual love poem to Manhattan. The music is George Gershwin. About as perfect a comedy as you will find, Manhattan is a film that I can honestly recommend to just about anyone.

And why should you trust me? Because, as Tracy tells Isaac: "Not everybody gets corrupted. You have to have a little faith in people."

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