DVD Review: Astounding She-Monster, The (B)

The Astounding She-Monster (1957)
Directed by Ronald Ashcroft
Starring Shirley Kilpatrick, Robert Clark and Marilyn Harvey
MPAA: UR
Grade: B

Review by Bobby Nashville

The most astounding thing about this film is that someone actually thought this was a passable script. The Astounding She-Monster is definitely one of those wonderfully idiotic black and white sci-fi films that is mesmerizing for how boldy bad it is. This catastrophe ranks right up there with the best/worst of Ed Wood, and rightly so as Ed Wood was rumored to have served as "Creative Consultant" on this sci-fi yarn.

Here is the plot (if you can call it that): A society gal is kidnapped by some gun toting crooks that head up into the San Gabriel mountains. At the same time, a meteor lands in the mountains, bringing with it a curvaceous She-Monster, or if you really want to be technical about it, a new wave chick that seems to glow radiation.

The kidnappers hide out in a mountain cabin, keeping the geologist owner of the abode (along with their society gal) hostage. One of the kidnappers is a booze guzzling gal that can't stop talking about how much she likes booze (for whatever reason). The She-Monster attacks the cast one at a time (by touching them with radiation) but that doesn't stop any of them from wandering around, drinking and pointing guns at each other.

There's not much more to say about this horrible film other than the dialogue is incredibly stupid, the acting is hilarious and the soundtrack is not even close. The Astounding She-Monster is astounding in it's stupidity, but that's why you love it, right?

Coming in at a running time barely over an hour, this is a decent "so bad its good" movie that one can watch in a double feature, without running the risk of going completely insane.

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DVD Review: Bourne Identity, The (B-)

Bourne Identity, The (2002)
Directed by Doug Liman
Starring Matt Damon, Franka Potente, Brian Cox, Josh Hamilton, Julia Stiles and Clive Owen
MPAA:PG-13
Grade: B-

Review by Scott Standish

I was a fan of the old James Bond movies. You know the ones where Sean Connery wasn't afraid to punch someone in the nose or Roger Moore would just as soon sleep with a double agent as he would double cross her. Today's James Bond characters seem more concerned with how good they look than actually doing some damage. That's why I like the Bourne Identity hero, Jason Bourne. He doesn't even know who he is, so he's not concerned with looking cool. He just wants to get the hell out of the mess he's found himself in.

The Bourne Identity opens with Jason Bourne's body being fished out of the sea. He's been left for dead. He awakes and like Frankenstein's monster, he A) doesn't know who he is and B) doesn't know why everyone is trying to hunt him down. Matt Damon turns in a very believable performance here and co-star Franka Potente is excellent as usual. This is a tight, well done thriller that frankly, was a little better than I was expecting (yes, I admit it - I went into this thinking that it would suck.)

The Bourne Identity is a decent popcorn movie, a little guilty pleasure for those of us that like to get carried away into the action once in a while. Go into it with low expectations, and you will actually find yourself entertained.

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DVD Review: House Of 1,000 Corpses (C+)

House of 1,000 Corpses (2003)
Directed by Rob Zombie
Starring Sid Haig, Erin Daniels, Chris Hardwick, William Bassett and Karen Black
MPAA: R
Grade: C+

Review by Bobby Nashville

If you are a fan of gory horror films, then you've probably already heard about House of 1,000 Corpses. Reportedly the film was dropped by its distributor (Universal) and after director Rob Zombie screened it for studio execs, a bidding war broke out. Is it worth all of the excitement? Not really, but it still has its moments.

Our story concerns two couples that pick up a hitchhiking girl on a rainy night. When they experience car trouble, they end up at the house of Mother Firefly (played wonderfully by the always fabulous Karen Black). Mother Firefly's house is home to a lot of freaky people and before the night is through, some people get their heads handed to them. Its a very basic "kids stranded in a house of horrors" plot, and that's kind of my biggest beef with House of 1,000 Corpses. Why not get a little original with the plot line and surprise the audience a little? Everything that happens in House of 1,000 Corpses is right out of the horror film playbook. Obviously, Zombie is trying to play a little homage to some of his favorites (Texas Chainsaw Massacre for sure) but a few unique plot twists would have been nice.

On the positive side, House of 1,000 Corpses looks fantastic. Zombie intercuts lots of weird stock footage and uses very cool effects to give everything a nice, music video meets classic horror film look. But looks aren't everything, and once you get over the great art direction the story leaves you wondering how good this film would been with a more innovative script.

For those looking for a great horror film with plot twists and originality, you might be disappointed byHouse of 1,000 Corpses. But for fans of the gore genre and Rob Zombie, this is a must see.

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DVD Review: It Was A Wonderful Life (B-)

It Was A Wonderful Life (1993)
Directed by Michele Ohayon
Narrated by Jodie Foster
MPAA: UR
Grade: B-

Review by Scott Standish

Directed by Michele Ohayon, It Was A Wonderful Life documents the lives of several women who have become homeless. They all had fantastic lives with wonderful families before rough times knocked each of them for a loop. Left by husbands who have refused to pay child support, they become saddled with debt and can't make ends meet.

This film truly makes the point that most people are just a couple paychecks away from living on the street. For the gals in It Was A Wonderful Life, they have to live out of their cars. Simply trying to stay away from rapists and thieves becomes a full time job for these ladies.

It Was A Wonderful Life has dramatic emotional impact as we get to see just how intelligent and charming these ladies are. These aren't lazy women by any measure. Fate has dealt them a bad hand and the courts haven't stepped in to help out. Its a sad state of affairs indeed.

The narration by Jodie Foster lends some weight to the film and over-all, this is a very interesting documentary. Made ten years ago, it would be interesting to see a follow-up to It Was A Wonderful Life to see where these women are now. Also, I would like to know more about the laws concerning child support and how they have changed since then.

DVD Review: Work of Director Spike Jonze, The (A-)

The Work Of Director Spike Jonze
Director: Spike Jonze
Featuring The Beastie Boys, The Breeders, Weezer, Fatboy Slim and The Pharcyde
MPAA: UR
Grade: A-

Review by Scott Standish

Indie film director Spike Jonze has directed some of the most amazing music videos ever and this compilation from Palm Pictures proves it. If you are a fan of Jonze's films (Being John Malkovitch and Adaptation) then you definitely need to give this excellent compilation DVD a long look.

Spike Jonze's twisted sense of dark comedy runs throughout these videos. Christopher Walken dances insanely through a hotel in Fatboy Slim's Weapon of Choice. The Beastie Boys portray 70's TV cops in one of the greatest music videos of all time: Sabotage. Jonze continues his fascination of 70's television with Weezer's video of Buddy Holly. The Weezer video is shot on the set of Al's Drive In from the TV show Happy Days and is intercut so well with scenes from the show that you would swear it came right out of the vaults. All the classic videos are here and even the older music videos by Spike hold up extremely well over time.

Spike Jonze is a fantastic feature film director but watching this compilation made me think of a couple questions. First, why don't they make videos like Spike's anymore and secondly, does anyone really even show music videos anymore? Regardless of the answer to either of these questions, if you like music videos or are a fan of Spike Jonze, this compilation is a must have and is a refreshing change of pace to add to your collection.

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DVD Review: Black Hawk Down (B)

Black Hawk Down (2001)
Directed by Ridley Scott
Starring Josh Hartnett
MPAA: R
Grade: B

Review by Scott Standish

The great Ridley Scott teams up with action king Jerry Bruckheimer to craft a no-frills, action packed war movie that delivers on its promises. Black Hawk Down is not on par with some of Mr. Scott's best work (let's face it, Blade Runner and Alien are two films that are hard to top), but this movie is certainly entertaining all the way through.

Running a bit long at 144 minutes, Black Hawk Down tells the true story of the US raid into Somolia to capture the cruel warlord Muhammed Addid. Addid's factions are bunkered in throughout the toughest areas of the capital, and are armed to the teeth.

The US military team in Somolia is overly confident going into the tactical strike. The young crew flies into the capital to capture the warlord only to encounter extreme resistence. The battle scenes for Black Hawk Down are intense. People are getting blown away in a manner similar to the great battle sequence in Saving Private Ryan. The combat scenes are ugly, and the raid - well I won't give too much away, but let's just say things did not go as smoothly on the ground as the generals had planned back in their offices.

Black Hawk Down is a well paced war flick that has the patented Ridley Scott atmospheric touches, and a little pumped up war bravado, definitely ala Bruckheimer. It doesn't go overboard on the patriotism factor, wisely knowing just how far to push. The acting is decent, but its an ensemble piece and no one actor ever steps above the prominence of Scott himself as director. The movie looks great, has lots of explosions, a touch of good old patriotism, and the based in fact story line keeps the whole thing grounded.

Black Hawk Down is probably not for everyone, but let's face it, war movies, especially ones with lots of blood and guts, either work for you or they don't. For those that like bullets flying and stuff blowing up, then Black Hawk Down is a sure thing.

Coming on the heels of the testosterone injected Gladiator, it's clear that Ridley Scott is mastering the action film genre, just as he did with science fiction. Who knows what direction Scott will go next, but it will certainly be interesting to watch.

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DVD Review: XXX (B-)

XXX
Directed by Rob Cohen
Starring Vin Diesel, Samuel Jackson and Asia Argento
MPAA: PG-13
Grade: B-

Review by Bobby Nashville

XXX was exactly what I expected: an action packed movie with poor acting, lots of guns and a few memorable quotes. Vin Diesel takes his shot at superstardom with this explosion filled, extreme stunt bonanza and while he doesn't actually pull it off he doesn't really flop either.

The US Government is having a hard time cracking an evil terrorist ring in Prague simply because their agents are too square. The more their spies try to fit in with the grunge rock blasting, car stealing, bomb making scene that they claim is going on over there (?!) the more they fail. Apparently our spies just aren't cool enough.

That's when the feds call in Samuel Jackson. Samuel Jackson handles the governments superspies. These guys are convicted arsonists, murderers and thieves converted to our side in order to infiltrate the criminal world. Jackson sets out to find the baddest of the bad and of course this turns out to be Xander Cage, played by Vin Diesel. Xander Cage is an underground exteme stunt artist. What that really means is still unclear, but I guess he is a celebrity for stealing things and doing "radical stuff" like driving cars off bridges and jumping over things. Anyway, Diesel goes undercover to crack the terrorist ring and you can pretty much guess the rest of the story.

The real stars of XXX are the pyrotechnics and the stunts. Just about everything in this movie either blows up, flies through the air or goes real fast. The script is fast moving with its only fault being its attempt to sell us on Xander being really smart (why even try?). There are some great lines in here ("The things I'm going to do for my country" being my favorite) and that GTO is pretty darn sweet. Don't expect too much from this fast moving but mindless action flick and get ready for a wild ride.

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DVD Review: Unfaithful (B)

Unfaithful (2002)
Directed by Adrian Lyne
Starring Richard Gere, Diane Lane and Olivier Martinez
MPAA: R
Grade: B

Review by Scott Standish

Adrian Lyne's latest thriller Unfaithful is based on Claude Chabrols 1969 film Unfaithful Wife. Here's the set up: Richard Gere and Diane Lane play Charlie and Connie Sumner, the modern day "perfect couple" that you see in all of those cheesy wine ads on TV. They have a charming young son and a beautiful house not far from New York City.

On a day trip into the city, Connie meets and falls for the young French book dealer Paul Martel. She finds herself intoxicated by the intensity of this affair and yet she still loves her husband and her idyllic family life. Something has to give.

Adrian Lyne is the king of stylized dramas and this entertaining film just adds to his legacy (Fatal Attraction, Jacob's Ladder and yes, Flashdance). A former director of commercials, Lyne loves to deconstruct the character's actions into tiny close-ups that when spliced together, make them appear all the more dramatic. Simple things like cutting a tomato becomes magnified for its impact. A doorknob turning becomes a major event. He can make these tiny details appear sexy, scary, or even mysterious, but these enhancements always add to the complexity of the character's texture.

Unfaithful has a great look (as all Adrian Lyne films do), some fantastic performances by Lane and Gere, and a nice pacing to it. The motivations behind the characters are hinted at, not flaunted in front of the audience, which is a really nice touch. I have heard rumblings of a potential Oscar nomination for Lane here, and that would not be out of line.

Unfaithful is a very good drama from a director that seems to be hitting on all cylinders. Although it doesn't break any new ground, it certainly will keep you entertained from start to finish.

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DVD Review: Prey For Rock and Roll (B-)

Prey for Rock Rock & Roll (2003)
Directed by Alex Steyermark
Starring: Gina Gershon, Drea de Matteo, Lori Petty and Shelly Cole
MPAA: R
Grade: B-

Review by Bobby Nashville

By now everyone knows that I like punk rock movies, punk rock girl groups and best of all, punk rock movies about punk rock girl groups. Prey for Rock and Roll fits right into that groove and even though it was stupid, I ended up enjoying it immensely. If you take this film with a grain of salt, you just might too.

Gina Gershon (Showgirls) stars as Jacki, the rock chick that's played in every single band out there trying to catch a break, but despite her persistence, that break never came. She's pushing 40 and the gals in her band are growing restless. Tracy (the Soprano's Drea De Matteo) has a loser boyfriend, and Shelly's brother has just come out of the slammer. These are rock chicks that have had some tough breaks, but they take their frustrations out by rocking. You have to respect that.

The story is pretty dumb, but Gershon goes at the lead role with such a wild abandon that one can't help but adore her. Gershon performs all of her vocals live in the film, and frankly, her voice ain't half bad. Prey for Rock and Roll won't be winning any awards soon but for some late night entertainment, it's definitely worth checking out.

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DVD Review: Lies (F)

Lies (1999)
Starring Lee Sang Hyun and Kim Tae Yeon
Directed by Jang Sun Woo
MPAA: NR
Grade: F

Review by Scott Standish

Who knew S&M could be so boring?

This controversial Korean film chronicles a "9 1/2 Weeks" type affair between a 38 year old sculptor and an 18 year old virgin looking for trouble. First they get together for sex, then rough sex, then sadomasochistic sex. When they aren't having sex, they sit around and talk about the sex they just had.

Did I mention this movie had lots of sex in it? So far so good, but here are the problems, folks: A) this couple has zero chemistry, B) the love scenes are incredibly boring and C) each scene goes on way, way too long. Believe it or not, I was tempted to actually fast forward through the sex scenes (!?!) just to get to the actual story. This love affair is not believable because the love scenes aren't convincing. Bottom line: the acting is poor (or the couple is miscast).

To make matters worse, other than the S&M affair, nothing is really going on. Okay sure, her brother doesn't like the man she is seeing, and she also has a friend that gets jealous. But those subplots don't go anywhere, and they really don't mean anything to the story.

I am the first person to back the growing trend of showing more realistic sex scenes in films, and even pushing the censorship envelope from time to time. The controversial film Base Moi shattered the conventions of how sex can be graphically depicted on screen, and yet still told an entertaining story. It used actual adult film stars to play the roles of a "Thelma and Louise" type couple that beds every man they can find, robs everyone else and shoots everybody that stands in their way. Over the top? Yes. Boring? No. Base Moi was full of graphic sex and because these "actors" knew what they were doing (so to speak), lack of chemistry or believability was not a problem.

Lies, however, is a boring film with lots of graphic sex scenes in it. So here's a note to up and coming filmmakers looking to push the sexual envelope: make the sex hot. Otherwise, its just bad porn pretending to be an art movie.

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