Don Movie Reviews

Related Subjects: Games
More Pages: Don Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125
Family movie reviews for "Don" sorted by average review score:
The Transformers - The Movie
Released in DVD by Rhino Video (07 November, 2000)
MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Director: Nelson Shin
During the 1980s, one cartoon series ruled the airwaves... The Transformers. This paragon of consumerism was created with a dual purpose--to entertain and to galvanize children to buy the toys. Somewhere along the line, the show became a cult favorite, so in 1986 they fashioned an epic tale of good versus evil specifically for the big screen. The result looked vaguely like an animated remake of Star Wars. Who are the Transformers? The good guys are the Autobots: Optimus Prime, SoundWave, Jazz, Ultra Magnus, and many more. Their mortal enemies are the evil Decepticons, led by Megatron and StarScream. The Autobots must save their home planet from an evil entity known as Unicron (voiced by Orson Welles). At the same time, they must defend themselves from an all-out attack from the Decepticons. Along the way, lives are lost, battles are fought, and a new Autobot leader is born as another dies. The story and action never stop in a thrilling ride that often makes you forget that you're watching an '80s cartoon with inferior graphics. The violence will also come as a mild shock to those who haven't seen this film for a while--definitely a movie for the 8 and over audience. For those who grew up on this series, this is a movie that must be watched. Unlike cartoon serials before and after, The Transformers relied on solid stories and interesting characters, a manifesto the film itself upholds with gusto and grace while also being morally responsible. Don't underestimate this movie; there is definitely more to it than meets the eye. --Jeremy Storey
Average review score:

Prime at his best
Optimus Prime is the greatest Transformer. He always has been. He always will be. This movie will show you why he is who I say he is.

Many Autobots (in the middle of the film) die fighting the Decepticons. They are not able to save Autobot city and they are really outnumbered. Optimus Prime comes in, runs them over and wastes them all in a matter of seconds before he has his last battle with Megatron. He did what the other Autobots could never really do in a matter of seconds because he is the best warrior there is. The scene where he comes to earth and beats the Decepticons down before he fights Megatron makes this movie worth buying. It is one of my favorite action scenes in ANY movie and it really gives you an idea of what a hero truly is. The rest of the film is also really fun to watch because the new characters (Galvatron, Kup, Rodimus Prime Ultra-Magnus and Unicron) are really cool and the score really fits well. This movie will make you fall in love with the Transformers if you are a new fan or rekindle your love for the robots that all we enjoy watching.

THE BEST ANIMATED MOVIE EVER!!!
Transformers the movie is without the greatest animated movie ever created. The music score is topnotch, the animation is brilliant, the acting - superb, the story line - nothing short of greatness and the characters well - they speak for themselves as words can not describe their depth, humanity and realism, however one can state that they are classic and brought to life.

The movie runs for appoximately 86 minutes, in which you will experience, death, life, joy, pain, sorrow, heart ach and triumph, all on the edge of your seat. I have 5 copies of the movie on my bed side table - including a 1986 VHS copy. I just can't get enough...and nor will you, watch it once and you'll have to agree with me.

LONG LIVE THE TRANSFORMERS

Thank God For Nephews
I was talked into spending some quality time with(i.e. babysitting)my five year old nephew a few days ago. It was raining that day and he didn't want to watch Shrek again, so I took him to the video store to find a DVD for us to watch. To my suprise, there on the shelf was a title I had not thought of in over 15 years, The Transformers: The Movie. We rented the movie, brought it home, and not only did my nephew love it, but it made me nostalgic for those days of my sophmore year in highschool when I'd doodle images of Optimus Prime, Megatron and Soundwave instead of taking notes during those boring economics classes. Yes, sad to say, a fifteen year old kid in highschool enjoyed the Transformers then, and this 32 y/o uncle, along with my nephew, enjoys the Transformers now. The storyline is great, the voice acting is topnotch, and the animation, though is looks dated by todays computer anitmation standards (remember, even Southpark is done with computers, The Transformers was all handdrawn), is still astounding in its attention to detail.

The Silence of the Lambs
Released in DVD by Image Entertainment (21 July, 1998)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Jonathan Demme
Starring: Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins
Based on Thomas Harris's novel, this terrifying film by Jonathan Demme really only contains a couple of genuinely shocking moments (one involving an autopsy, the other a prison break). The rest of the film is a splatter-free visual and psychological descent into the hell of madness, redeemed astonishingly by an unlikely connection between a monster and a haunted young woman. Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances. Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman (Caged Heat), and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere, and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. --Tom Keogh
Average review score:

Just flawless. Scary, smart, and fierce
Foster and Hopkins kick butt here! Their chemistry is amazing. This film was ground breaking and truly shocking. If you haven't seen it, do that now. If you have, revisit it and remind yourself of why it's so great.

Silence of the Lambs
A serial killer, known to the media as Buffalo Bill, has kidnapped and skinned several women and cannot be found. A beginner FBI agent, Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster), is assigned to speak with a brilliant psychopathic psychiatrist, Hannibal Lecktor (Anthony Hopkins), in a mental ward. In doing this, she hopes that he will provide both valuable information regarding his whereabouts and insight on how a serial killer thinks. Soon after her first meeting with Lecktor (overwhelmed by the manipulation she received from him and other inmates), a woman is reportedly missing, and that Buffalo Bill is behind it. This adds to the stress, and Lecktor reaches into Clarice Starling's haunted memories.

A riveting and disturbing psychological thriller that succeeds in most departments. It does not rely as much on blood and gore as it does on generally eerie dialogue. Jodie Foster's character does take a little while to get comfortable with, but her portrayal as a haunted woman is always compelling and unforgettable. It is Anthony Hopkins that delivers the most with his cannibalistic and thought-provoking persona. See it!

Overall rating: 4.8 stars (rounded to 5)

If you like this film, I would also recommend "Se7en".

Rated R for strong language and suggestive dialogue, violence, brief nudity, and mature themes.

Intense psychological horror!
This movie is an intense study of a serial killer and the methods used by the FBI to track him. Expert direction, acting, and story make this a superb film.

Very highly recommended.

The Silence of the Lambs (Full Screen Special Edition)
Released in DVD by MGM/UA Video (21 August, 2001)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Jonathan Demme
Starring: Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins
Based on Thomas Harris's novel, this terrifying film by Jonathan Demme really only contains a couple of genuinely shocking moments (one involving an autopsy, the other a prison break). The rest of the film is a splatter-free visual and psychological descent into the hell of madness, redeemed astonishingly by an unlikely connection between a monster and a haunted young woman. Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances. Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman (Caged Heat), and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere, and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. --Tom Keogh
Average review score:

Just flawless. Scary, smart, and fierce
Foster and Hopkins kick butt here! Their chemistry is amazing. This film was ground breaking and truly shocking. If you haven't seen it, do that now. If you have, revisit it and remind yourself of why it's so great.

Silence of the Lambs
A serial killer, known to the media as Buffalo Bill, has kidnapped and skinned several women and cannot be found. A beginner FBI agent, Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster), is assigned to speak with a brilliant psychopathic psychiatrist, Hannibal Lecktor (Anthony Hopkins), in a mental ward. In doing this, she hopes that he will provide both valuable information regarding his whereabouts and insight on how a serial killer thinks. Soon after her first meeting with Lecktor (overwhelmed by the manipulation she received from him and other inmates), a woman is reportedly missing, and that Buffalo Bill is behind it. This adds to the stress, and Lecktor reaches into Clarice Starling's haunted memories.

A riveting and disturbing psychological thriller that succeeds in most departments. It does not rely as much on blood and gore as it does on generally eerie dialogue. Jodie Foster's character does take a little while to get comfortable with, but her portrayal as a haunted woman is always compelling and unforgettable. It is Anthony Hopkins that delivers the most with his cannibalistic and thought-provoking persona. See it!

Overall rating: 4.8 stars (rounded to 5)

If you like this film, I would also recommend "Se7en".

Rated R for strong language and suggestive dialogue, violence, brief nudity, and mature themes.

Intense psychological horror!
This movie is an intense study of a serial killer and the methods used by the FBI to track him. Expert direction, acting, and story make this a superb film.

Very highly recommended.

The Silence of the Lambs (Widescreen Special Edition)
Released in DVD by MGM/UA Video (21 August, 2001)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Jonathan Demme
Starring: Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins
Based on Thomas Harris's novel, this terrifying film by Jonathan Demme really only contains a couple of genuinely shocking moments (one involving an autopsy, the other a prison break). The rest of the film is a splatter-free visual and psychological descent into the hell of madness, redeemed astonishingly by an unlikely connection between a monster and a haunted young woman. Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances. Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman (Caged Heat), and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere, and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. --Tom Keogh
Average review score:

Just flawless. Scary, smart, and fierce
Foster and Hopkins kick butt here! Their chemistry is amazing. This film was ground breaking and truly shocking. If you haven't seen it, do that now. If you have, revisit it and remind yourself of why it's so great.

Silence of the Lambs
A serial killer, known to the media as Buffalo Bill, has kidnapped and skinned several women and cannot be found. A beginner FBI agent, Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster), is assigned to speak with a brilliant psychopathic psychiatrist, Hannibal Lecktor (Anthony Hopkins), in a mental ward. In doing this, she hopes that he will provide both valuable information regarding his whereabouts and insight on how a serial killer thinks. Soon after her first meeting with Lecktor (overwhelmed by the manipulation she received from him and other inmates), a woman is reportedly missing, and that Buffalo Bill is behind it. This adds to the stress, and Lecktor reaches into Clarice Starling's haunted memories.

A riveting and disturbing psychological thriller that succeeds in most departments. It does not rely as much on blood and gore as it does on generally eerie dialogue. Jodie Foster's character does take a little while to get comfortable with, but her portrayal as a haunted woman is always compelling and unforgettable. It is Anthony Hopkins that delivers the most with his cannibalistic and thought-provoking persona. See it!

Overall rating: 4.8 stars (rounded to 5)

If you like this film, I would also recommend "Se7en".

Rated R for strong language and suggestive dialogue, violence, brief nudity, and mature themes.

Intense psychological horror!
This movie is an intense study of a serial killer and the methods used by the FBI to track him. Expert direction, acting, and story make this a superb film.

Very highly recommended.

The Evil Dead
Released in DVD by Anchor Bay Entertain (05 March, 2002)
MPAA Rating: NC-17
Director: Sam Raimi
Starring: Bruce Campbell
In the fall of 1979, Sam Raimi and his merry band headed into the woods of rural Tennessee to make a movie. They emerged with a roller coaster of a film packed with shocks, gore, and wild humor, a film that remains a benchmark for the genre. Ash (cult favorite Bruce Campbell) and four friends arrive at a backwoods cabin for a vacation, where they find a tape recorder containing incantations from an ancient book of the dead. When they play the tape, evil forces are unleashed, and one by one the friends are possessed. Wouldn't you know it, the only way to kill a "deadite" is by total bodily dismemberment, and soon the blood starts to fly. Raimi injects tremendous energy into this simple plot, using the claustrophobic set, disorienting camera angles, and even the graininess of the film stock itself to create an atmosphere of dread, punctuated by a relentless series of jump-out-of-your-seat shocks. The Evil Dead lacks the more highly developed sense of the absurd that distinguish later entries in the series--Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness--but it is still much more than a gore movie. It marks the appearance of one of the most original and visually exciting directors of his generation, and it stands as a monument to the triumph of imagination over budget. --Simon Leake
Average review score:

"It was the woods themselves"
A true horror classic. Everything from the sounds, to the setting, to the camera angles is perfectly done. If youre a gore or zombie fan...this is a must-have. The film starts out with a group of friends going out to a cabin for leisure and ends up with a fight to live amongst themselves. This movie also has comical aspects, in the low-budget filming and the extreme gore it contains. Overall, a great movie and worth the money.

An Army Of Primitive Screwheads Unleashed
Before director Sam Raimi brought Darkman and comic book superhero Spider-Man to the big screen, he wrote and directed a low budget horror zombie film, called The Evil Dead. While short on money, the movie still benefits from Raimi's wildly inventive imagination and the first of many memorable performances by the brilliant B actor Bruce Campbell.

Five college friends decide to get away together and spend time at a cabin in the woods. When "Ash" Williams (Campbell) and his cohorts arrive, they discover a mysterious tape, and decide to find out what's on it. Once the tape is played though, it unleashes evil forces from the ancient "Book Of The Dead", that will slowly turn them into "Deadites". As it turns out, the only way to defeat these walking creatures, is by dismembering them.

The Evil Dead had a bugdet of only $375,000, and yet, while it shows throughout, Raimi's creative energy compensates for any problems due to the lack of funds. Filled with fun, excitement, and gore-a-plenty, the film never lets up once it gets going. Sure, the acting is over the top, but that's part of the fun. I can't say enough about Campbell either. He is just great here.

The Evil Dead has had its share of reissues on DVD. The extras stay pretty much the same. The 2002 Anchor Bay Edition includes two commentary tracks. The first from Raimi and Producer Robert Tapert is fun, but as you might expect, these men end up being upstaged by star Bruce Campbell, and his funny recollections for the second audio commentary. I'm laughing as I type this--just thinking about it. There's 18 minutes worth of home movie style footage of behind the scenes and outtakes on the set. Theatrical trailers, TV spots, a poster and stills gallery, and talent bios round out the disc's bonus material. Replacing the liner notes written by Campbell for the '99 DVD, is the 24 page booklet featuring an interview with "The Ladies of Evil Dead", Betsy Baker, Ellen Sandweiss, and Sarah York.

Like Joe Dante's The Howling, and the more sophisticated Halloween, from John Carpenter, The Evil Dead proves that money doesn't really matter, in film, if you have imagination and sheer will to make it work. Recommended, along with its sequels, Evil Dead II and the topper Army Of Darkness

One of the all time greatest
I still jump when I watch this film. I've seen it over 100 times and it's just as great now as it was 20 years ago!! BUY IT!!

The Evil Dead
Released in DVD by Anchor Bay Entertainment (19 January, 1999)
MPAA Rating: NC-17
Director: Sam Raimi
Starring: Bruce Campbell
In the fall of 1979, Sam Raimi and his merry band headed into the woods of rural Tennessee to make a movie. They emerged with a roller coaster of a film packed with shocks, gore, and wild humor, a film that remains a benchmark for the genre. Ash (cult favorite Bruce Campbell) and four friends arrive at a backwoods cabin for a vacation, where they find a tape recorder containing incantations from an ancient book of the dead. When they play the tape, evil forces are unleashed, and one by one the friends are possessed. Wouldn't you know it, the only way to kill a "deadite" is by total bodily dismemberment, and soon the blood starts to fly. Raimi injects tremendous energy into this simple plot, using the claustrophobic set, disorienting camera angles, and even the graininess of the film stock itself to create an atmosphere of dread, punctuated by a relentless series of jump-out-of-your-seat shocks. The Evil Dead lacks the more highly developed sense of the absurd that distinguish later entries in the series--Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness--but it is still much more than a gore movie. It marks the appearance of one of the most original and visually exciting directors of his generation, and it stands as a monument to the triumph of imagination over budget. --Simon Leake
Average review score:

"It was the woods themselves"
A true horror classic. Everything from the sounds, to the setting, to the camera angles is perfectly done. If youre a gore or zombie fan...this is a must-have. The film starts out with a group of friends going out to a cabin for leisure and ends up with a fight to live amongst themselves. This movie also has comical aspects, in the low-budget filming and the extreme gore it contains. Overall, a great movie and worth the money.

An Army Of Primitive Screwheads Unleashed
Before director Sam Raimi brought Darkman and comic book superhero Spider-Man to the big screen, he wrote and directed a low budget horror zombie film, called The Evil Dead. While short on money, the movie still benefits from Raimi's wildly inventive imagination and the first of many memorable performances by the brilliant B actor Bruce Campbell.

Five college friends decide to get away together and spend time at a cabin in the woods. When "Ash" Williams (Campbell) and his cohorts arrive, they discover a mysterious tape, and decide to find out what's on it. Once the tape is played though, it unleashes evil forces from the ancient "Book Of The Dead", that will slowly turn them into "Deadites". As it turns out, the only way to defeat these walking creatures, is by dismembering them.

The Evil Dead had a bugdet of only $375,000, and yet, while it shows throughout, Raimi's creative energy compensates for any problems due to the lack of funds. Filled with fun, excitement, and gore-a-plenty, the film never lets up once it gets going. Sure, the acting is over the top, but that's part of the fun. I can't say enough about Campbell either. He is just great here.

The Evil Dead has had its share of reissues on DVD. The extras stay pretty much the same. The 2002 Anchor Bay Edition includes two commentary tracks. The first from Raimi and Producer Robert Tapert is fun, but as you might expect, these men end up being upstaged by star Bruce Campbell, and his funny recollections for the second audio commentary. I'm laughing as I type this--just thinking about it. There's 18 minutes worth of home movie style footage of behind the scenes and outtakes on the set. Theatrical trailers, TV spots, a poster and stills gallery, and talent bios round out the disc's bonus material. Replacing the liner notes written by Campbell for the '99 DVD, is the 24 page booklet featuring an interview with "The Ladies of Evil Dead", Betsy Baker, Ellen Sandweiss, and Sarah York.

Like Joe Dante's The Howling, and the more sophisticated Halloween, from John Carpenter, The Evil Dead proves that money doesn't really matter, in film, if you have imagination and sheer will to make it work. Recommended, along with its sequels, Evil Dead II and the topper Army Of Darkness

One of the all time greatest
I still jump when I watch this film. I've seen it over 100 times and it's just as great now as it was 20 years ago!! BUY IT!!

The Evil Dead (Book Of The Dead Limited Edition)
Released in DVD by Anchor Bay Entertain (05 March, 2002)
MPAA Rating: NC-17
Director: Sam Raimi
Starring: Bruce Campbell
In the fall of 1979, Sam Raimi and his merry band headed into the woods of rural Tennessee to make a movie. They emerged with a roller coaster of a film packed with shocks, gore, and wild humor, a film that remains a benchmark for the genre. Ash (cult favorite Bruce Campbell) and four friends arrive at a backwoods cabin for a vacation, where they find a tape recorder containing incantations from an ancient book of the dead. When they play the tape, evil forces are unleashed, and one by one the friends are possessed. Wouldn't you know it, the only way to kill a "deadite" is by total bodily dismemberment, and soon the blood starts to fly. Raimi injects tremendous energy into this simple plot, using the claustrophobic set, disorienting camera angles, and even the graininess of the film stock itself to create an atmosphere of dread, punctuated by a relentless series of jump-out-of-your-seat shocks. The Evil Dead lacks the more highly developed sense of the absurd that distinguish later entries in the series--Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness--but it is still much more than a gore movie. It marks the appearance of one of the most original and visually exciting directors of his generation, and it stands as a monument to the triumph of imagination over budget. --Simon Leake
Average review score:

"It was the woods themselves"
A true horror classic. Everything from the sounds, to the setting, to the camera angles is perfectly done. If youre a gore or zombie fan...this is a must-have. The film starts out with a group of friends going out to a cabin for leisure and ends up with a fight to live amongst themselves. This movie also has comical aspects, in the low-budget filming and the extreme gore it contains. Overall, a great movie and worth the money.

An Army Of Primitive Screwheads Unleashed
Before director Sam Raimi brought Darkman and comic book superhero Spider-Man to the big screen, he wrote and directed a low budget horror zombie film, called The Evil Dead. While short on money, the movie still benefits from Raimi's wildly inventive imagination and the first of many memorable performances by the brilliant B actor Bruce Campbell.

Five college friends decide to get away together and spend time at a cabin in the woods. When "Ash" Williams (Campbell) and his cohorts arrive, they discover a mysterious tape, and decide to find out what's on it. Once the tape is played though, it unleashes evil forces from the ancient "Book Of The Dead", that will slowly turn them into "Deadites". As it turns out, the only way to defeat these walking creatures, is by dismembering them.

The Evil Dead had a bugdet of only $375,000, and yet, while it shows throughout, Raimi's creative energy compensates for any problems due to the lack of funds. Filled with fun, excitement, and gore-a-plenty, the film never lets up once it gets going. Sure, the acting is over the top, but that's part of the fun. I can't say enough about Campbell either. He is just great here.

The Evil Dead has had its share of reissues on DVD. The extras stay pretty much the same. The 2002 Anchor Bay Edition includes two commentary tracks. The first from Raimi and Producer Robert Tapert is fun, but as you might expect, these men end up being upstaged by star Bruce Campbell, and his funny recollections for the second audio commentary. I'm laughing as I type this--just thinking about it. There's 18 minutes worth of home movie style footage of behind the scenes and outtakes on the set. Theatrical trailers, TV spots, a poster and stills gallery, and talent bios round out the disc's bonus material. Replacing the liner notes written by Campbell for the '99 DVD, is the 24 page booklet featuring an interview with "The Ladies of Evil Dead", Betsy Baker, Ellen Sandweiss, and Sarah York.

Like Joe Dante's The Howling, and the more sophisticated Halloween, from John Carpenter, The Evil Dead proves that money doesn't really matter, in film, if you have imagination and sheer will to make it work. Recommended, along with its sequels, Evil Dead II and the topper Army Of Darkness

One of the all time greatest
I still jump when I watch this film. I've seen it over 100 times and it's just as great now as it was 20 years ago!! BUY IT!!

Evil Dead - Special Edition
Released in DVD by Elite Entertainment (18 May, 1999)
MPAA Rating: NC-17
Director: Sam Raimi
Starring: Bruce Campbell
In the fall of 1979, Sam Raimi and his merry band headed into the woods of rural Tennessee to make a movie. They emerged with a roller coaster of a film packed with shocks, gore, and wild humor, a film that remains a benchmark for the genre. Ash (cult favorite Bruce Campbell) and four friends arrive at a backwoods cabin for a vacation, where they find a tape recorder containing incantations from an ancient book of the dead. When they play the tape, evil forces are unleashed, and one by one the friends are possessed. Wouldn't you know it, the only way to kill a "deadite" is by total bodily dismemberment, and soon the blood starts to fly. Raimi injects tremendous energy into this simple plot, using the claustrophobic set, disorienting camera angles, and even the graininess of the film stock itself to create an atmosphere of dread, punctuated by a relentless series of jump-out-of-your-seat shocks. The Evil Dead lacks the more highly developed sense of the absurd that distinguish later entries in the series--Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness--but it is still much more than a gore movie. It marks the appearance of one of the most original and visually exciting directors of his generation, and it stands as a monument to the triumph of imagination over budget. --Simon Leake
Average review score:

"It was the woods themselves"
A true horror classic. Everything from the sounds, to the setting, to the camera angles is perfectly done. If youre a gore or zombie fan...this is a must-have. The film starts out with a group of friends going out to a cabin for leisure and ends up with a fight to live amongst themselves. This movie also has comical aspects, in the low-budget filming and the extreme gore it contains. Overall, a great movie and worth the money.

An Army Of Primitive Screwheads Unleashed
Before director Sam Raimi brought Darkman and comic book superhero Spider-Man to the big screen, he wrote and directed a low budget horror zombie film, called The Evil Dead. While short on money, the movie still benefits from Raimi's wildly inventive imagination and the first of many memorable performances by the brilliant B actor Bruce Campbell.

Five college friends decide to get away together and spend time at a cabin in the woods. When "Ash" Williams (Campbell) and his cohorts arrive, they discover a mysterious tape, and decide to find out what's on it. Once the tape is played though, it unleashes evil forces from the ancient "Book Of The Dead", that will slowly turn them into "Deadites". As it turns out, the only way to defeat these walking creatures, is by dismembering them.

The Evil Dead had a bugdet of only $375,000, and yet, while it shows throughout, Raimi's creative energy compensates for any problems due to the lack of funds. Filled with fun, excitement, and gore-a-plenty, the film never lets up once it gets going. Sure, the acting is over the top, but that's part of the fun. I can't say enough about Campbell either. He is just great here.

The Evil Dead has had its share of reissues on DVD. The extras stay pretty much the same. The 2002 Anchor Bay Edition includes two commentary tracks. The first from Raimi and Producer Robert Tapert is fun, but as you might expect, these men end up being upstaged by star Bruce Campbell, and his funny recollections for the second audio commentary. I'm laughing as I type this--just thinking about it. There's 18 minutes worth of home movie style footage of behind the scenes and outtakes on the set. Theatrical trailers, TV spots, a poster and stills gallery, and talent bios round out the disc's bonus material. Replacing the liner notes written by Campbell for the '99 DVD, is the 24 page booklet featuring an interview with "The Ladies of Evil Dead", Betsy Baker, Ellen Sandweiss, and Sarah York.

Like Joe Dante's The Howling, and the more sophisticated Halloween, from John Carpenter, The Evil Dead proves that money doesn't really matter, in film, if you have imagination and sheer will to make it work. Recommended, along with its sequels, Evil Dead II and the topper Army Of Darkness

One of the all time greatest
I still jump when I watch this film. I've seen it over 100 times and it's just as great now as it was 20 years ago!! BUY IT!!

The Truman Show
Released in DVD by Paramount Studio (19 August, 2003)
MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Director: Peter Weir
Starring: Jim Carrey and Ed Harris
The whole world is watching--literally--every time Truman Burbank makes the slightest move. Unbeknownst to him, in this hauntingly funny film by Peter Weir, his entire life has been an unending soap opera for consumption by the rest of the world. And everyone he knows--including his mother, his wife, and his best friend--is really an actor, paid to be part of his life. In this intriguing and surprisingly touching 1998 film, writer Andrew Niccol imagines an ultimate kind of celebrity, then sees it brought to life with comic intensity and emotional honesty by Jim Carrey in what may be the performance of his career. Carrey has exceptional support from Laura Linney and Ed Harris, but it's his show, in a portrayal that demonstrates just what kind of range Carrey is capable of. --Marshall Fine
Average review score:

Great examination of human environments
I watched this movie because I am interested in cultural representations of suburbia in America. I did heavy research on such imagery and saw repeated references to The Truman Show. So I watched and I was stunned by how Truman's entire world was fabricated to create the "ideal" life, much like a suburban environment.

The irony is, that the Truman Show was filmed at Seaside, a "new urbanist" development designed by architect Andres Duany, a critic of suburban design. New urbanism is supposedly a movement against the conformity and sprawling layout of traditional suburban development. Clearly, Truman's "new urbanist" environment is just as conforming and fabricated as suburbia (if not more so). In the Truman Show, the main character played by Jim Carey realizes exactly how controlled his environment is, and essentially loses it and tries to escape to the "real world."

While the main plot focuses on the paranoia of having his life broadcasted worldwide, I was more fascinated with the representation of this "new urbanist" environment (which actually exists!) as a freakishly-controlled bubble or a design experiment. It's a great critique on new suburban, "progressive" design ideas.

My favorite Jim Carrey movie
Truman Burbank ( Jim Carrey) is a television star and he doesn't even know it. When he was a only a baby, he was adopted by a man named Cristof (Ed Harris). Cristof came up with the idea of the Truman Show. The show revolves solely around Truman himself, and the life that he leads. The city that he lives in is constructed specifically for the show, and everone in it is an actor playing a part. Even his wife ( Laura Linney), and best friend Marlon (Noah Emmerich). The world has been watching Truman since he was a baby, and it is the number one rated show in the country. But gradually Truman starts to realize what is going on...

I am a huge fan of Jim Carrey. All of his movies have been entertaining from "The Mask" and "Dumb and Dumber", to his latest film "Bruce Almighty". However, the film that I enjoyed him the most in, concentrated less on the typical slapstick comedy that one has come to expect from a Jim Carrey film, and more on making you laugh through emotion and subtlety. The story itself is highly original and entertaining. The idea of one man being oblivious to the world aroud him is extremely funny. The fact that he is the center of a TV show only makes it funnier. All of the actors do an outstanding job. Of course Carrey steals the show with Truman. The transition from being naive, to a determined man is amazing. He plays both sides so well. Laura Linney is outstanding as his wife. She must put on the happy homemaker facade and pretend to love Truman. The funniest thing about the character is how she must constantly advertise products with everything that she does. Noah Emmerich is great as his best friend Marlon. Watching him try to convince Truman that it is just his mind playing tricks on him is hillarious. Even when a stage light falls from the sky, or it is sunny at 9:00 p.m., him and the rest of the actors try to convince Truman he is seeing things. Ed Harris does a nice job with Cristof considering the limited amount of screen time he had. It is also dissapointing as well. For such an important character, he has very little to do with the overall story. The rest of the actors in the film also do a great job as well.

"The Truman Show" will make you laugh, and keep you on the edge of your seat, wondering if Truman will ever get out. The ending is very satisfying too. This is definately Carrey's best film. He and the rest of the cast does an amazing job, and really makes the film believeable. The DVD is somewhat dissapointing though. I would have loved to seen a making of featurette. Unfortunately, there is just the movie and the trailer. I have never been able to understand why movie studios feel that offering a trailer as a special feature is an added bonus. If you are going to watch the film, then why would you need to see a movie trailer? This is a must own, but go with the VHS!!

Amazing Movie
This is Jim Carry's best work, and a amazing movie. It will make you laugh, be suprised, happy, and sad. Buy it!

We Were Soldiers
Released in DVD by Paramount Home Video (19 August, 2003)
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Director: Randall Wallace
Starring: Mel Gibson
Based on the book by Lt. Col. Harold Moore (ret.) and journalist Joseph Galloway, We Were Soldiers offers a dignified reminder that the Vietnam War yielded its own crop of American heroes. Departing from Hollywood's typically cynical treatment of the war, writer-director Randall Wallace focuses on the first engagement of American soldiers with the North Vietnamese enemy in November 1965. Moore (played with colorful nuance by Mel Gibson) and nearly 400 inexperienced troopers from the U.S. Air Cavalry were surrounded by 2,000 North Vietnamese Army soldiers, and the film re-creates this brutal firefight with graphic authenticity, while telling the parallel story of grieving army wives back home. While UPI reporter Galloway (Barry Pepper) risks his life to chronicle the battle, Wallace offers a balanced (though somewhat fictionalized) perspective while eliciting laudable performances from an excellent cast. Like the best World War II dramas of the 1940s, We Were Soldiers pays tribute to brave men while avoiding the pitfalls of propaganda. --Jeff Shannon
Average review score:

Good contemporary Vietnam film
"We Were Soldiers" is the true story of the 7th Airborne Cavalry as they landed in Vietnam lowlands at only regiment size...and found themselves under attack by four North Vietnamese divisions! It was the first moment the American military went at the North Vietnamese, mono y mono. It is told as a good, exciting narrative.

The battle scenes are fairly well done and you get a glimpse of front line hell, especially for the "lost platoon" that was stranded early in the battle. Also, contrary to what some of the other reviewers have said, you get a better side of the North Vietnamese than you do in some films. The book "We Were Soldiers, Once and Young" was written by the American colonel himself and he portrayed or spoke of the enemy in a well meaning tone, and while its hard to have compassion for the North Vietnamese (they are shooting at American soldiers, after all) you get a tiny glimpse at their lives and thoughts, centering around one particular soldier who writes love letters back home (Mel Gibson's character would later personally deliver his diary and letter to his wife after the war).

The only thing I didn't like about this movie was the scene with the military wives getting their letters back. Now...it wasn't the fact that they had the scenes at all, in fact I was perfectly fine with it - it showed what wives go through and what the time period then was like - however I guess the real problem I had was the pacing. It seemed to slow things down.

But it didn't really affect my thought for the movie too much. I still liked the battle scenes and the characters - in fact, Mel Gibson's character was almost a near mirror of my father. The scene where he explains war to his daughter was almost word for word how my father explained war to me when I was young. They also get military life down fairly well, and I think its good that at least ONE movie out there shows what life is like with a father in the military, and does it in a realistic manner. On a final, unrelated note, I believed "Sgt. McKenzie" was a fitting theme for this movie for its lyrics and meaning.

Overall, a good film about one of the most influential albeit underrated battles in American history.

Great, Great, Great....
I thought this movie was absolutley amazing. And this is coming from someone that does not like war movies. And believe it or not, I come from a military family. I love my troops to death but I have trouble watching war movies because they all seem to show all the gore, but none of the emotional depth behind those deaths. My father fought in Vietnam and didn't like to talk about it. However, this film made him talk to me about it. He felt the emotional and physical pain of the soldiers when they felt completely hopeless. Going into battle knowing you were completely surrounded but still wanting to fght for your country... that's what my father felt and that's what I felt. People can complain and complain until the day that they die that this war was useless, but the young boys that went to war knew that they were fighting for their country... for their right to live. Regardless of what they felt at the time, living in the USA meant more to them. So they fought for their lives, even though their backs were against the wall. Maybe I liked this movie more, because my dad went through the same situation... but regardless...

I thought this movie showed the courage and bravery that our soldiers had. Mel Gibson was incredible, as always. Chris Klein was someone that I thought that I could never take serious, but this movie proved otherwise. He showed me human interest, which I honestly thought I couldn't feel with him in it.

If you want to see a movie with honesty and raw courage, I recommend "We were Soldiers". And if you hate this movie simply because you hate the fact that the Vietnam War existed.... then you didn't really watch this movie. I do not think that war is always the answer, but... sometimes if you love the USA, then you've got to be willing to fight for it.

The Greatest War Movie Ever
We Were Soldiers was the greatest war movie I have ever seen. It beats Platoon, Gettysburg, Full Metal Jacket, and Hamburger Hill. I think this was the best performance Mel Gibson has made since the Lethal Weapon Series. This movie has action and it also has a few funny parts in it too. This movie has got me so hooked that I am even reading the book. A must see movie!!!

Related Subjects: Games
More Pages: Don Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125