Don Movie Reviews

Not quite a star-studded flick, but chock full of subtly forceful personalities. Paul Newman plays Gallagher, a crusty but otherwise legit Florida-based liquor wholesaler whose life is turned upside-down when the Miami Standard fingers him as a possible material witness. Under current laws regarding libel, Newman can always sue the paper for libel. However, the law sets a higher standard of wrongdoing to be proven when the victim is a public-figure. (The distinction was meant to prevent public officials from using libel laws to block any criticism of their actions - most notably in the case of southern police officials during the early civil-rights years; unfortunately for Gallagher, the laws have been expanded to cover any figure in the public eye, whether he's there by choice or despite it.) Because the Standard acts without malice, and only reports what's been leaked to it by a shifty DoJ official (Bob Balaban), the fact that the story itself is actually incorrect is irrelevant. While DoJ hopes to pressure Gallagher to turn state's evidence, or somehow lead them to somebody who can, the newspaper hopes Gallagher will come forward and give his own spin. (Exaggeration is an often-used media tactic - one hoped to pressure a story's subject to reflexively come forward and give a story that, while less spectacular, is nonetheless worse off now that it's been confirmed.) While Gallagher comes forward, and hooks up with Sally Field as the Standard's ace reporter, he soon finds another way to wreak havoc - by turning his enemies against each other.

There's something satisfying about the deceptive ease with which Gallagher turns the media against itself, but the resolution is unsatisfying. Wilford Brimley plays the Assistant Attorney General who gets everybody honest by threatening to make people talk under oath. (We get the point, people have no problem saying anything as long as they don't have to stand by it.) The last scene is essentially Brimley's one-man show, one that upstages Sally Fields's character's turn-about: rather than disclose Gallagher as the source of her latest story, she's willing to take the fall for him. Her logic is impeccable - somebody is going to take the blame and the fall no matter what. Why not her? If anything, the film disappoints in underplaying the attraction between the two, which only makes you wonder whether her denouement is one of journalistic integrity or love. Instead, we cheer that Brimley will get to tell the media what he thinks (and nobody in this room is going to like what I have to say, he warns) and the way he exacts retribution (you're no White House appointee, he tells Balaban's character. "The one who hired you, is me." Start packing).

When you watch the theatrical trailer of ABSENCE OF MALICE, you are lead to think that this movie describes Paul Newman's revenge and will contain a lot of violent scenes. This is not true. In fact, has a trailer ever described accurately a movie ?

ABSENCE OF MALICE is, in the first place, an "actor" movie, with two stars of 1981 : Paul Newman and Sally Field. The secondary roles are also well written and interesting. The movie belongs to the category of moral movies and tries to defend these two ideas :

- Things and people are not always what or who they seem to be.

- The newspapers should have the duty to verify their sources before printing anything.

The treatment of the subject is well done, the screenplay being sometimes too weak. But Sydney Pollack, with this material, was able to present a conventional but still watchable movie.

A DVD zone moral education

One of the worries of journalists everywhere is to keep an protect the source. The source is where all the information comes from. Once you've got a source another point comes up: how reliable this person is. It is very easy to anyone go to a reporter tell something -- that's not necesseraly true -- and his/her statement is published. So a good professional would surely investigate and print the news once it is proved to be true. But this can happen only in a ideal world. Let's face the truth: journalist do not have too much time to comfirm or deny informations. Nowadays with the internet, the readers want new news all the time and the fight for the click has shorted the deadlines.

It is in this time of digital press that film made in the 80s' turns out to be very interesting and provocative, due to its timeless subject. Sally Field plays a reporter of a major Miami's Newspaper who has fallen in a trap. She has no qualms when having the chance to peep a file about a man accused of kidnapping and killing a working class leader. Moreover, she gets involved with this man who in the end happens to be her reliable source. Telling more than this would mean give some interesting twists of the movie.

As aforementioned, the movie tackles ethic in journalism, and, let's face it, Sally's character is not that ethical with her sources. She does most of the things that someone expected to be fair and accurate wouldn't do, like not confirming information or publishing off record statements -- plus she sleeps with her source. Some in-love hearts would justify it saying that love is above everything, but I don't agree. What kind of professional is she?

Tlaking about the movie itself, it is very entertaining. Sally Field gives a good performance, but who is great as usual is Paul Newman. His perfornance is very subtle and full of nuances. Bob Balaban is terrific and a bit hateful as agent who comes down to be the prime source to Sally's reporter, detonating a sequence of inacuratte reports.

It is impossible to watch this movie and not to rise questions like how accure all the stuff we read in newspapers, magazines, internet is; and also when is an information so important that it has to be published, even when the source asks it to ve off the record. One interesting example would be when a reporter is working on a piece about two guys missing in the sea and a Lt. tells her that there are sharks in the area. But Sally tells her not to mention it in her article, because it may scare turists, so the solution is to say that is an area with many fishes. Then how true is her piece?

All in all, nowadays, as the press has to be faster, there's less time to check information. So the readers are much more liable to read untrue stories.

As a huge fan of American animation, I give this Disney-esque version of TOM SAWYER an "A." The backgrounds in the film are so beautiful & the characters are well drawn, too; reminded me "so" much of Disney's older films (Robin Hood, Fox & the Hound, Jungle Book, etc).
The music is awesome; the songs are very well written and a pure joy to listen to!
I may be 22, but I still love cartoons & animation. And this version of TOM SAWYER is an awesome film that both children & adults can enjoy together.

This movie is wonderful! I cannot believe that you can buy it new for as little as $4! It is full of great music, action packed animation and it just totally rocks.

I bought this for my nephews and niece (3, 8 & 11) last Christmas. I don't care to review the animation, direction, voices or anything technical...this is just great entertainment for kids! My 3 year old nephew calls it "his movie" and we watch it 2-3 times a day. He knows the dialog, the songs and the sound effects, he LOVES IT and that is what counts!

I don't know why I watched this ridiculous "gore" spectacle from the 60's but I did. Herschel Gordon Lewis was never my idea of a horror film director anyway. But in this one I saw his tongue firmly planted in cheek. It's so funny and the acting so hammy you can't possibly be offended by it. Montag the Magnificent performs stage illusions where women from the audience are hypnotized as they're gored on stage. The trick is they seem perfectly fine afterward, seemingly unaware of what happened. Then later their guts fall out in restaurants or they end up dead---mutilated as they were on stage. A nosy "Hints For Women" type TV personality sets out to uncover the truth. The ending is WAY out there---what's illusion, what's reality and to whom?
The "gore" is so ludicrous you know it's fake and the film so cheesy it's laughable. And the acting couldn't be any worse. See this if you're game---but remember, it's all an "illusion"!

In "Wizard of Gore" Montag the Magnificent dispatches hypnotized women with slop happy glee while the audience is hypnotized into thinking they are watching a standard issue hypnosis and magic act. Other people have talked about the acting, the really bad pancake makeup on Montag, and the ending which basically makes this film the Florida drive-in circuit version of "The Matrix" (I was waiting for Montag to ask the heroine of the film which pill she'd take- red or green?). But aside from that, the most pervasive element of this film to me is the bleak nihilism within it. There is only one emotion in the film- Montag's, when he is tiptoeing through the organs. Otherwise he acts as somnabulistic as the women he dispatches. The boyfriend in the film spends most of his time yelling things into the phone while he tries to stop his girlfriend from just about EVERYTHING!! By the way, has anyone noticed that halfway through the film He turns into the panicked girlfriend while She turns into the main catalyst for the plot. At the same time she is an accomplished television host with a dollop of women's liberation to boot. Was this Lewis' appeasement to the viewing public (and more often than not, the not viewing public... if you've ever run into them outside a theatre,you know what I mean)? If so, I'd have to say that with me it works, and it was something I hadn't noticed when I'd seen the film many years earlier as a teen... it makes an interesting bridge piece between the wigged collegiates of "The Gruesome Twosome" and the 'women's liberation' scene from "The Gore-Gore Girls". But I'd really have to say that this is Lewis' most humorless and darkest film; most of them have the sickening violence in the same way that the Three Stooges would build up to a pie fight. By the way, I haven't gotten around to the commentary (but intend to), and about that, remember: ALWAYS BUY LEWIS FILMS WITH THE COMMENTARY. Rumor around is that he doesn't have the rights to the films anymore but he does to the newly recorded commentaries- so, basically, if you are buying a Lewis film with no commentary, the man sees none of your cash.

I love when an actor (?) brings such dedication to a role and Ray Sager approaches his Montag role as though his life depended on it (he was hired for the lead day before shooting began).
The Wizard is not filled with highspeed, action hero, death defying stunts or rapid paced scenes. Instead we get Montag giving a Shakespearean worthy monologue to you, yes you!
First time I played this disc my sides were hurting from laughter.
Cute females, grinding gore, twisted ending and bottom of the barrel budgeting make this a new favorite for me.
Watching it again, this time with the H.G. Lewis commentary makes it even more entertaining.
Oh, the glorious days of real time special effects and two-bit acting.

Forget about the outlandishly budgeted hollywood gloss junk made for the masses. This is a prime example of creative, esoteric, humerous, low budget filmaking.

Shakespearean gore.

strictly raccomanded to everyone intends to play doublebass. After viewing, these are the possibilities:

starting to play day and night; mumbling something like: uhm, it's not so good for me, after all. But I could start playng something else!

Definitely ranks up there with "Straight No Chaser" and "A Great Day In Harlem". The interviews with Mingus' sidemen are priceless, as are the discussions with Sue and Celia Mingus. A crucial documentary for serious fans.

I wasn't that familiar with jazz music before I saw this documentary, but I found it fascinating and very moving. The music was involving, and the life story very dramatic. It made me want to explore this music much more. A great documentary.

I WATCHED THIS FILM AFTER HAVING READ THE NOVEL EXPECTING IT TO HAVE LESS "BLACK HOLES" THAN THE NOVEL DID & IT TURNED OUT TO BE A WASTE OF TIME. I DISLIKED THE FACT THAT THE MAIN CHARACTER NEVER ATTAINED THE COURAGE TO STAND UP TO HIS IGNORANT, MISOGYNISTIC, & EXTREMELY HOMOPHOBIC FATHER. AT FIRST I FELT COMPASSION FOR JOAQUIN BUT AS THE STORY PROGRESSED I BEGAN TO ABHOR HIM FOR HIS LACK OF CHARACTER & SELF-ESTEEM. I COULD WRITE A BOOK ON WHY I DISLIKED THE NOVEL/FILM BUT I'LL SETTLE FOR REJOICING IN THE FACT THAT ALTHOUGH I HAD A SIMILAR CHILDHOOD I DIDN'T TURN OUT LIKE POOR JOAQUIN. LUCKY ME!

For some reason, I feel it a need to rent all gay themed movies. You know what? I am almost always disappointed.
This movie proved to be an exception. Although in spanish with subtitles, it was easy to follow, had an incredibled script (although it was was somewhat depressing), and the lead actor , Santiago Magill is someone who would have a great future. This movie, seemed to fly by. It had an incredible soundtrack, scenery,
and cast. I cannot recommended this as one of 2 gay themed movies that I have seen (not done yet), that i would recommend. The other would be, In the flesh (weak in some aspects, but beautifully directed, and great score).

"Don't Tell Anyone," directed by Francisco J. Lombardi, tells the story of Joaquin (played by Santiago Magill), a young Peruvian man who is struggling with feelings of attraction towards other males. He is torn between the macho ethics of his racist, womanizing father and the bleeding-heart religiosity of his mother. But a series of relationships and experiences he has while attending college profoundly impact his life.

"Don't Tell" is an absolutely gripping and fascinating film. The film is mainly in Spanish with English subtitles. Woven into Joaquin's story are many issues: ethnic difference, class stratification, homophobia, parent-child relationships, etc. Particularly interesting is the film's treatment of recreational drug use--there are many shocking scenes of drug use (or abuse) throughout the film, and ultimately if there is a "message" about drug use that message is quite ambiguous.

Magill is excellent in the lead role. His character really dominates the film, and Magill is by turns playful, passionate, tortured, explosive, and serene. The supporting cast is also quite impressive; Lucia Jiminez is particularly appealing as a female classmate who takes a liking to Joaquin.

In the end, the filmmakers have perhaps bitten off more social issues than they can fully address, but overall the film has an effective symmetry and moves to an open-ended but satisfying conclusion. Gritty, sexy, and sweaty, "Don't Tell" is an enjoyable and thought-provoking film.

I bought this on DVD and expected a professional package I expect of any DVD package. Here's the news...terrible packaging, no extra features, no cinemascope so you can't even read the credits, the poorest quality I have seen and overall unwatchable product. I feel as if I was robbed of my money. The people that made this product wanted to sell you something but you will never buy anything else. I say wait for someone who cares to release these great serials.

The first and the third Flash Gordon serials represented, to me, the very best serials made. This one is the third. There are quite a few cast changes between the original and this serial. Notable switches are Carol Hughes replacing Jean Rogers as Dale Arden, Shirley Deane replacing Priscilla Lawson as Princess Aura, and Roland Drew replacing Richard Alexander as Prince Baran. This last change is really noticeable because Drew gives the character a definite Errol Flynn twist. This was made two years after Flynn's ROBIN HOOD, and it shows. Carol Hughes portrays Dale Arden as a much more self sufficient woman than Jean Rogers did.

The character of Flash, himself, is a bit mellower maybe. In the first chapter, he's often restrained by Zarkov from impetuous action, and there's less of that this time around. And Emporer Ming while still intent on destroying the Earth seems to, when things are going his way, be much more interested in watching his favorite dancing girl perform than in anything else. Unfortunately for him, our hero Flash keeps distracting him from his fun.

Another key figure this time around is Sonja, the ice princess, and is she ever the ultimate ice princess!

Also notable is the use of Liszt's "Les Preludes" as background music. Combined with the noisy rocketships, the music adds immeasurably to the enjoyment of the action.

The Flash Gordon serials are absolute fun to watch, and better watched one chapter at a time.

This is one of the America's great documents of the Great Depression! Although at first it appears to be merely an adventure serial from the 30's, the film has much more to offer. Flash Gordon gives one of celluloid's deepest, most complex characterizations, and the evil emporer Ming (a symbol of the government at the time) may seem to be a ruthless and colhearted villain, but deep down he's really just a fun-loving guy! The ending is triumphant and frightening, showing what could have happened as a result of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This is a perfectly realized indictment of nuclear warfare and a beautiful but sad look at political corruption!!!

I bought this on DVD and expected a professional package I expect of any DVD package. Here's the news...terrible packaging, no extra features, no cinemascope so you can't even read the credits, the poorest quality I have seen and overall unwatchable product. I feel as if I was robbed of my money. The people that made this product wanted to sell you something but you will never buy anything else. I say wait for someone who cares to release these great serials.

The first and the third Flash Gordon serials represented, to me, the very best serials made. This one is the third. There are quite a few cast changes between the original and this serial. Notable switches are Carol Hughes replacing Jean Rogers as Dale Arden, Shirley Deane replacing Priscilla Lawson as Princess Aura, and Roland Drew replacing Richard Alexander as Prince Baran. This last change is really noticeable because Drew gives the character a definite Errol Flynn twist. This was made two years after Flynn's ROBIN HOOD, and it shows. Carol Hughes portrays Dale Arden as a much more self sufficient woman than Jean Rogers did.

The character of Flash, himself, is a bit mellower maybe. In the first chapter, he's often restrained by Zarkov from impetuous action, and there's less of that this time around. And Emporer Ming while still intent on destroying the Earth seems to, when things are going his way, be much more interested in watching his favorite dancing girl perform than in anything else. Unfortunately for him, our hero Flash keeps distracting him from his fun.

Another key figure this time around is Sonja, the ice princess, and is she ever the ultimate ice princess!

Also notable is the use of Liszt's "Les Preludes" as background music. Combined with the noisy rocketships, the music adds immeasurably to the enjoyment of the action.

The Flash Gordon serials are absolute fun to watch, and better watched one chapter at a time.

This is one of the America's great documents of the Great Depression! Although at first it appears to be merely an adventure serial from the 30's, the film has much more to offer. Flash Gordon gives one of celluloid's deepest, most complex characterizations, and the evil emporer Ming (a symbol of the government at the time) may seem to be a ruthless and colhearted villain, but deep down he's really just a fun-loving guy! The ending is triumphant and frightening, showing what could have happened as a result of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This is a perfectly realized indictment of nuclear warfare and a beautiful but sad look at political corruption!!!

I bought this on DVD and expected a professional package I expect of any DVD package. Here's the news...terrible packaging, no extra features, no cinemascope so you can't even read the credits, the poorest quality I have seen and overall unwatchable product. I feel as if I was robbed of my money. The people that made this product wanted to sell you something but you will never buy anything else. I say wait for someone who cares to release these great serials.

The first and the third Flash Gordon serials represented, to me, the very best serials made. This one is the third. There are quite a few cast changes between the original and this serial. Notable switches are Carol Hughes replacing Jean Rogers as Dale Arden, Shirley Deane replacing Priscilla Lawson as Princess Aura, and Roland Drew replacing Richard Alexander as Prince Baran. This last change is really noticeable because Drew gives the character a definite Errol Flynn twist. This was made two years after Flynn's ROBIN HOOD, and it shows. Carol Hughes portrays Dale Arden as a much more self sufficient woman than Jean Rogers did.

The character of Flash, himself, is a bit mellower maybe. In the first chapter, he's often restrained by Zarkov from impetuous action, and there's less of that this time around. And Emporer Ming while still intent on destroying the Earth seems to, when things are going his way, be much more interested in watching his favorite dancing girl perform than in anything else. Unfortunately for him, our hero Flash keeps distracting him from his fun.

Another key figure this time around is Sonja, the ice princess, and is she ever the ultimate ice princess!

Also notable is the use of Liszt's "Les Preludes" as background music. Combined with the noisy rocketships, the music adds immeasurably to the enjoyment of the action.

The Flash Gordon serials are absolute fun to watch, and better watched one chapter at a time.

This is one of the America's great documents of the Great Depression! Although at first it appears to be merely an adventure serial from the 30's, the film has much more to offer. Flash Gordon gives one of celluloid's deepest, most complex characterizations, and the evil emporer Ming (a symbol of the government at the time) may seem to be a ruthless and colhearted villain, but deep down he's really just a fun-loving guy! The ending is triumphant and frightening, showing what could have happened as a result of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This is a perfectly realized indictment of nuclear warfare and a beautiful but sad look at political corruption!!!

I bought this on DVD and expected a professional package I expect of any DVD package. Here's the news...terrible packaging, no extra features, no cinemascope so you can't even read the credits, the poorest quality I have seen and overall unwatchable product. I feel as if I was robbed of my money. The people that made this product wanted to sell you something but you will never buy anything else. I say wait for someone who cares to release these great serials.

The first and the third Flash Gordon serials represented, to me, the very best serials made. This one is the third. There are quite a few cast changes between the original and this serial. Notable switches are Carol Hughes replacing Jean Rogers as Dale Arden, Shirley Deane replacing Priscilla Lawson as Princess Aura, and Roland Drew replacing Richard Alexander as Prince Baran. This last change is really noticeable because Drew gives the character a definite Errol Flynn twist. This was made two years after Flynn's ROBIN HOOD, and it shows. Carol Hughes portrays Dale Arden as a much more self sufficient woman than Jean Rogers did.

The character of Flash, himself, is a bit mellower maybe. In the first chapter, he's often restrained by Zarkov from impetuous action, and there's less of that this time around. And Emporer Ming while still intent on destroying the Earth seems to, when things are going his way, be much more interested in watching his favorite dancing girl perform than in anything else. Unfortunately for him, our hero Flash keeps distracting him from his fun.

Another key figure this time around is Sonja, the ice princess, and is she ever the ultimate ice princess!

Also notable is the use of Liszt's "Les Preludes" as background music. Combined with the noisy rocketships, the music adds immeasurably to the enjoyment of the action.

The Flash Gordon serials are absolute fun to watch, and better watched one chapter at a time.

This is one of the America's great documents of the Great Depression! Although at first it appears to be merely an adventure serial from the 30's, the film has much more to offer. Flash Gordon gives one of celluloid's deepest, most complex characterizations, and the evil emporer Ming (a symbol of the government at the time) may seem to be a ruthless and colhearted villain, but deep down he's really just a fun-loving guy! The ending is triumphant and frightening, showing what could have happened as a result of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This is a perfectly realized indictment of nuclear warfare and a beautiful but sad look at political corruption!!!

My kids (8 and 11) kept waiting for the funny parts - which never came. The 8-year-old enjoyed it more than the older one. The scene where the mother dies in a car crash is very graphic so beware. This was hard for us because we lost a grandmother this way. Other than that, I thought the whole thing was charming. While child actor did well, Gérard Depardieu is always the best thing about any movie he's in.

BOGUS is a movie about a young orphan boy (Haley Joel Osment) who is reluctantly acquired by a career-minded temporary mother (Whoopi Goldberg). In his loneliness Osment invents an imaginary friend (Gerard Depardieu). The film is dominated by the interplay between these three characters and the result is very satisfying. The director is Norman Jewison who directed many other movies including IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT and JESUS CHRIST, SUPERSTAR.

Although not many people have seen it, Bogus is an absolutely wonderful movie. It stars Haley Joel Osment (The Sixth Sense) as Albert, a boy who is forced to live with his godmother Harriet (Whoopi Golberg) after his mom dies. Along the way, he invents an invisible friend (Gerard Depardieu, The Man In the Iron Mask) named Bogus, and the film is basically about Albert and Harriet learning to love each other with the help of Bogus. Filled with subtle humor and superior acting by Osment, I highly recommend this film to anyone with an imagination.
A great family film, completely deserves 5 stars.