Custom Detailing Movie Reviews

Just to add to the review by kkunkel who points out that a picture on the back of the DVD box for 'The Robe' is not from that film at all. The other two pictures which are from 'The Robe' are printed the wrong way round! Does anybody get round to check this sort of thing?

First, "The Bible," another one of those very underrated epics of the mid-60's. Dino de Laurentiis and John Huston went against the Hollywood grain of rich spectacle and created a minimalist design for the first 22 chapters of Genesis. As with most films that are based strictly on the Bible accounts, the story obviously has no surprises, therefore any suspense is always missing. But the unique, spare, simple design, beautiful photography and excellent music score by Toshiro Mayuzumi place this film in a different category than most biblical epics. The audacity to make such a film is something that is rarely seen in today's moviemaking. Sadly, the DVD does not contain anything other than a trailer. Most of the people involved with the film have passed away.
Second, "The Robe," the first film in CinemaScope. As being the first film in CinemaScope, the first single camera widescreen process, it already stakes a claim in film history. But the film is much better than an exploitation of a technical process. Based on the novel by Lloyd Douglas, its' centerpiece is the Oscar-nominated bravura performance by Richard Burton. He single-handedly raises the film out of its tendency to become too cloying at times and turns it into the intense psychological drama it really is. He is very ably assisted by Victor Mature, another under-rated excellent actor, as his slave, Demetrius. And of course, you have the incredibly famous, over-the-top, but oddly fitting, performance by Jay Robinson as the deranged emperor. This film does have one of those magic moments in motion pictures which raises goosebumps, when everything comes together perfectly in an incredible combination of story, performance, art direction and photography. It is at times like these when you become aware of the power of motion pictures. I do not need to tell you the actual scene. You will know it. Again, sadly, no extras are on this DVD other than a trailer. It would have been great to have a documentary on the invention of CinemaScope and the making of the film. But for those of you interested in collector items, the DVD box has a major blooper: the picture on the back of the box in the upper right corner is not a picture from "The Robe" but from "The Egyptian," which also starred Victor Mature (another DVD we are waiting for).
I would have rated this five stars if some documentaries were on these disks. Still, these are two great religious epics with diametrically opposed visual styles: "The Robe" with the traditional rich spectacle and "The Bible" with a minimalist artistic approach.

A delightful film! Anthony Edwards is supported by a tremendous cast of characters including Robert Mitchum, Mary Stuart Masterson, Anjelica Huston, Lauren Bacall, Harry Dean Stanton, and Virgina Madsen. Based on a novel by Thornton Wilder and directed by Danny Huston, the film, filmed on location in Newport, Rhode Island, captures the charm and innocence of the 1920s. Anthony Edwards carries this film and makes the film, which would otherwise be simply mediocre, come to life. A charming film well worth watching.

Just got the DVD, and forgot how wonderfully entertaining this film really is. Danny Huston's directorial debut was met with mixed reaction, but this film never fails to entertain. It's simple, sweet and a bit profound (based on Thornton Wilder) and the attention to 1920's period detail is intact. The most fun thing is the exemplary ensemble cast that Mr. Huston assembled (no doubt with help from father, John, who was co-writer). Anjelica Huston, Mary Stuart Masterson, Tammy Grimes, Virginia Madsen, Harry Dean Stanton, the wonderful Lauren Bacall, and, most notably, the GREAT Robert Mitchum. Holding it all together,in a wonderfully confident fashion, is a young Anthony Edwards in the title role. He is an Everyman, knowing he is better than his lot, talented and confident enough to fulfill his dream. A fine cameo from the great playwright, Christopher Durang, is also a pleasure. After a day of beating your brains out and wondering why life isn't better, watch this film and you'll feel good. Apparently, Mr. North was in all the right places at the right time... Hey! It COULD happen...(?)

In what turned out to be our luckiest video-store whim since stumbling across The Castle (1997/Australia), my buddie and I discovered Chillicothe. Something about the bare Midwestern landscape and the four frumpy guys on the box cover in faux-Charlie's Angel pose (who hasn't taken that picture at one time or another?) demanded a closer look.
The movie's subject is nothing new - the confusing wander-land of post-college life. High Fidelity, for one, did it with a much higher budget and a bit less heart. Yet with all High Fidelity's cynical musings on romance and rhapsodizing on the phenomenon of the mix tape, its big-city glossiness masked the sometimes social and financial desperation of 20-something life. Chillicothe is real, absurd life - the way me and my friends actually live it, driving dumpy cars, shopping crumbling strip malls, bemoaning our non-existent love lives. The guys in Chillicothe would be our next-door neighbors - if we lived in Tulsa, shopped at the Food Mart, and worked at our telemarketing jobs to afford rent on a white-walled duplex.
But far from being depressing, Chillicothe is grittily hopeful about love and aimlessness in your twenties. Sometimes the situations are so pathetically familiar, you don't know whether to laugh or crawl under your couch to hide until you're 30. The most humorous moments come from the pop-culture references on everything from Chewbacca to Jim Henson. Wade's theory on how to sell CDs for cash (sell only the ones you're sure to buy back) spawns some great lines like: "You can't sell the "Joshua Tree"! That's like selling the family Bible!"
The movie has been pegged "a chick flick for guys," mainly because these characters actually want to have relationships with women, not just sleep with them. Their inability to do either becomes the film's driving plot. When the main character's sister bugs him about his love life, Wade gets defensive and blurts out, "Why don't I date? That's like asking a blind person, 'Why don't you like blue?' I have no...frame of reference!" One particularly poignant scene takes place just before one of the guys in the group gets married. The camera lingers on each friend's face just long enough to register their conflicting emotions of wistfulness, anticipation, anger and sadness. I have never seen on film a more realistic portrayal of the jealousy and ambivalence that accompany wedding attendants.
Though Chillicothe was released at the Sundance Film Festival in 1999, it's taken a few years to bubble up through the cultural mire and be picked up by a distributor. It's an art-house film, but without being "artsy". The look of the film is deceptively low-budget, but these guys made the most of what they did have. The DVD clips of their hometown gang reveals just how much Chillicothe was a labor of love. The director's commentary points out the way in which the very conscious choice of colors and camera movements serve the story on a subconscious level. The movie itself contains a hilarious send-up of the pretentious indie-film devotee, the record store clerk who sums up what's wrong with American cinema today in three words: "Happy. Dancing. Candy."
Residents of places outside of Hollywood's favored locales will recognize themselves, their streets, their shopping centers and churches in Chillicothe. Baby-boomers will probably not empathize with these characters quite as much as I and my friends have, but if you want a film that is truthful about young adult life, skip High Fidelity (John Cusak notwithstanding) and watch Chillicothe instead.

This title is actually a documentary about the history of showgirls as a profession. There are many images of women appearing topless, but that is as far as it goes. It is nothing like the movie "Showgirls". Large parts of the video are used to interview current and former showgirls, from their late teens to 99 years old. It may have originally been shown on TLC, as their logo appears on the case. It also states on the case that there are Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS soundtracks included, but I could not locate either one. It is presented in a letterbox format.

Unlike other "time travel" movies, this one takes you to the olden times instead of the future. Two women are involved, stars Amy Lindsay and Kim Yates. Together they show cowboys how to enjoy life . Get the uncut version.

This film was ALRIGHT...but not much more.
If you have the DVD and haven't seen the movie...DON'T watch the Trailer First like I did! The Trailer gives TOO MUCH away.
Okay movie to watch if you're needing distraction from vaccuming or laundry.

Dashielle Hammett came up with the original idea that once people committed to murder, their thinking became simple and so they made error after error leading to their own destruction. It was the letting of the blood that converted them into morons. This film runs with that premise as did "Simple Plan" and "Blood Simple". Two deputy sheriffs come across a crime scene that seems too good to be true and within fifteen minutes they become thieves and murderers. From that original activity, all hell proceeds to break loose. This film also has a good natured sense of humor about it and you will find yourself at times laughing at the two leads and their descent into criminality. Well done. We enjoyed it a lot.

Two cops arrive at a crime scene with seven shot dead bodies and a suitcase with $1.5 million dollars. They decide to steal the money and don't mention it to anybody. But it turns out one of the shot people weren't dead and has heard everything and soon, they find themselves in deep trouble.

The story is quite interesting. It shows how people can behave in ways they didn't know they were capable of, when they find themselves in strange situations. It's not too predictable and the movie has a nice, sometimes melancholic feeling. All the actors are good, especially Kyle MacLachlan, Wade Williams and Roma Maffia.

I recommend you to see this movie, especially if you liked "A Simple Plan". It's a good, suspenseful thriller.

"Daddy Day Care" is a one-joke comedy that wears out its welcome in almost world record time. The cookie-cutter premise involves Eddie Murphy and Jeff Garlin as two recently laid-off fathers who decide to open up a day care center in their neighborhood.

Once the setup has been established, the filmmakers shift into automatic pilot mode for the 92 achingly boring minutes it takes for them to spin out their story. The plot consists of little more than endless variations on a single theme: how two grown men cope with the problems and vicissitudes of dealing with preschool-aged children. If the humor doesn't work, the sentimentality near the film's end is even less effective, as the moviemakers move in for the emotional kill, trying to bring some profound "meaning" to a basically hollow, studio-generated enterprise.

Angelica Houston provides some much-needed vinegar as the cloyingly named Miss Harridan, the uptight owner of a rival day school who spends most of her time trying to sabotage the efforts of the far more benevolent Daddy Day Care which has begun to usurp most of her privileged clientele. Unfortunately, the role has been conceived as such an overwritten and overwrought caricature that even the talented Ms. Houston is unable to do anything even halfway effective with it.

This is another one of those movies in which Murphy gets to show his cushy, "soft" side, fine for the family trade, I guess, but not very inspiring for his legion of devoted followers. Though "Daddy Day Care" may be unobjectionable as "family" entertainment (despite its over reliance on scatological humor), it is really lowest-common-denominator filmmaking - uninspired, unimaginative and unmitigatingly unimpressive.

I usually don't rent Eddie's movies because they are not generally family friendly. But this one was rated PG (which surprised me) so I chanced it. What a nice surprise! It's a cross between Mr. Mom and Kindergarten Cop. Though it's not a great movie by any stretch of the imagination, it is funny, touching, and free of bad language (unless you count the word Butthead!). The kids are all cute of course, and there is a lot of predictable bathroom humor. But the obligatory "kick the grownup in the crotch" scene was so unnecessarily long and drawn out. Come on Hollywood! It's just not funny anymore! Was it ever? Steve Zahn was hilarious again as the Just-a-kid-at-heart Trekkie. Probably Eddie's die-hard fans from his early movies and SNL won't be too impressed, but face it, Eddie's older now - he's not a crazy, brash youngster anymore. Just as Robin Williams had to, it's time Eddie moved past that image.

I rented this movie for my pre-teen stepdaughters and was kind of bummed that I was going to have to sit through the whole thing because I thought it looked stupid. I don't know about you, but I've gotten kind of sick of seeing Eddie Murphy playing the same character over and over again... But, I was pleasantly surprised when even a half hour into the movie, I was laughing and no longer dreading the rest. Eddie Murphy is funny and, although it is a regular old comedy, his acting has somehow improved. The boy that plays Murphy's son is hilarious! Some kind of comical-kid-genius. The story is about 2 guys who lose their jobs in advertising, and a friend, who start a day care out of their homes (well, actually just Eddie Murphy's home)

The kids will love the silliness and the jokes of the other kids, and the adults will like the heartwarming story about a father finally getting to know his son and the funny jokes. I recommend watching it with the whole family!

"Daddy Day Care" is a one-joke comedy that wears out its welcome in almost world record time. The cookie-cutter premise involves Eddie Murphy and Jeff Garlin as two recently laid-off fathers who decide to open up a day care center in their neighborhood.

Once the setup has been established, the filmmakers shift into automatic pilot mode for the 92 achingly boring minutes it takes for them to spin out their story. The plot consists of little more than endless variations on a single theme: how two grown men cope with the problems and vicissitudes of dealing with preschool-aged children. If the humor doesn't work, the sentimentality near the film's end is even less effective, as the moviemakers move in for the emotional kill, trying to bring some profound "meaning" to a basically hollow, studio-generated enterprise.

Angelica Houston provides some much-needed vinegar as the cloyingly named Miss Harridan, the uptight owner of a rival day school who spends most of her time trying to sabotage the efforts of the far more benevolent Daddy Day Care which has begun to usurp most of her privileged clientele. Unfortunately, the role has been conceived as such an overwritten and overwrought caricature that even the talented Ms. Houston is unable to do anything even halfway effective with it.

This is another one of those movies in which Murphy gets to show his cushy, "soft" side, fine for the family trade, I guess, but not very inspiring for his legion of devoted followers. Though "Daddy Day Care" may be unobjectionable as "family" entertainment (despite its over reliance on scatological humor), it is really lowest-common-denominator filmmaking - uninspired, unimaginative and unmitigatingly unimpressive.

I usually don't rent Eddie's movies because they are not generally family friendly. But this one was rated PG (which surprised me) so I chanced it. What a nice surprise! It's a cross between Mr. Mom and Kindergarten Cop. Though it's not a great movie by any stretch of the imagination, it is funny, touching, and free of bad language (unless you count the word Butthead!). The kids are all cute of course, and there is a lot of predictable bathroom humor. But the obligatory "kick the grownup in the crotch" scene was so unnecessarily long and drawn out. Come on Hollywood! It's just not funny anymore! Was it ever? Steve Zahn was hilarious again as the Just-a-kid-at-heart Trekkie. Probably Eddie's die-hard fans from his early movies and SNL won't be too impressed, but face it, Eddie's older now - he's not a crazy, brash youngster anymore. Just as Robin Williams had to, it's time Eddie moved past that image.

I rented this movie for my pre-teen stepdaughters and was kind of bummed that I was going to have to sit through the whole thing because I thought it looked stupid. I don't know about you, but I've gotten kind of sick of seeing Eddie Murphy playing the same character over and over again... But, I was pleasantly surprised when even a half hour into the movie, I was laughing and no longer dreading the rest. Eddie Murphy is funny and, although it is a regular old comedy, his acting has somehow improved. The boy that plays Murphy's son is hilarious! Some kind of comical-kid-genius. The story is about 2 guys who lose their jobs in advertising, and a friend, who start a day care out of their homes (well, actually just Eddie Murphy's home)

The kids will love the silliness and the jokes of the other kids, and the adults will like the heartwarming story about a father finally getting to know his son and the funny jokes. I recommend watching it with the whole family!

As the Tannenbaums all undergo a change in fortune for the better, this film has lots of clever dialogue and good acting along the way. It is not a film for everybody, though--if a person is sensitive about dysfunctional families and/or "gray" humor (not really all that dark), it could be like ten fingers on a chalkboard. But it beats the proverbial socks off dozens of other recent comedies I've seen, and I can see why it was nominated for Oscars. Especially amusing to my family was the scene in which Ben Stiller's character and his two sons all wear matching black Adidas running suits when they go to the cemetary.

The most telling line is when Royal Tenenbaum, the estranged patriarch of a dysfunctional family of geniuses, apologizes for being an a******, and is told he's now only a son of a "witch."

Royal Tenenbaum, upon hearing that his wife from whom he has lived apart for 22 years -- although never divorced her -- is considering marrying her accountant, returns to the family home faking stomach cancer. His kids -- Chas, a widower who was a real estate magnate in his teens, Richie, a pro tennis player who fumbled a major match, and Margot, who was always introduced as "the adopted daughter", and is an unrememebered playwright -- all return although not that happy about it and, particularly, him.

Royal is a liar, a cheat and all-around awful. But everyone else in the house is messed up too -- including Richie's best friend Eli who lives across the street, and Margot's much older husband Raleigh. The movie progresses as they become a little less messed up. In fact, it was harsh reality that no one's problems are completely solved and the child geniuses don't suddenly blossom in their greatness. But everyone is just a little bit better for coming together and confronting each other.

If you didn't think that this movie is funny, then 1)you're not smart enough to understand the humor, 2) your life is perfect and you cannot relate to the characters, 3) you're a republican, or 3) you just don't understand dark comedies or subtle humor. The character development is great, it's a movie you can see again and again, it's just a pleasure to watch.

Whether you like the original movie or not, the DVD version's soundtrack is missing a very large number of key elements - the majority of the sound effects, ambient sound backgrounds, some of the music, and even the occaisional bit of dialogue. The result is like watching an unfinished movie with a "temp" audio track. A truly horrendous offense for an animated movie, which depends so much on sound. Do NOT buy the DVD - you're not really getting the movie as advertised.

First off, let me say that I'm a big fan of this movie...I grew up with it, and have always loved it. Unfortunately, if you want to experience this movie for yourself you will be better off buying the VHS version. The sound dubbing in the DVD version is inexcusable. There are portions where all of the background sound is missing entirely. The most notable points are during the spider attack in Mirkwood, and inside of Smaug's cave, although after watching this several times I realized that the sound problem was endemic. It made me think that the DVD was cut with a first draft of the sound recording instead of the final draft.

Do not buy this DVD! You will be disappointed, especially if you grew up watching this on TV as a kid (as I did). Buy the VHS tape instead.

WB (or whoever produced this DVD) should be ashamed. I personally think they should be flogged as well.

When this originally came out, when I was a kid, I was a huge fan, and I eagerly snapped up the DVD when it was released. While I enjoy "The Lord of the Rings," including the new live action movies, the story of "The Hobbit" has always been nearer and dearer to me.

Unfortunately, as sometimes happens, things are better in memory than in reality. Whether it's changing tastes or simply adult eyes, but much of this film is needlessly tame: combat scenes (which are plentiful) mostly consist of repeatedly zooming in on static pictures, instead of showing the heroes and villains swinging their weapons. It's probably partly an economic decision -- it was surely easier to animate this way -- and partly an effort to sanitize the film, but the end result is that this feels like a needlessly G-rated version of what, at worst, is a PG story.

Fun to have, and a nice companion piece to the DVDs of the new movies -- and even after all these years, I enjoy Glen Yarbrough's theme song -- but go into it with your eyes open.

Recommended for fans who never outgrew their love of the "Greatest Adventure" and confirmed Tolkein fans.