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williamodouglas
Reviews
Magnolia (1999)
Overly ambitious equals ambiguous
This highly anticipated second feature length film from the director of "Boogie Nights" ultimately fails, though it is a noble failure. It sets up the several situations which any filmlover might naturally expect to eventually become intertwined. While Mr. Anderson does try to accomplish this - indeed, the notion of fate and the intertwining of lives is the very theme of the film - he eventually fails to succeed. He may be in good company, as this technique was also used in the more recent "Traffic." But Mr. Anderson makes a fatal mistake in the realm of fiction: there is no clear protagonist. Or protagonists bound together, as in the 'buddy film'. Instead, we have a collection of short stories that are broken apart and interspersed. We therefore are given no real theme, just an attempt at one. The wonderful performances by virtually every actor are sadly wasted. It was a nice (though far too long) attempt, but ultimately leaves a great deal to be desired.
An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1997)
Essentially "inside" jokes
If you work in the film industry, you'll probably find it very funny. Or at least quite amusing. If you are employed in some other fashion, you will likely think this film ridiculous. It is not, however, in the same league as The Player or S.O.B. (from which this film seems to have "borrowed" one basic story concept).
Hellcats of the Navy (1957)
As bad as it gets
Leaden acting. Awful special effects. Every time the submarines go out, so does the sonar (amazing, huh?) A forced conflict between the captain and his executive officer. It also has some of the worst dialogue imaginable, especially in the Ronald Reagan-Nancy Davis scenes. All in all, I would have rather watched an old television test-pattern.
Last Man Standing (1996)
Sub-par
I simply didn't buy into the setup. Believe me, it is extraordinarily difficult to try to literally mix genres. Therefore it should come as no surprise that this Gangster/Western didn't work. Christopher Walken was predictably excellent in the sort of role he had, but if ever there was a "fish out of water".....although almost all the characters could be described that way. Unfortunately for them, and more importantly for the viewer, this isn't a "fish out of water" film.
The Warriors (1979)
A truly great film
The Warriors was a ground breaking, wonderfully creative "chase" film. Walter Hill did what he does best, as can also be seen in "Southern Comfort": creating a strange, dark and foreboding universe within our universe. So visually stunning, it would be a crime to give away any of the details of this marvelous street gang "underworld". I will simply urge anyone who has not seen this piece of cinema to do so as soon as possible. Try to avoid any "edited for television" version; spring for a rental on this one. Hopefully it will be available on DVD at some point, deserving as it does the visual clarity of that medium.