Change Your Image
rexdog9
Reviews
Chrystal (2004)
As surprising as a (non-injury) car wreck at birthday party.
What a piece. Ray McKinnon fascinated me in Deadwood with his strong performance, and it was during the fight scene in this movie that I had to find out why he looked so familiar. Then I saw he'd directed the piece. And written it. I fell into tracing the threads of the performers as I watched, then realized I had missed some small shot and had to rewind. In short, the movie demanded, and respected, my attention once I gave in to it. I search long and hard for these "written and directed by" tone pieces that seem never to be found when looking, but can only be stumbled upon. A gem. Some of what I appreciated was his deft handling of the hillbilly culture which in conclusion carried a grace and intelligence equal to the citified culture he used as contrast. From Mama's "We can always sell a piece of this worthless land to them weekend hillbillies" line on, I felt the characters' awareness of themselves and their situation in a larger picture. I'm blathering. I'm quiet and satisfied, and stunned. What a surprise.
Dark Water (2005)
My eyes went to a Jenn Connelly movie and all I got was this lousy headache.
It ain't easy givin a movie a "1" because you gotta admit to having sat through it, but that's just what happened, so I know what of the crap I speak. The kid was great, I give you that, but I can go to a PTA meeting if I want to see cute kids. I at least expected to see a world class beauty in all her subtle glory but this movie disappointed equally on all levels. More on her in a moment. I can understand a bit of misdirection in this crass age of scrambling for the next sleeper hit, but one can only endure so much. A dream sequence here, the sudden appearance of a new character there, a dash of dream sequence within dream sequence ("how daring", the director thought as he breathlessly watched the editor do his bidding...), flashbacks, partial flashbacks, halllucinations & imaginary friends who might have been real if only...plot half-truths, unfinished thoughts...One's disbelief can only take so much suspension before one ceases to care. I believe my disbelief actually committed willing suspension off one of those water towers or water pipes or water vistas just over halfway through the movie. I ceased to care who was which, who was right, who was crazy, what was real, or whether or not I would ever get to see even a silhouette outline of Ms. Connelly's figure. The dark, seedy lighting could have worked in a Wes Craven movie or a B flick with no pretensions of Connelly, but to waste talent so flagrantly makes me agree with some of my female friends who pointed it out long ago and who I always assumed were just jealous: Ms. Connelly does seem to make poor choices. I actually shut this movie off before I saw any credits roll because I realized then that I could at least hold out the hope that the movie somehow tied itself together after I quit watching, and that the fault was mine. And I also believe that Ms. Connelly may read this review and contact me with the news that she has left her hubby and is interested in meeting me. A Big, well-deserved "1".
The Indian in the Cupboard (1995)
The kid is great...
Hal Scardino turns in a really good performance for a novice actor, and his character is unusual in family films. Omri shows a depth of character that paid off for my six year old, who asked lots of good questions afterward. Apparently Scardino is, as of this writing, enrolled at Columbia University having chosen a normal adolescence rather than the child star route. He has made only 3 films to this point but still wants to return to acting after college. It seems that his personal character showed even through the character he played in the movie. Great music, imaginative story line, tender approach to adult responsibility, great side dialog.
Little Secrets (2001)
Highly recommend for family fare. Well directed, original storyline
I have 2 kids, 5 & 7. My 7-year old picked this one out at the video store while I was digging for blood-and gut stuff after they fall asleep. I am used to yawning and catnapping thru horrible Japanese cartoons, Disney offal (how can David Spade offend in equal measure without even using his gen-ZZZ, I'm-so-smart I'm-Bored ((Wow David! You MUST be smart!)) persona, by using only his voice? Perhaps he DOES have some talent) or cartoon network SCREAMFESTS, all supposedly aimed at kids while cramming greed and excess down their eager throats. I would rather do this some nights, in spite of the side effects, than willingly enter into a fight over a kid movie. Single parents, you know the drill. And Friday night is Movie Night at our place.
And I'll confess I drifted off during the movie, since it was the second of two (Neverending Story 2, which is BAAAAD), but not before dully noticing that it was well-acted. On second and third watching I am entering comment-land. I didn't find a weak performance. I loved the story line. All the characters have some depth, do not readily lapse into clichéd kidspeak (gnarly, like, so, overit, etc) but actually verbalize cogent thoughts, and the movie is filled with weird kids being treated normally instead of being ostracized or teased for not fitting in with the DisneyKind. Bad fiddling? Who cared or knew. My impression of those who actually can play the violin well is that you've lassoed some life more fulfilling than sitting around watching kid movies. Myself, I chose guitar, and still wouldn't fault the most amateur airplayer for missing a lick or two. This movie is good stuff. Rent it and enjoy.
Max Magician and the Legend of the Rings (2002)
Reliable, repeatable entertainment for my 5-7 year olds.
Don't pass this up if you've got A) kindergarten-aged kids and/or B) aspirations to someday grab a camera and enter the world of film-making. This film will satisfy on both counts. On the one hand, it's a solid G-rated film that won't bore the crap out of you, and on the other hand it won't bore the crap out of you because the production values are so low. Bad edits, cheesy sound effects, poor syncing, bad acting, bad special effects, bad direction, this film has it all, planting hope in the breast of any armchair director. And my kids couldn't care less. The film is solid enough to capture their imagination and moves through a story line.
What is interesting about this film is its flashes of integrity. Dagda's (Ken Mitzkovitch) vocal performance will make its way into your water cooler chat. His makeup is superb, and so are many of the other characters' makeup. Villains are villainous and heroes are virtuous. Lighting is good throughout. I was continually reminded that someone was taking this thing seriously as it was being made, which sadly is not the case with much of the crap being turned out by directors who are much more connected than is Mr. Summerfield. This is what low-budget indie starter films are for. I look for him to get better and better.