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corncob01
Reviews
A Bug's Life (1998)
Fantastic animation; mediocre story
I thought this was the most sophisticated animation I have ever seen, 2-D or 3-D. The bird attack and the rain storm scenes were unbelievable. The bloopers were a riot!
But again Hollywood pumps out a high-gloss, low-impact movie. For all its beauty, it was a pretty ho-hum story. They could have really played up the Seven Samurai angle by offering a more in-depth, poignant view of the life of these oppressed ants. Perhaps tugged on the heart-strings a little more. I found myself almost rooting for the grasshoppers against these simple, whining ants. A little more character development could have made this the greatest animated feature of all time.
The Opposite of Sex (1998)
Liked it very much
I rarely take the time to comment on a movie unless it was particularly good or particularly bad. Happily, this movie was the former, in my opinion. I liked the whole meta-film thing, especially when it exploited trite Hollywood conventions. Done many times before, but never with quite as much bite. I liked Christina Ricci, as many others among us have stated.
But what really stood out to me, in contrast to the opinion posed right up front on the info page, was Lisa Kudrow's performance. I have always enjoyed her schtick on Friends and Mad About You, but never thought I would actually respect her as an actress. I am glad to be wrong. This role was perfect for her because it allowed her to use some of her idiosyncrasies, but also allowed her to be more expressive with them. Honestly I found myself nearly moved to tears by her performance in the scene with Bill in the motel room.
Overall, I really liked this movie. Truly, I laughed, nearly cried, and would see it again (at least once more).