duffmckagan Reviews

Dr. Giggles (1992)

great movie for the genre

[10/10 · 17 March 2003]

First off let me say that I am a big fan of horror movies, I watch them all the time. Most of them are really bad and cheesy, but Dr. Giggles was just cheesy. That is quite an accomplishment in the horror genre.

I thought that the one liners were perfect and that the movie itself, while practically plotless, was well acted and played.

I would strongly recommend this movie to anyone who is a fan of the genre. It does get kinda gory and some of the kills are pretty pointless, but it only makes it better in my opinion.

I gave Dr Giggle 10/10 for a horror movie, and about 4/10 for a movie in general.

Hit Me (1996)

quite interesting, great performance by elias koteas

[9/10 · 25 February 2003]

This movie kind of took me by surprise. I thought it was going to be another semi boring heist flick, but it wasn't. I think it had some genuinely interesting points to make about one's own desperation and greed.

The movie tells the story of a lonely and frustrated bellhop (koteas)who stumbles into a plan to rob a group of wealthy card sharks who are going to take part in an illegal poker game. A slew of mistakes and fumbles occur which leads to an unfortunate (in my opnion) ending.

Koteas gives a very edgy performance and makes the movie all by himself. The rest of the cast also does their part too, in particular the actor who plays koteas's childlike brother, quite a convincing portrayal.

I give "Hit Me" 9 out of 10

Girl, Interrupted (1999)

had trouble sleeping after I saw it (spoilers)

[10/10 · 30 January 2003]

When I first saw this movie I was not touched but I was impressed at the great performances given by Ryder and Jolie. This is why I later decided to give it another look. After viewing it a second time I came to realize that this movie had to be made. It shines a great light on a subject which isn't discussed, mental illness. As Susanna is struggling with her view of the world she first must realize that her view may not be the correct one, this is the stranglehold that is Borderline Personality disorder.

It is interesting to note that her interaction with the other patients wasn't necessarily a positive one, I think she had even more trouble accepting her own problem while in the presence of other troubled people.

I feel that the turning point in the movie is when she refuses to leave the hospital and go to Canada with her "boyfriend", but for the first time in the movie seems to acknowledge the fact that she has a real life problem that must be dealt with and that running away from that problem will not solve it.

After the second viewing of the movie I found it difficult to sleep becuase of thoughts of how accurate the movie depicts life in a mental institution.

This is a movie that everyone should see, and I especially recommend it to anyone who is struggling with depression or some sort of mental illness.