“Mars Attacks!” (1996) [PG-13]

     This is positively one of the best campy comedies ever made. It’s full of purposefully awkward acting even by some of the best actors of the time. There are many very odd moments of actions or dialogue where the characters sort of know that they’re in a movie. Comedy fills this film in different forms, and proves to be very hilarious.

     Some movies really do have bad acting from those who play in them, however this is an exception. The acting performances in it aren’t necessarily bad, but they are in a way awkward. The cast features a great deal of incredible actors of that time, including Jack Nicholson, Michael J. Fox, Martin Short, and Glenn Close. Their performances are more than entertaining, and they demonstrate that they are flexible with their abilities in cinema.

     It is also full of scenes that are odd in a funny way. They have things like when an actor or actress says something that’s sort of to an audience that isn’t there, or makes a comment only for the purpose of making a bad joke. This is abundant in scenes when the aliens are trying to figure out the human’s technology, and they break the machine or something of the sort.

     The comedy in this movie is one of a kind, and is arguably the most entertaining of that decade. It’s very campy style comedy, and in a way is surprising its makers were able to get such famous actors for it, however it works out in the end because of the amazing abilities of those actors. With any other cast this film probably would have been a flop, but instead it is one of the funniest movies of the time. There is a chance taken when trying to make campy comedies and it just works with this one.

          My overall rating: 3.5 out of 5

“The Shining” (1980) [R]

     This is possibly director Stanley Kubrick’s best movie, among many other movies he directed that gained much fame in the cinema world. It was one of the first movies that actually scared me in a rational way. Jack Nicholson’s performance was by far at its peak in this film; he can draw the audience in and make them feel as if he really was the character, instead of Jack Nicholson. In addition, this is a great translation from Stephen King’s book of the same name; there were only a few facts in the book which were not in the movie.

     I first watched Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” several years ago, and it was the first movie that really scared me. Sure, there are plenty of so called “scary” movies available, however what most people think of as a frightening movie isn’t what I deem horror. Most people think films about serial killers with literal buckets-of-blood count as something of horror. My idea of a scary tale is one that brings out people’s greatest fears and makes you question all thoughts of truth or reality. “The Shining” does all of this and then some, it pulls out all the stops and holds nothing back for the audience.

     Of all the movies Jack Nicholson has been in and of all of the great performances he’s given, the character he portrays in this film is possibly the most entertaining. The audience can tell that he went through a lot of determination to give only his best abilities at playing his character. Not a moment goes by that the audience thinks he’s someone other than the character. Many people may even forget that he is acting, he’s just that good. Of course, the portrayal of the character is nearly identical to that of the one in the book.

     There have been many stories, especially those of Stephen King’s books, which have been made into movies. Sadly, most of them aren’t anything at all like the original story. “The Shining” is one of the few exceptions, however, for it would seem that the makers of the film actually read the book before bringing it to cinema. There are several portions of dialogue that were taken directly from the book, and many instances of the story that were very nearly like what happened in the book. Of course, there were a few things that they took out of the movie version which I would have preferred to have seen in the film, but the movie was already long enough with all of the other stuff they put in the translation.

          My overall rating: 4.5 out of 5

“Carrie” (1976) [R]

     “Carrie” is still a scary movie, being one of those classics that will hold together through the times. It is a decent adaptation of the Stephen King novel, for there are a few key differences between the two, however it does stand out for itself. It focuses a major part on the characters and their development so that the audience really begins to understand the main character and even begin to feel sympathy for her. It can, to some point, be considered more of a drama than a horror for all the time it spends showing all the torment that Carrie is put through, however the true horror comes out when she finally lashes out at her those who put her through such anxieties.

     At first, the movie is sort of slow, as it puts a lot of focus on character development. Most of them change throughout the movie, especially the protagonist, Carrie. The audience is shown the traits of the characters by their actions. This is a very classic kind of story line, having the better part of the story concentrating on characters and the developments of their personalities and finally bringing on the climax as one big explosion of action or horror. It’s good to know that there are at least some movies that hold true to that style of storytelling, although that is mostly due to the fact that that’s how Stephen King wrote the book.

     From the start of the movie, the audience will begin to understand the situation that Carrie is in, being treated horribly by her classmates, and treated even worse by her over-religious mother. At some point in the film the viewers will start to sympathize with Carrie as well. They will truly feel sorry for her and wish that something would happen to make them feel better about it all. Then as the climax approaches, they get their wish. When Carrie finally lashes out at her tormentors, the audience is completely on her side and hoping she gets the last laugh, so to speak.

     In a way, this film can be considered more of a drama than a horror. It does spend more time on showing how she is treated by the other people at her school and by her mother. The drama almost takes over until she rallies back and takes everything out on everyone around her. That’s when the true horror begins. Just as in King’s book, the climax is more or less when all the horror comes out from hiding, and when it does it is thoroughly shocking. This film is still considered by many to be very scary, which is a feat by itself because of how much the horror genre has changed since this movie originally came out.

          My overall rating: 3.5 out of 5

“The Untouchables” (1987) [R]

     Brian DePalma’s film “The Untouchables” was really quite a break-through for most of its actors, Sean Connery and Robert De Niro being the only actors in it with well-known backgrounds in cinema. It is an incredible period piece, with some of the most exciting drama to be seen to date, and each of the actors gave terrific performances, especially bearing in mind that most of them became famous through this movie. The tale is truly gripping from start to finish, never letting up, and never letting go of the audience.

     The story is that of Eliot Ness’s group of “Untouchables” in the 1930s, whose sole purpose is to catch and incriminate Al Capone. It takes place during the time of Prohibition, and does a great job of showing Chicago during the Prohibition Era. The creators of this movie had sets and appliances on the sets that were around during the ‘30s, such as the styles of cars, guns, house appliances, and many more. This film also has the most mesmerizing drama to date. It rattles and plays with the emotions through the whole tale.

     A majority of the actors in “The Untouchables” weren’t all that well-known before they joined it. However being in this movie was like an instant claim to fame. Sean Connery and Robert De Niro were really the only two actors who had an established background in the industry. Gateways into fame were opened for actors such as Kevin Costner, Andy Garcia, and Charles Martin Smith just because they were in this incredible film and they gave enthralling performances.

     The storyline itself—of Eliot Ness and his fight to put Al Capone behind bars—is a gripping one. It was almost like a legend come to life with the back and forth fights between Ness’s men and Capone’s men. Even with the exciting script, this film wouldn’t be nearly as fascinating without the direction of Brian DePalma. This is one of the best movies of the Crime/Drama genre, and it’s difficult to find anything wrong with any part of this film. The entire production was done beautifully and is a great addition to cinema.

          My overall rating: 4.8 out of 5

This Month's Reviews!

"Untouchables" (1987) [R] (connected by Brian DePalma to...)
"Carrie" (1976) [R] (connected by Stephen King to...)
"The Shining" (1980) [R] (connected by Jack Nicholson to...)
"Mars Attacks!" (1996) [PG-13] (connected by Tim Burton to next month's reviews...)

“Zardoz” (1974) [R]

     While “Zardoz” is an entertaining tale, it’s all too clearly a film of the seventies because of its odd cinematography and way of storytelling. It has beautiful scenery and sets like none other; it also has a wardrobe with styles and colors that could only be a product of the seventies. This movie’s best quality—one which only a smaller percent of pictures carry—is that it poses many great questions about both society and religion. However, the way in which the story is told can somewhat confuse some of the audience at times.

     The exterior scenes in this film are stunningly done, showing landscapes of grass and rolling hills, along with a few of the scenes set in eye-catching forests. These scenes draw the audience in with such beauty, but can occasionally cause the viewers to forget what’s really going on in the story. There are times when watching the outdoor sections that it will seem like watching a Fantasy tale instead of a Sci-fi story. The sets on the indoor scenes are amazing, especially for the time it was made. They were perfect illustrations for they utopian town where Sean Connery’s character ends up for most of the movie.

     Nonetheless, scenery and good landscapes alone don’t make good movies. In “Zardoz,” the wardrobe chosen for the actors was nothing short of diverse. There are three different groups in this film: the Eternals, who live eternally in a utopia called Vortex; the Brutals, who are uncivilized and are told by their god that when they die they will go to Vortex to be with the Immortals; and then there are the Exterminator-class Brutals who fight and kill other Brutals in war. The Brutals’ costumes seem like cavemen-style hides, and the Eternals’ wardrobe consists of futuristic gowns and shirts. Although the Eternals’ costumes do look futuristic, their colors are too much like the colors regularly worn in the seventies, therefore losing the sense of a futuristic movie.

     Of all the entertainment that comes from this film, the best of it all is how “Zardoz” raises questions about many things. It is a question of religion, showing a sort of false religion that is exposed for what it really is. It also brings up many questions of society, defying the norm by setting the Exterminator-class Brutal played by Sean Connery into the utopia of the Eternal’s civilization. With all of its controversial inquisitions, this movie seems more like a “thought” movie mixed in with an Action/Sci-fi tale. It’s an entertaining show; however the way in which the story itself is presented can confuse some of the audience. There are times when the movie cuts to another scene, and at first some viewers won’t understand what’s happening until they catch a certain part of dialogue, or see exactly where the characters are. All in all, it’s worth at least giving it a chance.

     My overall rating: 3 out of 5

“Space Cowboys” (2000) [PG-13]

     Produced and directed by Clint Eastwood, this is one of many other astronaut films that came out around the turn of the century, “Space Cowboys” is one of the most entertaining. Starring Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland, and James Garner, “Space Cowboys” was a new turn on the idea of the astronaut movie at the time. Everyone in this film, not only the stars, gave moving performances, and there was a new dramatic side to the story with the comical rivalry between Eastwood and Jones’s characters. This brought a new angle on space pictures in general with its entertaining story, however it wasn’t the first movie with the basic premise of retired men having to get out of retirement and conquer old age for an exciting mission

     It’s not every time that a motion picture comes out and every actor in it gives an incredible performance. However, this film is one exception. Every actor was believable, even those who didn’t have an important role. From start to finish, the audience will feel as if they are actually a part of the story. The mesmerizing performances and effort given by all of the actors, not just those with starring roles, will cause the audience to forget they’re actually watching a movie.

     Throughout this film, there’s a sort of fun sibling rivalry between Eastwood’s and Jones’s characters. It’s like their way of showing happiness in their friendship is to bicker about insignificant things. At first, to the audience, it may seem that they are bitter enemies; however, as the movie progresses, it becomes very clear that it’s only their way of laughing with each other. The conflict is a more dramatic approach than other shows of this kind. This is all simply part of the bigger picture which is the exciting story.

     Written by Ken Kaufman and Howard Klausner, the screenplay for “Space Cowboys” wasn’t the most groundbreaking story so far, although it was entertaining. It molded two different types of stories which have been done before into a whole new tale. They took the ideas of astronauts going into space to fix a satellite and retired men having to get out of retirement and train to do an exciting mission, and it actually worked. Looking at the script by itself most people would probably have thought that it was a gamble to make a film out of it, but Eastwood liked the idea and turned a gamble into a blockbuster. The only drawback, if there is any at all, is that the basic idea of the tale isn’t really anything new or groundbreaking; however this is one of the most entertaining space movies out there.

          My overall rating 3.5 out of 5

“No Country for Old Men” (2007) [R]

     Based on Cormac McCarthy’s book of the same name, “No Country for Old Men” has got to be one of the best movies made in a long time. There are so many interesting things to talk about in this film that it’s hard to pick a place to start, but it has to be done. To begin with, this is without a doubt one of the best tales of good versus evil, all while being set over a sort of modern western when the protagonist, Llewelyn Moss, has to flee from and fight a psychotic killer known as Anton Chiguhr, who prowls the Texas outback area. In his portrayal as Chiguhr, Javier Bardem does an impeccable job, especially considering this was pretty much his big break into well-known theater. This is also one of the few films to go to go so far against the grain, and does that very well.

     There are many times throughout the history of stories, movies included, where the basic premise is a telling of good against evil. Many of these stories should be familiar to everyone; however this tale in particular takes it to the next level. The fight between good and evil has never been presented in a more perplexing way than in this film. Set in the style of a modern western, the protagonist, Llewelyn Moss, discovers something he shouldn’t and is then forced to match strength and wits with the psychotic villain known as Anton Chiguhr. Full of edge-of-the-seat suspense, the viewers can only guess how this incredible motion picture turns out.

     Before this movie, Javier Bardem wasn’t very well-known in popular cinema; however it would seem that this one has landed him a very nice place in popular culture. He is now being sought out for roles in various movies, and this is obviously because of his astonishing ability to portray the Chiguhr character. Bardem truly embraced Chiguhr, and makes the audience fall for his act as what would seem to be a complete lunatic. The audience won’t be able to even tell that he is a normal person in real life because of how amazingly he convinces viewers that he is the character.

     There are, of course, many different ways people can think of on defining how something can go against the grain of what is average. They can say that there are many movies these days that do that, and I would disagree with this. What I consider to be going against the grain in cinema is a film that is ground-breaking in nearly every aspect of which it can be spectated. This movie is one of few, especially these days, which truly does break ground into something that can lead the future. “No Country for Old Men” requires only one thing of its audience, which is for them to think further than what is simply presented in front of them and enlighten themselves to an idea the movie discreetly provides.

          My overall rating: 4.8 out of 5