Theodore Witcher’s Love Jones (B-) tells a love story set in Chicago’s sexy art district as Larenz Tate and Nia Long discover the pacing, rhythm and rhyme of romance to the beat of a modern beat poetry community. This slice of life pulses with power and opportunity; and even when it doesn’t land just right, it’s great to see a story told in this milieu with talented actors strutting their stuff.
“Donnie Brasco” Goes Deep
Despite the big guns, street talk and Mafia themes, Mike Newell’s crime drama Donnie Brasco (B) is essentially a love story at heart. Al Pacino plays a mobster and Johnny Depp an FBI agent who infiltrates the 1970’s Mafia, but the betrayal to the friendship that ensues has echoes of infidelity. It’s great to watch Pacino and Depp act together and the latter act without eccentric makeup. It’s an original relationship movie amidst lots of great action.
Singleton’s “Rosewood” Rich History
Director John Singleton comes of age with the historical Rosewood (B+) which addresses the way hate breeds throughout generations. Ving Rhames and Jon Voight give affecting performances.
“Dante’s Peak” a Decent Volcano Flick
In the battle of ‘90’s volcano movies, Roger Donaldson, a craftsmanlike director who doesn’t veer too much from centrist entertainment, has made the best of the batch: Dante’s Peak (B). Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton provide enough human interest that when the blast of excitement happens, you still have some skin in the game about who survives.
“Scream 2” Provides Many Meta Thrills
Wes Craven’s Scream 2 (B-) tries to one-up its tongue-in-cheek predecessor by satirizing sequels, often with great success. But the film-within-a-film and the story-within-a-story conceits may sometimes make this a little too meta for its own good. Still it is twisty, thrilling and united the original cast with enough surprises that it stands on its own with more of the brand of fun fans of the franchise will come to expect.
“Starship Troopers” Campy, Exciting
Paul Verhoeven’s sci-fi outer space creature feature send-up Starship Troopers (B) is both an exciting tale of fresh-faced young people fighting galactic aliens and a parody of such films. It works best if you simply succumb to the silliness. There are no acting standouts in this one, just wall-to-wall action. It’s well-filmed pulp and exactly what a B-movie should be.
“Fifth Element” a Tedious Space Opera
This is the way the universe ends. It’s a far-fetched frontier where the tenets of good filmmaking hyperwarp into an otherworld of haywire folly. Transcending earth, wind, fire, ice and more, Luc Besson’s The Fifth Element (F) exists in a sphere of stupidity reserved only for the rarest of films. Bruce Willis and Gary Oldman are poorly used, and Chris Tucker is so thoroughly grating that I wish in space no one could hear him act. Not just a bad sci-fi flick, it’s also a bad absurdist comedy. In general, for a bad time, take the Fifth.
“Buddy” (1997) is Bananas
Caroline Thompson’s family drama Buddy (C-) chronicles the tale of an ecentric woman (Rene Russo) and her live-in animal companions. There may be a gorilla in her midst, but the story has a few missing links, to say the least. The telling of this true tale seems more like a chore than an opportunity for entertainment. Elaborate animatronics from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop can’t seem to animate the belle of the ball of the wild at the film’s hollow center.
We Find “Trial and Error” Guilty of Not Being Funny
In a season when Meg Ryan went grunge, Madonna struck a family-friendly pose and everyone on Friends tried to branch into movie stardom, it’s a bit refreshing to watch Seinfeld star Michael Richards playing to his strengths as a man who has to pose as an attorney to defend a buddy. Jonathan Lynn’s Trial & Error (B-) provides a vehicle for TV’s “Kramer” to showcase screwball courtroom comedy opposite Jeff Daniels and Charlize Theron. Lynn directed My Cousin Vinny, so it’s standard fare in that vein.
“Breaking the Waves” a Force of Nature
In Breaking the Waves (A-), director Lars von Trier crafts an elegant, heart-wrenching epic about a woman guided to the edge of sanity by a moral quest that leaves her physically, mentally and emotionally vulnerable. Emily Watson shines in the central role of this chilling film that deftly blends pathos and transcendence.
Goofy Golf Comedy “Happy Gilmore” Putters Around to Occasional Amusement
Despite its cult status as a legendary golf comedy, the short game of Dennis Dugan’s Happy Gilmore (B-) is a lot of sputter before it sparks. The film is a vehicle for Adam Sandler whose latest variation an his signature angry man-child finds him recoiling from a stillborn career as a hockey player to find he’s potentially more adept at clubbing golf balls. Part loving lark to life on the fairway, part caddy smack down with rage-fueled rants and pratfalls, the film is funniest in its absurdist moments involving fights with alligators in hazards and surly game show hosts partnered for pro/am competition. The film features a lively golf ball POV, nifty needle drops and even a sweet love story with Julie Bowen. Much of the humor comes from unconventional activities on the greens as our hero endeavors to save his grandma’s house from foreclosure by accumulating tournament season winnings. The supporting cast of Christopher McDonald as a rival and Carl Weathers as a coach/mentor stand out among Sandler series regulars. Amidst the juvenile humor, there’s a good deal of heart and a fun finale as the title character eschews ice for slice and ultimately hits it big.
“The Pillow Book” an Exotic, Erotic Story of Romance, Revenge
An exotic ode to love, art and revenge, Peter Greenaway’s The Pillow Book (A) stars Vivian Wu as a Japanese model in search of lovers who will paint on her body as part of their mating ritual with her. One of these men is a British translator played by Ewan McGregor, and a romantic entanglement that soon erupts due to betrayal and blackmail leads the plot down a variety of unexpected passageways. Greenaway’s innovative uses of popular music, multimedia effects, calligraphy and chapter settings, sensory illusions and uncensored erotic imagery makes this one of the most resonant and resplendent films to blossom on screen in years. This is one for the dreamers.