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The 1999 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, Fosse celebrates the work of director-choreographer Bob Fosse, one of Broadway's and film's truly innovative and distinctive talents. While Fosse's protégé Ann Reinking (also the co-choreographer) and frequent collaborator Ben Vereen are the headliners, the dance revue was conceived as an ensemble piece, so the 32-member cast gets plenty of chances to shine. The nearly two-hour performance features re-creations of dazzling numbers from such milestones as Cabaret ("Mein Herr"), Chicago ("Nowadays"), Sweet Charity ("Big Spender"), The Pajama Game ("Steam Heat"), Dancin' ("I Wanna Be a Dancin' Man"), and All That Jazz ("There'll Be Some Changes Made," among others, but not the stunning "On Broadway" sequence). Reinking, Vereen, and another Fosse collaborator, cast member Dana Moore, also share their memories in interview segments. Filmed in live performance, Fosse stands as a memorial to one man's striking vision, an essential record of many classic routines, and simply a whole lot of fun to watch. --David Horiuchi ... Read more

Reviews (36)

And that's showbiz, baby!
This happens to be one of PBS' Great Performances Dance in America series' greatest realizations of a Broadway show and, more importantly, I think one of the most significant documentations of Bob Fosse's choreographic cannon.

Here you have the authority of Ben Vereen and Ann Reinking peforming in or recreating some of their original stage numbers. One of the reasons I wanted to see this show was to see Vereen recreate the "Glory" number from Pippin. Vereen sings "Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries" - a favorite song of Fosse's from Dancin' - imbuing an added level of relevance for anyone who knows Vereen's life and career. Vereen and Reinking bring to this performance a certain history and magic, a passing on of the tradition. It is moving to see them pass it on to a new generation of Broadway dancers. This is a great cast of dancer/singers. To name a few - Rachel Rak's powerhouse sexy performance of "I Gotcha", Brad Anderson's athletic grace and angelic voice, and Ken Allen's dead on precision stands out in every number.

And the evolution of Fosse's choreographic language becomes striking seen in this context, from increasingly jazz-influenced style of "Shoeless Joe" and "Steam Heat" of the 50s to the vaudeville of the Chicago, Liza with a Z and "I Want to Be a Dancin' Man" numbers. And who can resist "Big Spender" and "Rich Man's Frug"? "Repetitive", one reviewer here claims. Yeah, and Martha Graham, Jerome Robbins and George Balanchine were accused of being "repetitive" in their vocabulary.

"Fosse" also includes interviews with Vereen and Reinking that give insight into how Bob Fosse and his choreography attained the relevance this show displays. Reinking states that Fosse took every member of the ensemble seriously, as a character and not just a background dancer. She describes a dancer who, after working on a number all day, muttered "again?" when asked by Fosse to rehearse further. That unfortunate dancer was soon looking for another job. This tells you something of Fosse's perfectionism. "That's what I would like anybody to feel [seeing this show]", Reinking states, "even just a breath of someone's dedication and passion".

Complain? Name me another film or television document to capture the American musical theatre in recent years. Along with 1990 documentary on Fosse, "Steam Heat", by Dance in America, this will be one of the greatest records of the genius of Bob Fosse. Except for the record of numbers Fosse choreographed for films and television, this is the only record of so many Broadway numbers fans and scholars will be able to rely on in future. And what a wonderful thing to have. I'm giving "Fosse" to all my friends who love the American musical theatre. It's a blast to watch all of these numbers again, and I know they will LOVE it.

And all that jazz...
It's an unfortunate rule of thumb that by the time an enterprising producer gets around to filming a Broadway play or musical, the show has neared the end of its run. Usually, that means performers who are tired, sometimes visibly bored, or perhaps suffering from vocal problems. Unfortunately, FOSSE is no exception to either the rule or the usual consequences thereof. Nor, in this instance, did the producers help matters by reshaping the show around Ben Vereen. Now in his mid-50s, Vereen has lost nearly all of the technical virtues--the strikingly fluid hips, high extension, and apparent weightlessness--that made him one of the quintessential male Fosse dancers. While still a charismatic stage presence and reasonably strong singer, Vereen's performance here is painful to anyone who has recently watched PIPPIN, ALL THAT JAZZ, or the recently released SWEET CHARITY.

The rest of the cast, while reasonably energetic, often lacks both definition and expression. There are some elegant and technically assured performances scattered throughout, most notably from Ken Alan, Shirley Maclaine look-alike Meg Gillentine, Edwaard Liang, and Fosse veteran Dana Moore. The vocals, alas, are usually weak--most annoyingly so in "Crunchy Vanilla Suite," where the two male singers can barely be heard, let alone understood. (Gillentine is probably the evening's strongest singer.) As a general rule, the dancing appears at its best in small-scale numbers like "Steam Heat" or "Cool Hand Luke"; the big ensemble pieces are often weak, with dancers falling out of sync or "softening" the choreography. The most notable offender is probably "The Rich Man's Frug": most of the male dancers don't bother to "hinge" forward; dancers keep their knees straight when they should be in demi-plie; the isolations, well, aren't; and the arms are sloppy (especially in the punching train that concludes "The Heavyweight"). Rather better are the "Shoeless Joe Ballet" and "Sing! Sing! Sing!" The widescreen picture is crisp, although the director's choices are not necessarily what they should be.

Despite its flaws, however, musical theater aficionados will no doubt want to add this DVD to their collection.

Hit and Miss
Those familiar with Mr. Fosse and his work within the scope of musical theater know that the brilliance of Fosse's choreography was that it fit seamlessly within the context of the musical. In other words, the action didn't stop just to accomodate a dance number. Instead, the dance propelled the storyline forward. Taken out of the musical and put into a revue, the dances are still wonderful, but some hit the target while others merely come close.

Having Ann Reinking and Ben Vereen in the show is a huge plus. Although they are no longer in their prime, they were Fosse's favorites and bring a wonderful nostalgia to the show. Every time I see Mr. Vereen do "Mr Bojangles," I tear up. I would have liked to have seen Ms. Reinking do a little more, but I admire the fact that she knows what she is capable of and performs accordingly. Their interviews add a nostalgic touch.

As for the rest of the cast, there is no question as to how talented they are and when numbers don't quite work, it isn't through any fault of the ensemble. Particular standouts are "Sing, Sing, Sing" featuring the phenominal Dylis Croman on the trumpet solo (originally performed by Ann Reinking), "Bye, Bye Blackbird," "I Wanna Be a Dancin' Man," "Crunchy Granola Suite" and "From the Edge." Strangely enough, all of these numbers were from revue-type shows and not taken from musicals.

The misses, while still brilliant dances, are the ones that are out-of-context. Everything from the movie All That Jazz, especially "Take off with Us," falls flat. "Glory/Manson Trio," while interesting to see Mr. Vereen dance it 20 years later, makes no sense when taken out of Pippin. And I will never understand why they included "Razzle Dazzle" in this show and not "All that Jazz," but they did.

All in all, this is an incredibly entertaining DVD and the cast is top notch. Thank you to Ann Reinking and the late Gwen Verdon for keeping Bob Fosse's spirit alive and introducing him to a new generation of dancers.

I thought I knew who Bob Fosse was.
I am a musical theater fanatic, and so when I was in my first play, Damn Yankees, I was introduced to the choreography of Bob Fosse.
I loved what he did with Gwen Verdon in the film version, her "Lola" dance was a riot to behold. I also loved "Two Lost Souls", Bob Fosse really added a mood to that number.
Neither of those dance numbers are found in here.

I decided I would see Cabaret, the film, which is raunchy, but I thought I could handle it, and handle it I did.
The dancing in Cabaret is really cool, espesialy Mein Heir and Wilkomen, however, only Mein Heir was in the film version of Fosse, and it was not even the original dance, it was a remake, a sloppy, lousy, extremely slow, remake.

Ann Reinkin and Benn Veiring are a lousy addition to this film. They are good for the documentary parts, but this isn't supposed to be a documentary, its supposed to be a dance show, not a talk show.

Why didn't they put the dance on one side of the disk and the documentary on the other side?

The song and dance, "Steam Heat", from The Pajama Game, is on here, but it is a complete disaster.

The singing in this film stinks. "But they are dancers" you say, I know they are dancers! But don't you think they could find ones who could sing? Is that too much to ask?
No it isn't.

Besides the two oldies, Benn and Anne, messing things up, and the lack of vocal talent, and in most cases, dancing talent, there is still more aspects of this film to disturb you.

I thought that even though Fosse's numbers were on the risque side, that they would be ok for my kids to watch, since they are not in the context of a nasty story line, such as the numbers from Cabaret, and since I thought the costumes would be risque, but within reason, like in the Cabaret. Well, the costumes in Mein Heir, among half of the other numbers in this production, are next to nothing, either the ladies legs are bare clear up to their ribs, or something worse, as we see in this new version of Mein Heir, thongs and so forth.

Still, a bigger suprise awaited me,
Three girls and three guys all walk out onto the stage, the guys in black speedos, and the girls in skimpy underwear. So one of the girls and one of the guys start to dance in the middle of the stage, in an extremely, extremely suggestive manner, wearing almost nothing. Now as if this wasn't disgusting enough, then the two guys starting dancing together, with each other, and then the two girls start to dance with each other.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I didn't want this crap in the heads of my children, and I didn't want it in my head either.
So I didn't even wait to see how much worse this dance would get, I took the disc out of the DVD player, scratched it to bits, explained to my children that it was a filthy and lewed show, that I did not want it in our familiy's home, and I threw it away.

So even though I spent three of my theatrical years dancing some of Bob Fosse's better dances, which were great dances,
I do not care,
this DVD is not worth owning.
The dances that are not dirty, are lousy,
and even if the show was executed with great talent and flare, it doesn't matter to me,
it is not worth the owning because of its lack of dignity and respect for the human race.

I recomend, instead of this film, the origional Bob Fosse films. The Pajama Game is a must own, simply because of Steam Heat, then there is his Damn Yankees, and so fourth. Get his numbers this way, that way the dances are done well, and you can be selective.
Although I do not recomend All That Jazz, it is even worse than this production.

Fosse
Fosse is a truely magical musical revue highlighting all our Bob Fosse favorites from Damn Yankees in the 50s through Big Deal in the 80s. Ben Vareen leads and all star cast of Broadway veterans like Dana Moore, as well as new talent like Meg Gillentine and Rachelle Rak. The dancing is of course phenominal with Ken Alan and Edward Liang leading an all-star cast of dancers. Fosse godess Ann Reinking's re-creation of Fosse's original choregraphy captures that sense of vibration and sensuality so important to his shows. My only complaints: 1. During some spots, the dancing isn't sharp and crisp and the movement isn't together. 2. Ann Reinking should sing and dance more. Some memorable numbers include Steam Heat, I Gotcha, Big Spender, Mr. Bojangles, Mein Herr, Cool Hand Luke, Nowadays, Rich Man's Frug, and Sing, Sing, Sing. ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

As revisionist history, Michael Mann's intelligent docudrama The Insider is a simmering brew of altered facts and dramatic license. In a broader perspective, however, the film (cowritten with Forrest Gump Oscar-winner Eric Roth) is effectively accurate as an engrossing study of ethics in the corruptible industries of tobacco and broadcast journalism. On one side, there is Jeffrey Wigand (Russell Crowe), the former tobacco scientist who violated contractual agreements to expose Brown & Williamson's inclusion of addictive ingredients in cigarettes, casting himself into a vortex of moral dilemma. On the other side is60 Minutes producer Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino), whose struggle to report Wigand's story puts him at odds with veteran correspondent Mike Wallace (Christopher Plummer) and senior executives at CBS News.

As the urgency of the story increases, so does the film's palpable sense of paranoia, inviting favorable comparison to All the President's Men. While Pacino downplays the theatrical excess that plagued him in previous roles, Crow is superb as a man who retains his tortured integrity at great personal cost. The Insider is two movies--a cover-up thriller and a drama about journalistic ethics--that combine to embrace the noble values personified by Wigand and Bergman. Even if the details aren't always precise (as Mike Wallace and others protested prior to the film's release), the film adheres to a higher truth that was so blatantly violated by tobacco executives seen in an oft-repeated video clip, lying under oath in the service of greed. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (233)

Exceeding my expectation
I didn't go to the cinema to watch this movie because I thought it's 3 hours length would have put me to deep sleep. Then, I reasoned the imposssibility of a director to dwell on an issue for 3 hours when we already knew beforehand that smoking is bad for you. Well, I will have to put my hands up in air & admitted defeat as this movie is compelling to watch. It could be the tightness of the script, the intensities of the main characters; played so well by Al Pacino, Russell Crowe (with his new found American accent), Christopher Plummer (a far cry from his Sound of Music day); brilliant directions by Mann; or semi documentary format of the movie. I had watched his previous offerings such as The Last of the Mohicans, Heat but The Insider would have to be my all-time favourite. I admired Wigand's bravery for standing up against the big giant corporation amid losing everything that he's owned, the loyalty of the Producer of 60 minutes for not hanging out Wigand to dry. Whilst it's true that in real life, that might not be the whole truth but the ideal is definitely worth reminding. One thing that niggled me would be Mann's usage of same actor & actress in his other movie such as Al Pacino (who could fault him?) & also the lady who played his wife in Heat, who played Wigand's wife in this movie. Highly recommended. Wide screen format is an extra bonus.

Of Smoke, Mirrors...and Truth
I enjoy a well acted and well written movie, especially if it's a true story, and most especially if the story is based upon a newsworthy event. For me, "The Insider" delivers on all accounts! I found myself completely captivated by this film from start to finish. It combines a compelling true story, sparkling performances by an all-star ensemble cast, an outstanding screenplay filled with sharp, crackling dialog, a beautifully haunting musical score, and cinematography which is darkly brooding. All add up to a taut and suspenseful real-life thriller.

This is the riveting tale of how the lives of two men - Jeffrey Wigand, the famous tobacco industry "whistleblower," and Lowell Bergman, a producer for CBS News' "60 Minutes" - become suddenly entwined in the maelstrom of one of the most controversial political and social issues of the mid-1990s: the conspiracy by American tobacco companies to enhance the addictive properties of cigarettes, and then cover up that conspiracy. It is the story of how one lone "whistleblower" publicly exposed the secret actions of the tobacco industry, and endured his enemies' public vilification for his efforts. It's also the story of how one of America's greatest and most respected news organizations, when confronted by the truth of that "whistleblower's" information, betrayed its own journalistic principles in the face of a threatened lawsuit by the tobacco industry.

This film abounds with superlative acting. Al Pacino delivers yet again a stunning performance as Lowell Bergman, the self-assured, still idealistic-after-all-these-years CBS News producer. Russell Crowe, nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Jeffrey Wigand, richly texturizes his character - in part a tormented soul, in part an easy to dislike cynical tough guy, and in part a dreamy idealist. Christopher Plummer brings a perfect blend of shirty arrogance and pomposity to the character of Mike Wallace. Other performances of note include Diane Venora as Liane Wigand; Philip Baker Hall as CBS News boss Don Hewitt; and Michael Gambon as Brown and Williamson CEO Thomas Sandefur.

If you enjoy an intelligent, fact-based movie, one that is unafraid to confront real and controversial issues, and one delivers a powerful message, you will most definitely enjoy "The Insider." It is a movie that I will view and savor...over and over again!

Saved My Life
Dear reader, I was a 5 packs a day man when the insider moved my insides and thus forced a desion from within my soul barren to quit this awful fart inhalation. Well I didn't quit but I changed from a Brown and Williamson product to a Philip Morris product and I now smoke the great Marlboro Reds(recommend by me).

But in our hazen discovery of the truth lest us not neglect our shakeperian duty to rise and fall like an empire of sand, liquid sand. dissolving me and you and the constipation and lts us have our deeply desired laxative, yes dear reader, a laxative is what THE INSIDER reminded me of and it is the best laxative of 1999. But crowe has acne, but I dug venora you know.

A superb thriller!
"The Insider" starts out slowly, but with arresting gravity, and snakes its way into a riveting, superb thriller. The acting is magnificent, the direction superb, the pacing precise, and the dialog riveting. It's a long movie, but you can't stop watching it. Everyone involved should be congratulated, for this is the telling of a complex story on film that captures multiple layers, human pathos, and modern paranoia, all equally effectively. A MUST SEE!

Doesn't really go inside
Quick camera movements and hushed dialog heighten the claustrophobia and paranoia faced by Russel Crowe, the putative hero of "The Insider". A former scientist for a cigarette manufacturer. Crowe's Jeff Wigand is already an outsider in the first few frames, and on the verge of losing a severance package negotiated to keep him silent about the workings of his ex-employer's marketing tactics. Al Pacino, a producer for 60 Minutes proves, at about the same time, that he's not afraid to put his personal saftey on the line for the story. Christopher Plummer is a surpisingly effective Mike Wallace. Unfortunately, this account of the dirty tricks the cigarette makers will stoop to to hide business practices that ensure continued addiction to smoking is undone by its own murky paranoia - just how do these menacing guys manage to hold onto their political power the way nicotine holds onto smokers? Least convincing is speed with which the editorial staff at "60 Minutes" caves into corporate pressure to dump the story. It's never really explained how guys who regularly face-off against government bureaucrats, corporate honchos and the leaders of terrorist factions in the darkest corners of the new century crumble like a house of cards before big tobacco. The film, by never explaining the stranglehold of the cigarette industry implicitly supports them - that the "big" in big-tobacco is a myth created by the self-righteous of the media and government to explain their own inability to deal with America's nicotine problems.

For all its murkiness, the film remains evocative, a collection of great scenes, like Crowe's epiphany in a hotel room, and Pacino's giving a hotel attendant long-distance instruction in the art of talking like Al Pacino. Remember this as the movie in which TV action fixture Wings Hauser played a lawyer for the tobacco industry. ... Read more

Reviews (70)

My Favorite Horror Movie of all Time
I personally feel that this is one of the greatest horror movie made. Forget all of that blood and guts and popping out of the bushes to scare people. That fear only lasts for a second...This movie plays with your mind and lasts forever. Nothing is scarier than polite Miss Rhoda Penmark.
This movie contains brilliant direction and an amazing cast. Many people feel that the acting is overdone and that they act like they are still in the stage version, entertaining an audience in a theater but that is the way it was meant to be made. Making it look like a regular movie would ruin the essence of the evil, 8-year old killer. Nancy Kelly is truly amazing as Christine. Her "breakdown" scenes are heart wrenching and done very well. She is most-natural and does a wonderful job in playing a woman going through the delemma of whether or not she should hate or love her daughter. Her performance is beautiful, "She killed him! But she's my little girl...and I love her!". The highlight of her acting is when Rhoda just kills one of her victims (I won't say who) and Rhoda is playing the song she always plays on the piano faster and faster and faster. It is such and amazing scene. She deserved the Tony she won during the play and the Oscar nomination. Now, there is Patty McCormack who is definatly chilling in this role. Her perfect smile is just as scary as her evil ways. When she describes the way she killed the little boy I always shudder ,"But he told me that he was going to tell on me...SO I HIT HIM WITH MY SHOES AGAIN!! I hit him harder that time." After the scene where she confesses her murders and Christine tells Rhoda to throw her shoes down the incinerator, the shot of Rhoda's sillouette tossisng the shoes while Christine just sits in the backround and watches with fear, as Rhoda smiles, brings chills down my spine. Her acting gets an A+ and she also deserved the Oscar nomination as well as Kelly. Another, nominated for an Oscar for her role, was Eileen Heckart for the role of (which I think is one of the greatest characters in theatrical history)Mrs. Dagel..the grieving mother of one of Rhoda's vicitms. Although only appearing in two scenes, she makes just as big of an impact as Christine and Rhoda do. Heckart is brilliant in the role and it would be almost imposible to find someone who could do as good of a job as she did. Her beautiful monolougues are truly amazing and heartfelt. Other great performances are that of Henry Jones, the creepy Leroy who is the only one who realizes that Rhoda is evil, Evelyn Varden, as the housekeeper, Monica, who spoils Rhoda terribly, Miss Fern (I can't quite think of her name), as the teacher at The Fern School, and Christine's father (I can't think of his name now either), who is a former mystery writer with a big secret that he is keeping from Christine, which has to do with why Rhoda is a bad seed, something inside of Christine that she passed down to her daughter.

There is a lot of controversy over the ending curtain call and the happy spank that Christine lays on Rhoda. I feel that the curtain call and spanking gives the audience a sese of relief since the movie is so disturbing.
I reccomend this movie to everyone that can handle a plot that is different and disturbing.
Don't blame Rhoda for her murderous acts. It isn't her falt, she is just a bad seed.

THE PERFECT LITTLE GIRL.....
Based on the famous Broadway play, "The Bad Seed" should be just fine on DVD. This chiller about the "perfect" Rhoda Penmark with her long blonde braids and cold, cold heart stars most of the play's cast---Patty McCormack as Rhoda, Nancy Kelly as her mother, Henry Jones as Leroy the apartment handyman and Eileen Heckart as the mother of one of Rhoda's schoolmates. While her pilot husband is away, Mrs.Penmark begins to suspect there's something wrong with her perfect little girl. You bet there is, she's a cold-blooded killer! As Rhoda's list of victims grows, so does her mother's terror as she begins piecing together the clues and facts. The film, shot in stark black & white, appears stagy but this works fine because it's all about the performances. They're brilliant. Mervyn LeRoy allows the characters to remain like they were on stage for maximum impact. The only complaint, Hollywood tacked on a dumb second ending to allow the characters their bows and to say "See? This was only a movie!" because in 1956 the subject matter (and original climax and ending) was quite shocking. But the film is still a classic of it's kind and very much a must see for those who havn't seen it. Watch for it.

a little blonde classic monster
I have seen this movie so many times, and it just keeps getting better as time goes by. Little Patty Mcormick is execlent as Rhoda Penmark and the chemistry she has with Nancy Kelley and Henery Jones is beyoned words. I get chills when I see the scene where she confronts Leroy about giving back her shoes!!!
Its about time this classic is comming out to DVD

A Basket Of Kisses.......
Over the years, there have been so many female villains, it's easy to lose track. Anne Baxter(ALL ABOUT EVE), Ann Blyth(MILDRED PIERCE), Joan Bennett(SCARLET STREET), Bette Davis(THE LITTLE FOXES to name one of many), Gene Tierney(LEAVE HER TO HEAVEN), the list goes on. But I think they all would have been more a little unnerved to get in the way of Rhoda Penmark. This movie is one that is so impish in it's own delight, it's impossible not to smile & go along for the ride. Originally a play, the film does tend to lose it's strength with all the psychobabble & it does occasionally get caught up in it's own pretentiousness, but fear not. For any & every minute that Rhoda(played to the absolute hilt by Patty McCormack)is on the screen, you BAD SEED virgins out there will wonder how this film is unknown to you.
Nancy Kelly delivers what would have to be one of the most over-the-top performances in the history of cinema as Rhoda's unsuspecting mother & Evelyn Varden's overbearing landlady, Monica, chews enough scenery to last a lifetime. But it's all about Rhoda. Evil, ruthless, determined, selfish, sweet, & yes, at times, loving. The sheer joy of watching this film is being secure in the knowledge that no matter how sweet this girl is to those around her, unlike us, & eventually her Mother, she's got them fooled.
Nancy Kelly was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar for her work here & both Miss McCormack & Eileen Eckhart(as the mother of one of Rhoda's victims)scored Supporting nods. Nobody makes films like this anymore..and why? Nobody could.......

The Play's the Thing!
The stage version of "The Bad Seed" was brilliant with an equally brilliant ending.
The movie is much too stagey, a bit too Broadwayesque in its presentation, that is, practically filming a stage show with all its limitations, including the stage-acting..a tad pompous. Except for Patty McCormack, the other characters should have been re-cast. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

I love john sayles
There I said it I love John Sayles...of course plutonically lol

This is a great lesbian film that understands emotions, though older and low budget the theme is timeless and so are the emotions...see this film it is a turning point in films about lesbians yes it is made by a guy but someone should make him an honorary lesbian...he "sees" us.

A classic treat
John Sayles understands women more than some women understand themselves...I do not know what it is..but he gets us...

This is an older movie dated but the emotions are fresh....see where lesbian themed films began ...Lianna is a treat...ranks up there with older classics like Killing of Sister George, Theresa and Isabelle...through Desert Hearts to modern classics like A Family Affair, Aimee and Jaguar and now The L Word

Top Notch Sayles Flick
Sayles understands women better than many women understand themselves. This is a classic lesbian flick at a time when lesbian films were rare or non- existent...sure it is dated a bit, but it is well worth the watching. This is a great film capturing emotions and a womens journey into her own sexuality. A Classic film, see it!

Putting in my 2 cents
I recently began to collect lesbian films and the truth is that it's not easy to find good ones. I ordered this film because the reviews that I read on it seemed very good, but honestly I was a little dissapointed (again). I felt that the characters in this film had very little chemistry between them. The kissing was terrible, and the sex scene was definately not very hot...a little believable chemistry would have been good. The films was made in the 80's which is another negative. The bar scene was terrible, I thought it would never end. Any way I'm no expert on films put I do know when a film moves me and this one certainly did not. Please be your own judge.

My favorite John Sayles film
This is my favorite John Sayles film (which, considering how i feel about Lone Star, says a lot). This has much to do with Linda Griffith's wonderful performance as the title character. Sayles says his intention was to explore a situation where husband and wife divorce and the husband gets custody of the kids. This, of course, means something has to be "wrong" with the wife. At the same time, he didn't want her problem to be too impairing. Alcoholism and heroin addiction were out, so he made her a lesbian. When you consider the 1983 this is way ahead of its time and holds up well, especially against current films like But I'm a cheerleader. Good stuff. ... Read more

Reviews (69)

Doesn't Play Well In Time
I liked this movie when it was first released to the theatres in the 1970s. I thought a revisit on DVD would bring back some of those fond memories, but, sadly, the film looks very dated.'

Forget the premise - it's pure enviro-fiction. Think about it for a minute: the planet earth has no more forests, trees, deserts - no wilderness left. We had to put all our critical environments in pods and orbit Jupiter with them (why Jupiter? why not orbit Earth?).

This very Asimovian premise falls on its face in light of science: since green plants give us the oxygen we need, a planet devoid of all green plants would be a dead planet - there would be no oxygen-breathing life on it.

OK. Let's say, though, that the radical environmental movement has succeesed in numbing your sense of reason - the film still fails in its scripting, which is needlessly whiny. Bruce Dern gives a rather egalitarian performance as the tree-hugger, which doesn't help to lend credibility to his cause.

Some of the effects still hold up, but overall the film has that shaky, matted look of cheesy 70s sci-fi (even STAR WARS has that look).

The most interesting thing about the DVD is the Special Features, and the documentaries on the making of the film. Once I finished with those, I had nothing more interesting to watch.

Great 1970s dystopic...
Like death and dying, there are several stages in evaluating "Silent Running" as a film. The first stage is whoa! great effects, unusual idea for a film made in the early 1970s. The second stage is the realization that you are being hit with some of the hardest propaganda since "Battleship Potempkin" or "Triumph of the Will". The final stage is nostalgia for such a ground-breaking movie with super special effects.

Bruce Dern is comfy in his role as a slowly-unraveling sociopath. What many don't realize is that the screenplay was written by a then-young Michael Cimino and Steven Bochco ("The Deer Hunter", "NYPD Blue". What's truly amazing is the use of mechanical (not visual) effects. If you've never been on an aircraft carrier, you'll believe that there is an American Airlines cargo freighter "Valley Forge". The details are wonderful: the corporate logos on the cargo pods, the technical manuals lying around, the overall believability of the wonderful drones, the background radio chatter from the other ships.

It's a shame Douglas Trumbull hasn't been more visible, this was a great effort.

A Bold Attempt with Fatal Touches
I must say I actually applauded Douglas Trumball for making this film, and upon it's release, it made an impact with audiences, but I never cared for it as entertainment or as serious science fiction. Today, the short-lived "ecology movement", green flags and all, is long gone, and this film is now is a seriously dated curio of it's time.

There are some terrific things to be said about this film... and there are some intelligent reviews of it that I agree with... however there are some fatal touches that make this a dated piece, and that make it difficult to watch today.

First of all, Bruce Dern's unappealing character is a stereotypical "hippie". He is a classic "passive-agressive" person... at one moment "loving and peaceful" and the next minute he is angry, pissed off, not in control of his emotions. He is certainly difficult for me to empathize with, since he reminds me of many "do-gooders" I have known who are unpredictable and untrustworthy and have a "hidden agenda" besides "peace and love". Dern plays this part to perfection, but its not something comfortable to watch for 2 hours. I have seen this film 2 or 3 times and each time I just wanted a chance to stuff something in his mouth to shut him up.

Secondly, the soundtrack of Joan Baez singing her folk tunes in space is just too limited for the scope of the visuals and destroys the impact of the powerful message the film tries to convey about "saving the planet". Her passive, slightly off-key and limited-ranged vocals do not marry well to the scenes of space, stars, planets and infinity. It does not work on any level... either then or now.

Finally, the most fatal flaw of this film is that as the plants begin to die... our hero panics and says he has no clue why. Forgetting about the space ship leaving the solar system and the gigantic glass domes leaving solar rays, he suddenly "realizes" that plants need SUN. What kind of ecological genius is this guy?

Well, the robots are clever and cute, the sets are impressive, the early scenes with the "friendly" plants are nice and the special effects are first rate for their day.... and we get to see Saturn's rings in the movies for the first time looking relatively authentic. It's certainly not as bad as a few reviewers have said, and sci-fi fans should see it, but there are far better sci-fi films out there.... and better ones that deal with the rape of our ecosystem.

Douglas Trumbull's Underappreciated SF Classic
On an overtechnologized and defoliated Earth of the future, the ecosystem has been carelessly destroyed by humans and the only remaining wilderness environs are grudgingly looked after by astronauts on massive domed spaceships. The vitamins, minerals, and such required to sustain human life can be easily synthesized in laboratories, so the folks on Earth are becoming increasingly apathetic about the need to sustain the circumgyrating greenhouses. When the inevitable order to scrap the project and destroy the orbiting flora and fauna finally comes through, Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern), the only astronaut in the project who truly cares about the plants and animals, violently rebels and places upon himself the responsibility of protecting the last vestiges of Earth's non-human life. But just how far will he go to ensure that he's successful in his self-imposed calling?

1972's SILENT RUNNING marks the directorial debut of FX wizard Douglas Trumbull, probably best known for his FX work on Stanley Kubrick's 1968 sci-fi epic 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY. Though the skeleton was given flesh by writers Deric Washburn , Michael Cimino, and Steven Bochco, the underlying structure of the plot is Trumbull's. In light of his work with Kubrick, it is interesting that Trumbull would come up with an idea such as that for SILENT RUNNING, as it makes it seem as if he felt that the only way he could demonstrate that he is more than just an FX man was to create a film that is the thematic opposite of the one featuring his best known FX work. Kubrik's opus tells a story that celebrates mankind's intellectual evolution and subsequent technological advancements, whereas Trumbull's brainchild embraces the ideals of 1960's counter-culture ecology movement and implies that technological advancement is conducted irresponsibly and consequently pollutes the environment and wrecks the Earth.

The plot of SILENT RUNNING is a bit slow at times, but the film is never dull or boring. And in the role of the good-intentioned but increasingly psychotic Lowell, Dern turns in one of his most intense and most memorable performances. Due to its anti-technology and pro-environmentalist theme, however, many critics have panned SILENT RUNNING as a '60s throwback in which Trumbull tries to milk emotions from the last vestiges of the pro-ecology hippies, often citing the fact that '60s folk singer Joan Baez performs some of the film's music as proof of their theory. But this is really an unfair evaluation. Environmentalist themes have been a long tradition in science fiction, with a future dystopia used to illustrate what might happen if present society continues being ecologically apathetic. And SILENT RUNNING isn't the only classic SF film from the '70s built around such a theme. Other SF films of the era also express concern about man's effect on nature--NO BLADE OF GRASS (1970), Z.P.G. (1972), SOYLENT GREEN (1973), and PROPHECY (1979) to name just a few. So it's more likely that Trumbull, a science-fiction fan himself, simply chose a traditional SF theme that appealed to his own ideals and tastes.

The DVD from Universal offers a good digital transfer of the film in anamorphic widescreen. Also included are some pretty cool bonus features, not the least of which are the original made-for-tv featurette on the making of the film and an interesting feature commentary with Trumbull and Dern. No true fans of SF will want to miss the opportunity to include this film in their DVD collections.

tell them all they love will die, tell them why, in the sun
I recently purchased this DVD, and viewed the film again after a break of many years.

There is little if anything of a critical nature that I could add to the excellent comments of darkgenius (see below). I did not see the character of Freeman Lowell as quite the fanatic that he did - which surprised me, because that *is* how I remembered him from my previous viewings, many years ago. If we lived in the ecologically monstrous era of the film, yet saw with the vision of a man of today (as Lowell does), I imagine many of us would exhibit more outrage than he does. In fact, I think the indifference of his co-workers astonishes - or perhaps appalls - me more than Lowell's personal involvement.

This is a very moving film. Evil is usually depicted in film in much more immediate and dramatic manifestations than one usually encounters in real life. CS Lewis has made the observation that all evil is ultimately banal. Indeed, true evil often passes before us completely unnoticed as such - in the civil servant who shows a bias for someone of her own race; in the policeman who gets joy out of bullying members of the public; in landlords and banks that use ignorance and intimidation to exact unwarranted concessions from a dispirited public; and so on.

In Silent Running, the last forests on Earth have been shot into space. There is no room for them anymore, but they are being preserved. Anyone of mature years knows how this kind of thing would come about in real life, and how it would end. It would come about because some political group wanted the forest land for some other purpose; and, not having the courage to simply destroy the forests openly -- perhaps not even wanting to do so, initially -- they suggest that this last great ecological heritage be preserved in space against the day when forests are again convenient. They might even weep, saying that the cost didn't matter because the forests were irreplaceable. And it would be done. But: "out of sight, out of mind." It would only be a few years before the expense of maintaining these forests in space would be deemed unjustifiable. And then the order to abandon them would come.

This is the way many societal evils actually come about. Silent Running shows us what depths of depravity are implicit in this common principle of human behavior.

The sorrow conveyed by this film is intensified by the representation of the victims as children. Lowell himself is naïve, thinking that recall and re-establishment of the forests is just around the corner. The drones are diminutive, awkward in their movements, and *trusting*; this last is demonstrated at a couple of points in the film, where it is evident that they are uncertain, look to Lowell for guidance, then go on about their tasks. Don't overlook the watering can. And there is the song, "Rejoice in the Sun," sung by Joan Baez.

We identify with these children. We feel the anguish of their loss as our own.

I venture to say that if you were to show this film to a group of your acquaintances, the ones who wept would prove the best friends. ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Confidently conceived and brilliantly executed, Gattaca had a somewhat low profile release in 1997, but audiences and critics hailed the film's originality. It's since been recognized as one of the most intelligent science fiction films of the 1990s. Writer-director Andrew Niccol, the talented New Zealander who also wrote the acclaimed Jim Carrey vehicle The Truman Show, depicts a near-future society in which one's personal and professional destiny is determined by one's genes. In this society, "Valids" (genetically engineered) qualify for positions at prestigious corporations, such as Gattaca, which grooms its most qualified employees for space exploration. "In-Valids" (naturally born), such as the film's protagonist, Vincent (Ethan Hawke), are deemed genetically flawed and subsequently fated to low-level occupations in a genetically caste society. With the help of a disabled "Valid" (Jude Law), Vincent subverts his society's social and biological barriers to pursue his dream of space travel; any random mistake--and an ongoing murder investigation at Gattaca--could reveal his plot. Part thriller, part futuristic drama and cautionary tale, Gattaca establishes its social structure so convincingly that the entire scenario is chillingly believable. With Uma Thurman as the woman who loves Vincent and identifies with his struggle, Gattaca is both stylish and smart, while Jude Law's performance lends the film a note of tragic and heartfelt humanity. In addition to a superb widescreen transfer, the DVD edition of Gattaca includes several deleted scenes (and one humorous outtake), which further establish the story's social context and provide additional insight into the scientific and ethical issues explored in this extraordinary film. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (277)

Brave New World II
Gattaca pleasantly surprised me as a thoughtful and rather worrisome view of the possible future instead of the special-effects-laden sci-fi movie I was expecting.

The story takes place at a time when genetic excellence is the yardstick by which individuals are measured. The ability to preselect genes among offspring and measure one's genetic potential through simple biological tests gives rise to a new form of discrimination that bars the genetically flawed protagonist, played by Ethan Hawke, from his lifelong goal of becoming an astronaut. Undaunted, he sets out to fool a genetic screening system and gain admission to the space program where he can pursue his dream. A scandalous incident at the space center (Gattaca) casts a scrutinizing light on each of the employees and threatens to expose his deception.

The details of this movie are clever and well thought out. The film has a graceful, almost poetic quality bolstered by a lush musical score. The acting is quite good all the way around. Ethan Hawke's fine performance certainly puts him on the map if he wasn't already there. Jude Law almost steals the show with his convincing portrayal of the broken golden child made miserable by his own misfortune but who comes to share in the dream of Ethan Hawke's character as he helps him outwit the system.

Gattaca shows us that lackluster natural potential coupled with unwavering desire and ambition can ultimately reach higher than mere genetic predisposition. Well worth seeing; four-and-a-half stars.

Celebrates the strength of spirit and desire
This is truly one of the most inspiring movies I've ever seen.

It's replete with symbolism: helix shaped stair cases, red and green lights indicating valid and invalid, the heart disease of Vincent (the natural born) as opposed to the lack of heart (spirit) of Jerome (the "superior", genetically engineered human), etc. The setting also makes use of connotations associated with the past. Slick hair styles, clothing, and sterile interior furnishings have an organized, repressed feeling evoking the controlled and prejudiced 1950's. This helps enhance the mood of lifeless surrender. Even the bald head of the geneticist at the beginning of the movie was a statement against the pursuit of perfection by means of perfecting the body and brain. Wealth of living is not found in the the physical plain, but in the spirit in which each day is lived.

Add to all this wounderful cinnematography, an unforgettable musical score, and fine acting that meld together into a fluid whole, and you've got a fantastic movie that repays many viewings.

Biology Lovers Unite and watch Gattaca
If you love Biology, especially genetics and DNA, this movie is for you. Gattaca combines a love story, with high-paced action, that is sure to get your adrenaline pumping. Gattaca will at first be confusing, but it will all make sense in the end, and it will be sure to make a place on the front of your DVD/VHS shelf.

Gattaca is an unforgettable warning
The best exploration of the possibility of genetically modified people becoming a separate social and economic class leaving behind and opressing those who are not genetically modified.

My favorite film
The word "Inspiring" is grossly overused in film reviews. Gattaca is one of the very few that genuinely deserves it. In a nutshell, it's the story of a mutt (Ethan Hawke) bypassing and surpassing a world that's designed against him. This movie really affected me (another overused appraisal.)

Maybe I just love this movie because I relate too much to the protaganist, Vincent. Despite everyones expectations, from my high school counseler on, and my lack of any prestigious schooling, I'll soon have my physics PhD.

This is a wonderful movie. That it didnt sweep the Oscars only validates the movies point. ... Read more

Reviews (15)

A BITTERSWEET AND TRAGIC COMING OF AGE FILM...
This film, which won an Academy Award for best Foreign Language Picture in 1971, is set in Ferrara, Italy. It begins in 1938 and focuses on the aristocratic jewish family, the Finzi-Continis, in particular, the progeny of that family, Micol (Dominique Sanda) and Alberto (Helmut Berger). These privileged two live in elegant splendor with their family, removed from the harshness of life outside the walls of their lushly beautiful estate, where the fascist regime of Il Duce is beginning its hellish collaboration with Hitler.

The Finzi-Continis family, secular jews at best, shut out the outside world, esconcing themselves amidst the trappings of wealth and privilege, cocooned in their idyllic estate, as if their wealth and position would hold the hostile world at bay. It is as if they believed that the hostility against Italian Jews would not directly touch them. Micol and Alberto even have Aryan good looks. So, what could go wrong?

Their childhood friend, Giorgio, however, is having a different experience. From a middle class, jewish family, he is more in touch with reality and is feeling the impact of virulent anti-semitism, as he finds himself ousted from the university and its library, on the brink of completing his university degree. His brother has left for Switzerland. His father is in denial, thinking that he should not worry about the small things, and that this is all a tempest in a teapot. He is hanging his hat on the premise that he is, after all, an Italian citizen.

As their world begins to crumble all around them, Giorgio tries to kindle a flame between himself and Micol, whom he has loved since childhood, but his love for her remains unrequited. She seems unable and unwilling to vest her emotions in a romance that is destined to be doomed, as the fates conspire to bring them to the same end that jews throughout Europe were meeting. It is this dance of love between them that anchors the movie, however, while the war plays itself out in the background. There comes a point, however, when even the Finzi-Continis are confronted with a reality far harsher than that which they had ever imagined.

The movie plays out the dichotomy of life found outside the walls of the gardens of the Finzi-Continis and that which is set within their beautiful and lush estate. Against a backdrop of Hitler worship and the fascist dictates of Mussolini, largely shown through newsreel footage, the film shows the positions that ordinary italian citizens took when confronted with the dictates of the racial laws that were imposed against the jews. Some went along willingly, carrying out its dictates, while others tried to help where and when they could. The war against the jews is finally brought right to the doorstep of the home of the Finzi-Continis, until it, too, crosses the threshhold and cruelly invades its idyllic environs.

This film is not an action movie but a slow, occassionally ponderous, film, providing much food for thought. Replete with symbolism, it is merely a peek into the lives of a small group of people. It is about how they dealt with living their lives in the shadow of the final solution, as the world that they knew radically changed, destroying their dreams. It is a harsh coming of age movie and not a film that everyone will enjoy. I found myself curiously twixt and tween in terms of how I felt about this somber film, accounting for the three star rating that I accorded it.

The DVD offers next to nothing by way of special features. It contains a brief filmography of some of the actors and not much else. This Italian language film has been remastered, and the subtitles are yellow, which provides more clarity and, consequently, makes for easier reading.

Bittersweet....
In "The Garden of the Finzi-Continis" (1970)--based on the autobiographical novel by Giorgio Bassani--legendary Neorealist filmmaker, Vittorio de Sica, dramatizes the human cost of the "racial laws" gradually implemented against the Jews in Fascist Italy during the years 1938-43. The more Bassani's young middle-class Jewish protagonist feels the brunt of Mussolini's anti-Semitic edicts encroaching upon him, the more he feels drawn to the aristocratic Jewish Finzi-Continis' estate--their Edenic "garden"--and to Micòl, the family's beautiful young daughter. Psychologically, this compulsion seems to stem from a deep emotional attachment to a perpetually innocent, untroubled state of childhood, which both Micòl and her garden seem to represent. Throughout the film, there is a marked conflict between childhood and adulthood, between the distant past and the immediate present, between the act of retreating into a world of comfortable illusions and confronting a world of harsh and bitter realities.

I found this particular aspect of the story very fascinating, although too tantalizingly obscure and open-ended--and thus, not quite as illuminating or fulfilling as it might have been were it more clearly explained. (This could the reason why some people find the film--and its heavily symbolic, impressionistic style--a little confusing and underwhelming.)

For Giorgio--both the naive hero and wisened author of the story--Micòl embodies the mystery and allure of the Finzi-Continis, as well as their insularity and their apparent passivity in the face of the escalating Fascist crackdown. She always appears distant and unattainable, with no obvious reasons for her actions, and never really provides a direct, comprehensible explanation for her insistent rejection of Giorgio or for what appears to be a subtle streak of cruelty towards him. Her conversation with him always seems deliberately vague, and her refusal to make any further connection with him has a curious, almost perverse kind of fatalism about it.

Again, this is another feature of the film that is certainly intriguing--and strangely seductive-- but, alas, never quite pays off enough to become fully understandable to either the protagonist or the audience.

When the Fascists finally do arrest the Finzi-Continis and confiscate their estate it comes as something of a surprise. The muted and deliberately spare representation of these characters and their feelings, as evidenced in their unusually restrained behavior, is meant to isolate and heighten the impact of a few devastating strokes of sudden realization and lucidity--pointed indications that the protective spell of the Finzi-Continis has been finally broken.

All in all, well-acted and gorgeously, languidly poetic in its imagery...yet, narrative-wise, the picture seems overly elliptical and ultimately opaque--and leaves just a few too many rough fragments and loose ends lingering at the end of the story (not quite Proustian irony, maybe?). In spite of this peculiar drawback, the film finishes very effectively, and by the final desolate shots, you are left with an unexpectedly intense feeling of loss and anguish.

"The Garden of the Finzi-Continis" is a very unusual and interesting (and thankfully, non-sentimental and non-self-important) addition to the ever-expanding canon of dramatic films about life in the shadow of the Holocaust.

Good show. I give this one four out of five stars.

The Politics of World War II Italy
This movie introduced to me a brand new character, the Jewish Italian hot blonde girl. Since she is also named Finzi Contini and the object of our hero's desire it couldn't have been a better idea. But it's not just an unrequited love film, but a movie set during World War II. An American film such as this would spend a great deal of time reminding you how horrible the Nazis were, but instead we get the nuance points of views like the anti-fascist handsome man that blonde Finzi Contini thinks is too Communist. We also get the fascist Hero of father that thinks that Italian fascism is superior to Nazism and will solve the world's problems. These kinds of perspectives are ignored in American film or marginalized, when we all know they existed during this time period.

I don't have to tell you what is going to happen in a film about Jewish Heroes when the Nazis are coming, you already know. Our hero loses his girl to the communist and then eventually to the holocaust. It would certainly register as one of the biggest coming of age bummers, and yet it didn't ruin the film. It somehow gave these lives even more importance.

Classic Film, Great Director, Great Cast, Great Story
Thank you Independent Film Channel for sending this one along just when I most needed a palate cleanser after suffering through CENTRAL STATION. It served as the perfect antidote to that bit of system churning mess. If you want to see a director in action who can actually get performers to "put out," and actually act their ###es off, try queueing this one up in your DVD player some evening.

Dominique Sanda earned her reputation off this film. She is the quintissentially complex heroine of the piece. Is she frigid, incestous, frightened, unable to love, passive-aggressive, or something else? We'll never know, but we will always wonder, thanks to fine script-writing, acting and directing. This is old school De Sica surehandedness at play in the fields of the lord here. Rent or buy this. It will never grow old, as it is a true classic.

BEK

A Haunting Tale of Lost Love and Liberty
This movie is just so beautifully done. It is not a hard or complicated plot to grasp but it is filmed with such, emotion. The visual style, the long moments of nature mixed with youth and fear of the upcoming future. This is the time of Fascism and the rich Jewish families are the next on the list to be sent to concentration camps. The most wealthy family in the town of Ferrara, Italy isolates with their friends, staying inside their garden. No more clubs, tennis matches, or balls, if anything is done it is done on their property with the people they chose to associate with. The love story is between Michol and Giorgio, childhood friends who never got any further than long wishful gazes. Michol finds that Giorgio is someone she loves more as a friend than a lover, Giorgio loves Michol so much and wants her to be his wife. He has a difficult time accepting Michol's decision and this is all wrapped around the dark and dreary time of Fascism. The garden symbolizes the past and the way of life that had once been. The story is about loss, loss of the life that the people in Ferrara once had and the loss of childhood love and the innocence that went with it. The camera work is just breathtaking as well as thought provoking.

Lisa Nary ... Read more

Reviews (416)

The League of Extrodinary Gentlemen
A horribly burned madman, known as the Phantom/Fantom, is making very powerful weapons, is creating a world war and worst of all, it's not even the 20th Century yet! To combat this Phantom of the Opera wacko, "M"(Richard Roxburgh) has recruited 7 literary characters, each with their own special abilities and talents, to stop this madman. This team, which includes the Hunter Allan Quartermain(Sean Connery), the Rouge Rodney Skinner aka Invisible Man(Tony Curran), the Scientist Captain Nemo(Naseeruddin Shah), the Vampire Mina Harker(Peta Wilson), the Immortal Dorian Gray(Stuart Townsend), the Spy Tom Sawyer(Shane West), and the Beast Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde(Jason Flemyng and ugly CGI). Together, they form the League of Extrodinary Gentlemen.

This looked like a really fun movie. But in the end, it could of been done better. Now, I'm not very familiar with the comic book so I don't know how true this is to the material, but this film's weakest points are the script, which is terribly silly and pointless, and the horrible special effects. The action scenes were clumsy and you don't find any big suprises out of this film.

The actors range from good to bad. Sean Connery's a great actor, but he's just not believable as Quartermain because of his age. He seems too old to be able to do the physical things he can. Tony Curran is never given a chance to make us like his character. Skinner's a jerk most of the time and going back and forth between an actor in makeup and CGI effects is tedious. Naseeruddin Shah, as Captain Nemo, is fun to watch, but his fighting abilities seem a little hard to swallow. He's one of the better characters in the film. Peta Wilson does a fine job as Mina Harker. Her character is one you're really able to like. Stuart Townsend is great as Dorian Gray. He pulls the role off very well and has some pretty good lines. Shane West is good enough to make us like Tom Sawyer. He's got some really cool moments. Jason Flemyng is perfect as Dr.Jekyll, though the Hyde character looks really stupid(Facial expressions and deformations all over him.)

Overall, I'd say see it at least once. You might like it, you might hate it. Decide for yourself.

OK for hard core Connery Fans only!
No matter how many average, weird, or downright awful movies Sean Connery makes, he'll always command an audience. In this film, Connery plays a retired British explorer roped into preventing WW I by leading a team of misfits in a vaguely Bondian adventurer. As a nice twist, most of the misfits consist of 19th Century British villains such as Mr. Hyde, the Invisible Man, and Captain Nemo. Of course, no one bothers to explain why such villains would agree to unite for any cause other than, well, villainy. The film is comic book-y in a bad way, with ridiculous dialogue and a poor sense of continuity, and the effects are frequently unintentionally funny, especially Mr. Hyde's appearance. Connery makes the film work as a throwaway action film, but it's clear from the extras that the cast and some of the crew were deluded into thinking this was something more. Not surprisingly, this movie plays much better on DVD than it did in the theaters. If you're a die-hard Connery fan, you'll like this one. If not, and you want to see Connery at his best, you'd be better off with Goldfinger.

not terrible - it's fun
You probably know that LXG has the Invisible Man, Alan Quatermain, Captain Nemo and company in it. You can read the good and bad reviews. I haven't anything to report other than that I enjoyed it and LXG doesn't deserve it's bad rep.

LXG is GREAT!
I love LXG! It's cartoony and action packed and has so many of my favorite fictional characters in it. Most importantly it's got Peta Wilson in a perfect role for her. Ultra-sexy Peta is one hot vampire chick! The reviewer who said she didn't do any vampire stuff must not have really seen the flick. She drinks human blood! What more do you want dude? She flies and turns into bats too! That's not vampire stuff? Stop smokin' and WATCH THE MOVIE!
Don't let bad reviews written by people who didn't see LXG turn you away. It may not be your thing or it might be. I had a ball watching LXG. Give it a go, have some fun with it, enjoy the characters, watch Peta do vampire stuff,.. and hell just watch Peta! She's HOT!

One very poorly polished turd...
Everyone I know who's seen this film, myself included, hated it!! It's an interesting concept, but none of the actors really shine here and the look of certain things, such as the ship, are totally overdone and stupid looking. You'd think a movie with a vampire chick in it would be good, but she doesn't do any vampire-like things. I appoligize if anyone "doesn't find this review helpful," but seriously, I TRIED trading this DVD in to a local DVD store and they turned me away. This is no lie, they had 17 used and unsold copies already. Please don't waste your time on this flick. ... Read more

Reviews (43)

Out of the era where craziness reined supreame
Out of the late 70s and through the earliy eighties came some of the greatest comedies that man kind has ever known. Amoung them the Sequel to Airplane. A satire film dedicated to mocking disaster films (like Airport), and in this case, space disasters as the cast and crew are off to the first settlement on the moon when a sabature reeks havick on the computer system. The computer goes hayware and once again Stryker must save the day. Although the plot of this movie is pretty much the same as the first there is a slugh of new gags, plus some old ones revisited that makes this movie a great companion to the original. Like the first the movie is filled with many-a-hillarious moments that will keep just about anyone laughing. There are a few time sensative gags that some might not understand if they were not around for that era, but not as many as the original or other movies from this era. I was very happy when I got this DVD. However a warning to parents: although this movie is rated PG it does feature some brief nudity and a lot of PG-13 level jokes. This movie is not appropriate for children despite its PG rating.

Lack of New Material Lets it Down
Two years after the hilariously funny, and new comic styled original came the sequel (inevitably I suppose) and sadly was nowhere near its predecessor in comedy or durability. Perhaps the lack of the Zucker team at the helm helped steer this vessel on to the rocks, as it certainly dived at the box office pretty rapidly. Don't get me wrong, this is still funny, but is really only a reworking of the original movie, only this time using a Space Shuttle as the doomed aircraft. The main characters are all back to reprise their roles with the addition of William Shatner (who's presence and role are one of the high points of the movie), but unfortunately the director just went with the same formula, and the lack of fresh material, makes the movie lumber. Fans of the genre will no doubt find plenty here to keep themselves amused, and the budget price means that your home collection can be completed quite inexpensively if you have the original, but otherwise this is a bit of a let down. I desperately wanted to give more but 3 stars is a stretch.

Nowhere Near As Good As The Original, But It's Still Funny!!
The redundantly-titled (on purpose, of course) AIRPLANE 2 - THE SEQUEL (1982) follows the rapid-fire, gag-a-second style of the original AIRPLANE! (1980) so well that, although it doesn't come close to matching the original for laughs, it's amazing that it was made without any input at all from the ZAZ boys (Jerry Zucker-Jim Abrahams-David Zucker) whatsoever---no writing, no directing, nada! It was in fact written and directed by just one man: none other than Ken Finkleman. I know, you're probably asking, Ken Who? Well, it seems that good ol' Ken is rather famous---more like *infamous*---for two mega-bombs of the '80's: GREASE 2 (made the same year, actually---1982) and WHO'S THAT GIRL? (1987). The fact that he took a beloved comedy that was still fresh in the minds of the audience members and dared to follow it up with his own vision, and made it this funny, is just amazing. (Now, if he only could have done that good a job with GREASE 2...)

Of course, AIRPLANE 2 - THE SEQUEL couldn't live up to the lofty expectations set by its predecessor, but that's okay, as there are some big-league laughs here. Robert Hays returns as the stone-faced, hilariously serious Ted Striker as he tries to prevent disaster on the First Passenger Space Shuttle To The Moon. Along for the ride, literally, are Julie Hagerty as Elaine, the flight attendant and Striker's ongoing love interest from the first film. Also making a return is (believe it or not) Lloyd Bridges as old Steven McCrosky (who must've picked a bad time to start guiding space shuttles), and Peter Graves as Capt. Clarence Oveur (thankfully, little Johnny didn't board this flight). Too bad Dr. Rumack (Leslie Nielsen) didn't come back for this trip; however, joining the crew in AIRPLANE 2 - THE SEQUEL are Chuck Connors as The Sarge, Raymond Burr as Judge D.C. Simonton, and William Shatner as Commander Buck Murdock. Shatner steals the show and gives what is easily the funniest performance in this film. Unless you've never seen Star Trek, you're bound to get the endless jokes!

In short, this is a really short movie. At only 85 minutes, with at least five of those minutes showing flashbacks to the first AIRPLANE!, this sequel doesn't give us very much. However, it still gives us plenty of hilarious moments, such as what happens at the end of a line of people, each one exclaiming "Striker," "Striker," "Striker...!" Also, it gives us Sonny Bono as the villain---c'mon, you can't possibly hate a movie that does that---plus, we get brilliant cameos by Rip Torn, Hervé Villechaize, and James Noble (the Governor on the TV show "Benson" for those who don't recall the name). Not only that, but David Leisure is back! (Although, instead of playing "First Hare Krishna" he's playing "Religious Zealot #1.")

Listen, I wouldn't recommend spending the proverbial arm & a leg on this DVD, especially because, like its predecessor, it offers absolutely nothing in the way of extras. But, at the price for which it's being offered on Amazon, I'd say that it's well worth it.

RECOMMENDED
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR FANS OF AIRPLANE!

Not Anywhere Near The Original
Let me start off by saying I loved the first Airplane and consider it to be the best comedy ever. So I'm not a hater of the genre. When I first saw Airplane about two years ago I laughed until I cried. Just days after seeing it I was in an electronic store and saw Airplane 2 on DVD. Assuming it was made by the guys that made the original I bought it, oh how wrong I was. This is nothing but a sad attempt to copy the success of the original. Paramount asked the Zuckers and Jim Abrahams to do the sequel, when they declined saying there's not enough jokes left to do a sequel Paramount just hired some other guy to do it. The result, Airplane 2 crashes and burns.

Warning: There's Something Missing...
I won't waste time with complimenting or insulting this movie. I love it...just not as much as the origional. What really bothered me was the absence of several scenes. I kept having the funny feeling that I was missing something (I hadn't seen the movie in 10 years) and then it dawned on me. After the credits we see "Airplane III" and then it shows William Shatner say, "That's just what they'll be expecting us to do.". I had scene this snippet in a scene years ago when I watched Airplane II.

I then realized that some very funny stuff had been left out of the movie. The origional or even TV version had several more scenes that were simply deleted in the DVD version. I'm guessing maybe 10 to 15 minutes are missing. I can't even begin to comprehend why these scenes were deleted. We're obviously not worried about time constraints on a DVD.

I am very disappointed with this version simply because of the deleted material. I really enjoy this movie, but would have enjoyed it a lot more had the whole movie been included. Perhaps they should sell it with a warning stating that you're not receiving what you expect. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Frenchman Jean Valjean (Liam Neeson), imprisoned for stealing bread, is paroled after nearly two decades of hard labor. A gift of silver candlesticks from a kindly priest helps him begin anew. Forging a decent and profitable existence, he finds success as a businessman and as the mayor of a small town. He even takes in a pregnant young woman (Uma Thurman) and raises her daughter as his own. When a former prison guard (Geoffrey Rush) recognizes Valjean, his past catches up to him. Director Bille August culls mesmerizing performances from his cast, but loses us with an ending that panders to teen audiences. The focus shifts dramatically, and uncomfortably, from the haunted Neeson and his hawk-like pursuer, to his daughter (Claire Danes) and her romance with a handsome revolutionary. After this narrative shift, the script leaves behind the Victor Hugo classic's themes of revenge and redemption to focus improbably on teen angst--hardly what Hugo had on his mind. --Rochelle O'Gorman ... Read more

Reviews (160)

Absolutely beautiful!
I had never read the book, but had heard of the story numerous times. I'm a huge Liam Neeson fan, so I wanted to see it. I've now watched it six times! It is a wonderful story! Plenty of things going on to keep you waiting to see what will happen next. The characters are so real! You can't help but love and respect Valjean and all the changes he goes through. If only we could all learn from our mistakes as he does! To love a woman so much in so short a time to consent to raise and love her daughter as his own! Oh! Claire Danes is adorable as Cosette (of course!) And Marius - well lets just say it would be entirely possible to fall in love with him at first sight! The passion in his eyes when he speaks to her is enough alone! As I said, I hadn't read the book, so I had no idea what would happen to them and their newfound love. How stressful! I won't spoil it by saying what happens in the end, but let's just say it is well worth the watch! I have told all of my friends and family to get this movie! I have since read the book and am now saving my own copy of the letters Marius wrote to Cosette. If only men these days spoke of love in those words! I promise you, you will love this movie!

A Terrible Adaptation
This is a good movie. I mean, not badly cast. Lovingly done. The acting is great. Yeah, you should enjoy it. Assuming you know absolutely nothing about Victor Hugo's original story. The truth is, if I didn't know better, I'd say whoever wrote the script never read Hugo's masterpiece and based it completely on the 1935 version. Come to think of it, I don't know better. That's probably exactly what happened.

I never thought I'd say this, but I am so glad Hugo didn't have to live to see this movie.

If you've read the book, you will hate this film. TRUST me. The plot, especially toward the end, is mercilessly butchered and rewritten. At some points it becomes utterly unrecognizable. Many of the revisions completely miss or even destroy the essence of characters, and some do not even make sense, the movie ending with Jean Valjean jubilant over the death of Javet, whose life he has made an enormous sacrifice to save.

Likewise, Javert would never attack Cosette; he was obsessively professional, not cruel. Nor would end his life (with minimal explanation, no less) in front of Valjean. Marius would NEVER act like Enjolras (oh, I forgot, there IS no Enjolras). Neither Marius NOR Enjolras would smile at remarks about making love to Cosette, so I find it hard to believe that some mutant hybrid Marjolras would. Cosette would never consider leaving Marius, her soulmate, to stay with Valjean, her adoptive father. And above all, Jean Valjean would NEVER, EVER fall in love with Fantine. The mere suggestion of this limits the portrayal of his charity to people he takes a special interest in.

Small variations are to be expected in any film adaptation of a book, but these all completely distort characters. The people who made this movie may have gotten the message (love, charity, etc.), but they missed the point.

If you've never read the book, see this movie. It is touching and carries a good message.

But it is not Les Misérables.

Great movie, but.....
Great movie, but the book was better...The movie is about the ex-convict, Jean Valjean, trying to help Fantine, a poor woman trying to make enough money to pay the Thenardiers to take care of her child Cosette, and later raising Cosette as his own, while also being persued by the persistant Inspector Javert.

What happens in the movie basically happens in the book as well, but the book also has much more going on. The book has an intricate connection between many of the characters that the movie doesn't have, and also focuses on much more than Jean Valjean, whom the movie mostly focuses on.

I would suggest reading the book first, and then watching the movie.

An enjoyable classic!
I can't judge this movie fairly. I have read the book and watched the musical, both live and on DVD. So, naturally, I will be making subconscious comparisons, even though we all know that movies generally undertake their own artistic direction.

For one, although some people have claimed the storyline to be jumpy, I thought it was rather smooth-flowing, possibly because I already know the story beforehand. Although changes were made to the original story, for example, Valjean admitting to Cosette that he is a convict when he only did so before he died in the end, and Cosette remembering that Valjean is not her father when it was originally intended for her to believe that he was her real father, these changes were probably made to accommodate the short play time (2 hours is barely enough to fit in a 1484-pages story).

Liam Neeson portrayed Valjean to be exactly the way Hugo would have intended Valjean to be. In the beginning, he was a hard, animalistic beast of a man. But Neeson is able to morph into the gentle Mayor with ease, and that highlights Valjean's transformation. Geoffrey Rush is brilliant as Javert. Never was there anyone more suited to play the cold, sadistic inspector. Uma Thurman is surprisingly convincing as Fantine. I had begun to stereotype her as the sort of action-thriller-sci-fi flick girl but this proved me wrong. Watch this movie for these three actors alone, for they bring class to your living room.

What I didn't like about the movie was the lack of development on the revolution. Hugo was a revolutionary. He wanted Les Mis to ignite the people's spirits. The revolution was a crucial scene, and the death of the revolutionaries a touching one. Through this movie, I can barely recognize which ones are Enjolras, Courfeyrac, Feuilly etc and yet the character names appear on the credit roll in the end.

The change of the ending (with Valjean walking free) did not leave much of an impact on me compared with the original ending. I loved the last page of Hugo's novel, where Cosette read Valjean's letter. Valjean had a tragic life. He was one of the Les Miserables, the underdogs, the wretched. For me, they had distorted the true message of Les Mis by changing the ending of the wonderful classic.

i didnt like it
I seen this Movie in English. and i didnt like it at all. i found it boring and the guyz hittin faintain and it isnt right. my friends and i didnt like it at all. it had a story... buh it was kind of jumpy. we only watched the first part, i would like to see the second part just to see how it all ends and everything. but to be honest i didnt like the movie at all. i am a grade 9 student and i dont think i know anyone who likes the movie. other then the teacher (maybe) ... Read more

Amazon.com

Hoo-hah! After seven Oscar nominations for his outstanding work in films such as The Godfather, Serpico, and Dog Day Afternoon, it's ironic that Al Pacino finally won the Oscar for his grandstanding lead performance in this 1992 crowd pleaser. As the blind, blunt, and ultimately benevolent retired Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, Pacino is both hammy and compelling, simultaneously subtle and grandly over-the-top when defending his new assistant and prep school student Charlie (Chris O'Donnell) at a disciplinary hearing. While the subplot involving Charlie's prep-school crisis plays like a sequel to Dead Poets Society, Pacino's adventurous escapades in New York City provide comic relief, rich character development, and a memorable supporting role for Gabrielle Anwar as the young woman who accepts the colonel's invitation to dance the tango. Scent of a Woman is a remake of the 1972 Italian film Profumo di donna. In addition to Pacino's award, the picture garnered Oscar nominations for director Martin Brest and for screenwriter Bo Goldman. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (73)

By far my favorite movie
When I first heard of this movie, I had no clue what it was about. My friend and I saw a teaser poster with Al Pacino and Gabrielle Anwar dancing the tango labeled "Scent of a Woman". Putting two and two together, we went into the theater thinking we were watching a love story until the movie starte