Amazon.com

When prissy, prickly Sylvia Stickles (Tracey Ullman) suffers a head injury during a traffic altercation, she's, er, revived by self-appointed sexual missionary Ray-Ray Perkins (Johnny Knoxville) and is transformed into an insatiable, take-no-prisoners sex maniac. Yes, it's a John Waters film. Yes, it's filthy. No, it's not as hilarious and sustained as you'd like it to be. It works for a while, though: Ullman, never a stingy comedienne, does everything Waters dares her to do without hesitation; words cannot describe the perversely sporting delight with which she mounts a water bottle during a round of "The Hokey Pokey" at an old folks' home. And there's some fun to be had when Sylvia's emancipation leads her Baltimore 'burb to new heights of ecstasy, freeing her large-breasted daughter Caprice (Selma Blair) while horrifying husband Vaughn (Chris Isaak) and her hardline mother Big Ethel (Suzanne Shepherd, hysterical) in the process. It's also packed with the standard cameos, the most satisfying of which is good old Patty Hearst at a Sex Addicts Anonymous encounter. But, for all the nasty, necessary glee, the movie feels inescapably been-there-done-that, and you can't help but wish this was 1972 and Divine was on hand to prowl for dog droppings. The most shocking thing about A Dirty Shame is how desperate and tiresome its anarchy becomes.--Steve Wiecking ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Worth a watch
Something tells me John Waters only referenced the Bear community to have the community watch it and then show it as more bizarre than it already is.It sure got guys in my metro to pack the indy cinemas!

Back to true form!
Being an extra on this hysterical film was a true barrel of monkeys. Receiving direction from one of the most notorious cult directors of all-time was quite an experience. A Dirty Shame is yet another twisted Waters' installment from his brilliant and unbelievably retarded mind. Sex addicts run rampant in Hamilton,
a NE Baltimore neighborhood and Johnny Knoxville is the ringleader. This film addresses such sexual fetishes never before spoke of in any previous film. Of course John's most recent films lack the angst of his 70's films, but the fact is
that was nearly 30 years ago and him and his entourage are way past the age of youth rebellion. This is clearly the most outrageous film Mr. Waters' has made since Desperate Living in 1977. Anyone who has been wise to his 70's films will absolutely
enjoy this picture. Folks who are ignorant to Waters' pictures
or those who have never seen one should not see this film without first viewing at least Pink Flamingos(1972) or Female Trouble(1974). A Waters' film you view because OF HIS name. NOT the stars. He is the puppeteer, and they are his marionettes. His recent tango with mainstream cinema and theatre is all well and good but this film proves once again what John Waters' is and will always be.
A Renegade...

I f**kin loved it!
A Dirty Shame is a must see and must own film. I loved it. Would make a great gift.Anyone who doesn't like it is a neuter.Watch it with uptight people!

Weak even for Waters
I love a lot of John Waters' movies, but this was a major disappointment.A lot of this is over the top, but it doesn't really work like "over the top" did in his earlier films.It has one hilarious scene, and the rest is just sub-par material.It mostly comes off as corny, even when you "get" the John Waters style of overacting.

Decent Film From Water's POST Divine Era!
A Dirty Shame is a pretty good film. It has it's classic John Water's one liners that could only come from the master himself which make me laugh hysterically. It's John Water's getting back to the basics--post Divine, that is. I separate John's films in 2 catagories: The Divine Years and The Post Divine Years. Let's face it, there will NEVER be another Divine in this lifetime nor will there ever be a John Water's Film that comes remotely close to the Divine Days. So JW fans have to deal with that reality. Of the Divine Years John Water's films, my all time Favorite is FEMALE TROUBLE. Followed by DESPERATE LIVING (which did not include Divine as she was working on another project at the time), POLYESTER, PINK FLAMINGOS, HAIRSPRAY, and MULTIPLE MANIACS. Then we cross over to the Post Divine Years. These films still have the John Waters edge, but not as heavily grotesque and vulgar as in the Divine years. These films include my all time favorite SERIAL MOM, PECKER, A DIRTY SHAME, CECIL B. DEMENTED, and my least favorite-CRY BABY (this film, if any, is the most detached from JW film--the only scene that shows a hint that its JW is the court room scene when Mink Stole is wheeled in in an iron lung smoking a cigarette. The dialogue there is hysterical.)

My suggestion is that if you're a John Water's fan and have seen one or more of his films Divine or Post Divine, then you'll appreciate this movie. In addition, you'll know why Patricia Hearst amoung other actors appears in this film. The reason I say this is because someone who NEVER saw a JW film wrote a review on A Dirty Shame and asked why the [...] Patricia Hearst is in the film? HELLO---she's been in EVERY JW FILM FROM HAIRSPRAY TO PRESENT!! But if you've never seen a JW film or know his antics you obviously won't relate!

GO SEE IT! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Critics were ruthless when Give My Regards to Broad Street was released in 1984, but the passing years have turned it into an offbeat curio from Paul McCartney's post-Wings era. The ex-Beatle was roundly panned for scripting this empty-headed vanity project, and it still qualifies as a mistake of sorts, dubiously combining new performances of Beatles classics with a few Wings hits and tracks from McCartney's popular 1982 solo album Tug of War. Most of these songs are performed as semi-lavish, blandly filmed production numbers ("Silly Love Songs" comes off like an embarrassing mix of Michael Jackson's Thriller and a Flock of Seagulls reunion), and the whole movie reeks of cheesy early-'80s New Wave/MTV influence, even in the casting of Tracey Ullman as a leather-clad Londoner with streaks of red hair dye.

The "plot" is entirely dispensable, consisting of "24 hours in the life of a rock star," in which Paul has until midnight to find the missing master tapes of his latest album, or lose his entire music empire to a slimy corporate takeover. (Parallels to Macca's loss of Beatle music rights to Michael Jackson are fascinating to consider.) It's all an excuse for a rambling, amiable mess of a movie, with slim supporting roles for Ringo Starr (who admirably refused to participate in re-recording the Beatles hits), his wife Barbara Bach, Linda McCartney, and, most inexplicably, Sir Ralph Richardson in one of many throwaway fantasy sequences. Critic Roger Ebert rightly called Broad Street "about as close as you can get to a non-movie" (which might explain why director Peter Webb never made another film), but the music's still good (look closely for Dave Edmunds and former Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones), and we'd sure like a spin in Sir Paul's groovy vintage hot-rod. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (43)

It's all perspective....
What you want out of the film might affect what you expect. This is a fun film. It's like a long music video. No More Lonely Nights,Not Such A Bad Boy, and No Values are 3 good new songs put on here. Some people feel it is a sacrilige for Paul to have re-worked Beatles tunes, but it at least offers an interesting twist. And oh, yeah, Paul was tyring to have some fun with the film. It seems some reviewers (see review below) are being way too serious and biased against Paul. To some "music fans" he can do no right. Not every project is genius, but Beatles fans can find fault with all solo Beatles material. None of them is a "saint", and all have their flaws.

This film would do nice with a DVD release with some extras. After all Shanghai Surprise (George's 1986 film) and Caveman (Ringo's 1981 film) are both on DVD and did not fare well commercially, either.

Enjoy this film as a music video with a thin plot. To me, it is a nice small film that deserves to be re-released. And if Paul would only do a video collection spanning 1970-Present onto DVD....

The film is very interesting!!!
Paul is a genius and the man that composed the essential and style of Beatles's music. The Sargent Pepper album was an idea of Paul and it's more important songs belongs Paul. Macca was the best of the Beatles. This film is not a masterpiece BUT is an interesting film that show us the concept, the idea to make movie in a basic format with sweets songs. The songs are very beautiful and the performer of YESTERDAY is the best version solo than I heard it. "Bad boy" is a deliciuos song and "No more lonely nights" is a imponent song. I think that when the most important composer and singer of the Rock/Pop's History like Paul McCartney gives his ilusion and work like this film WE must to be happy and glad. THANKS SIR PAUL!!!!

Fantastic Movie for Any True Beatles Fan!
While nobody should be fooled into believing that this is a real movie with a real storyline to begin with, viewers should realize from the get-go that this is nothing more than a MUSICAL...meaning that it was made to feature Paul Mac's absolutely great & awesome music, and nothing more!!! SO, that being said...the self-appointed experts and movie "critiques" should realize this before they go bashing such a flik!!! Obviously, to the non-Beatles or McCartney fans searching for a "real" movie, this would be a "HORRIBLE" film! But to those who truly love and appreciate Beatles' and McCartney's music, (hey! nobody can say that their previous movies had fine plots either!), this film is just one more "gift" to all us hard-core Beatlemaniacs out there, to chrish and remember for the rest of our lives, just like the other half-dozen or so musicals that the Fab Four left us....

Absolutly out of this world!
I loved this movie in fact I had to buy two VHS movies of this great film because I didn't want to wear the other out and find that the movie wouldn't be available! I just can't stop watching it. This movie is my number one choice among my Beatles collection, next to A Hard Days Night, Help, and The Magical Mystery Tour. I recommend this show to all that like Paul McCartney or The Beatles. I also think that this movie has gotten a really bad rap for being a bad show, for there wasn't enough of Paul's old songs on it, I think that there is just the right amount of music. The criticts are wrong about this movie, dead wrong. I am sorry that because of the rap this show got Paul McCartney doesn't do more movie scripts and act a little more, he is so good at it. This is the best movie I have seen since The Magical Mystery Tour!

Glad to have it on DVD
It ain't the best movie ever made, but it ain't the worst.

Two big mistakes McCartney made with this project: 1) re-recording old songs (including a half-dozen Beatle tunes), instead of writing all new material (only three new songs were used) 2) writing the screenplay himself, instead of hiring an experienced screenwriter to flesh out his idea.

I can't think of a reason why a non-McCartney fan would want to watch this. If you are a fan, then there's worse ways to spend a couple hours. But really, it's hard to say anything specifically good about this movie. It's hard for me to believe that Macca never realized that the story was so under-developed and unimaginative. For such a creative person, he seems to have set out write the most boring story he could. That's why I consider it a mistake to use old songs-- he could've at least let the movie coast along on the strength of all new material.

I didn't see this in theaters 20 years ago. I can understand why people were so dissapointed. While there's nothing special about the film, it is far from the biggest disaster ever committed to celluloid. ... Read more

Amazon.com

One of Woody Allen's best films of the '90s, Bullets over Broadway stars John Cusack as a virtual Woody surrogate, a neurotic, Jazz Age writer whose new play sounds wooden and unrealistic to a low-level mobster (Chazz Palminteri) assigned to watch over his boss's actress-girlfriend (Jennifer Tilly). When the hood starts contributing better story ideas and dialogue than what the official playwright can conjure, questions (not unlike those of Amadeus) about the price we pay to make art at the expense of other responsibilities are intriguingly raised. Palminteri gives a very interesting performance as the enforcer waking up to the desperate (and almost feminine) demands of his own creative psyche, and Dianne Wiest (who won an Oscar), Tracey Ullman, Jim Broadbent, and Jennifer Tilly are very funny together playing the ensemble cast of Cusack's play. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (26)

Don't speak, just laugh!
Oh Woody, Woody, Woody. When he is funny, he is one of the best comic writers around, and in this movie his writing is hilarious. What other auteur in the cinema today can poke fun at those little idiosyncracies that we all see in ourselves, and get away with it?
Our hero, in a rare departure is not played by Woody Allen but rather, John Cusack, who gives a subtle performance, rather than the over-the-top pisstake by Kenneth Branagh in "Celebrity". He is trying to get his latest play staged, and can only do so by accepting money from the Mob and having a mobster's girlfriend, with no talent, take one of his lead roles. The humour that ensues centres around each of the plays characters, from the fading diva played by Dianne Wiest to the compulsive eater played by the magnificent Jim Broadbent, as they prepare for the play's debut on Broadway. All the performances are spot on and the only criticism comes in the ham-fisted fashion that the film concludes with a mobsters shootout and its all too happy ending.
Nevertheless this is well worth watching to hear great comic lines and the splendid cast who deliver them.

Pure hilarity
As a die hard Woody Allen fan, I can honestly state that this is one of his best efforts. The characters are so incredibly good (dare I say delicious?) and the actors who bring them to life are equally exquisite. From Dianne Wiest ("Don't speak...Don't speak") to Jennifer Tilly ("Hey, Venus, where's that hooch?") to Chaz Palmentieri("You don't write the way people talk")to John Cusack ("I think I'll go now and get the psychiatric help I need"). The rest of the cast is equally marvelous, especially Tracey Ullman. She really is nothing short of brilliant in everything she does. This movie is just a delight throughout. It is truly droll and clever, never once loosing it's intelligence. The attention to detail is admirable, so much so that the film seemingly leaps out at you from the screen. I've seen this film more times than I care to mention and each time I find myself enjoying it more. Only Woody Allen could have devised such an ironic plot twist. He is, without question, the O. Henry of the cinema. One final note: No one, and I mean no one, can make New York seem more fabulous and intoxicating than Mr. Allen. All his films are love letters to this the greatest of American cities. This is to the person who accused Woody Allen of preaching through the Rob Reiner character: Give me a major break. He was spoofing the tendency of some over-indulgent artists to dramatize and take himself too seriously. Sometimes a cigar, my friend, is just a cigar. Don't read so much into things. It can sometimes get you into trouble.

Funny, funny, funny!!
And funny. Great casting, great script, funny dialogue and good directing. The wonderful thing about this whole flick -- Woody Allen decided NOT to be in it. One of his better decisions he's made in years. (Thanks for giving us a break and breather from your repeatible and stale roles Woody!) Don't miss this little-known gem.

Were they trying to make a movie that makes no sense?
I'm not stupid, but this movie made no sense whatsoever. I didn't understand one bit of the boring, mindless conversations, characters, their purpose, etc. And a plot..? Don't even ask. This "sophisticated" comedy (where they got comedy I'll never know as this wasn't the least bit funny) was dull, shallow entertainment. The theme I got out of this movie was "You're not always who you think you are." A theme that could have easily been told in half the time it took this long, dragged out film. Don't believe what the critics say about this. Siskel and Ebert rated it two thumbs up but what do they know? They gave Gosford Park (warning: stay away) the same rating (Actually, that last one was Ebert and Roeper, but they're basically the same). Take my advice and rent something that wasn't directed by Woody Allen. Every one of his movies I've had the nerve to sit through entirely (without falling asleep or turning it off), have been a complete waste of my time. I kept waiting for the ending thinking (and hoping) it would make the movie. It didn't. Those who enjoyed this movie obviously classify it as a work of art much like Shakespeare: boring, but a masterpiece nonetheless. The only reason to watch this movie (by renting it, NOT buying it) is to see the always brilliant Diane Weist in her Oscar-winning performance.

decent
this movie was enjoyable, but not the best woody allen i've seen. ... Read more

Description

Joey works with Rosalie in their pizza parlor. She is convinced that he works all of the time for them and her world dissolves when she finds that he has been fooling around for years. So she, her mother and her best friend decide to kill him. Hopelessly incompetent as killers, they hire incompetent professionals as they beat, poison, and shoot Joey who remains oblivious to their attempts.An ensemble cast starring Academy Award® winner Kevin Kline,Tracey Ullman, Academy Award® winner Joan Plowright, River Phoenix, Academy Award® winner William Hurt, and Keanu Reeves. ... Read more

Reviews (20)

True love just won't die ¿ no matter how hard you try!
Watch this with someone who knows you well enough to appreciate that awful, embarrassing snort-laugh you have when you can't catch your breath. This movie has put a nice twist on the jealous wife who wants to murder her cheating husband. Who'd think it could be funny! The characters aren't polite or glossy, they're down-to-earth and hilariously direct. Watching these actors chew up the scenery is a treat. Tracy Ulman really does nearly love Kevin Kline to death, enthusiastically assisted by loved ones Joan Plowright and River Phoenix and two hopelessly high hit men, William Hurt and Keanu Reeves, who can't (and never will) get it right. Everyone concerned does a terrific job and you may just find yourself liking these unlikely but endearing characters. Just like Joey and Rosalee, there's no accounting for what you love-you just do.

Far Under-Rated Comedy..
I saw this movie shortly after it's release on HBO in the earliy '90s. It has a full fledge cast that just make it superb to watch. Kevin Kline as Joey the Pizzaria Owner, who just can't get enough women, and is soo fun loving. Tracy Ullman plays his wife Rosalee, who loves her husband soo much, she would rather kill him than share him with any other woman. Joan Plowright plays Rosalee's Mother, who has a nack for mechanical work and it's nothing for her to be working on a carbortor at the Dinner Table at a restaraunt while the family is dinnig out. River Phoenix plays the boy who works at the Pizzaria, and is deeply in love with Rosalee, so much so,that he is willing to aid her in knocking off her husband, only after the futile attempts from Rosalee and her Mom. After he fails, they call in a couple of bargin basement junkies,(William Hurt & Keanu Reeves) from the local tavern to finish the job, but even they can't seem to pull it off. It's just one good laugh after another. I wore out my VHS Tape and then got the Laser Disc. I was happy to discover that it has been released on DVD!

Also, I believe that this is based on a true story as well!!

SITCOM-STYLE COMEDY OF MISADVENTURES WITH APPEALING CAMEOS..
I take off one star for the somewhat slight theme based on the true but quaint counter-intuitive romance of a couple whose marriage was revitalized after the wife almost succeeded in murdering her husband.

But it comes with some brilliant cameos from some big names: Kline as an Italian pizza shop owner, William Hurt and Keanu Reeves as spaced out druggies, Plowright a staunch mother with a thick Yugoslavian accent and extremely funny, and an absolutely pivotal wife's role played by Ulman, who finds the stubborn vindictiveness inside her character, sunny and trusting one moment and unforgiving and brutal the next.

It's not an astounding comedy and some gags are hit-and-miss, but as a saving grace the film is well-paced. The DVD I got features trailers for three other movies (go figure) but I still recommend this one as a decent rental.

Yes, I Love You All to Death!
There are some films of which you should never be critical on details but should just sit back and enjoy what the film gives you. gI Love You to Deathh is the best one of such kind. Oh, yes, having watched it for many, many times, it never fails to give me fresh bliss every time I watch it!

Why this film is so excellent is obvious: it has a shiny set of brilliant, extraordinary and adorable characters that are played by the gorgeous-like-chandelier actors. My personal favorite of all these stars is, of course, Marlon, the a-bit-moronic-but-lovable drug addict turned gtoo-sweet-to-killh killer, played by Keanu Reeves with drastic hair-do and off-beat fashion sense.

And, you got to see this Joey (Kevin Kline), the womaniser pizza shop owner, who broke his faithful wife, Rosalie (Tracey Ullman)fs heart so devastatingly that she decides to kill him. One problem here is, he is not a human! Seriously! He works 14 to 15 hours a day, 7 days a week, never sleeps more than two or three hours a night. And still has surplus energy (or hormones, maybe?) to go out with a different woman every night! Personally, I would like to kill him just because he eats like an excessively greedy elephant yet gain no weight at all!! That ability alone is intolerable for all women, not to mention his outrageously frequent adultery. But, still, Rosalie loves him so much that she wants him to die but not to be hurt!? !

To see other countless jewel moments that make you burst to laugh, smile, mad and moved, and to witness how on earth you can ever kill this monstrously superhuman-like cheeky Italian guy, you definitely got to see this yourself.

Everyone becomes happy in the end including ones who have been watching. Once I tried it when I was extremely depressed and found myself still be able to laugh and love. For that quality, gI Love You to Deathh is undoubtedly irreplaceable treasure to me.

A classic finally arrives on DVD!!
I've been waiting for years for this to come out on DVD. I won't recap the story, because most people have already heard it. Just want to say that the DVD version offers both wide-screen and full-screen versions. There's nothing in the way of extras, which was a little disappointing--I would have loved to have seen something about the real-life couple that inspired this movie. But I was just so excited to get my hands on this DVD, it's one of those movies that not many people heard of, but don't forget once they've seen it. And you'll never be able to take Keanu Reeves seriously again, no matter how many times you see him in the Matrix!! ... Read more

Description

Woody Allen's star-powered comedy follows the misadventures of an ex-con dishwasher and his manicurist wife. Their get-rich-quick scheme to rob a bank leave the characters rolling in dough--but not the kind they had in mind. ... Read more

Reviews (72)

NOT WHAT YOU EXPECT, BUT STILL VERY FUNNY
An ex-con (played wonderfully by Woody Allen), has a get rich quick scheme, and all it will involve is an empty store next door to a bank, a couple of other cons', and the help of his manicurist wife (the always funny Tracey Ullman).

The plan is simple...set up a cookie shop and have your wife run it (because she makes the BEST cookies, this serves as a big part in the plot), while you and the other bumbling crooks are digging a hole in the basement, a hole that will lead to the bank, and to the biggest heist you have ever pulled off.

"Small Time Crooks" is a very funny movie. It starts off with the bank heist plan (the digging in the basement contains some of the biggest laughs in this movie), and then in an unexpected twist shows that crime doesn't pay. The movie then goes into the study of Allen and Ullman struggling to deal with their new found wealth and each other.

In his funniest film in years, Woody Allen has assembled a great cast; Hugh Grant, John Lovitz, Michael Rappaport, George Grizzard, Tony Darrow, and Elaine May in the outrageously funny role of the dim-witted cousin.

Anyone looking for a good laugh riot will enjoy this...and you don't have to be an Allen fan.

Nick Gonnella

Small Time Crooks has big-time laughs
Woody Allen plays an inept ex-con who has a scheme for breaking into a bank. He plans to buy a store which is adjacent to the bank and then to make an underground tunnel to the bank vault. When he asks his wife, played by Tracey Ullman, to help finance the project, she balks. Eventually she gives in and becomes his "front man" by baking cookies in the store they buy. The cookies become unbelievably successful and suddenly they are richer than in their wildest dreams. Tracey decides that she must become more cultured to fit into their new social set and she asks an art dealer, played by Hugh Grant, to tutor her in the social graces. This he does willingly with an eye to cashing in on her fortune. This movie is well-written and well-acted. The lines are witty and there is even a moral here with regard to love and loyalty. No Woody Allen darkness here--just a delightful 90-minute romp!

If you liked "The Castle", then you may enjoy this movie
I've always liked Woody Allen movies, especially his early funny ones, and I just sorta ignored the awful "serious" ones, like "Stardust Memories". But this is a comedy, and it's dreadful. Thank heaven it cost me only five bucks.

OK, so Woody and his wife (Tracy Ullman) become rich and she wants to buy "class". The movie becomes a sneering put-down of her pretensions. It's just plain ugly.

Elaine May is terrific, though, and I'll give the flick an extra star for her performance (as the wife's cousin).

Rags To Riches To Rags - Very Funny and Heartwarming
This is such a funny movie. Woody Allen and his partners in crime play up their bumbling idiot characters so well! Tracey Ullman is a genius - She can play any character and make it believable.

This rags to riches to rags story is funny and heartwarming and just fun to watch. This was also the first time I saw Hugh Grant playing such a loathsome character - he was great! What can I say about Elaine May except she is so good that it looks like she's not even acting!

The comedic acting was very good in this movie and I can't wait to own it on DVD so I can sit back and enjoy over and over again.

Woody Rips Off Car 54
Why?

Why did you do it, Woody? Sure, the premise of Small Time Crooks was interesting - but then I felt the same way when I saw it the FIRST time on television - on Car 54, Where Are You? back in the 1950s! Created by Nat Hiken (who also wrote many episodes), that classic cop situation comedy had many very funny plots.

Plots that included the one about the small band of crooks, three male and one female, that open a business next to a New York bank in order to break into the vault next door. But business gets too good, proving to be a huge distraction to the original plan of emptying the bank of its big bucks, and hilarity ensues.

Sound familiar? It should - since Woody obviously lifted that entire scenario in order to make his far-inferior STC film! At first I thought maybe he wrote the original Car 54 script in question, and can therefore do whatever he wants to with his own property. But I checked it out, and no, he did not write that Car 54 script.

(BTW, Tracey Ullman is also particularly terrible in this - she's a Brit playing an Italian who's named Frenchy - try figuring out THAT cultural mess!)

So what happened Woody? Was the white paper in your typewriter that blank? Was your writers' block that insurmountable? Sure, one can always say it's not exactly script-stealing as long as a writer at least slightly changes a plot twist or a line of dialogue here or there, but c'mon, Woody, who did you think you'd fool?

You're not known as a hack writer - you were once considered to be one of the premier comedy talents of the movies, not just in acting but in writing too!

So again, we must all ask, Woody... why? ... Read more

Amazon.com

Before The Tracey Ullman Show and Absolutely Fabulous, the short-lived 1985 Britcom Girls on Top helped launch the careers of Ullman and Jennifer Saunders. This two-DVD set contains seven episodes from the show's two seasons. Girls on Top, like the cult fave The Young Ones, charts the sometimes surreal misadventures of four mismatched roommates. Anchoring the series is Dawn French (Saunders's partner in comedy) as Amanda Ripley, a "decent, solid, and frumpy" feminist (if they ever Americanize this series, Rosie O'Donnell would be a natural as her counterpart). Ullman is brazen blonde bimbo Candice. Transplanted American Ruby Wax (an acquired taste) is brash aspiring actress Shelley. Saunders scores with her signature lumpen slapstick as Jennifer, who is described as having "the mental age of four." Venerable Joan Greenwood (The Importance of Being Ernest, Tom Jones) costars as Lady Carlton, the addled romance writer who lets their apartment, and whose cherished companion is her dead, stuffed dog. Look for Alan Rickman in the first episode. Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid in the Harry Potter films) guest stars as a hapless kidnapper in perhaps the set's funniest episode, "C.O.D." It's not absolutely fabulous, but fans will enjoy this nascent glimpse at four--well, three at any rate-of Britain's funniest women. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Not completely lacking
I thought that overall, this series was worth buying. The sound problem is fixed..for those of you wondering. As for the series, Ruby Wax's character is the only complaint I have..she was a bit irritating, the series is not laugh out loud funny like Ab Fab, but if your a hardcore Ab Fab or French and Saunder's Fan, then you'll want to add this to your collection. The episodes and characters grow on you after you watch them a few times.
It's not completely lacking..more of a "collector's item" but worth having..but just so you know the episodes are not in order..the company that made this dvd (BFS), is not the brightest..

The dvd quality is fine, the sound is fine, but the picture flickers a few times here and there..nothing really noticeable except that the same trivia is on set one and two.

Great show, marginal sound quality
Despite many reviewers complaining about poor sound quality, I went ahead and bought this DVD set from a local store (I was going to rent it first, but of course, no one had it to rent!). Yes- the sound quality is lacking, but being a hard-core Ullman/Saunders/French fan, as well as a fan of Britcoms, I had to have it. "Girls on Top" is basically the lasses answer to "The Young Ones" (which starred Jennifer Saunders' husband Adrian Edmondson as Viv)about 4 roomates (including the only American Ruby Wax, who has also had a cameo appearance on "Ab Fab")who each have their own wacky personalty. The difference between this and other "kooky" American sitcoms is that British humor is quick and sly- rather than in your face "ha-ha" funny. The scripts are not quite as clever as "Tracy Takes On...", "Absolutely Fabulous" or "French & Saunders". But keep in mind that most actors don't hit their stride in their first movie/series. Still, it's a funny show, and how can you resist all the talent? If you can find a place to rent it, you might want to try it first and decide if the price is worth it to you. If you're a die hard fan, however, you'll probably want this for your collection.

A must for French and Saunders completists
Since I'd been hoping to find this show on video or (better) DVD, I was delighted finally to be able to buy the complete series. Other reviews that mention poor quality audio should not concern you: I have both sets and the audio is fine for the age of the program.

Video quality is satisfactory.

If you haven't seen this show, you won't find the sophistication of AbFab, but if you like Rude Girl shows in general this should appeal to you. Ruby Wax is brassy and loud (revealing a lot about her real upbringing, too, if you read her autobiography "How Do You Want Me?"). Dawn French is bossy, and Jennifer Saunders catatonic. My favourite is the perenially shallow Candice, played by Tracey Ullman.

If female comedy is your thing, you won't be disappointed.

Classic 80's Comedy
I just want to let you know that these two dvds are great' you get the complete 2 series and although I was worried that the quality was going to be [poor] I can tell you that they are great' they must have sorted out the sound problem that is mentioned in the other reviews' this is a program that I have wanted for ages as I never missed it when it was first shown when I was a kid; all the actresses are well established now and its nice to see them when they where all unknown' anyway they are two dvds that you can buy and if you are a fan then check them out' I highly recomend them (the only problem that I have is that they are not in order but that dont matter they are great and as I said earlier you get all 13 episodes on the two seperate dvds for sale)
The only thing that I dont understand is that they are not avalible in England' this is the only place that I have found them' but who cares Ive got them now.
I hope you enjoy them.

BEN

A little uneven, but very entertaining
These women were just beginning to hit their stride as writers performing their own material during this series. I think they really had their characters down, although the plots are sometimes frayed or not completely nailed.

The most difficult aspect of both these sets is that they are not presented in chronological order-- both seasons are all mixed together, and the finale of the series is in Set 1. I really wish BFS would do a better job allowing us here in the U.S. to view these series as they were presented originally.

Interesting that in the Filmographies, neither Jennifer Saunders or Dawn French mention their work in the Young Ones. It'd be nice to get ahold of the older Comic Strip Presents series as well (MTV did show several of those performance pieces.) ... Read more

Amazon.com

When prissy, prickly Sylvia Stickles (Tracey Ullman) suffers a head injury during a traffic altercation, she's, er, revived by self-appointed sexual missionary Ray-Ray Perkins (Johnny Knoxville) and is transformed into an insatiable, take-no-prisoners sex maniac. Yes, it's a John Waters film. Yes, it's filthy. No, it's not as hilarious and sustained as you'd like it to be. It works for a while, though: Ullman, never a stingy comedienne, does everything Waters dares her to do without hesitation; words cannot describe the perversely sporting delight with which she mounts a water bottle during a round of "The Hokey Pokey" at an old folks' home. And there's some fun to be had when Sylvia's emancipation leads her Baltimore 'burb to new heights of ecstasy, freeing her large-breasted daughter Caprice (Selma Blair) while horrifying husband Vaughn (Chris Isaak) and her hardline mother Big Ethel (Suzanne Shepherd, hysterical) in the process. It's also packed with the standard cameos, the most satisfying of which is good old Patty Hearst at a Sex Addicts Anonymous encounter. But, for all the nasty, necessary glee, the movie feels inescapably been-there-done-that, and you can't help but wish this was 1972 and Divine was on hand to prowl for dog droppings. The most shocking thing about A Dirty Shame is how desperate and tiresome its anarchy becomes.--Steve Wiecking ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Worth a watch
Something tells me John Waters only referenced the Bear community to have the community watch it and then show it as more bizarre than it already is.It sure got guys in my metro to pack the indy cinemas!

Back to true form!
Being an extra on this hysterical film was a true barrel of monkeys. Receiving direction from one of the most notorious cult directors of all-time was quite an experience. A Dirty Shame is yet another twisted Waters' installment from his brilliant and unbelievably retarded mind. Sex addicts run rampant in Hamilton,
a NE Baltimore neighborhood and Johnny Knoxville is the ringleader. This film addresses such sexual fetishes never before spoke of in any previous film. Of course John's most recent films lack the angst of his 70's films, but the fact is
that was nearly 30 years ago and him and his entourage are way past the age of youth rebellion. This is clearly the most outrageous film Mr. Waters' has made since Desperate Living in 1977. Anyone who has been wise to his 70's films will absolutely
enjoy this picture. Folks who are ignorant to Waters' pictures
or those who have never seen one should not see this film without first viewing at least Pink Flamingos(1972) or Female Trouble(1974). A Waters' film you view because OF HIS name. NOT the stars. He is the puppeteer, and they are his marionettes. His recent tango with mainstream cinema and theatre is all well and good but this film proves once again what John Waters' is and will always be.
A Renegade...

I f**kin loved it!
A Dirty Shame is a must see and must own film. I loved it. Would make a great gift.Anyone who doesn't like it is a neuter.Watch it with uptight people!

Weak even for Waters
I love a lot of John Waters' movies, but this was a major disappointment.A lot of this is over the top, but it doesn't really work like "over the top" did in his earlier films.It has one hilarious scene, and the rest is just sub-par material.It mostly comes off as corny, even when you "get" the John Waters style of overacting.

Decent Film From Water's POST Divine Era!
A Dirty Shame is a pretty good film. It has it's classic John Water's one liners that could only come from the master himself which make me laugh hysterically. It's John Water's getting back to the basics--post Divine, that is. I separate John's films in 2 catagories: The Divine Years and The Post Divine Years. Let's face it, there will NEVER be another Divine in this lifetime nor will there ever be a John Water's Film that comes remotely close to the Divine Days. So JW fans have to deal with that reality. Of the Divine Years John Water's films, my all time Favorite is FEMALE TROUBLE. Followed by DESPERATE LIVING (which did not include Divine as she was working on another project at the time), POLYESTER, PINK FLAMINGOS, HAIRSPRAY, and MULTIPLE MANIACS. Then we cross over to the Post Divine Years. These films still have the John Waters edge, but not as heavily grotesque and vulgar as in the Divine years. These films include my all time favorite SERIAL MOM, PECKER, A DIRTY SHAME, CECIL B. DEMENTED, and my least favorite-CRY BABY (this film, if any, is the most detached from JW film--the only scene that shows a hint that its JW is the court room scene when Mink Stole is wheeled in in an iron lung smoking a cigarette. The dialogue there is hysterical.)

My suggestion is that if you're a John Water's fan and have seen one or more of his films Divine or Post Divine, then you'll appreciate this movie. In addition, you'll know why Patricia Hearst amoung other actors appears in this film. The reason I say this is because someone who NEVER saw a JW film wrote a review on A Dirty Shame and asked why the [...] Patricia Hearst is in the film? HELLO---she's been in EVERY JW FILM FROM HAIRSPRAY TO PRESENT!! But if you've never seen a JW film or know his antics you obviously won't relate!

GO SEE IT! ... Read more

Description

Meet Amanda Ripley (Dawn French), Shelley DuPont (Ruby Wax), Candice Valentine (Tracey Ullman) and Jennifer Marsh (Jennifer Saunders), the unlikely roommates who share an apartment under the watchful eye of landlord Lady Carlton (Joan Greenwood).Whether it is a kidnapping for ransom, a low-budget re-make of Gone With the Wind or a romance with Prince Andrew, these girls find themselves in the most ridiculous situations. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

never buying a BFS dvd again
After much anxiety over weather or not the Dvd would be defective ( since so many reviewers state that theirs was), I decided to order set 2, seeing as Amazon states in this product description that the sound problems are fixed. Well
I must have really bad luck because I got a defective one. The sound is fine but BFS is by far the worst Dvd company I have ever seen. The episode "Mr Yummy Brownie" gets frozen halfway through and wont' continue playing. I know it's the dvd because the rest of it's fine. The company that' makes this dvd seems like they just threw it together in five minutes. It's got the same trivia on set two as it does on set one..the episodes are all mixed together from season one and two and the one I got is defective.
Amazon was nice enough to replace it for me free of charge.

The show it self is great, it's well worth having set 2 if you already have set 1. I love all the characters and it's a great show. If you can get your hands on a non defective copy then it's worth having.

Britcom Fans: Buy This Only If You Own EVERYTHING ELSE!
As stated in other reviews, the audio quality on this DVD issue is the pits. The audio tracks of episodes "Cancel Toast" and "Mr. Fluffy..." are mastered out-of-phase, rendering them virtually unlistenable. Determined viewers might be able to follow most of it, but if you try cranking up your home theater system to hear all the details through the fuzz and hiss... I hope your amp and eardrums are insured.

As the series itself, I can only recommend it to French & Saunders completists. "Girls On Top" is a far far cry from "Ab Fab" and "The Vicar Of Dibley" (think: an estrogen-fueled "The Young Ones" with only a fraction of the imagination). Dawn French is the funniest star here; Jennifer Saunders is underutilized, Tracy Ullman is more annoying than comedic, and Ruby Wax is just plain abrasive. Severely dated jokes abound, and those unfamilar with Brit pop culture of the 80's will be left FAR behind.

There are far better Britcoms on DVD out there. You'd be better off shelling out for all three series of "Father Ted" or the just-released "Red Dwarf" sets from series 1 & 2.

If you've seen every episode of "Dad's Army" at least twice and are truly desparate for ANYTHING British, "Girls On Top" may work for you. But just barely.

Great Set, Poor DVD Quality.
For anyone who's a fan of French and Saunders (the great minds behind Ab Fab and French and Saunders comedy skits) or Tracy Ullman or Ruby Wax, then this is a great DVD set to add to your collection. Girls on Top is an 80's television sitcom of four women (three British, one American) who share an apartment in England that's owned by an eccentric romance novelist who lives within the same building. The show is full of dated jokes and unless you're familiar with a lot of British personalities, you might miss a few of them. All though there are quite a few similarities to the other British cult classic sitcom, The Young Ones, these ladies do manage to carry their own.
Now, why only three stars in my rating? Sadly, in two of the episodes in this set, the audio is terribly low. I know a few other fans of the show who had to return their copies, and Amazon.com gladly replaced them. However, those DVD's too had the same problems. I kept mine because I knew that it wasn't the fault of Amazon.com, but rather the manufacturer of the DVD's. I'm a fan so I'm content with my set. But if your particular about those kinds of things, perhaps you should wait a while until the manufacturer fixes the problem. Other than that flaw, this DVD set is a great addition to your Britcom collection, and I must also add that after much shopping around, Amazon.com is offering it at a very nice price. ... Read more

Reviews (37)

A Small Masterpiece
This film needs your support! It was apparently completely disregarded by critics when it played theatrically... Written and directed by Henry Bromell, writer-producer of the Baltimore-lensed HOMOCIDE TV series, PANIC is a tight little masterpiece (clocking at less than 1 hour and 25 minutes) of ensemble acting and superior screenwriting. All principal actors hit just right notes in their roles, from William H. Macy (one of the best actors currently working in the US, who single-handedly made my experience of watching ultra-sophomoric FARGO durable), Donald Sutherland, John Ritter, Barbara Bain (Remember MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?), Tracy Ullman (TRACY ULLMAN?!) and, oh, Neve Campbell. The characters are so well-written and so devoid of historionics that some viewers may actually suffer from disorientation, adjusting their brains from the state of overexposure to usual mind-numbing stereotypes in Hollywood movies. Ritter's psychiarist, for example, is one of the two or three among hundreds of psychiarists I have seen in Hollywood movies who actually behaves like a NORMAL PSYCHIARIST and acts SENSIBLY. (MUCH superior to Lorraine Bracco's shrink in THE SOPRANOS) David Dorffmann plays Macey's son, and even though he is supposed to be a super-smart kid, he is NEVER annoying. The scenes are all underplayed with minimum of melodramatics, but they nonetheless pack emotional wallop. The quiet, beautifully lit sequence in which Donald Sutherland introduces the child version of the Macey character to "family business" is not only absolutely chilling, but also immesaruably sad. PANIC reminded me of Paul Schrader's AFFLICTION and Claude Chabrols' morally complex thrillers, such as THIS MAN MUST DIE. It is also like a particularly well-made 1950s film noir suffused with psychological insight ordinarily missing from them.

The DVD version includes a generally informative if a little reticent commentary by Director Bromell, and six deleted scenes. The deleted scenes provide additional background information for characters and deepen our understanding of them, but they also include some stilted and overblown dialogue completely absent in the actual film, the reason I suspect they were in the end dropped from the final product. I am a little disappointed that the audio commentary does not come with Macey, Sutherland and others discussing their acting strategies, given the fact that this film's success depends so much on their contributions, but this is nit-picking. I definitely recommend this movie for anyone who is a fan of Macey, Sutherland, Campbell and those who appreciate morally complex human dramas and/or thrillers. NOT RECOMMENDED, however, to those who want an action film like AIR FORCE ONE or a "quirky" movie like FARGO.

It's Hard Being Someone's Son
It's amazing to me that this film wasn't released as widely as, say, Memento or even Sexy Beast. It is an absolutely superb film featuring William H. Macy(Fargo) in his finest performance to date as Alex, a second-generation hitman railroaded into the business by his controlling monster of a father, played by Donald Sutherland(JFK).

The first thing that should strike any viewer about this movie is its cast. There isn't really a weak link in this movie, even though it does feature Neve Campbell. Campbell's performance, incidentally, really says something for Henry Bromell's direction: she's actually convincing, cast against type, and gives her strongest performance to date as the troubled love interest Alex meets in his psychiatrist's office.

The extreme circumstances featured in this film -- i.e. a middle-aged hitman seeing his shrink -- are really only a metaphor for the mid-life crises of half of America's middle-aged men, who went unwillingly into their father's businesses and sacrificed their own dreams. This movie is not about a love affair or a hitman; it is about how hard it is to be someone's son in America, about the expectations placed on men in our society and the outlets which we are given and which are denied us to express ourselves. Perhaps Neve Campbell herself delivers the most telling line in the film: "It's easier being a man, don't you think?" to which wife Tracy Ullman replies only with a knowing look, then turns her back.

It's a shame this film was overlooked. Henry Bromell's debut as writer-director on this film proves one of cinema's finest. William H. Macy gives the strongest performance of the year, far outdoing Russell Crowe's unintelligible stone-faced Maximus; it is also Macy's greatest role, the culmination of every unsure forty-something he's played. Do yourself a favor and see this movie. Then go home and love your son.

The Sins of the Father ...
What a find this movie was. Subtle, tense, occasionally laugh-out-loud funny and ultimately satisfying.

A hit-man wants out of the family business, and in to the pants of Neve Campbell. Which, I suppose, makes him a murderer and a philanderer. Not that you'll feel anything but empathy and compassion for William H. Macy's character: which, of course, is his genius.

In a story that explores, among other things, the whole family dynamic - from the damage our parents do us, to the effort needed to make a marriage succeed - you'll find it all rings true. The context of the story is alien and exotic, but the relationships aren't. Your father is probably not a controlling and manipulative sociopath (and, you know, small mercies and all that ...) but even so, how many of us would find it easy to step up and admonish him, when he steps over the line?

Donald Sutherland's performance as the sociopathic pater is astonishingly good. He actually had me shouting at the screen. And I'm British. We just don't do that ...

Give this movie a go. You won't find the experience entirely comfortable, nor will it be an escape from the rigours of the world (because there's too much of the world in the movie) but it will make you laugh, wince, cheer and, most importantly of all, it will make you think.

symbolic
There is a scene in the middle of the movie when Alex takes his son to see his grandfather, who has bought him a birthday present. It is the most interesting scene of the movie, and the heart from which everything else should radiate. It is the only time that Alex, his father, and his son are all onscreen at the same time and you realize that this is the conflict that is killing Alex -- he is his father's son, cynical, secretive, and ruthless, but he is also equally his son's father -- innocent, curious, and affectionate. Framed that way, both his father and his son can be seen as reflections of his own psyche. The reason why he is so blank, so tired and depressed, is that they cancel each other out. By then end of that scene I knew how the movie had to end.

The side story involving Neve Campbell isn't very interesting.

Great movie -- what a cute little boy!
The boy who plays Sammy, the hit man's son, is about the cutest thing I've ever seen! He's just darling! He reminds me of that kind from Jerry McGuire -- "the human head weighs 8 pounds" Soooo cute!

The rest of the movie was pretty good, but I just loved the little boy's scenes! ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Dark Troubling Movie About the Disillusion of Life
This is an extraordinary movie. It is impossible to not deeply sympathize with, and yet also come to strongly dislike the character of Susan Traherne played by Meryl Streep. All of David Hare's plays (e.g., Racing Demons, Skylight, the recent Amy's View) and movies (e.g., Strapless, Wetherby) are concerned with the idealist who runs up against a not particularly sympathetic world as he, or more commonly she, ages and struggles against a self-doubt induced by the people and society around her. The character of Susan Traherne is the least openly "likeable" of these characters, yet in Streep's amazing performance is heartbreakingly sympathetic. It is so easy to weep when one sees the final flashback scene in which one is reminded of her certainties and hopes 15 years at the end of a World War. She just could not find a way to make herself or others happy, and in the gloom of the effort trashes the lives and surroundings around her. A very memorable movie.

Most underrated Meryl Streep film
This movie is a forgotten treasure and deserves to be revived since it shows magic Meryl at her best in the prime of her craft.
The movie is based on a David Hare play and has been recently restaged in London with Cate Blanchett( arguably the most convincing aspirant to Streep's throne) in the lead.
Susan Traherne works in the French resistance during the war and although her life is fraught with danger, deprivation and chance encounters it gives her an edginess and zest for life she can never find in her later life. In post war Britain she stumbles through a string of uninspired careers, a bittersweet stab at motherhood, a friendship with a sassy Bohemian( a role Tracy Ullman was born to play) and eventually a marriage to a safe and starched politician that comes across as a personal suicide note while remaining among the living. The film nicely balances the quests of how much excitement people can handle and how much boredom can discombobulate a once inquiring mind. It's nothing less than a somber ode to the idealism of youth, its sour awakening and the understanding that success is in the eye of the beholder and no cotton can shield us from our drive to be individuals regardless of the cost to comfort and convention.

"There will be days and days and days like this"
"Plenty" is a film destined to arouse a lot of controversy -- not over its quality, but over its heroine: Susan Traherne (Meryl Streep), an Englishwoman who worked with the French Resistance in World War II and, much to the consternation of those around her, longs for the thrills and passion she felt during those days. Restless, dissatisfied and determined to challenge and change society, Traherne rubs employers, acquaintances, and even her husband the wrong way in her quest for satisfaction.

Yet screenwriter David Hare, adapting his successful stage play, asks us to accept and identify with Traherne, a steadfast individualist whose striving and scheming cost her everything, including, finally, her sanity.

Much of the attraction -- not to mention the challenge -- of "Plenty" lies in trying to rationalize Traherne and her motives and motivations. When first seen, she is a young woman who has arrived in France to aid the Resistance movement. Although only 19 years old, she is in a position of power and a situation fraught with danger, and she loves it. After the war, she returns to England, full of high ideals about building a better world where everyone can flourish. But what she finds in her homeland instead is a nation of men and women who are far more concerned with getting back to normal, and satiating themselves in material goods after years of wartime shortages.

For Susan, the postwar world of plenty is distressingly devoid of thrills, goals and open minds. Her feelings of emptiness lead her to seek out bohemian and beatnik friends, a foxy lower-class lover and a husband whose career in the diplomatic services is on the rise. But flirting with danger and accumulating wealth are not the answer for Susan either, and she languishes in luxury.

The role of Susan is custom-made for Streep and she turns in yet another tour de force. Classy and vivacious one moment, scathing and bitter the next, Susan is genuinely a puzzlement, and certainly an addictive one. You may not like her, but you will not forget her.

There is no shortage of fascinating characters in the supporting cast either, nor of fine actors to play them. Singer-comedian Tracey Ullman is enchanting as Alice Parke, Susan's roommate and confidante. Alice wears men's clothes, smokes marijuana and aspires to be a writer and artist, but little things like bad pot keep getting in her way: "How am I supposed to find artistic inspiration if I can't even get any good drugs?" she complains. Sting, who too often relies on his looks to carry his performances, turns in his best screen work to date as Mick, a black-marketeer whom Susan hires to get her pregnant (the love scenes between Sting and Streep are both funny and sexy). But finally, Susan dismisses him after 18 months of trying. "There comes a point at which the experiment should be stopped in the name of common courtesy," she notes.

As Susan's weary husband, Charles Dance brings life to what could easily have been a one-dimensional part, effectively conveying the toll a marriage built on pity can take on a man. Sir John Gielgud also sparkles as the duty-minded Leonard Darwin, whose run-in with the defiant Susan at a dinner party is the nastiest and most uproarious scene in the film.

"Plenty" is not an easy movie to categorize, and interpretations of its central character and its message are sure to be numerous. But there is no denying its power or the allure of the people in it. There are lighter, more charming films around, but there are few as ultimately rewarding.

Odd
Usually I love Meryl Streep, but for some reason--call me stupid if you want to--I had trouble watching this DVD because Streep wasn't very likeable, I couldn't sympathize with her character, and I REALLY HAD NO IDEA OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING. Perhaps the movie was a little too well-made. Or perhaps I wasn't paying it the attention it deserved. Anyway, it's one of the few DVDs I've actually gotten rid of. But Streep is just gorgeous as usual!

Don't Waste Your Time
Uneven, choppy direction and convoluted plot marr the otherwise superb story and excellent performance of the uncomparable Meryl Streep. Unfortunately, not even the fabulous Ms. Streep can save this -- recommended for devoted fans only, bent on completing their Streep collection. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Dark Troubling Movie About the Disillusion of Life
This is an extraordinary movie. It is impossible to not deeply sympathize with, and yet also come to strongly dislike the character of Susan Traherne played by Meryl Streep. All of David Hare's plays (e.g., Racing Demons, Skylight, the recent Amy's View) and movies (e.g., Strapless, Wetherby) are concerned with the idealist who runs up against a not particularly sympathetic world as he, or more commonly she, ages and struggles against a self-doubt induced by the people and society around her. The character of Susan Traherne is the least openly "likeable" of these characters, yet in Streep's amazing performance is heartbreakingly sympathetic. It is so easy to weep when one sees the final flashback scene in which one is reminded of her certainties and hopes 15 years at the end of a World War. She just could not find a way to make herself or others happy, and in the gloom of the effort trashes the lives and surroundings around her. A very memorable movie.

Most underrated Meryl Streep film
This movie is a forgotten treasure and deserves to be revived since it shows magic Meryl at her best in the prime of her craft.
The movie is based on a David Hare play and has been recently restaged in London with Cate Blanchett( arguably the most convincing aspirant to Streep's throne) in the lead.
Susan Traherne works in the French resistance during the war and although her life is fraught with danger, deprivation and chance encounters it gives her an edginess and zest for life she can never find in her later life. In post war Britain she stumbles through a string of uninspired careers, a bittersweet stab at motherhood, a friendship with a sassy Bohemian( a role Tracy Ullman was born to play) and eventually a marriage to a safe and starched politician that comes across as a personal suicide note while remaining among the living. The film nicely balances the quests of how much excitement people can handle and how much boredom can discombobulate a once inquiring mind. It's nothing less than a somber ode to the idealism of youth, its sour awakening and the understanding that success is in the eye of the beholder and no cotton can shield us from our drive to be individuals regardless of the cost to comfort and convention.

"There will be days and days and days like this"
"Plenty" is a film destined to arouse a lot of controversy -- not over its quality, but over its heroine: Susan Traherne (Meryl Streep), an Englishwoman who worked with the French Resistance in World War II and, much to the consternation of those around her, longs for the thrills and passion she felt during those days. Restless, dissatisfied and determined to challenge and change society, Traherne rubs employers, acquaintances, and even her husband the wrong way in her quest for satisfaction.

Yet screenwriter David Hare, adapting his successful stage play, asks us to accept and identify with Traherne, a steadfast individualist whose striving and scheming cost her everything, including, finally, her sanity.

Much of the attraction -- not to mention the challenge -- of "Plenty" lies in trying to rationalize Traherne and her motives and motivations. When first seen, she is a young woman who has arrived in France to aid the Resistance movement. Although only 19 years old, she is in a position of power and a situation fraught with danger, and she loves it. After the war, she returns to England, full of high ideals about building a better world where everyone can flourish. But what she finds in her homeland instead is a nation of men and women who are far more concerned with getting back to normal, and satiating themselves in material goods after years of wartime shortages.

For Susan, the postwar world of plenty is distressingly devoid of thrills, goals and open minds. Her feelings of emptiness lead her to seek out bohemian and beatnik friends, a foxy lower-class lover and a husband whose career in the diplomatic services is on the rise. But flirting with danger and accumulating wealth are not the answer for Susan either, and she languishes in luxury.

The role of Susan is custom-made for Streep and she turns in yet another tour de force. Classy and vivacious one moment, scathing and bitter the next, Susan is genuinely a puzzlement, and certainly an addictive one. You may not like her, but you will not forget her.

There is no shortage of fascinating characters in the supporting cast either, nor of fine actors to play them. Singer-comedian Tracey Ullman is enchanting as Alice Parke, Susan's roommate and confidante. Alice wears men's clothes, smokes marijuana and aspires to be a writer and artist, but little things like bad pot keep getting in her way: "How am I supposed to find artistic inspiration if I can't even get any good drugs?" she complains. Sting, who too often relies on his looks to carry his performances, turns in his best screen work to date as Mick, a black-marketeer whom Susan hires to get her pregnant (the love scenes between Sting and Streep are both funny and sexy). But finally, Susan dismisses him after 18 months of trying. "There comes a point at which the experiment should be stopped in the name of common courtesy," she notes.

As Susan's weary husband, Charles Dance brings life to what could easily have been a one-dimensional part, effectively conveying the toll a marriage built on pity can take on a man. Sir John Gielgud also sparkles as the duty-minded Leonard Darwin, whose run-in with the defiant Susan at a dinner party is the nastiest and most uproarious scene in the film.

"Plenty" is not an easy movie to categorize, and interpretations of its central character and its message are sure to be numerous. But there is no denying its power or the allure of the people in it. There are lighter, more charming films around, but there are few as ultimately rewarding.

Odd
Usually I love Meryl Streep, but for some reason--call me stupid if you want to--I had trouble watching this DVD because Streep wasn't very likeable, I couldn't sympathize with her character, and I REALLY HAD NO IDEA OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING. Perhaps the movie was a little too well-made. Or perhaps I wasn't paying it the attention it deserved. Anyway, it's one of the few DVDs I've actually gotten rid of. But Streep is just gorgeous as usual!

Don't Waste Your Time
Uneven, choppy direction and convoluted plot marr the otherwise superb story and excellent performance of the uncomparable Meryl Streep. Unfortunately, not even the fabulous Ms. Streep can save this -- recommended for devoted fans only, bent on completing their Streep collection. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Originally conceived and shot as a musical, James L. Brooks's(Broadcast News) comedy of life in Hollywood remains a perceptive andvery funny film. A loose Nick Nolte stars as Matt Hobbs, a struggling actor whomust find work to support his spoiled 6-year-old daughter (cutie pie WhittniWright) when his estranged wife (Tracey Ullman) dumps her. Brooks createswonderful characters in this insightful look at how the movie business haschanged--from strong talent (represented by Hobbs) to image and test screenings.Hobbs's angel--professionally and privately--is embodied by a ditsy productionassistant (Joely Richardson) to an egoistical producer (Albert Brooks, hilariousas always). Ironically, the movie's songs by Prince were excised when they didnot test well. What's left lacks the heights the songs might have provided(especially in the finale), but with Brooks's talent for giving even minorcharacters juicy dialogue, I'll Do Anything is a light comedy worthseeking out. --Doug Thomas ... Read more

Reviews (8)

GREAT VARIETY! JEANNE, WHAT A GAL!
Very entertaining not knowing what the next moment held. Matt deserved what he got, not knowing his daughter. Jeanne! A great performance and all from a small package. So much talent displayed. A wonderful cast. I absolutely LOVED IT.

A good idea was in there somewhere.
There certainly are flashes of brilliance in "I'll Do Anything". It conjures up some wicked satire and includes an extremely talented cast. However, this is a film whose flaws far outweigh its high points.

Nick Nolte plays Matt, a Hollywood actor who has gotten a few decent roles but whose current career is struggling. Tracy Ullman is hilarious as his estranged wife, Beth. Together they are the parents of a young daughter named Jeannie (Whittni Wright). Matt has moved on with his life and, being the caring father that he is, has little interest in ever seeing his daughter. It's been two years since he last saw her, when he gets a call from Beth. She needs him to come out and take Jeannie back to Hollywood for a few weeks. Once Matt gets there, however, he finds out that Beth is actually going to prison for several years and now he is solely responsible for taking care of their daughter.

So not even 30 minutes into the movie, Tracy Ullman's character is already gone. As if that's not bad enough, look at this absolutely amazing list of actors who have about five minutes or less of screen time: Joely Fisher, Vicki Lewis, Anne Heche, Ian McKellen, Jake Busey, Rosie O'Donnell and even Woody Harrelson. What in the world were they thinking by showing up glimpses of all these people without fleshing out any of their characters?!!

That's not the worst part though. Both the father and daughter characters are extremely unlikable. Extremely. Matt Hobbs is a self-absorbed jerk throughout the entire film. His daughter is even worse. In fact, I have been racking my brains to come up with a child in a movie I have disliked more. So far, I haven't been able to come up with one. Jeannie is one of the most shrill, spoiled and obnoxious little girls ever put on film. This all continues up until the last five minutes of the movie. Then, completely out of the blue, both of these characters turn on a dime and become very charming and loving. Sorry, but their transformation was too quick for me to buy.

Along the way, James Brooks (writer/director) is at least able to give us some funny moments. Once Ullman's character is gotten rid of, the humor baton is passed to Julie Kavner. Her character, Nan, has this uncanny ability to always tell people the brutal truth. She works for Burke (Albert Brooks), an egotistical movie producer who always seems to say and do the wrong thing. Combine Nan's scathing honesty with Burke's chronic bad manners and you get a cute couple.

With a different father and daughter, "I'll Do Anything" could have been a nice little sleeper. However, it is unable to overcome the unappealing attitudes of Matt and Jeannie.

Nolte is a good actor
I'LL DO ANYTHING showed me that Nolte is a good actor. As soon as I realized he was doing a dandy job acting his role--luckless actor--the movie carried on quite well without my analysis. Nolte has been swirling in the Hollywood maelstrom. His life has been designed to believe that acting is the most important matter in the world. Then,as often they do, the vissicitudes of life dump his 5 year old, hard-to-handle, daughter into the scenery. She is a precocious stick of dynamite. The story takes a few swipes at the cheapside of Hollywood. Otherwise, it is no expose. It is full of fun and healthy laughter.

Heart-warming Hollywood
Originally shot as a musical with songs by Sinead O'Connor and Prince, this remarkable pic tested so badly in pre-release that they excised ALL the songs and dance numbers. You'd never miss em'. Nick Nolte is an earnest actor struggling to make it in L.A. when his ex-wife drops the bombshell that their five year-old daughter (who Nolte barely knows) will now be coming to live with him. You thought that kid from "The Sixth Sense" was good? Wait til' you see THIS little spitfire! Julie Kavner is amazing as the head of a test-screening/marketing company, who spews truth (and uncanny insights) like bullets from an AK-47. The real draw here though, is the rocky and tender relationship that develops between Nolte and his young daughter, against the backdrop of a gutless and brainless movie business.

One of the worst of Nick Nolte's movies.
I like Nick Nolte. The only reason why I saw this movie is because of him. However, I have to say that this is the worst acting I have ever seen from his any other movies. Very often, it was awkard and unnatural. Another problem is other supporting actresses and actors. They don't act like real. They acted like they were just out from acting school. The whole plot is not really well coordinated (I won't say anything about it, since it is going to be a spoiler). The movie was boring to watch. If there is a reason why I hung on till the end, it was just to see how it ended (and the thought that I paid money for this movie). As a plus, you can somehow get some slightest idea of what is going on behind making movies (selection of actors/acresses/kids). There a few nice phrases which come out of Nolte. If you are a big Nolte fan, and want to see above plus things, you may want to see this movie. Otherwise, this movie is boring big time. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

I agree with Ashley S
A lot of people hate this movie because they believe that the people who made it were trying to cash it in as a sequel to the Disney movie. However, I loved this movie because this time it showed Snow White saving the day, instead of the seven dwarves. I also loved the seven dwarfelles, because they were funny and original. I don't think I would've liked this movie all that much if the seven dwarves (not the Disney versions) were in it. This way we get to see some new characters and how they paly out in the story. I really don't care for the animation as well. Remember, this is before technology made animation better.

Ive Loved It Ever Since I Was Little
So what if the graphics are kind of bad? I mean cmon! This movie was made over 10 years ago! When they didnt have top quality movies and such. But anyways! I love this movie, it has been one of my childhood favorites. Today I was searching for the song Thunderella sings cause i absoloutly adore it! And i come across this! Tons of people absoloutly hating it! I dont get why? I mean IT DID have a plot, a cute one too! The characters were original (cept maybe cinderella, but anywaysss) and the songs were fun to sing along to! So please dont listen to what those people say (cause they dont know a good movie even if it hit them in the face) and give it a try! Share it with your kids, parents, siblings, friends, everyone!

Good Grief this is Awful!!!!!!
Oh my god.... this was the worst movie I've ever seen!!! along with the horrable animation, there was absolutely no plot whatsoever! It seems like the animators were half dead when they drew this, and it seems like the storywriters were just making up the story as they went along. I liked it when I was a kid, but when I had to watch it as a teen, I thought I would die!!! Okay, okay, lets just review the plot, shall we? Snow White & her prince are off to invite the 7 dwarfs to their wedding (it's already starting to die...),but oh no... the dead-wicked-queen's brother wants to avenge snow white & her prince for killing his sister. So he kidnaps Prince Charming in the form of a dragon. Snow White is so scared and soon meets the 7 Dwarfelles (oh joy...). They decide to seek help from Mother Nature, who is no help whatsoever but sends the 8 of them on to the (dum-dum-duumm-DDDUUUUUMMMM) realm of doom. You can see the movie if you really want to find out what happens to them...
Along with a atrocious plot, the characters are equally as bad (think...a surly owl, a pathetic bat, and Thunderella). If you like the characters, then you'll love the songs. Thunderella sings her "I need to shine like the sun" or whatever it was called song. It was Absolutely HORRABLE!!!
Please... If you want to be spared from a lifetime of horror,Don't, I repeat, Don't watch this movie!! If i could rate it lower, I would.

A loathsome travesty
Anyone over 4 will recognize that this animation is fourth-rate Saturday morning material, the jokes fall flat, the songs are horrific, and the story is [shallow]. As for the younger crowd, my 3-year-old daughter found it too scary. So this movie should appeal to no one. It's no surprise that Dom DeLuise was involved; but Ed Asner, I am ashamed of you.

It actually has potential
I cannot say that I loved this movie now, but when I got it and I was 5 (1995) I loved it and it had class. These are a few technical errors which I will list:
1.The story is kinda drab and has a little annoying thing about it.
2. Lord Malis or whatever is not that scary and maybe we could have seen more of him like at the end when he was actully a little scary.
3. Please! What is up with that Thunderella song "If the sun can keep shining down, then why can't I shine too?" It was atrocious.
With all this said, it was a okay movie, but way more for younger kids, try 3-7. ... Read more

Amazon.com

When Sarah (Neve Campbell) strikes up a conversation with a sad-eyed man called Alex (William H. Macy) at her therapist's office, she asks, "Are you one of those middle-aged guys who's tired of his marriage and thinking maybe a beautiful young thing could help him out?" She's right, but the source of Alex's depression is far from typical: he's a second-generation hit man who wants out, but his mom and dad won't let him quit.

Donald Sutherland makes Alex's laconic and utterly monstrous father the most