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This remake of Preston Sturges's 1948 comedy follows the same plot but doesn't produce nearly as many laughs, though it does have its amusing moments. Dudley Moore is a famous orchestra conductor who is convinced that his wife (Nastassja Kinski) is having an affair with his best friend, a flamboyant violinist (Armand Assante). So he plots an elaborate scheme by which he will kill them both and get away with murder. That fantasy, which he has while conducting an orchestra,rapidly falls apart once he actually tries to put it into motion. Moore and Assante compete for overacting awards, while Kinski was never much of an actress to begin with. Still, this was one of Moore's better roles during his brief bout with stardom in the '80s, and any movie with Albert Brooks (as Moore's venal manager) in it can't be all bad. --Marshall Fine ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Laugh Out Loud Funny
This movie is still so funny, even now 20 years later.Every performer in this film is superb and the comic timing is right on.Good luck finding a copy, though - it's out of print. Please, somone, put this movie on DVD!My VHS copy is so worn out from viewing.

"Unfaithfully Yours" Is Remade In Good "Faith"
I'm not exactly sure which version of "Unfaithfully Yours" I've seen first, but the original Preston Sturges verison is my favorite among his films, which is a pretty large order considering this is the same man who directed "The Palm Beach Story" and "The Lady Eve".

Given my feelings towards the original I wasn't sure if I'd like this remake. It has almost become a Hollywood rule remakes are never on par with the originals. Just as sequels are not as good as the original.

Howard Zieff's "Unfaithfully Yours" is a nice exception. I admit I don't think it's quite as good as the Sturges film (that one I would give 4 stars) it is still entertaining and funny at moments. I thought the absence of Preston Sturges would cause a decrease in the comedic possibilities, but, I forgot how good Dudley Moore and Albert Brooks are.

Moore plays Claude Eastman a famous conductor who suspects his much younger wife Daniella (Nastassja Kinski) is cheating on him after the thought is first put into his head when a misunderstanding between Claude and his friend Norman (Albert Brooks) takes place and Norman thought Claude wanted him to hire a detective to watch his wife while Claude was out of town.

Howard Zieff is not exactly what I would call a great director, he was the man behind "The Main Event" and the "My Girl" films, but, he strings things together nicely here. The script, while perhaps not as funny as Sturges' is not completely a dud. Barry Levinson had a hand in the remake, so expects some funny bits.

One of my favorite scenes is at the restaurant when Moore "thinks" Armand Assante is confronting him about having an affair with his wife, and the start a dueling violin contest of Tchaikovsky.

Also I should mention I the film's one advantage. In the scene dealing with Moore's plan to kill his wife it's set-up much funnier.

Bottom-line:Remake of the classic Preston Sturges comedy is not exactly as good as the original but offers its own nice moments. Good performances by Moore and Brooks (who isn't used enough).

Just Too Funny
This movie contains so many more laughs than the original.The original did not make me laugh out loud (my measure of funny) except for the madcap bumbling of Rex Harrison's efforts in acting out his fantasy.The remake with Dudley Moore has you going from the start.It is updated with modern humor and just plain funny,

I've watched this like 20 times.
I got ahold of this movie when I was 9 or 10...and my sister and I watched it over and over.The movie is a riot, quite frankly.Beautiful cinematography and a great cast of characters.Armand Assante is wonderful with his arrogant sophisticated air...esp. the competitions with the Dudley Moore character.This movie is incredibly inspired.Wonderful to catch if you can!

AVIEWER FROM PLAINFIELD,CT
If you like Dudley Moore movies, this is a must for anyone's col lection!!!I personally had a hard time finding the video....Now that it is available, by all means include this one in your library. This is a more lighthearted version than the original. Mr. Moore shows us his gift as a true comedian with shades of slapstick mixed in. Richard Libertini steals the film as Moore's Italian butler and the laughs are countless. The New York City scenery also is a plus with lots of midtown Manhattan brilliantly showcased(made me nostalgic).Again, pick this one up before it goes out of print again. ... Read more

Description

An executive awakens one morning to find that her accountant has stolen all her money and fled the country. The only asset she has left is a boxer she purchased as a tax write-off. The executive then goads the boxer into re-starting his career. ... Read more

Reviews (11)

"I've got the same two words for you!"
I would actually give this film three-and-a-half stars. This film was a major hit upon release in the summer of '79, but it has since been written off by many as one of Streisand's weakest film efforts. As for myself, I could go about reviewing the film in two ways. I could say that the THE MAIN EVENT is a perfect example of a worn out premise given the by-the-book treatment, with no attempt to disguise how derivative and predictable the whole thing is. However, I could also say that THE MAIN EVENT manages to be likable, funny, and entertaining.

Both of these statements have a lot of merit, but I think I'm going to go with my second opinion. Even though we've seen the same story a thousand times before, THE MAIN EVENT is quite enjoyable while it's playing. The scenes are set up well, the one-liners are mostly funny ("I said celebrate, not fornicate!"), and Streisand and O'Neal give off a strong sexual charge between them onscreen. It may not be meaningful, or even original, but THE MAIN EVENT is a pretty good timewaster.

About the DVD: The picture quality is great, and the mono sound is fine as well. It's great to have the original trailer and the 19-minute television special, titled GETTING IN SHAPE FOR THE MAIN EVENT, preserved on disc, although Streisand's brief audio commentary is slightly disappointing.

"I've got the same two words for you!"
I would give this film three-and-a-half stars. This film was a major hit upon release in the summer of '79, but it has since been written off by many as one of Streisand's weakest film efforts. As for myself, I could go about reviewing the film in two ways. I could say that the THE MAIN EVENT is a perfect example of a worn out premise given the by-the-book treatment, with no attempt to disguise how derivative and predictable the whole thing is. However, I could also say that THE MAIN EVENT manages to be likable, funny, and entertaining.

Both of these statements have a lot of merit, but I think I'm going to go with my second opinion. Even though we've seen the same story a thousand times before, THE MAIN EVENT is quite enjoyable while it's playing. The scenes are set up well, the one-liners are mostly funny ("I said celebrate, not fornicate!"), and Streisand and O'Neal give off a strong sexual charge between them onscreen. It may not be meaningful, or even original, but THE MAIN EVENT is a pretty good timewaster.

About the DVD: The picture quality is great, and the mono sound is fine as well. It's great to have the original trailer and the 19-minute television special, titled GETTING IN SHAPE FOR THE MAIN EVENT, preserved on disc, although Streisand's brief audio commentary is slightly disappointing.

She cant make a bad movie.
It has been quite a while since i have actually seen The Main Event but i have been trying to find it in the stores on video for quite a long time. I can remember loving the movie. There was a lot of screeming and yelling...but isnt that what boxers do. I thought the way they pick on each other is cute. I thought Barbra was precious. It is one of those movies that you come out feeling good which is hard to find these days.

Good movie, but a PG rating?????
I liked the movie, it's fun and funny but what really surprised and shocked me was: PG RATING? Come on! 1. They show two butts in the movie, there is a lot of adult talk, and a lot of hintings to sexuality? It is a good movie, but I mean one would think more about the point of view of watching it depending on the rating of the movie.
All in all, this is a quite good movie which I like
Recommended, it's a lot of fun

Funny, Entertaining but I've seen better
The Main Event was the first Streisand picture I ever saw. I loved it at the theaters. But since then I've seen many more of her movies on VHS. I have to say it's a good film but not her best. I liked "Yentl" or "Owl & Pussycat" or "A Star Is Born" much better. Her acting is superb, so is Ryan's. But the storyline is a little weak compared to other movies she is in. I reccommend it its just not her very best movie. ... Read more

Reviews (503)

Man Out Of Time
It's hard to think of a movie in which the hero ponders a metaphorical crossroads in his life while standing at a literal crossroads. Insipid or inspired? The problem with Robert Zemeckis's visually and viscerally eye-punching Robinson Crusoe ins that you can't say for sure. Could the movie really be as thematically trite as an insprirational office poster? Or is it an admirably stripped- down examination of the ancestral essence of being human?
Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks) doesn't worry about such big questions. He's airlifted into Moscow and other emerging capital hot-spots when local operations are absolutely, positivly running from that tireless hunter: time. (It's alerrgorical! Get it?) Summoned on Christmas to make an emergency run, Chuck leaves his fiencee Kelly (Helen Hunt) with the promise that he'll return New Year's Eve. Cue from a "Perfect Storm": Chuck and the FedEx jet crew lose radio contact and crash into the Pacific Ocean in a truly harrowing, you-are-there disaster sequence. This is no film for the squeamish, particularly after Chuck and a few FedEx packages wash up on an unnamed, utterly uninhabited island (Fiji's Monukiri and Mana, actually).
Almost everything, from what Chuck's forced to eat to his horror at consequences of a desert-island toothache, is accompanied by all the blood and guts left over from SAVING PRIVATE RYAN.
Add in Chuck's deteriorating hold on sanity---evinced by the inspired conceit of his relationship with a volleyball on which he has drawn a face---and you have a long middle section of bravura filmaking.
But once Chuck get home, the film turns anticlimatic and emotionally nil, and there's a startling lack of chemistry between Hanks and an unimpressive Hunt.

Cast Away
Cast Away
The first thought I had after seeing this film was whether or not I fully understood all of what I had seen. Posing this question will undoubtedly offer no easy answers, which for a film like Cast Away is probably a good thing. Cast Away begins with Fed Ex Executive Chuck Nolan (Tom Hanks in another stellar performance) explaining to his employee's that quote "We live by the clock". It's Christmas Eve and Chuck is enjoying a good meal with family and friends when his beeper rings and he finds himself forced to go out on a quick job. He tells his beautiful girlfriend Kelly (Helen Hunt) that he will be home in time for new years celebrations. He promises. However a tragic plane crash into the ocean (which is very thrilling and realistic) changes all that. Now Chuck will no longer be living by the clock because he's now got all the time in the world. A trailer that gives away the entire movie ruined cast Away for many people. A spokes man for 20th Century Fox Entertainment said that Cast Away is movie about a man lost at sea and how he deals with coming home to world of change. Frankly I do not see it that way. I am a firm believer that people want to be surprised when they go to the movies. The only other quibble I have about the movie is the ending from which I think we the viewers are left with too many questions. Besides those problems I walked out of the theatre feeling really satisfied with what I had seen. The acting is top flight. The cinematography is excellent and the score is also a plus. One thing to mention to people is that there isn't allot of dialogue in the movie which may turn some people off. However, those people not too fussy may find this film truly riveting. For me it was a breathtaking experience. Review: **** out of five

unwooden Hollywood
Greeting comrads. Whats all can be said. read Yugijouohs' stunning review here in this Amazon customer review section, and you can believe me, he be harsher than I would have been if i talk , but that's repeating, he has said all there is to say! But I'll toss my 2 lira - Helen Hunt is the cats pajamas for ME personally--as opposed to me impersonally haha eddu make funny--and if had known she was not going to appear in Cast Away, I would not have even gone to see it.As mia santa momma said , flattery is no pizza,...but I will smash that rule here. WHENEVER Ms. Hunt is on picture, the movie is EYECATCHING! Again, see Yugijouohs review for more "depth" , I only write to urge you, the last TWENTY minutes of this movie recall the label on minestrone soup cans when i was a boy- Mm Mm GOOD! Probably the best use of digital storage in this crazy filmmaking world. Happily, this is my first positive review on Amazon, and this kind of filmmaking must "be a shining city on the hill" like Ronald Reagan speech! I say, Stay away from bad foreign film, go see Hollywood..(you may learn english)! To say 1 negative thing, the scenery shots ARE boring & Hanks seems a very disengenous man. To believe this movie was hardly "test screened", I love that this type of movie ending is not what world "wants"(?) At most you cant turn your DVD off when Mr Hanks is rescued,the movie would get malto bazillioniano stars I give in the review. This is my best advice.

I shared the same experience as Chuck Noland did...
This movie is very touching, and it's been hard for me to watch it again. Why you ask, because I use to date a girl back in 1996 when she lived here in Fitzgerald, GA. Her name is Kelly aswell. We dated briefly, but that all ending when her dad had to move to Houston, TX because of his job being transfered from the railcart co. here in Fitzgerld, GA, to Houston, TX. Me and her lost contact with each other until 2002, when I was able to find where she was and to finally get in touch with her again. She came back to Fitzgerald and We hugged each other for a long while. She stayed for a day or so here in town with another family member of her's, then they left to go back to Houston, TX. Sadly she started dating someone there in January of 2003. She told me that she did not think she could take having a long distance relationship, which that does make since. She did however came back later that year, but it was different. She saw it as a Friendly visit instead. But we still email each other everynow and then.

I know you could care less about my experience compared to this movie, but anyway Tom Hanks again brings in a great performance in "CastAway", just like he did in "Saving Private Ryan". The only thing I dislike about this movie is that he sounds like he is apologizes for not coming back to Kelly(Helen Hunt). It's not his fault the plane went down and he got stranded on an island, and Kelly(Helen Hunt) should have held out longer to see if he would indid be found. Which he is found and returns to Texas, and to his job as a Fed-Ex worker. But Kelly(Helen Hunt) is now remarried and has a daughter. But the movie does end on a positive note.

I recommend this movie to anyone wanting to see an adventure type movie, after you watch this movie it will make you look at life a different way and to stay close to the love ones you so dearly treasure.

Tom Tanks
Castaway was gravely lacking whether it was a true story or not. I hope it was true because that would at least validate the reason why somebody would put an anti-climactic and obvious-to-the-point-of-silliness story like that on a screen. The only enjoyable parts were where he lost something: Wilson the volleyball and his only companion of four years; blood, in the ocean accident where he tries to row a deflated lifesaver tube towards a light in the distance and breaks his leg open on the coral; his flashlight burning out; his soul-mate re-marrying and starting a new family; etc. It was enjoyable because I wanted him to suffer further. I think sympathetic feelings should only be lent to greatness, like Stalin or the Hindenburg exploding into flames, not to some shlub lost at sea who survives against great odds and endures to what? Saving his life only to give into the convention of letting things be as they are? Of course if there is resistance one shouldn't push and pull, but it seemed the only thing holding him back were the qualms and strictions of leaving well enough alone. Too bad this didn't register in his brain on that island and save the two hours and twenty plus minutes of film. Although there were some amusing parts there was never really any suspense as the viewer knows without any advance warning that he would survive his ordeal no matter the severity or peril he faced. Two stars begrudginly because it was 50 times better than Wendigo and I like to be consistent. ... Read more

Reviews (23)

I've been swimming in raw sewage...I LOVE IT!
I actually did like this move quite a bit, and it was amazingly funny, but it had a few too many man-gets-hit-by-something-and-falls jokes for me. This is my least favorite Naked Gun movie yet I still watch it all the time and have a good laugh. the Naked Gun movies to me are the funniest movies ever created, and this is no exception. It is great, but I think you would first want to check out the other two. My favorite scene: The one where Frank and Ed go into the sex shop while Norberg is going under all the cars. Another downer: there were too many jokes stolen from the series it was based on, Police Squad! Otherwise, very good and very very funny.

Fairly funny
This is the second film based on the short-lived TV series "Police Squad". The first is a classic. This one liberally borrows gags from the TV show that inspired it, and that sums up my problem with the film: an overall lack of inspiration.

There are some very funny segments, including director David Zucker's hilarious send-up of his brother Jerry's "Ghost". But this movie just isn't as consistently funny as it's predecessor. This is really Leslie Nielsen's last funny performance in a spoof-comedy. After this, he would resort to constant and shameless mugging. In fact, one of the faults with this second Naked Gun film is that David Zucker allows some winking at the audience to creep in. These films are much better when played completely straight.

The DVD isn't exactly packed with features. There is a funny group commentary and that's about it. Some have complained that the scenes used for the TV broadcast version aren't included. It would've been nice if Paramount had included them as Deleted Scenes (though they are NOT good enough to warrant inclusion in the actual film).

Halt! Police Squad!
Unlike most sequels, Naked Gun 2 ½ goes above and beyond the spectacular first movie. Priscilla Presley just kept getting hotter and more beautiful as the series went on. Leslie Neilson, the modern day king of physical comedy is up to his old hijinx as Lt. Frank Dremond. This time Frank is after the masterminds who wish to bury the thought of clean energy and let the oil companies continue to give us high prices and pollution.

Gags that make the whole movie worth it.....

1. The shower/assassin scene. What a beautiful duet as he adjusts his silencer!
2. The Blue lounge, to include no Black Russians!
3. The Wistler's Mother birthmark. Stays on even with a sander!
4. A dinner with President Bush (watch those doors and lobster claws)
5. The final scene with hanging Barbera!

This is entertainment folks!

Smell of Comedy
The second installment to the adventures of Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) and Police Squad/Naked Gun series is just as funny as the first film (and forgotten tv show). There is an underlying theme in this comedy about environmental issues and there is a story and plot with all the pratfalls,nonsense, and hilarity. Again, the producers pick an unlikely actor to play the villian (Ricardo Montalban in the first) and this time it's Robert Goulet as Quentin Hapsburg behind a plot to deter President Bush's policy for a cleaner USA. The real treasure is everytime Frank Drebin (Nielsen) says one of his many asinine lines, the camera switches to Hapsburg (Goulet) and his look of bewilderment is worth the price of admission. The supporting roles are equally funny. O.J. Simpson as Nordberg has a more prominent role than in the first (although in the first he set up the Nordberg character beautifully). George Kennedy as Ed found a second career in comedy equal to that of Nielsen, and Priscilla Presley is up to the task of keeping up with all the hijinx. Guest roles are filled by some of Nielsen's contemporaries who have played similar type guest roles in various 60's and 70's tv shows and movies (Tim O'Conner, Lloyed Bochner etc.) The films are probably a little marred by the fact that OJ Simpson is in the cast, but his Nordberg character is hilarious as with the rest of the film. Overall a very funny film with the Zucker brand of comedy. Note: Classic Line- Commissioner Brumford (Jacqueline Brookes) after getting a call that animals escaped from the zoo as a result of a Drebin blunder... "Do you realise that this city is being overrun by baboons?" Drebin (Nielsen) "Well, isn't that the fault of the voters?". Also, a classic surprise scene: An in-joke by Lloyed Bochner (as Baggett) and a certain classic TWILIGHT ZONE episode "To Serve Man" in which he appeared in years ago.

THIS ONE IS JUST AS GOOD AS THE FIRST!!
This movie is just what my tital says!! Just as good as the first and that's because it is!! If you like the first one than you'll love this one too!! ... Read more

Reviews (32)

A Great Comedy!
It was either seeing this or "Marci X," and I ended up seeing both of them anyway. But I gave "Marci X" three stars and "My Boss's Daughter," five stars, so I guess you can see which I thought was the better movie. You can call me crazy because I liked this movie, but I just thought that it was really funny, which is what I like to look for. A movie does not have to be emotional or touching to be good. As long as I am entertained in the movie theatre, and laugh and if the movie calls for emotion they if I can feel for the characters I will think that its a good movie. This movie however, was very funny. It had stupid humor, and most of the time, that is all that I am looking for in a movie anyway.

The story of "My Boss's Daughter," is a simple on at most. No biggie. Tom works as a reasearcher in a publishers houserun by Jack who is known for firing people for making a bad cup of coffee. That is exactly what Tom's fellow co-worker Audrey does. Tom is very nervous about asking his boss for a promotion in the creative department, and he is also nervous about asking out his beautiful daughter and co-worker Lisa.(Played by Tara Reid who I never really liked.) Tom thinks that Lisa is asking him out when it seems that she is asking him to a party, but she really just wants him to housesit in place of her, so that she could go to a party. Jack is waiting for him at the house and tells him the rules. He also tells him how to feed his precious bird O.J. Tom says "No problem," but thinks go wrong when everybody leaves. Audrey comes by to talk to Jack and then Lisa's brother Red comes to ask Tom to give a package to T.J. The package is drugs. But then tons of other people arrive at the house including Speed and Tina. Tom is scared because when Jack left the house he said that if anything was wrong he would fire Tom and kill him. As he tries to get everybody out of the house, he runs into Lisa's boyfriend Hans, a women who thinks that Tom is her date, and is offended because she has a large headwound, and O.J. who escapes from his cage. "My Boss's Daughter," is a very funny movie that was just misunderstood.

"My Boss's Daughter," got such bad box office buzz that it wasn't even previewed in advance by critics. I still stand by the theory that the reason movies that were shot down by critics do bad, were because people were told that they were bad. I think that that is the case with "My Boss's Daughter." I thought that this was a very funny piece of comedy. It was also dark, I feel. I love dark comedy. Some of my favorite dark movies are "Death to Smoochy," and "The Royal Tenenbaums." But "My Boss's Daughter," is a different work of dark comedy. It is a dark comedy disguised as a comedy. It wasn't billed as one, but I think it should be. It had comedy about death, drugs, and murderers. But I thought it was a great film and the DVD is out soon.

ENJOY!

Rated PG-13 for crude and sex-related humor, drug content and language.

Just What It's Meant To Be
Everyone needs to stop criticising a this movie just because it's not up for an Academy Award. A comedy is supposed to make you laugh and forget your problems for an hour and a half, and this movie does a great job of it. Anyone who says this is bad movie has probably never even tried to act or direct or write a script, so let it be what it is. Ashton is funny, the characters are funny...and there is a scene where a cheeto is stuck to someones head wound. What more could you ask for? I'd watch it again because it makes me laugh, which is the top criteria for purchasing a DVD. I wouldn't spend $20 to torture myself to sit through "Lost In Translation" again, that's for damn sure! So get some friends together and watch this movie...LAUGH and HAVE FUN. Don't worry about who gets an award!

A FUNNY MOVIE THAT IMPRESSED ME.
IDE GIVE IT 4 IN A HALF. I NEVER SAW THAT MANY PREVIEWS TO BUT I RENTED IT WHEN CAME ON VIDEO ANYWAYS. IT TURNED OUT GREAT. IT WAS SO FUNNY. I EVEN BOUGHT IT. MOST PEOPLE SEEM TO NOT LIKE IT BUT I DO. I THINK IT WAS HILARIOUS. IDE RECOMEND IT 2 ANYONE WHO HAS A SINCE OF HUMOR

Horrible
This movie was horrible...

There was no laughter coming from me for the entire 101 minutes I watched this movie...For a movie that is supposed to be "absolutely hilarious"...I would say that that is pretty bad.

The back of the DVD says that "you will laugh your ass off"...the only thing my ass was doing was developing a cramp from sitting on it for sooooo long...

Please do not waste your money or time with this one...use it for something with some cinematic quality...such as MYSTIC RIVER!

Don't waste your money
This movie is crap! I see why it sat on the shelf for 2 years , it only had 2 or 3 funny parts/gags in the film and that's a shame since David Zucker was behind this mess. The DVD is even terrible with few extras and a soft picture. An owl named O.J. and Andy Richter were wasted. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

It's me again -- in the flesh.....
Obviously this is a very silly movie. It ain't Oscar material, it has no redeeming value whatsoever. It's a movie to kick back and watch with tongue in cheek -- no pun intended. Most of the acting isn't, most of the effects aren't, and if they decide to make #3, they shouldn't.

Given the choice again, I would have preferred to have rented this one instead of buying.

No stars for this copycat
After seeing the original 1974 flesh gordon I was happy to see a part 2, I grabbed it from the rental shelf and went home hoping it would be as entertaining as the original but to my dismay part 2 was only a crude attempt to copy the first. There is no humor and no magic touch to this movie, not worth the tape it took to make it. Get the original 1974 Flesh Gordon on DVD but skip part 2. Not funny, not entertaining.

Flesh Gordon 2
No stars for rating system. No stars in the film. Not worth the electricity to run the viewing equipment. The people appearing in this rip=off are not even attractive.

No stars, if possible
It's been many years since I saw either of these but now that it's on DVD I'm watching the first Flesh Gordon again. The FIRST Flesh Gordon was charming and funny. As to the sequel I agree with the person who wrote "what a letdown." The toilet humor in this one can only be enjoyed by sick puppies. Unless you like the idea of people dressed as giant bowel movements blocking each others way through the alimentary canal (and what the hell's our hero doing there anyway?) save your lunch by skipping this monstosity.

Brilliant Satiric Comedy
This film is not for porn film viewers, nor is it for sci-fi fans or even for those who enjoy ordinary comedy. Only those who can appreciate a twisted satire of all three genres will enjoy this brilliant expose.

All of the elements combine in a rapid-fire collision which combines the worst of all three worlds in the most ludicrous, tasteless, and juvenile production since "Pink Flamingos."

This is an excellence that Ed Wood could only have dreamed of. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Gross-out comedy reached its peak (or nadir, if you will) when this celebration of juvenile crudeness was released in the summer of 1998. There's Something About Mary was a surprise box-office smash at the same time, and it's a much funnier and (dare we say it?) more intelligently conceived comedy, but there's something to be said for a couple of dudes who blissfully embrace bad taste and improper decorum. As they proved with their popular cartoon series South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone are shameless purveyors of scatological humor, and no bodily function escapes their baser instinct for gutter-level guffaws. Here they play a couple of guys who are fed up with the hyper-commercialism of professional sports, so they invent "baseketball"--a hybrid of baseball and basketball--and soon find themselves in the middle of a booming national craze. As baseketball leagues thrive, so does the movie's appetite for puerile shock-jokes and disgusting gags. There are some great throwaway lines and a lot of funny cameos by the likes of Bob Costas, Al Michaels, Jenny McCarthy, Robert Stack, Reggie Jackson, and others, but let's face it--a little of this stuff goes a long, long way. If you laugh a lot, you may be suffering (as Parker and Stone clearly do) from an acute case of arrested development. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (161)

I love it, but it's not for everyone.
I love this movie! I live in Australia and it went sraight to video over here, probably beacause it made very little money at the box office in America. But don't let either of these facts put you off. The only thing that should put you off this movie is if it's just not for you, which is pretty likey in today's political-correctness-obsessed society. But if you're willing to remind yourself that it's just a joke, and that they mean nothing by it, you may actually have a good time.
Personally, I thought it was great. Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the guys who created South Park, star as a pair of lifelong friends, and losers, who create a game which is a cross between baseball and basketball (hence the name BASEketball). They're not serious about it, and are just doing it for fun, but when a famous billionaire decides to sponser them to go pro, they become overnight superstars. From here on in, the whole thing becomes downright silly, one of the main reasons that I like it so much. It also becomes full of sight gags and gross-out humour, and this won't appeal to some people. It's not the type of gross-out used in Austin Powers or American Pie - it has just a little more bite than that, and will definitely cause offense somewhere on the planet at the best of times. But it's all in good fun, and so silly that it doesn't get nasty, and there's never any doubt that it's all make-believe.
The two leads are just great - really funny, with natural chemistry, because they are best friends in real life. Also worth a mention is Dian Bachar, who you might remember as the postman from Two Guys, A Girl and a Pizza Place. He plays Kenny "Squeak" Scolari, best described in South Park analogies -the Stan to a pair of Cartmans. He is mainly used as a vehichle for the movie's cheapest slapstick gags, but he's also a believable character, and there were a couple of points where I really felt sorry for the poor little guy! The only performance that disappointed me was Yasmine Bleeth, but at the time I didn't know she had been on Baywatch, otherwise I would have expected bad acting (sorry Baywatch fans!). Her character Jenna has some pretty good lines, but they should have got someone who could deliver them well. Fortunately, all of the other performances were much better.
Anyway, you're probably sick of hearing what I have to say by now, so I hope I've inspired you to watch this movie. Like I said, you might like it, you might not, but I'd advise you to give it a try anyway.
Oh, and a message for any other girls out there who are reading this: Trey Parker is really cute. Not that that has anything to do with the actual movie, but I just thought I should express my opinion.
Thanks for reading my review. Party on! :)

It's this new game we learned...in the hood!
BASEketball is a surprisingly clever comedy that works on many different levels. While it parodies feel-good sports movies it also posts a savage social commentary on the commercialization of American sports and American life in general. The movie stars South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, however it wasn't written by them, so fans of South Park and Orgazmo may find the movie a little tame. However, with David Zucker (of "Airplane!" fame) at the helm, the movie skips along merrily, with plenty of sight gags, running jokes, and one-liners. I also think it's prudish to call this a "gross-out" comedy - there's nothing on a par with the "frank and beans" scene in "...Mary" for the squeamish to avoid. Instead most of the humor revolves around the male bonding displayed by Trey, Matt and diminutive co-star Dian Bachar. The rituals of teasing, name-calling and hazing have rarely been portrayed as lovingly on screen before...
Numerous guest star appearances begin to drag toward the end of the film, but the acute social satire never lets up, and in the end the movie has a saccharine, feel-good flavor. In fact, the only reason this picked up an idiotic R rating must've been the habitual usage of the f-word. Otherwise there's no sex, no nudity, no violence and frankly the language wouldn't really shock an 8 yr old these days. But these are the censored times we live in...
Anyway, BASEketball is great, it zips along merrily, you have to pay close attention to get some of the more subtle gags and the pace slacks toward the end, but all in all I think you'll watch it enough to warrant buying over renting.

An underrated treasure
Disgusting? Check. Juvenile? Check. Sadistic? Check. BASEketball is all these things, but it is also so much more, thanks to the Zucker (Airplane, Top Secret!, Naked Gun) touch.

Though it stars Matt Stone and Trey Parker, BASEketball doesn't really resemble South Park so much as Zucker's other straight-faced screwball comedies, and it's obvious these two fit into that rubric perfectly. It is not merely that Matt Stone puts a sex toy in his mouth, it is the zeal with which he attacks it that makes the scene a gut-buster. Zucker supposedly cast the duo before South Park became such a phenomenon, and it's a gamble that paid off artistically.

Not everyone's gonna like this movie. Some won't get it, a few more might be really turned off by a guy-on-guy kiss near the movie's climax, and the rest just won't find it funny for whatever reason. For everyone else, there's no shame in howling with laughter.

Humor Only a Prepubescent Boy Could Love...
Okay, so I'm not a prepubescent boy. I'm a nearly thirty-year-old woman who was made to watch this ridiculous film quite against her will... And, damn it if I nearly peed my pants with laughter!

However, I do not recommend this to anyone who dislikes bathroom humor on principle. Though each joke is well-executed, each corny, melodramatic quip delivered with deliberately dewy-eyed sincerity, it is unapologetically juvenile, raunchy, and pretends to have no amount of redeeming value. But even its lack of values came as a surprise to me, for I can't help but give it more credit than it seems to give itself for having very strong underlying themes of maintaining integrity (believe it or not), and of course, friendship.

Bottom line - if you're looking for good clean fun, this is not for you; but if you're feeling a little off-color, goofy and in the mood for a guilty pleasure, this is a film that, at the least, will make you laugh in spite of yourself.

"Steve....Perry!"
This is one of my favourite movies of all time, no doubt! Matt and Trey have been my heroes since I was ten years old (I was a very demented 10 year old). It's hilarious and strongly reccomended to anyone fond of...well, laughing! And if you like watching BASEketball, try and get together with some friends and play it. ... Read more

Reviews (32)

A Great Comedy!
It was either seeing this or "Marci X," and I ended up seeing both of them anyway. But I gave "Marci X" three stars and "My Boss's Daughter," five stars, so I guess you can see which I thought was the better movie. You can call me crazy because I liked this movie, but I just thought that it was really funny, which is what I like to look for. A movie does not have to be emotional or touching to be good. As long as I am entertained in the movie theatre, and laugh and if the movie calls for emotion they if I can feel for the characters I will think that its a good movie. This movie however, was very funny. It had stupid humor, and most of the time, that is all that I am looking for in a movie anyway.

The story of "My Boss's Daughter," is a simple on at most. No biggie. Tom works as a reasearcher in a publishers houserun by Jack who is known for firing people for making a bad cup of coffee. That is exactly what Tom's fellow co-worker Audrey does. Tom is very nervous about asking his boss for a promotion in the creative department, and he is also nervous about asking out his beautiful daughter and co-worker Lisa.(Played by Tara Reid who I never really liked.) Tom thinks that Lisa is asking him out when it seems that she is asking him to a party, but she really just wants him to housesit in place of her, so that she could go to a party. Jack is waiting for him at the house and tells him the rules. He also tells him how to feed his precious bird O.J. Tom says "No problem," but thinks go wrong when everybody leaves. Audrey comes by to talk to Jack and then Lisa's brother Red comes to ask Tom to give a package to T.J. The package is drugs. But then tons of other people arrive at the house including Speed and Tina. Tom is scared because when Jack left the house he said that if anything was wrong he would fire Tom and kill him. As he tries to get everybody out of the house, he runs into Lisa's boyfriend Hans, a women who thinks that Tom is her date, and is offended because she has a large headwound, and O.J. who escapes from his cage. "My Boss's Daughter," is a very funny movie that was just misunderstood.

"My Boss's Daughter," got such bad box office buzz that it wasn't even previewed in advance by critics. I still stand by the theory that the reason movies that were shot down by critics do bad, were because people were told that they were bad. I think that that is the case with "My Boss's Daughter." I thought that this was a very funny piece of comedy. It was also dark, I feel. I love dark comedy. Some of my favorite dark movies are "Death to Smoochy," and "The Royal Tenenbaums." But "My Boss's Daughter," is a different work of dark comedy. It is a dark comedy disguised as a comedy. It wasn't billed as one, but I think it should be. It had comedy about death, drugs, and murderers. But I thought it was a great film and the DVD is out soon.

ENJOY!

Rated PG-13 for crude and sex-related humor, drug content and language.

Just What It's Meant To Be
Everyone needs to stop criticising a this movie just because it's not up for an Academy Award. A comedy is supposed to make you laugh and forget your problems for an hour and a half, and this movie does a great job of it. Anyone who says this is bad movie has probably never even tried to act or direct or write a script, so let it be what it is. Ashton is funny, the characters are funny...and there is a scene where a cheeto is stuck to someones head wound. What more could you ask for? I'd watch it again because it makes me laugh, which is the top criteria for purchasing a DVD. I wouldn't spend $20 to torture myself to sit through "Lost In Translation" again, that's for damn sure! So get some friends together and watch this movie...LAUGH and HAVE FUN. Don't worry about who gets an award!

A FUNNY MOVIE THAT IMPRESSED ME.
IDE GIVE IT 4 IN A HALF. I NEVER SAW THAT MANY PREVIEWS TO BUT I RENTED IT WHEN CAME ON VIDEO ANYWAYS. IT TURNED OUT GREAT. IT WAS SO FUNNY. I EVEN BOUGHT IT. MOST PEOPLE SEEM TO NOT LIKE IT BUT I DO. I THINK IT WAS HILARIOUS. IDE RECOMEND IT 2 ANYONE WHO HAS A SINCE OF HUMOR

Horrible
This movie was horrible...

There was no laughter coming from me for the entire 101 minutes I watched this movie...For a movie that is supposed to be "absolutely hilarious"...I would say that that is pretty bad.

The back of the DVD says that "you will laugh your ass off"...the only thing my ass was doing was developing a cramp from sitting on it for sooooo long...

Please do not waste your money or time with this one...use it for something with some cinematic quality...such as MYSTIC RIVER!

Don't waste your money
This movie is crap! I see why it sat on the shelf for 2 years , it only had 2 or 3 funny parts/gags in the film and that's a shame since David Zucker was behind this mess. The DVD is even terrible with few extras and a soft picture. An owl named O.J. and Andy Richter were wasted. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Misleading (esp. for people new to Highlander)
Ok, so this i probably mostly my own fault for not having done the proper research on it before I purchased it, but when I saw the DVD Highlander "Finale", I was expecting an individual release of the actual final episode of Highlander: The Series. Naturally, I was quite disappointed when I found it to actually be the season finale from year three...which I already have on DVD because I own the complete season boxed set.
However, I give this three stars despite that setback due solely to the fact that being a part of the Highlander series it is naturally a wonderful piece of action/adventure/sci-fi/fantasy storytelling.
If you already own season three you can probably skip this release (unless you are set on having every Highlander DVD that's produced). If not, then I recommend giving this release a shot.

Please Be Advised....
This DVD contains the two-part, season-ending episode from Season 3 of the Highlander TV series. If you already own or are planning to buy the Highlander Season 3 Box Set, please be advised that these episodes are included in that set. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

Duh, this movie isn't supposed to make sense
I read a lot of reviews of this movie and they all say pretty much the same thing, it's unintelligable, but i think that's kind of the point. The first time I saw this movie it was on TNT at 1:00 in the morning, which is the time i recommend people watch this movie if they want to get the full effect, because when you are extreamly tired, you don't care about a plot, you just say hey, that's a cool movie, which is what this movie is. There's some great visuals like sam and dave's split apartment, and plastic figures hanging from wires that are apparently suspended in mid air. You must keep an open mind when watching this movie, don't ask how sam and dave get from a bus stop bench in a dark ally to an island in the blink of an eye, just go with it...and watch out for the snake

A very funny movie
This movie was a very good movie, I can not belive anyone would give it a bad review, but then again some people in this world must not have a since of humor, I belive that evey time you have Feldman and Haim paired together you are in for a very entertaning movie, and this movies proves that to be true, I would tell eveyone reading this that you to should watch this movie!

This movie's SUPPOSED to be stupid.
This movie was written with every intent to make you role your eyes and laugh. And, for me, it succeeded very well; I didn't stop laughing through the entire thing. It takes nothing seriously, especially itself (that's called a farce). It pokes fun at the film industry and itself. If you want to take a break from reality, be thoroughly entertained, and learn nothing of redeaming value, this is the perfect movie.

WOW! WHAT A HORRIBLE MOVIE!
Ok, first off, I love Corey Feldman and Corey Haim, and I love movies, but I almost couldn't even finish this movie. They get fired from their job and kicked out of their apartment, so Feldman's uncle that is an ex-pirate actor magically warps them to his island to become scuba instructors, but his uncle's old on screen nemesis tries to take over the island and blah blah blah. I would like to meet the guy that wrote this script and thougth he had something special. The only reason I gave this 2 stars is because the two Corey's are in it, and both of them rule, they just got caught in a very bad movie.

Great Movie
Not only is this a great movie, but it has Corey Feldman! Now Corey Feldman can do no wrong by me. I think every Corey fan should see this movie. And I think Corey is one of the most talented people out there and I don't care who knows it! So make fun of him all you want because to the people that really like him it doesn't matter. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Captures Beatlemania perfectly!
Two words about this movie: totally hilarious! I caught this flick on MuchMoreMusic (the VH-1 of Canada) on Saturday night. First I only saw the last third of the movie. I watched it, not completely grasping the plot, but yet I enjoyed it a lot. Then they played a repeat a couple hours later and I watched the whole thing.

Oh God, it just cracked me up completely. Especially Rosie, the chubby Paul-insane groupie. Every time when she heard (on the radio) that they were announcing to win free tickets, she would drop whatever she was doing and dash to the nearest phone ("I know the answer!!") to try to win.

Basically what the story is about is: a group of young people go on a road trip to NYC to try to meet the Beatles who are performing live on Ed Sullivan. They plot to sneak into the hotel the Beatles are actually staying at! Now who hasn't thought or hoped vaguely of doing this (for any favourite band) at one point?

They made the movie feel pretty real. They had actors playing Ed and the Fab Four themselves (not showing their faces though, obviously). And the fans shrieking and screaming throughout the movie: very real. I've seen on TV the real performance they did on Ed Sullivan's and I'll tell you, the screaming was there, throughout. They just couldn't contain themselves. Beatlemania.

I really recommend this movie to any Beatles fan but it can be enjoyed by almost anyone. I hope they release it on DVD sometime!

essential Beatles
Great film for the 40th anniversary of Beatlemania. I'm a 1st generation Beatlemaniac and a collector of Beatle memorabilia. I was 11 in 1964 and remember with great fondness the initial fascination and fun of the Beatles. This film truly captures the manic beatlemania of the early days!. Magical! I have been waiting impatiently for this movie to be released on DVD because my VHS copy is beat up and not in very good shape. Another essential DVD movie to own is the Beatles 1st US visit and that film briefly shows a couple fans as they try work their way into the Plaza hotel just as these kids do! Beatles 4-Ever!

I wanna review this movie
Everything about this movie is perfect. I especially like how they handle the "Beatle" situation. Unfortunately, no Beatles were used in the making of this film and yet they have got to create that sense of excitment that the real Beatles would cause. Very cleverly, they get around the problem and take the viewer on a fun, fast paced adventure. My only minor complaint is the actors voices they used for the Beatles didn't sound like the real thing. Sound more like the voices in Yellow Submarine and those were actors-not Beatles.

Great Film to capture the feelings of the mania!
I adore this film! It really shows just how wild Beatlemania really was back then... "Rosie" was a riot who would dive out of cars in order to win a pair of Ed Sulliven Tickets! I could not stand Smirko though... I thought that he was really a moron! But I guess the film had to show both sides of the story...

"Pamela" was the lucky one to get into the Beatles room! I would have fainted too if I heard George unzip his pants! I wonder who in the world played the Beatles on that stage??? I hope that Warner Brothers comes out with a commentary to go with the DVD...

"Richard clout was also funny as the nerd who was just as big a beatle fan as Rosie... This is a wonderful way to see the mania first hand... I am going to go watch my VHS copy right now.. I just hope that it can hold out until September...

Very Funny
Leonard Maltin called this "realistic rendition of a raucous event." I agree with this movie 100%. This movie is so funny as three girls try to get in to see the Beatles live on the Ed Sullivan show in 1964. The methods these girls try to see them is realistic that it is hilarious. I was born in the 1970s but this movie makes me feel I am there in 1964. This movie and Used Cars helped put Robert Zemeckis on the map. He would then go on to do the Back to The Fuutre movies, Forrest Gump, and Cast Away. ... Read more

Description

The Superbit titles utilize a special high bit rate digital encoding process which optimizes video quality while offering a choice of both DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. These titles have been produced by a team of Sony Pictures Digital Studios video, sound and mastering engineers and comes housed in a special package complete with a 4 page booklet that contains technical information on the Superbit process. By reallocating space on the disc normally used for value-added content, Superbit DVDs can be encoded at double their normal bit rate while maintaining full compatibility with the DVD video format. ... Read more

Reviews (122)

Legend of the Fall
Family values, brotherly love, Legend of the Fall is an epic which depicts every side of both.
Watching this film, it is easy to believe that Brad Pitt, Aidan Quinn and Henry Thomas are brothers and the sons of Anthony Hopkins. The love-hate relationship between Tristan, Alfred and Samuel is almost too realistic. The iron hand of a domineering father who only knows the army way leads to desparate struggles for independence and identity.
Tristin (Brad Pitt) is the middle son, favored by the father (Anthony Hopkins) because of, as well as inspite of, his wild nature. Alfred(Aidan Quinn) is the eldest son. He feels he should be most privilaged, and since he can't get honor and respect from his father, he struggles his entire life to acheive success and out do his brother. Samuel is the youngest son who is looked after by all the family. It is Samuel who brings the woman into the picture.
The struggles of life and death, love and hate weave their way in and out of the story.
Edward Zwick did an excellent job of blending the story with the talents of the actors.
Legend of the Fall is an emotional dramatic ride. The scenery of the remote wildernes is the perfect back drop to support the legend as it unfolds.
I would recommend this film to anyone who wants a good emotional drama with all the twists and turns of real life.

A Movie That Almost Lives Up to Its Grand Title
This is one of the most moving films I have seen in a long time. Believe me, unless you have a heart of stone, you will cry long and loud over the anguish of the two main characters, played beautifully by Brad Pitt and Aidan Quinn. Family values are at the root of this anguish, and there are many powerful and engaging scenes. I wanted to give this movie five stars, but it didn't quite live up to the implications of its grand title. The ending was a bit of a letdown as well, although it's an appropriate one for Pitt's character.

Legendary
This movie seriously kicks ass. It's been my favorite movie for years and it makes me cry everytime.

Love It
I love this movie its a wonderful love story, you can watch with your boyfriend, and he'll actually like it!It has just enough action in it and plenty of romance. If you can get it in the Target store its a few dollars cheaper BUY IT ITS GREAT

Melodrama at its finest
When people ask me about my favorite movies I give them a quick run down of my top ten: 1. The Godfather and The Godfather part II (tie), 3. The Shawshank Redemption, 4. One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest, 5. Schindler's List, 6. The Silence of the Lambs, 7. Amadeus, 8. The Princess Bride, 9. Legends of the Fall, 10. Goodfellas. I am always surprised when they laugh at the 9th movie on my list. I can't understand why people think this movie is a joke. Yes, it's melodramatic but it works beautifully. Let me also say that I am not the biggest fan of Brad Pitt. His acting pales in comparison to some of the other fine actors of his generation (ie. Ralph Fiennes, Gary Oldman, Sean Penn). That said, he is perfectly cast in this movie. His ruggedness and wildman image were established in 1992's A River Runs Through It and his role as Tristan in LOTF seems almost like an extension of his role in River. I've heard that Johnny Depp, an actor whose talents I find superior to Pitt's, was originally offered the role of Tristan. I'm glad he turned it down for no one other than Brad Pitt could have BEEN Tristan.

I've always appreciated great acting. To me, there is nothing more entertaining than watching a De Niro, Pacino or Nicholson work his magic. There is only one truly great actor in Legends of the Fall - Sir Anthony Hopkins. In my opinion, he should have won an Oscar for this supporting role. A lot of reviewers criticized the second half of his performance (after the stroke) as being a bit excessive. I thought it was necessary in this type of film.

It was because of Legends of the Fall that I took an interest in acting. Not because of Anthony Hopkins...i know I could never be half as good as he. LOTF taught me that it doesn't take great actors to make a great movie. I thought Aidan Quinn, a talented but by no means gifted actor, was brilliant in the film as the tortured victim of unrequited love. It's my opnion that Quinn delivered a top-notch performance in the film, second only to Hopkins. The scene in which Alfred (Quinn) redeems himself in his father's eyes is particularly endearing. Also, the casting of Julia Ormond as Susannah was a stroke of genius. She has such classic beauty and is wonderful at conveying emotions without speaking a word. I often wonder where the hell she disappeared to.

Finally, I cannot say enough about James Horner's breathtaking score. I first became a fan of Horner's when I saw this movie and I believe him to be the top composer in the film-scoring business (yes, even better than the great John Williams).

Don't listen to the critics. This movie is amazing. They just don't make 'em like this anymore. ... Read more

Amazon.com

One of the greatest Westerns ever made gets the deluxe treatment on this superior disc from Republic Home Video's Silver Screen Classics line of special-edition DVDs. Written by Carl Foreman (who was later blacklisted during the anticommunist hearings of the '50s) and superbly directed by Fred Zinnemann, this 1952 classic stars Gary Cooper as just-married lawman Will Kane, who is about to retire as a small-town sheriff and begin a new life with his bride (Grace Kelly) when he learns that gunslinger Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald) is due to arrive at high noon to settle an old score. Kane seeks assistance from deputies and townsfolk, but soon realizes he'll have to stand alone in his showdown with Miller and his henchmen. Innovative for its time, the suspenseful story unfolds in approximate real time (from 10:40 a.m. to high noon in an 84-minute film), and many interpreted Foreman's drama as an allegorical reflection of apathy and passive acceptance of Senator Joseph McCarthy's anticommunist campaign.Political underpinnings aside, this remains a milestone of its genre (often referred to as the first "adult" Western), and Cooper is flawless in his Oscar-winning role. The first-rate DVD gives this landmark film all the respect it deserves, beginning with a digitally remastered transfer from the original film negative. Additional features include the exclusive documentary The Making of High Noon, hosted by film historian Leonard Maltin and featuring interviews with the late Lloyd Bridges (who played Cooper's rival ex-deputy), director Fred Zinnemann, and producer Stanley Kramer. Also included is the original theatrical trailer and a special chapter stop highlighting the Oscar-winning song "Do Not Forsake Me." Offered in English and dubbed French and Spanish, with English closed-captioning or Spanish and French subtitles. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (103)

One of the Best Westerns ever. Gary Cooper wins 2nd Oscar!
This Western is told in a real time, nail biting, how does it feel to be alone scenario. Digitally remastered the picture & sound are extrodinary to the story telling. Oscar winning opening song "Don't Forsake Me" sung by Tex Ritter sets the stage for the "Miller Gangs" return.

Will Cain (Cooper) on this his happiest day of his life having a wedding and retirement ceremony (from being the town Marshall) has his past suddenly become the challenge of a lifetime. Vengeful returning outlaws are seeking Cain.

Everyone wants him to go on his honeymoon and leave town immediately. His sense of loyalty & duty is to stay until the new Marshall arrives. Problem no one stands beside him to defend the town. Will Cain must do it alone.

What is so wonderful about this classic black & white western is the real-time scenario from about 10:40 am until 12:00pm "High Noon". Clocks & railroad tracks are the major ingredients to the suspense. These desparados are coming on the noon train.

This is a great movie and "The Making of High Noon" with Leonard Maltin is wonderful. You'll be watching this movie more than once. This is a western to have in your DVD library now!

High Noon Does Not Foresake the Viewer
Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly are spectacular in what is considered one of the best westerns ever made, but should be ranked as one of the greatest films ever produced because it easily transcends its genre.

A morality play that was deliberately produced in stark black-and-white to heighten the mood, the story revolves around Cooper's character, the aging Marshal of Hadleyville who, when the film begins, weds Kelly's character. Cooper has retired and plans to return after his honeymoon as a store keeper because his wife is a Quaker and a pacifist. Plans immediately go awry, however, when it is discovered that a notorious killer whom Cooper had arrested and was expected to have been executed, was instead pardoned. The killer is expected to arrive back in town on the noon train to take revenge on Cooper. Three of his equally savage gang have already arrived and are waiting for him at the train station.

The townspeople urge Cooper to flee with his new wife, but as he starts out of town, he stops, then returns, convinced that he has a responsibility to protect the town and bring the outlaws to justice. Pinning the marshal's badge back on, Cooper tries to deputize residents, but no one will help him and he is forced to stand alone. In powerful scenes, Cooper is forced to ask for help time-after-time but is turned down by residents who refuse to accept civic responsibility or acknowledge the debt they owe Cooper, rationalizing their decision not to act.

Kelly doesn't understand her new husband and threatens to leave on the same noon train if he persists in remaining as the marshall this one last time. Kelly eventually begins to understand what drives Cooper but only after forming an unlikely friendship with his former girlfriend, who teaches Kelly about loyalty and character. Ironically, it is Kelly the pacifist who saves Cooper's life by picking up a .45 and killing one of the gunmen.

In the last scene, the steets are utterly deserted until the gunmen are killed, then the townspeople, who had been hiding, flock around Cooper and Kelly. Without a word, Cooper removes his badge and drops it in the dirt. He and Kelly leave together.

Throughout the movie, the stirring music and the real-time focus of the minutes ticking by until High Noon, serve to increase the movie's tension. The film combines elements of love, trust, duty, honor and courage in unexpected ways that are both thought-provoking and entertaining. The DVD version is crisp and clean, the story as powerful today as when it was filmed. If you have never seen this movie, you owe it to yourself to pick up this DVD.

The clock is ticking
It's half past ten in a little western town, and the local marshall of law, Mr. Kane (Gary Cooper) just got married to a gorgeous Quaker girl (Grace Kelly, always a sight for sore eyes). Mr Kane will now retire as a marshall, and head to a new and peaceful life. Or will he? At the telegraph station the postmaster gets a cable stating that a dangerous bandit (Frank Miller) will arrive in the twelve o'clock train. At the train depot, three of Miller's gunmen are wating for him. When he arrives, they will seek revenge against the one man that tried, unsuccessfully, to convict Miller of a capital crime: Mr Kane himself.

During these 90 minutes, Gary Cooper will try to get help from the local population, old friends, and a man who wants to be the next sheriff (Lloyd Bridges). But it will not be an easy task. Add to that the fact that his brand new wife abhorres violence, and threatens to leave him less than two hours after the marriage - in fact she says she'll leave in the train that brings the outlaw Miller to town.

People think this is a western classic. Wrong. "High noon" is surely a classic, but not a western. It only happens to be set in the old west. To say the truth, "High noon" is more like a thriller with a Hitchcockian feeling to it. The western setting (violence, lack of respect for the laws, gunfights, dry and sun-scorched landscape, etc.) is present to add to the mounting tension and suspense that grow with each shot depicting the face of a clock and the relentless passage of time towards noon and the train arrival.

What makes this movie great is the seemingly dead-end situation, the great dialogues, and very good acting by Gary Cooper (which earned him an Oscar, when the Academy Awards were not given for political reasons), Grace Kelly, Lloyd Bridges, among others (and Lee Van Cleef, the infamous "Angel Eyes" from "The good, the bad and the ugly" - he doesn't say a word, but those eyes are surely creepy).

I will not give "High noon" five stars because I felt the script could be a little more developed. The ending is too rushed and kind of unsatisfying. But this is an excellent movie nonetheless. And, I say it again, this is not a "western" in the common sense of the genre.

Grade 8.0/10

High time for High Noon
"High Noon" is the classic western movie about a marshall facing down four badmen alone after the townsmen refuse to help him. Although it has a western setting, it could have easily been most any other locale because the psychological and social aspects are the important themes, not the old West, or riding horses. Made during the time of McCarthy and the Communist witch hunt, many have read political undertones into the movie.

A seemingly unusual cast includes Gary Cooper ("Sergeant York", "Pride of the Yankees") as the good-guy out-going marshall, Grace Kelly ("Rear Window") as his new wife, Lloyd Bridges ("Sea Hunt", "Airplane") as the deputy, Lee Van Cleef (the "bad" of "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly") as one silent badguy, Lon Chaney ("The Wolfman"), and Henry Morgan ("MASH").

The movie proceeds in nearly real time - it starts about 10:30 AM and ends shortly after noon - and clocks are increasingly prominent in nearly every scene. The leader of the badmen, Frank Miller, who was sent to prison by the marshall under a death sentence but was released, is now coming to town on the noon train to kill marshall Kane. Three of his friends are waiting at the station to greet and assist him in killing the marshall. That same morning, Kane is getting married to a violence-abhoring Quaker woman and is going to give up being marshall because of it. After learning Frank Miller is coming to town, the wife convinces Cane to essentially skip town and they leave, but the marshall gets his sense of duty back and returns to town. He and his wife argue, and she is determined to leave on the noon train. The judge also packs his things and leaves town. The marshall's deputy also quits. Kane goes around town trying to organize a posse, but only one capable man volunteers (the other is a one-eyed drunk) but he subsequently backs out.

Cane is forced to face the men alone. I won't spoil the ending.

At a time when movies (even bad ones) were being made in color, "High Noon" was shot in black-and-white, trying to get an unglamorous look to it modeled after Matthew Brady's photographs of the civil war, and succeeds. There is no beautiful sky and clouds, or cactus and sunsets. It is great cinematography however. Oscars for Best Actor, Editing, Song and Score.

Reasonably-priced DVD picture and sound are good. It has an average commentary by daughter of actor, son of singer, son of writer and son of director. Also has a short documentary, a fair behind-the-scenes, and a 5-plus minute radio interview with singer Tex Ritter.

When people do nothing...
As a high school student, I was taught how to write a screenplay through the first 5 minutes of this film. I never forgot how to do it either! It's simple storytelling, really. This is a classic story of one man forced to take care of unfinished business without any help. It's a story of good and evil. And it's a story of what happens when people don't help each other. Gary Cooper is awesome as the Marshall who must fight alone. Grace Kelly is beautiful in this movie. Though it may seem ugly to watch, the director, Fred Zimmerman and his Cinematographer shot this film without any special lenses or adjustments, making this movie an outstanding piece of work and possibly the greatest western ever made! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

What was really this movie about???
I won't repeat here the same things that other reviewers have said, as I totally agree with them.

This movie has several boring parts, and the main character (Emmanuelle) is wasted all way long.

Everybody watching this movie could expect more real action with Emmanuelle, but she only plays some nude shots, and that's all. Disappointing!

The worse of this film, is its ending. When you see Emmanuelle fingering on the bare dirt, you would expect her to remember the last part of her journey, but then the credits start to roll!! So, you wonder, what really happened to her in the jungle?? What is this movie about? What kind of ending is that??

All the movie is about Emmanuelle remembering her (forgotten) traumatic experience in the Amazon jungle. But it seems you'll miss the best part since she doesn't finish recalling her memories, so this movie is a monumental fraud.

What really happened to Emmanuelle in the jungle? We'll never know... this really sucks!

One of the best...
Natalie Uher is nothing but absolutely stunning in this late 80s erotic classic.

The story line is OK but there is obvious direction to show naked women, but what else would you expect?

Natalie Uher is stunning and although there are quite a few scenes in which Uher bares it all, the film could have scored 5/5 by showing a little more, in my opinion.

If your reason for watching this film is solely for viewing the scantily-clad 'Euro-babe', then you may be disapointed by the few scenes but it kicks off from the start with a Natalie returning from a swim in the nude. The other significant scene comes when Natalie shows us everything as she takes a naked dip in the amazon river.

Another Big Disappointment
Have you ever watched a movie and knew YOU could have made the movie so much better if YOU had been the Director? This is the movie I'm writing about!

It is true that Nathalie Uher is the most beautiful Emmanuelle yet but the story falls so short of being very erotic. Yes you do see her naked and she has a bit of acting talent...but the Original Emmanuelle movie was so much more exciting and more erotic with the smaller breasted Sylvia Kristel as the star.

In this film Emmanuelle travels with several female models into the Amazon jungle for a photo shoot. They are captured by a local drug lord and the women are delivered to a "Slave Auction". You probably can now imagine a great scene where the young women ,bound and gagged are stripped nude before a circle of panting, aroused male bidders, but it never happens! An ending for this film shows our heroine wallowing alone on a plowed field of bare earth. I can think of several ways to end this boring saga...but having the lady writhing around in dirt is not one of them.

Save your money and buy something like the Original film "Emmanuelle" with Sylvia Kristel or perhaps the American film "Nine and 1/2 Weeks".

Definitely one of the best of the Emmanuele series.
Excellent music and beautiful photography, plus some surprisingly erotic camera work. ... Read more