Archive for April, 2002

The Negotiator

When the city of Chicago faces a tough hostage situation, they call in Danny Roman. Roman is the best at what he does, and proves it during an intense opening standoff involving a deranged, disgruntled husband holding his daughter hostage. Willing to put his life on the line, Roman is a hero to the masses, but is considered reckless by his new wife Karen. Read the rest of this entry »

The Prophecy DVD

A war is being waged between Heaven and Hell, and Earth has been chosen as the battleground. That’s the premise of writer-director Gregory Widen’s creepy “The Prophecy,” which isn’t to be confused with that awful Talia Shire, monster-in-the-woods movie years back. Read the rest of this entry »

Films Review May

HARRY POTTER & THE SORCERER’S STONE (PG-13)

At this point in time, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” is no longer just a movie. It is an event. Not since the release of “Star Wars” has any film generated such a high level of hype and buzz. Read the rest of this entry »

Waking Ned Devine DVD

Tullymore is a small village in Ireland, one of those quaint seaside hamlets filled with colorful characters and a colorful past. There are 53 residents of Tullymore, and like the residents of every small town, they know each other’s business. You can’t keep a secret in Tullymore, or can you? It seems that one of the residents of Tullymore has won the National Lottery, yet no one has stepped forward to claim the prize. Read the rest of this entry »

K-19: The Widowmaker

By their very nature, submarine movies are prone to wade through an ocean of clichés. There have been so many submarine thrillers (some good, many bad) that it’s fundamentally impossible to create characters and situations that we haven’t seen before. Since we have seen it all before, it’s up to the writer, director and cast to convince us otherwise. Read the rest of this entry »

Housesitter

I remember how anxious I was to see “Housesitter” when it first came out. Honest. I mean, the pairing Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn was a long time in coming. They’re a natural match. Martin had just come off the remake of “Father of the Bride,” in which he showed a sweeter side. Read the rest of this entry »

In And Out

When Tom Hanks won the Best Actor Academy Award for “Philadelphia,” his passionate acceptance speech gave thanks to a number of people, including one of his previous teachers. Because the character he played in “Philadelphia” was a gay man, Hanks mentioned that his former teacher was also gay. Read the rest of this entry »

Blast from the Past DVD

1962 was a tumultuous year, even without the Cuban missile crisis. The Cold War was in full freeze, and paranoia run rampant. Paranoia can cause people to do strange things. The thought of a Russian missile attack convinced many Americans to build bomb shelters. For most, these shelters were nothing more than a small underground bunker, if that. Read the rest of this entry »

3 Days of the Condor

Like a lot of things in my life, “3 Days of the Condor” has a special place in my heart. My family had a tradition of going out on New Year’s Eve. First we would have dinner, then we would go bowling, and finally we would take in a movie as the New Year rolled in. That year my friend Donna tagged along. I had known Donna since I was seven (she was six), and even though we lost touch when I moved away, we reconnected several years later and have been inseparable ever since. Read the rest of this entry »

Ocean’s Eleven

The remake of “Ocean’s Eleven” proves that Hollywood can still make them like they used to, as long as stars and filmmakers are willing to put aside their egos and hefty paychecks. As light and buoyant as an anorexic skydiver, “Ocean’s Eleven” is both smart and funny, a rare combination these days. Read the rest of this entry »