[9] Compared to the previous two episodes in the original Star Wars trilogy, Return of the Jedi comes up a bit short in character and drama. Richard Marquand’s direction isn’t as elegant or purposeful as Irvin Kershner’s (who directed The Empire Strikes Back so gorgeously). But the third film wraps up story threads more than adequately and gives us quite a few spectacular action set pieces, from the …
[10] In Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster classic, a young boy named Elliot (Henry Thomas) takes care of a stranded alien, helping him send a message into space for the mother ship to return and rescue him. E.T. is about loneliness and friendship. While E.T. has been physically left behind, Elliot and his family — Robert MacNaughton and Drew Barrymore play siblings and Dee Wallace plays the …
[10] With the success of Animal House and The Blues Brothers behind him, director John Landis was able to take a chance on a horror-comedy about two American college students who have a close encounter of the hirsute kind while backpacking through the English moors. David Naughton and Griffin Dunne star as the two Americans, Rick Baker provides the groundbreaking makeup and special effects, and An American Werewolf in London remains …
[10] Steven Spielberg wanted to make a James Bond movie until his buddy George Lucas said, ‘I have a better idea.’ And he did. Lucas created Indiana Jones, a globe-trotting archaeologist who sought treasure for fortune and glory while encountering a variety of adversaries in his travels, starting with the Nazis in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Indiana Jones would become the new name of …
[10] After deciding directing wasn’t his favorite thing to do, George Lucas enticed his former professor Irvin Kershner (Eyes of Laura Mars, Return of a Man Called Horse) to helm the dark second act of the famous trilogy. The Empire Strikes Back is essentially one long chase movie, as Darth Vader pursues Luke (Mark Hamill), Han (Harrison Ford), Leia (Carrie Fisher) and the rest of …
[10] Robert Redford directs this adaptation of Judith Guest’s novel, about a family reeling from the accidental death of the eldest child. Unlike so many dramas, it’s what you don’t see and what isn’t said that makes Ordinary People such a gut-wrenching, powerfully moving film. Timothy Hutton, Donald Sutherland, and Mary Tyler Moore give superb performances as family members struggling to reconnect with one another …
[10] Ridley Scott’s sci-fi/horror opus Alien is really a haunted house movie set in outer space, where a ragtag team of “space truckers” do battle with one of the most fascinating monsters in movie history. Scott is one of the finest directors of our time, and this may be his best film — a taut thriller, designed and executed with tremendous attention to realism and …
[9] This was the first blockbuster superhero movie (for better and for worse) and I doubt there will ever be a better film adaptation for the Man of Steel. Under Richard Donner’s (The Omen, Lethal Weapon) direction and good taste, Superman is a winning blend of action, drama, charm, and yes, camp. The first forty minutes are emotionally powerful, more than any other comic book …
[8] Brad Davis (Querelle, Chariots of Fire) stars in this true story about an American named Billy Hayes who was sent to a dehumanizing Turkish prison for trying to smuggle hash over the border. Originally sentenced to four years, Hayes learned just 53 days before his parole that the Turkish government upped his term to a minimum of 30 years. While his girlfriend and family …
[10] Star Wars needs another review like a wookiee needs Rogaine, but let’s reflect anyway, lest we start to forget its cultural importance and overall awesomeness. After film reached (still) unparalleled popularity in the late ’30s and ’40s, television came along and the film industry instantly began to shrivel. The dry spell lasted until the mid-70s (perfect timing, mom and dad), when the ‘film school …
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