[7] Christmas is coming and Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) is determined to have the best old-time family holiday gathering ever, complete with an amazing house lighting display, the biggest Christmas tree ever, and extended family filling the house with Christmas spirit. Of course, nothing goes according to plan. That’s the point of the Vacation movies — to watch things blow up in Chevy Chase’s face …
[7] The sequel is more of the same, but that’s not always a bad thing. There’s enough talent in front of and behind the cameras in the Lethal Weapon movies to warrant at least one or two entertaining sequels. The plot is a bit less compelling, and the love story with Patsy Kensit is haphazardly tacked on, but there’s plenty of action and fun banter …
[8] Aussie director Phillip Noyce (Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger) spins a Hitchcockian yarn based on a novel by Charles Williams. Dead Calm is a solid thriller that takes place almost entirely on the open waters of the Pacific. Sam Neill and Nicole Kidman play a couple trying to overcome the loss of their child, when up to their boat rows beautiful but psychotic …
[6] As the sequel to an almost perfect film, Back to the Future: Part II naturally comes up short. While it lacks the heart and coherence of the first film, it’s wild with ideas and invention, both on screen and behind the scenes. The plot is twisted, thrusting Doc Brown and Marty into the year 2015, then to an apocalyptic alter-1985, and finally back to …
[6] Don Bluth’s films (The Land Before Time, The Secret of NIMH) tend to be too mature for children and too immature for adults. Consider All Dogs Go to Heaven, where one moment you have cutsey critters singing a cringe-worthy song about sharing, and then you have a dog literally escaping hell to say goodbye to the little orphan girl he betrayed. At least All …
[5] Licence to Kill is the anti-Bond. Timothy Dalton is out for revenge in this one (his second and final outing in the role), and the performance is desperately missing the character’s trademark nonchalance. Without it, it just isn’t Bond. It’s one of a number of generic 80s action flicks fueled by revenge, centered around the drug trade, full of explosions, and scored by Michael Kamen …
[8] As unnecessary sequels go, The Fly II is far, far better than it has any right to be. I think the fact that Shawshank Redemption director Frank Darabont co-wrote the screenplay has something to do with it. The film is more of a standard monster movie than Cronenberg’s 1986 version, especially after the mid-point, where director Chris Walas (who won an Oscar for effects …
[8] The film adaptation of Robert Harling’s play is unabashedly melodramatic, nostalgic, and sentimental. Some of those qualities usually annoy the hell out of me, but the ensemble of great actresses and the slew of memorable one-liners make Steel Magnolias hard to resist. I care less about the dramatic Sally Field/Julia Roberts center story (mother, daughter, wedding, pregnancy, illness, blah) and more about the group …
[3] I don’t know what the hell I just saw. I could tell you what it’s about, but it’d be misleading. See, it’s about a discharged cop (Kevin Kline) who is roped back into the police to help them find a serial killer. Only very little screen time is actually devoted to that scenario. It’s mostly about this cop’s myriad relationships. There’s his old flame …
[5] The gang is back for another outing, five years after the enormous success of the first Ghostbusters. But its a mediocre follow-up at best. Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, Rick Moranis, Annie Potts, and director Ivan Reitman are all back, joined by Peter MacNicol as a museum manager who gets possessed by the spirit of an ancient painting. The …
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