Although not the follow-up to Aliens that it should have been this film does have some merit. And that merit came in the form of its director David Fincher.
Requiem For A Dream is the 21st Century’s answer to The Exorcist. The latter was banned in Britain from 1973 to 1998. The British Board of Film Censorship saying “the problem with The Exorcist is not that it is a bad film, it is that it is a very good film. It’s one of the most powerful films ever made.” The opposite of the popular ‘so-bad it’s good’ phenomenon, The Exorcist was so good it was bad.
Read more‘Requiem for a Dream’ is so good, it made British girls pass out and throw up
[rating=3]Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Carrie Henn, Michael Biehn, Lance Henriksen, Paul Reiser, Bill Paxton
Director(s): James Cameron
Writer(s): Story by David Giler & Walter Hill and James Cameron, Screenplay by James Cameron
If Alien was considered a classic of horror, James Cameron’s Aliens was pure action and adventure. Although it still held elements of horror, Aliens offered up a action heavy film which — I believe — perfectly complimented the original and successfully expanded the story.
Read more‘Aliens’ echoes the original and set the standard for movie sequels
[rating=3]Starring: Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm, Yaphet Kotto
Director(s): Ridley Scott
Writer(s): Story by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett, Screenplay by Dan O’Bannon
I first saw Alien when I was a young child. It was on television late one night. I don’t recall being particularly scared, but I did enjoy the film. It was exciting, with cool special effects — for the time — and a great creature.
Read moreWith ‘Alien’ Ridley Scott turned horror and science fiction on its head
This is an article which was lifted directly from a letter I wrote to a film critic here in New York who got blasted for her review of Passion of the Christ. She gave the film one star, and labeled it as “anti-semitic” and grotesquely violent. The following was my response to her review:
I would like to disagree with your assessment of The Passion as being anti-Semetic, because while I understand why viewers have reached this conclusion, it is quite mistaken. At least, from my perspective.
[rating=4]Starring: Michael Moore
Director(s): Michael Moore
Writer(s): Michael Moore
Michael Moore, purveyor of such stirring works as Roger and Me and TV Nation, does it again giving America a hard dose of reality with his new film Bowling for Columbine. This is Mr. Moore’s investigation into America’s obsession with guns and violence.
Read more‘Bowling for Columbine’ speaks Michael Moore’s truth about guns in America
Neil Simon once said the best comedy comes from pain and veteran television writer, Russ Woody, proves there might be something to Simon’s theory. Woody has used his painful beginnings to create a successful career in television writing. He has won an Emmy for his work as a writer/producer on Murphy Brown and a Golden Globe for his work as a writer/producer on Cybil. He has also written for TV shows like Bosom Buddies, Benson, Hillstreet Blues, and Slap Maxwell. Presently, he’s the co-executive producer for the CBS sitcom, Becker.
[rating=4]Starring: Gabriel Byrne, Marcia Gay Harden, John Turturro, Jon Polito, J.E. Freeman, Albert Finney
Director(s): Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Writer(s): Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
When Miller’s Crossing opened the New York Film Festival in 1990 it was going to be the film that would see the Coens hit the big time at last and simultaneously make Gabriel Byrne an international superstar. Somehow this didn’t happen, and I’m at a loss to explain why.
Everyone has a story. It’s this simple belief that rouses people from their beds with the inkling that all they need is a word processing program to compose the next Academy-lauded screenplay. Nobody wakes up and thinks: I’m going to coach the Dallas Cowboys, where do I fax my resume? I’m going to create a violin concerto, where can I pick up some sheet music?
Making a movie is easy. Pick up a camera, pick a subject, pick an angle, shoot and put it all together in one of the many inexpensive digital editing software packages available today. Then pick a format, tape, DVD, electronic file, and show off your masterpiece. It’s as easy as, well, making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.