Awakenings (1990) Review

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(More customer reviews)Based on the real life story of Dr. Oliver Sacks, 'Awakenings' ranks as one of the best movies I've seen. If features a terrific screenplay that was adapted from the book and a memorable directing job by Penny Marshall. But the most suprising thing to me was the choice of actors to play the two main roles in the movie. Robin Williams was pretty much known as the slightly insane comic genius from the 1980's, and Robert DeNiro was playing such hard-hitting, aggressive characters in films like 'Raging Bull', 'The Untouchables', 'Taxi Driver', and 'The Deer Hunter'. Both actors turn in career performances, and play parts that totally will smash any preconceived notions you had of them up to that point.
The film is based on Dr. Leo Sayer(Williams) and his work with people who have come down with a mysterious sleeping-sickness in 1918, which has left them in a catatonic state. Dr. Sayer is a shy person who is not comfortable conversing with others, but is also a very dedicated neurologist. He starts to work with these "sleeping" people and thinks that he senses something in them that is alive deep inside. He begins to work with a man called Leonard Lowe(DeNiro), and takes a special interest in him. He reads up on the drug L-Dopa, which had helped people in similiar states as his patients, and tries to convince the hospital and Leonard's mother to try the drug on her son. They allow the test to happen, and Leonard wakes up from his "sleep". The drug is then tried on his other patients with similar results. You would think that it was a happy story from thereafter, but life is not full of Hollywood endings, and the story does not take the easy way out. It won't leave you depressed or exhilarated but somewhere in between, like life is most of the time.
Definitely one of the best films to come out in the past 12 years, and should be in any serious movie buff's collection. There are no extra's on the DVD, but the quality of the picture is pretty good. But in the end, isn't it about the movie, not the extra's(by the way, I love the extra's just as much as everyone else). Marshall, Williams, and DeNiro have made a special film that they should be proud of and will be watched by generations to come.

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BASED ON THE TRUE STORY OF A SHY RESEARCH PHYSICIAN WHO USES AN EXPERIMENTAL DRUG TO AWAKEN CATATONIC VICTIMS OF A RARE SLEEPING SICKNESS.

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Righteous Kill (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)Two veteran cops, Turk and Rooster (Robert De Niro, Al Pacino) work to solve a string of murders in which the victims are criminals that they have previously arrested and have been acquitted of their crimes. Something's seems a bit fishy, at least that's what two younger cops, Detectives Riley and Perez (Donnie Wahlberg, John Leguizamo) start to think. Furthermore, they suspect it's a cop. Anyway you splice it, the decorated members of the NYPD are looking for a killer. One who leaves a bit of poetry at every scene and happens to murder the filth of society that has slipped through the cracks of the judicial system.
"Righteous Kill" is only a slightly above average thriller given the big name talent. De Niro and Pacino both put forth great performances; De Niro as the hot headed, do whatever it takes to get a conviction cop and Pacino as a much calmer, honest detective. It seems a bit cliché, the whole good cop bad cop, but nonetheless it worked well and the duo's performances were very well balanced to convey not just an occupational partnership, but also a friendship. While the film will leave the audience thinking they know all the answers within the first twenty minutes, the plot does take some interesting turns.
It's great to see the two legendary actors are still performing. "Righteous Kill" is not completely predictable nor is it unwatchable. Give it a try.

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Turk and Rooster, two aging NYPD detectives who have been longtime partners are faced with a serial killer who is murdering sociopathic criminals. They both have personal issues, and when they start working with a younger team, Perez and Riley, tensions between the pairs of partners is inevitable, especially since Turk is now living with Perez's ex-girlfriend, also a homicide detective.

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Meet the Fockers (Widescreen Edition) (2004) Review

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(More customer reviews)I'm a big Barbra Streisand fan, but to be honest, even I lost patience with her last few movies. She seemed to play into this lofty image of herself as this sophisticate whom no man she meets can live without or is worthy. In The Prince of Tides, I thought that if she wasn't careful, Barbra the actress was going to do in Barbra the director. That was borne out in her last movie, The Mirror Has Two Faces. Happily, in her return to the screen here, she goes back to the kind of comedy that she does so well, that a lot of younger people have never seen. (Check out The Owl and the Pussycat and What's Up,Doc? kids.) Yes, some of them can't believe that they are enjoying her (it must be killing Mssrs Parker and Stone!), but Barbra hasn't been this loose and in over 30 years. And as if she isn't good enough, she works for the first time - at long last - with BOTH Hoffman and DeNiro! I will even committ an act or heresay and say that I think Hoffman stole the picture. However, his chemistry with Barbra is wonderful and a treat to watch. What the hell took so long?
The rest of the cast does fine, considering what they are working with. Yes, DeNiro has been slumming, but it is fun to see him and Babs have a couple of scenes along together, though one of my favorites was seeing Barbra reunited with Blyth Danner whom she directed in Prince of Tides, coaching her as a sex therapist!
OK, so maybe Babs, Dusty and Bob should have done something more topical and serious with Scorcese instead of this silly fluff with Jay Roach, but I'll bet it wouldn't be anywhere near as fun!

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Ronin (1998) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is one of my favorite movies. Unfortunately, MGM decided to pull a fast one and release a lobotomized Blu-ray version.
First of all, it uses old-school, low bitrate MPEG-2 encoding (so much for the the "superior" picture quality of Blu-Ray).
Fine, I could have lived with that... except for the fact that, as others have mentioned, the Blu-ray release contains absolutely no special features at all! None. Zip. Zilch. Nada. Not even the stuff on the DVD release! WTF!?!?
I suppose MGM will eventually come out with a "Special Edition" Blu-Ray with the missing features, expecting us to also purchase that. No Way!!!
I'm returning this for a refund. I've spent quite a bit of money buying stuff off of Amazon over the years, and this is the first time I'm returning anything. It should tell you how ticked off I am about this.
Also, Amazon really needs to segregate the reviews for the Blu-ray release from the DVD reviews. It's sometimes very difficult to wade through 100s of reviews to find out if the Blu-ray release is worth buying over the DVD release.

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In a world where loyalties are easily abandoned and allegiances can be bought, a new and deadlier terrorist threat has emergedfree agent killers! Featuring "high-octane action" (Gene Shalit, "Today"), a "first-rate cast" (L.A. Daily News) and exhilarating car chases that "are nothing short of sensational" (The New York Times), Ronin is "the real deal in action fireworks" (Rolling Stone) directed by "a master of intelligent thrillers" (Roger Ebert).The Cold War may be over, but a new world order keeps a group of covert mercenaries employed by the highest bidder. These operatives, known as "Ronin," are assembled in France by a mysterious client for a seemingly routine mission: steal a top-secret briefcase. But the simple task soon proves explosive asother underworld organizations vie for the same prize...and to get the job done, the members of Ronin must do something they've never done beforetrust each other!

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The Score (2001) Review

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(More customer reviews)Aren't heist movies great? Warm and familiar like a comfy old armchair, they are one of the oldest and (if done well) most enjoyable film genres around. You can sit back at the movie theatre with your popcorn in one hand or at home in front of the TV with a beer, safe in the knowledge that some craggy, world weary old thief set on retirement will be persuaded to do one last job, with a rookie understudy whom he doesn't trust, on a job which you just know wont go as smoothly as planned.
The Score is no different in that respect in that it stars Robert De Niro as a craggy old world weary thief, persuaded to take on one last high risk job before retiring. Ed Norton plays the rookie understudy scamming his employers by posing as Brian, a man with a disability and learning difficulties. Of course Robert De Niro's character Nick, always works alone and doesn't trust anybody but he is persuaded by his camp bloated old fence, Max (Marlon Brando) to work with Jack (Ed Norton). You see Max (Brando) is in up to his eyeballs in gambling debts and is likely to be forcibly shuffled off this mortal coil unless he comes up with the money, Jack (Norton) is working on the inside and Nick (De Niro) is the only man with the knowledge and the skills to get the job done.
Like most heist movies it's a bit of a slow burn build up, it's all about building up the tension until showtime. Inevitably there are a few scares along the way and Director Frank Oz (yes that's right Yoda, or at least the voice of Yoda) does a decent job in building up the tension. Of course one of the great draws of this movie is Frank Oz's coup in getting Brando, De Niro and Norton all on screen at the same time in the same movie. Brando was in his day was considered to be the world's greatest living actor, a mantle De Niro has carried for the past 20/25 years. Edward Norton is not far behind and is generally considered by many (including myself) to be the greatest actor of his generation on the back of great films (American History X, Fight Club) and great performances (Primal Fear, Rounders, Keeping The Faith, The People Versus Larry Flynt, Everybody Says I Love You). Robert De Niro is of course reliably good but not at his brilliant best and it is Ed Norton in the dual role of Jack and Brian who has the meatiest part and adds some energy and vitality to the whole production. Marlon Brando's role however, is something of an oddity. It's not much more than a cameo and its something that he could do in his sleep, which is just as well because it looks like that's exactly what he did.
If there are any criticisms to be levelled at The Score it has to be on the basis that it really is a by the numbers crime caper and lacks none of the originality or vitality of something like Reservoir Dogs and nor does it really take full advantage of its AAA list cast. The opening sequences whilst interesting, perhaps lack the action and intensity you might wish, although they do serve as an insight into Jack's MO (he always works outside the country, he always plans meticulously, doesn't take chances and is never greedy). That said The Score is enjoyable first and foremost for its excellent cast and the opportunity to see them share screen time. Secondly the last forty minutes of the movie where we eventually get to witness the heist are excellent; the heist is great edge of your seat stuff and there are plenty of unexpected twists and turns and an excellent climax. Ultimately though, you are left with the feeling that you've seen this all before and done better. It's more like that trusty old arm chair, warm and comfortable rather than new and exciting. That said it's an enjoyable yarn. Good rather than great BUT still well worth a watch.

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Aging thief pulls off one more heist at the urging of an upstart thief.Genre: Feature Film-DramaRating: RRelease Date: 24-JUN-2003Media Type: DVD

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Meet the Parents (2000) Review

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(More customer reviews)I wasn't really sure what to expect with Robert De Niro in a more comedic role and the so-so reviews of Meet the Parents. Well, let me be the first to tell you that all theses reviews were wrong and De Niro shined in his role as the father. The toilet humor of There's Something About Mary is still present in Meet the Parents--I won't give any of it away since the shock factor is what makes these scenes so hilarious. Ben Stiller is wonderful as Gregory, the misguided yet well-intentioned boyfriend of Jack's daughter. This movie had so many well placed comic moments that I never really stopped laughing. Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller make such a great pair because of the fact that they are such polar opposites. De Niro's paranoia feeds Stiller's own paranoia and makes for a lot of awkward but humorous confrontations. Their misunderstandings range from the hidden meaning of "Puff the Magic Dragon" to premarital relations. Mixed in somewhere within the gags and the shock humor is a nice romance story that is somewhat generic but never overshadows Stiller and De Niro's relationship. Meet the Parents is one of the funniest movies I have seen in a long time and I implore you to see it.

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Jackie Brown (Two-Disc Collector's Edition) (1997) Review

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(More customer reviews)"Jackie Brown" was widely received as a disappointing follow-up to Quentin Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction," but I think it's actually a better movie, if less obviously so. It's hard not to be blown away by "Fiction" because of it's sheer audacity; "Jackie Brown" is a quieter film that shows Tarantino has the potential to become a mature and sophisticated director.
It's somewhat ironic that Tarantino, associated with the young hipster audience, made this film, because at the basic level "Jackie Brown" is about getting old. All of Jackie's motivations spring from the fact that starting over will soon become impossible for her. That the options available to a a middle-aged, lower income level, black woman in modern America are severely limited. Tarantino shows an amazing prowess for getting into the head of this woman. His sensitive direction coupled with Pam Grier's top-notch performance combine to make Jackie one of the most compelling and honest female characters to hit the movie screen in recent years.
The rest of the cast is uniformly excellent too. Robert Forster stands out as bail bondsman Max Cherry, who becomes Jackie's partner in crime, as it were. Samuel L. Jackson does well with the kind of part he seems born to play, but his character is not as interesting as the others and so makes less of an impression. Bridget Fonda is a scene stealer as a California beach bunny, and the contrast between her and Pam Grier is used quite effectively.
It's interesting to note that in the book this movie was based on, "Rum Punch" by Elmore Leonard, Jackie was white. Changing the race of the title character to black adds a whole other dimension to the film that the book lacks. This is one case where the movie greatly improves on its source material.
"Jackie Brown" will take some commitment on behalf of the viewer. It's leisurely paced and more reliant on character study than Tarantino's other films, but these aren't detriments. They merely illustrate that Tarantino has some range as a director, and I hope he continues to explore that range.

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Quentin Tarantino presents the premiere of the JACKIE BROWN COLLECTOR'S SERIES DVD, complete with your favorite award-winning movie, all-star cast, and never-before-seen footage. What do a sexy stewardess (Pam Grier), a street-tough gun runner (Samuel L. Jackson), a lonely bail bondsman (Academy Award®-nominee Robert Forster), a shifty ex-con (Robert DeNiro), an earnest federal agent (Michael Keaton), and a stoned-out beach bunny (Bridget Fonda) have in common? They're six players on the trail of a half million dollars in cash! The only questions are ... who's getting played ... and who's gonna make the big score! Combining an explosive mix of intense action and edgy humor, Tarantino scores again with the entertaining JACKIE BROWN!

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Everybody's Fine (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)I went by myself, a 62 year-old with 4 grown sons. I sat in my old hunting coat and sniffled and cried for however long it was. I think De Niro wears his role with both an ease and a genius few possess. I'll get the DVD as soon as it's released. I know De Niro's own real-life dad passed shortly before his "Bronx Tales" was released, and perhaps, in some zen-like chi, this kinda closes a circle on the dad-stuff there. I met De Niro once, and was extremely impressed with his character (as in 'integrity', not as in an acting role).

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Robert DeNiro leads an acclaimed all-star cast Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale and Sam Rockwell in Everybody s Fine, the heartwarming film that will move you to laughter and tears. When Frank Goode's (DeNiro) grown children cancel a family reunion, the recent widower sets off on a cross-country journey to reconnect with each of them. Expecting to share in the joys of their happy, successful lives, his surprise visits reveal a picture that's far from perfect. A family separated by physical and emotional distance finds a way to come together in a story that will touch your heart.Bonus Features include The Making Of Paul McCartney's (I Want To) Come Home, Deleted & Extended Scenes

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Machete (2010) Review

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(More customer reviews)Jan 3, 2011:
This isn't so much a review of the film itself, but of the product. I'm writing to inform people of a future Double Dip. In an interview in October 2010, Robert Rodriguez said that there is going to be an "Ultra-violent Director's Cut" of the movie to be released on home video. No release date has been announced for that DVD yet, but I assume that version of the film will have the usual Rodriguez extras such as a commentary, a film school, and a cooking school (all of which are not on the current DVD/Blu releases).
If you like "Machete" enough to buy it, but don't care about different versions, extras, etc., then go ahead and get this version of the film. If LOVE "Machete" and you want to hold out, then save your money and wait for the next version of the DVD/Blu that will come out. Fair warning: looking at the double dips for other Rodriguez films such as "Grindhouse" and "From Dusk Til Dawn", the next release could be possibly several months or years from the date I'm writing this review. If you can't wait, go ahead and pick up this version.

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From director Robert Rodriguez (Grindhouse, Sin City) comes an action- packed, cutting-edge serving of carnage asada...with killer deleted scenes that deliver more guns, more girls and more Machete action!Set up, double-crossed and left for dead, Machete (Danny Trejo) is an ass-kicking ex-Federale who lays waste to anything that gets in his path. As he takes on hitmen, vigilantes and a ruthless drug cartel, bullets fly, blades clash and the body count rises. Any way you slice it, vengeance has a new name--Machete.

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