CAST AWAY (2000) – My rating: 7/10

Disappointing!
Tom Hanks’ performance was excellent but the movie was boring. I’m not sure what the message was. Cast Away offered little action and not much entertainment and certainly no message. Helen Hunt’s role was minimal at best. She did a good acting job but overall Cast Away is insignificant. As much as I love Tom Hanks — this was too much of him.  I was bored most of the movie and found nothing new or entertaining about Cast Away.  I recommend waiting for the video!

CHASING SLEEP (2000) – My rating: 7/10

Chasing What? — ***slight spoiler***
This was definitely a weird movie. It leaves too much to the imagination. A college professor played by Jeff Daniels (an excellent actor) comes home to find his cheating wife missing. Somewhere in this flick, I began to think the professor may have killed his wife because of all the finger business, which was unrealistic. I wasn’t sure if his pill popping, grief or obsession with his wife was causing hallucinations, or if his sleep deprivation was causing him to imagine things, or are we supposed to believe that fingers walk around without a body attached?

Whatever the case, this movie left many questions unanswered.  Since the film is called “Chasing Sleep”, maybe we are not suppose to know who killed his wife or if she is really dead. Maybe it’s about what can happen to the mind without sleep.

The movie was well cast, well directed and I was not bored.  I was, however waiting for answers that never came. I’d call this an unsolved mystery.

CRADLE 2 THE GRAVE (2003) – My rating: 8/10

Action, Action, Action!
This movie was definitely action packed. There was some pretty fancy filming going on as several fights were paralleled at once. I enjoyed this movie because of the action. The plot was the typical family member held as a hostage until my demands are met and of course they never have any intention of returning your loved one. DMX is turning out to be a pretty good actor and I think his marshal art skills are as good as any I’ve seen — of course he’s no Jet Li but he holds his own.

Jet Li is his usual non-talkative self with an iron stone expression throughout the entire movie. His face is as stiff as his body but this works because it shows discipline. There were so many sub plots in this movie that it actually kept me interested. As in all these type flicks, I cannot believe people are being killed all over the place and no one reacts. One shoot-out like that would send our town in a tizzy and I live in NY.

Tom Arnold was funnier than he had been in the previous flick and Anthony Anderson was great in a role he seems to have perfected as his own. He’s in an awful lot of movies right now. I’d like to see Anthony break out of this stereo type and get into a more serious role.

The strangest thing in this movie has Eminem rapping the opening scenes — he dominated over DMX and Obie. It’s all good — I liked the movie and the music.

DREAMCATCHER (2003) – My rating: 8/10

A Hard Tale to Tell! ****Warning! A few spoilers in this review****
If you’ve never read the book, you’ll have to rely totally on the movie, which seems to do a pretty good job of sticking to the original story.

Director Lawrence Kasdan keeps us in suspense until we can’t wait a minute longer for Dreamcatchers to straighten us out and supply some answers. Questions like, who is this Duddits 4 childhood friends Henry, Beaver, Pete, and Jonesy keep referring to and what are these 4 friends who seem to have alien powers? Where did these powers come from and who is the real alien anyway?

To make things even more mysterious, the military gets involved and brings in a veteran alien fighter named Colonel Abraham Kurtz, played by Morgan Freeman. The answers come while the 4 are on their annual hunting trip. This story, confusing as it is, comes together by the end and holds your attention while doing so. There’s one big twist, regarding Duddits, that’s left unsettled or maybe it was settled. You’ll have to see it to determine that for yourself.

Overall, Dreamcatchers was entertaining, suspenseful, and action packed. What more can you ask for in a movie? Since it’s futuristic, just about anything goes, right? Give Lawrence Kasdan a hand for even attempting to direct such a difficult story in the first place.

FEARDOTCOM (2002) – My rating: 0/10

If You Have Nothing Better to do, See Some Other Movie!
Feardotcom has got to make “the bottom of the barrel list”. I want my money back. Its sick subject matter was only enhanced by its sick and unrealistic plot. I’m not sure any 2 people will agree on the plot of this disaster of a movie. Another one of those “I was wrongfully killed so I won’t rest until justice is done” movies. It’s hard to even compose a meaningful, non-ambiguous summation of this horrible, I mean horror flick because it’s that awful and confusing!

Don’t see this in the movies or rent it from Netflix or blockbuster or see in on cable TV – it is not just a waste of money, it is also a waste of your time.  See a cartoon or something.

GHOST SHIP (2002) – My rating: 7/10

Potential Out to Sea          *** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Oh well! Another good idea gone astray. Ghost Ship started out pretty good. It was suspenseful, well acted, funny, and down right interesting. As the story unfolded, I began to suspect it wasn’t going to end well. How right I was. I figured out the villain much too early but I still held out hope for a descent resolution to the movie.

The acting was good, the plot was good, the tension mounted at a normal to fast pace. The only thing that screwed this movie was the lousy ending. I don’t want to give the movie away but I will say, wait for cable. Julianna Margulies should have stayed with ER.

HEARTBREAKERS (2001) – My rating: 7/10

I was a Little Disappointed!
While The Heartbreakers was a fun movie, the con was predictable and not very good. This movie has potential to be so much better. A few embellishments here and there would have made all the difference. The performances of Weaver and Hackman were excellent. Too bad the script wasn’t better!

IN AMERICA (2002) – My Rating: 10/10

Oh My God!       **** SOME SPOILERS***
I could hardly believe my emotions. This emotional roller coaster of a movie is fantastic. What a pleasant surprise. I must admit when I saw the trailers for this movie, I thought it was going to be another Avalon. Not that Avalon wasn’t really good, but let’s face it, been there, done that. Far from it — it not only engaged my emotions, it taught me a thing or two or three about being stoic and compassionate.

The performances were letter perfect. I found myself trying to find the secret to having such well behaved and darling children. If only they all could be like these two. They got along so well while maintaining their status as children. They displayed a wealth of knowledge with hearts as big as gold. They gave me all warm fuzzes.

Djimon Hounsou was fantastic as a dying man who wanted to be angry but managed to channel his frustrations through this extraordinary family in a very good way. They all brought something to the table. Gifts were plentiful, shown in a most tender, loving way. Jim Sheridan really went the distance in his direction of “In America” and I really enjoyed it.

I don’t know why this movie was not widely released because it should have gotten a best movie nod. If you compare some past winners of best movies, “In America” shines. See this fine piece of art any way you can — it’s worth your time.

I’m happy Djimon picked up the Best Supporting Actor nomination and Samantha Morton, the Best Actress nomination for this movie.

THE ITALIAN JOB (2003) – My Rating: 8.5/10

Everyone Wants to be a Critic               *** SOME SPOILERS ***
Being a critic doesn’t mean you have to bash every movie you see. This movie received lots of bad reviews from the critics.  It seems they don’t like drama, action or comedy.  I found The Italian Job to be quite entertaining and I think that’s what counts! Ed Norton played an excellent villain who said in the movie, “right or wrong, I don’t care, it’s about what I want”.  His character had no morals which explained why he was able to turn on his follow thieves. The director left no stone unturned. Every word and action was accounted for and in my opinion, that’s a huge contribution to what makes a good flick. While nothing new was introduced, the movie had some of the best car chases I’ve seen in a while. The plot was good and the actors were excellent. I thought The Italian job was well cast and the story was well acted and well told.

The action was endless and I had such satisfaction because the ending was soooo… sweet. It’s okay to just sit back and be entertained by a movie. You don’t have to pick it apart for every little thing. The Italian Job has good intellect and good special effects. I guarantee anyone who sees this movie will walk away satisfied.

IT’S A PLEASURE (1945) – My rating: 8/10

When Hollywood Made Life Beautiful
Watching this 1945 made movie in 2002 gave me “warm fuzzys” all over. This was when Hollywood was careful not to offend folks with abusive language and over the top plots. `It’s a Pleasure’ was a pleasure to watch. It is funny, entertaining, a little suspenseful and has some drama too. The scenery and costumes are beautiful. This “Miss Susie Sunshine” of a movie creates a wonderful fantasy world that I think we need more of these days. The coloring and quality of the movie made it hard to believe it was made in 1945. `It’s a Pleasure’ is a nice, romantic, pleasurable escape.