Movie Night: The Anderson Tapes.

Review #404: The Anderson Tapes.

Cast
Sean Connery (Duke Anderson), Dyan Cannon (Ingrid Everleigh), Martin Balsam (Tommy Haskins), Ralph Meeker (Captain Delaney), Alan King (Pat Angelo), Christopher Walken (The Kid), Val Avery (Socks Parelli), Stan Gottlieb (Pop Myer), Garrett Morris (Police Sergeant), Paul Benjamin (Jimmy), Anthony Holland (Psychologist), Richard B. Shull (Werner), Conrad Bain (Dr. Rubicoff), and Margaret Hamilton (Miss Kaler) Directed by Sidney Lumet (#035 - 12 Angry Men and #036 - Network)

Review
There have been seven reviews on Movie Night in which Sean Connery starred in the film, consisting of the six James Bond films he did from 1962-1971 (#150, #278, #298, #335, #354, #279) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (#170), so reviewing a film different from those is a welcome addition, especially when directed by Sidney Lumet, who hasn't gotten too much attention from me, though I loved 12 Angry Men. The Anderson Tapes manages to a decent thriller, and it does have its level of suspense, along with music by Quincy Jones, which is allright. Connery himself does a good job, as he manages to break out of the James Bond typecasting, doing something new, and it works. A fun fact in this film is that Christopher Walken makes his acting debut in this film and Margaret Hamilton makes her last acting appearance. The wire tapping and camera thing may seem a bit dated, but this film still works even in this day and age, and the thrill aspect of the film is toned enough to have an effect today. A fairly decent thriller with some more than decent actors and fine directing.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: Rush Hour 2.

Review #306: Rush Hour 2.

Cast

Jackie Chan (Lee), Chris Tucker (James Carter), John Lone (Ricky Tan), Zhang Ziyi (Hu Li), Roselyn Sánchez (Isabella Molina), Alan King (Steven Reign), Harris Yulin (Sterling), and Kenneth Tsang (Captain Chin) Directed by Brett Ratner.

Review

Sometimes a sequel deviates from the original for either the right or the wrong reasons. But the question of this film is does this do anything good or bad to the original? Well...It is almost what I said earlier in the last review, it's a weight sale that tips over good or bad. Except this scale has tiny rocks tipping over the bad side. Chan does a good job once again. He may have not have as many impressive action stunts as in the first one, but he still shines in a film with...Chris Tucker. In a way, he actually gets worse, and with less usefulness, not a trace of usefulness. Actually, Inspector Lee could have the case alone and solve it all by himself with less trouble. There are some moments of laughter, but substantially less than the first one, and the directing is a bit worse considering its louder, weirder, and not as funny. You could call this pointless, love it or hate it, or what I like to call it: Eh.

Overall, I give it 6 out of 10 stars.