Cutthroat Island.

Review #2240: Cutthroat Island.

Cast: 

Geena Davis (Morgan Adams), Matthew Modine (William Shaw), Frank Langella (Douglas "Dawg" Brown), Maury Chaykin (John Reed), Patrick Malahide (Ainslee), Stan Shaw (Glasspoole), Rex Linn (Mr. Blair), Paul Dillon (Snelgrave), Chris Masterson (Bowen), Jimmie F. Skaggs (Tom Scully), Harris Yulin ("Black" Harry Adams) and Angus Wright (Trotter) Directed by Renny Harlin (#016 - Die Hard 2, #670 - Cliffhanger, #745 - A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master and #2163 - The Adventures of Ford Fairlane)

Review: 

Not all failures are created equal, but I'm sure you already know that. It isn't so much that the film was hated by audiences (barely anybody saw it), it was the fact that you don't get that many films labeled as "studio killers". The original idea for the film was sprung by James Gorman and Michael Frost Beckner, who had wanted to make a modernized pirate genre film involving hunting down folks for pieces of a map for adventure. That idea was presented and bought by Carolco Pictures. You might remember that Carolco (as originally founded by Mario Kassar and Andrew G. Vajna) was the production company involved in films such as First Blood (1982) and Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991) but they had bet badly on their spending to the point of teetering debt. Cutthroat Island would be their last big-budget gasp (after selling the rights to other films in production such as Showgirls (1995), strangely enough), and it came out in the winter of 1995, one month after the studio filed for bankruptcy protection. It should be noted that six writers were credited by the time the film was finished (Bruce A. Evans & Raynold Gideon for the story alongside Gorman & Beckner to go with Robert King & Marc Norman for the screenplay). Any chance for a well-adjusted budget feature of swashbuckling with stars went right down with hiring Renny Harlin, who actually was running on the heels of films such as Cliffhanger (1993). It was he who casted his wife (Academy Award winner Geena Davis) into ideas of being an action-adventure star that managed to turn the idea of pairing her with Michael Douglas (who did not want to play second fiddle) into one where she was instead paired with Matthew Modine (he can fence!). This, alongside massive delays in shooting (Oliver Reed was supposed to do a cameo, take one guess what happened) and re-writes and you have the recipe for a movie that maybe, maybe not, deserves to be looked at under the hood beyond just saying it is a flop.  

Take this with a grain of salt: it is about exactly what you think would be in a pirate film for the kid at heart. It is right in the sweet spot of having craftsmanship show in each scene when it comes to crafting sequences with the look (sword fight or otherwise) ...but I'll be damned if I can really defend the movie beyond shrugging my shoulders and saying, "it worked for me". Pirate films just aren't the thing I really do much of (one has the choice of "Treasure Island" adaptations, or something based on theme parks), but I can say that the swashbuckler level is on the level I was hoping for. It may be hokey, it may be silly, but it doesn't bullshit itself in acts of contortion (i.e. the film has folks that at least look like they don't want to crawl into a hole and stay there). I will give the credit to Davis (and others who had to do stunts, when possible, clearly) when it comes to rolling along with the punches of serviceable pulp that is right at "looks like they can kick someone's ass" type of home. The nicest thing to say about Modine is that at least some of the quips are tolerable, but if you imagine that the role was supposed to be a riff on flipping the usual "rescue time in adventure" thing, it kind of works better. Undeniably, Langella shines above the rest because he is clearly having a ball with such an over-the-top villainous role (sure, he may have killed a few relatives, but at least he wasn't the one cutting someone's scalp...for a map piece). Who else could play a scene involving cutting down mouths to feed on a ship by just casually blasting a guy away than Langella (and his pleasant timing)? His coarse nature is at least the setup to a useful conflict with Davis when it comes to "PIRATE-fight" for the climax, and I think you get exactly what you pay for with the ending, which has a magnificent exploding ship. The other castmates are fair and fine for what is needed, although it amuses me that most of the folks that face peril or death are either in cameo form or in the case of certain folks are just flayed. John Debney's music score (particularly in the opening) might actually be the best thing of the whole film, which really does get the ball rolling in a positive direction. I can't say the movie does anything completely new for its genre, but I found myself chuckling with it in those familiar setups and payoffs because it clearly has a zest to just run. I never found it trying my patience or packed with any big detracting marks on it, and I would say that makes for a relatively comfortable experience. It's a neatly flawed movie that could mark the spot for worthwhile entertainment if one is hooked by the end result of timbers shivered, which I think is the case here. 

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars. 

Next up: No joke, Radioland Murders.

Stuart Little.

Review #1946: Stuart Little.

Cast: 

Michael J. Fox (Stuart Little), Geena Davis (Mrs. Eleanor Little), Hugh Laurie (Mr. Frederick Little), Jonathan Lipnicki (George Little), Nathan Lane (Snowbell), Chazz Palminteri (Smokey), Steve Zahn (Monty), Jim Doughan (Lucky / Officer Allen), David Alan Grier (Red), Bruno Kirby (Mr. Stout), Jennifer Tilly (Mrs. Stout), Stan Freberg (Race Announcer), Jeffrey Jones (Uncle Crenshaw), Connie Ray (Aunt Tina), Allyce Beasley (Aunt Beatrice), Brian Doyle-Murray (Cousin Edgar), Estelle Getty (Grandma Estelle), Harold Gould (Grandpa Spencer), Patrick Thomas O'Brien (Uncle Stretch), Julia Sweeney (Mrs. Keeper), Dabney Coleman (Dr. Beechwood), Miles Marsico (Anton), and Jon Polito (Officer Sherman) Directed by Rob Minkoff (#073 - The Lion King, #746 - The Haunted Mansion, #1125 - Mr. Peabody & Sherman)

Review: 

Sure, movies for children are a dime a dozen, but life is (probably) not too short to enjoy light fare every now and then. It also probably helps if you have familiar names as director or as the stars. This was the first solo directorial effort by Rob Minkoff, who had co-directed The Lion King (1994) with Roger Allers, which had culminated a decade of work at Walt Disney Productions (having studied at the California Institute of Arts that resulted in an internship). The film is based on the 1945 children's novel of the same name by E. B. White, who is also known for his subsequent 1952 novel Charlotte's Web, which has had numerous film adaptations. The screenplay was written by M. Night Shyamalan and Greg Brooker (the latter wrote this and did re-writes for She's All That while honing a script for what became The Sixth Sense - all three films were released in 1999). White had been inspired by a dream he had while riding in a railway sleeping car about a tiny boy who acted like a rat. The advent of digital effects with Sony Pictures Imageworks, along with visual effects by various people alongside supervision by John Dysktra, made the possibility of the film possible that wouldn't been the case before 1999.

It is a movie about earnest people adopting a mouse that talks, you know. The level of enjoyment you get from the film may very well depend on how seriously you take the film, honestly. It seems about as whimsical as one might expect from a children's film adaptation without becoming an explosion of weirdo cuteness. This happens mostly because it tries to play a bit of adventure with a pint-sized lead that gets to deal with the danger of being left without a family along with the danger of cats thinking about lunch. Fox had plenty of voice experience with films such as the Homeward Bound features (1993, 1996), so it isn't too surprising to see him here as the lead voice, which he handles with warm charisma. Sure, the role might be packed with schmaltz, but Fox handles it amiably to where we appreciate seeing him carrying things around. Laurie and Davis make for earnest parental figures that don't oversell the level of enthusiasm needed to make this seem warm enough to take seriously on an "okay, sure" level (i.e., being parents to a child and a mouse adoptee at least seems fine). Lipnicki is at least what you would expect from a kid actor (so yes, the kid from Jerry Maguire is fine). There is absolutely nothing surprising in seeing Lane here, which inspires a few chuckles as the foil to Fox that is followed by attempts at kid-friendly heavies played by folks like Palminteri, which is neat. There is a wide variety of name actors that pop in from Dabney Coleman to Jon Polito that come and go just as quickly with one-bit lines that work fine for folks already comfortable with what they are watching. You get to see a boat race along with what passes for a "car chase" to go with a story path that you would probably foresee coming midway through. It's a family movie that doesn't dawdle too much or go overboard in bits with animals. The film inspired a sequel three years later, which retained Minkoff and a handful of actors from the first film. As a whole, it is a cheery little movie that has enough decent notes that it hits within semi-adventure and a few chuckles that does exactly what you would expect without strain or irritation.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

The Fly (1986).

Review #1712: The Fly.

Cast: 

Jeff Goldblum (Seth Brundle), Geena Davis (Veronica "Ronnie" Quaife), John Getz (Stathis Borans), Joy Boushel (Tawny), Leslie Carlson (Dr. Brent Cheevers), George Chuvalo (Marky), and David Cronenberg (Gynecologist) Directed by David Cronenberg (#816 - Crimes of the Future, #1127 - eXistenZ, #1220 - A History of Violence, #1239 - Stereo, and #1624 - Shivers)

Review: 

If you remember correctly, The Fly originally came from a short story, which had been written by George Langelaan in 1957. A film followed a year later that starred David Hedison, Patricia Owens, Vincent Price, and Herbert Marshall. The idea for what became this film started with producer Kip Ohman, who thought of the idea to make a remake and have Charles Edward Pogue write it - Stuart Cornfield (who had served as a producer on The Elephant Man) liked the idea; Pogue elected to take a different path from making a straight remake, going for evolution rather than an instant transformation. 20th Century Fox (the company behind the production and distribution of the original along with distributer of the two subsequent sequels) did not show great favor to the script that came out, but Pogue made an agreement that they would distribute the film if another source of financing was found - enter Mel Brooks and his company Brooksfilms, who if you remember correctly had produced films such as The Elephant Man (of course Brooks would also not have his name credited in this film either, aiming to not lead audiences into thinking it was a comedy). Pogue would go from being removed from the project to brought back when Walon Green's rewrites failed to impress. Robert Bierman was the choice to direct, but a family tragedy put a damper on that plan. Cronenberg (the original director in mind) was brought in to direct after his attempts at making Total Recall came and went. The differences between the scripts by Pogue and Cronenburg are considerable without being completely different: in the original script, it featured a married scientist working on a project with two employers that is on the verge of losing its funding before he uses the teleportation device on himself (the climax involves him killing the greedy employer by vomiting and feeding on him before he destroys the teleporter along with himself). Cronenberg would modify the dialogue alongside morphing the two entrepreneurs into the one ultimately played by Getz while keeping aspects of the transformation intact (with an intent on making the film as an analogy for disease such as cancer or the aging process); both Cronenberg and Pogue would receive credit for the script, as per the insistence of Cronenberg.

It is a grand thing to say that a film is better than the original. And yet, here we are with a movie that readily improves on what was already a fairly watchable sci-fi movie with the 1958 original with something quite spectacular in its great tragedy of romance and folly. It serves as a great achievement for all parties in surpassing what had been done before without becoming a shell of corporate dealing, succeeding from Cronenberg to Goldblum all the way down. It is disturbing yet emotional in a way that reaches beyond the usual expectation from horror. In other words, it is a grand body horror film that has plenty of depth from a director who knows where to go to make it more than just a movie for gross-out ghoulishness. Perhaps it was a coincidence to cast Goldblum, who was already part of a remake that  is perceived to be better than the original with Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978). There were a plethora of actors considered for the role that ranged from Richard Dreyfuss to John Lithgow (who thought it was too grotesque), but Goldblum ended up being the one cast (having slowly become cast as the lead after a bunch of supporting roles). He is exactly the man required for the role, filled with confidence and curiosity that never seems to waver when the makeup starts to show; even when he starts to go around the bar and chase folks around, he still manages to evoke interest that never seems like blatant pity-play. Davis matches well with him in sensibility, having useful chemistry with Goldblum that inspires curiosity for someone who has to act within romance and horror that at one point involves reacting to an ear falling off - she has to match his eccentricity without just coasting along, and that works out well. For a film that really has just three main characters, Getz does well with not falling behind the main group, a welcome coarse contrast that isn't utilized merely as some sort of evil establishment yuppie (especially with the climax, which is masterful). 

Goldblum is the talent needed for the film, but one knows that when the effects come into play, they shine just as well as they should without burying the actor. Chris Walas (and his crew, which is why the credit lists "Chris Walas, Inc") was behind the design while the makeup art was done by Stephan Dupuis. The designs and constructions all had to be done in the span of three months to execute for its various stages. It is a delight for effects, grotesque but perfectly fitting for what is needed in depicting the troubles of aging and disease. Of course, not every effect got into the movie, with one scene involving a baboon and cat being fused together that ended up being on the cutting floor because...yeah, I think you know how that can alter one's perspective (incidentally, that scene was also in Pogue's script, but it didn't have the lead beating it to death). The swift climax does exactly what is needed to make it a worthy horror tragedy without any easy outs, which really could have happened with the discussions about how to end it, since speculation is more interesting than what you need to see sometimes. The film turned out to be a hit, one that Cronenberg could certainly hang his hat on (one doesn't necessarily go for commercial hits, but this ranks as one of Cronenberg's most successful), with Walas and Dupuis winning an Academy Award for their work on the film, the first and only Cronenberg movie have won an award by the Academy; a sequel was constructed in 1989, but it would be Walas that served as director while Getz was the lone actor to return. The popularity of this film even reached into the world of opera, which was done by composer Howard Shore (with libretto by David Henry Hwang) in 2008. As a whole, the film clicks well for 96 minutes on how much it can pull you into with these characters despite what you already know is going to happen, and it does so with resourceful depth that makes for wonderful horror and resounding tragedy from a director who knows where to go with it. As a whole, this is one of the best remakes ever made, and it certainly is one of the more interesting body horror tragedies ever made, one that has certainly lasted for all time in the 35 years that have passed since its release.

Overall, I give it 10 out of 10 stars.

A League of their Own.

Review #1500: A League of their Own.

Cast: 
Tom Hanks (Jimmy Dugan), Geena Davis (Dorothy "Dottie" Hinson), Lori Petty (Kit Keller), Madonna (Mae Mordabito), Rosie O'Donnell (Doris Murphy), Jon Lovitz (Ernie Capadino), David Strathairn (Ira Lowenstein), Garry Marshall (Walter Harvey), Bill Pullman (Bob Hinson), Anne Ramsay (Helen Haley), Megan Cavanagh (Marla Hooch), Freddie Simpson (Ellen Sue Gotlander), Tracy Reiner (Betty "Spaghetti" Horn), Bitty Schram (Evelyn Gardner), Renée Coleman (Alice "Skeeter" Gaspers), and Ann Cusack (Shirley Baker) Directed by Penny Marshall.

Review:
"I hadn't worked with so many women before. I thought it was something I should do. But I wasn't doing it just to do a women's picture. The problems as they're presented in the movie apply to both men and women. It's about, "Don't be ashamed of your talents." It's a universal thing."

It should figure that at least one good comedy is featured here involving the Marshall family. Older brother Garry rose from joke writer to television that morphed into developing television programs, with such shows as The Odd Couple, Happy Days, and Laverne & Shirley before going into film direction. As for Penny, she had grown from a childhood of tap dancing to small parts on film and television before being given substantial work with Garry's teleivision series, with the most prominent being her starring role on Laverne & Shirley that ran from 1976 to 1983. Encouragement from her brother led to an interest in directing (starting with an episode of Working Stiffs along with a few episodes of her own show). Her first feature Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986) was a mixed hit, but Big (1988) proved a major critical and audience hit. Marshall was inspired by a 1987 documentary she had seen about the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which she had not heard of before. She sought out the creators of the work - Kim Wilson and Kelly Candaele (whose mother Helen Callaghan played for five years in the league) in developing the story while Babaloo Mandel and Lowell Ganz (responsible for scripts such as Splash and City Slickers) developed the screenplay.

Technically speaking, this is not a straight historical film about the AAGPBL, which went by various names that started with referring to it as softball (since the league was trying to draw on the popularity of women's softball, since both used underhand pitching) before adding and then removing professional from the title for a league that ultimately lasted from 1943 to 1954, which really did have the players play in short outfits along with tight restrictions on what they could do socially (imagine giving an athlete ettiquite classes today), with the famed Wrigley Field indeed serving as the initial tryout location in real life. True, there would be a sale by its head to an entrepenur who felt he could do just as well in operating the league as he did with advertising Philip K. Wrigley's products along with the league - Arthur Meyerhoff. Obviously the winner of the championship did not result from something as silly as a plate collision  - in fact, Racine won the title the first year over Kenosha in a sweep. The "induction" scene at the end involving the Baseball Hall of Fame is tricky - it wasn't so much an induction but just a permanent exhibit featuring players. Of course we aren't here to talk about history, the reason I had interest in the film is simple - my love of baseball, the definitive American sport for everyone, featuring actors that had to have at least some talent in baseball to participate in the film (injuries still happened from mishaps on the field, as one could expect). Where the film clicks best is in getting some laughs within its baseball trappings, which shine gradually over a film that while admittedly lengthy at just a bit over two hours is still a crowdpleaser. Hanks grabs the attention once the baseball action slides into the first quarter, and he does a pretty good job in lending tempered amusement with his natural treating of the dialogue (the crying in baseball one is the easiest to cite becuase of how catchy it is). Anyone who can lend a decent hand in acting and playing a decent game of baseball gets a nod in my book, so it figures Davis does the best job in that regard, confident and entertaining whether on the diamond or away from it that makes for spiriting/sparring moments with others like Petty or Hanks. As for Petty, she does well with the material, resoundant and interesting to see among others with brimming rivalry that she handles fine. Others in the cast prove fine with their moments, like a quirky Madonna and her pal O'Donnell or a solid bit from Lovitzl or resourcefulness from Strathairn and Marshall. It generally works best when dealing with building its baseball action with quirky lines about trying to play and live with these folks along with the rules that go with it, with the interpersonal stuff proving fine - we are talking about a fictionalized story with a real league, after all. As long as it generates interest in the true AAGPBL, it can do what it pleases. On the whole, it isn't a surprise that this proved a hit nearly three decades ago, as it proves diverting with humor and heart to generate a fine mix of fact and fiction that serves any audience well in good entertainment.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

Thelma & Louise.

Review #1076: Thelma & Louise.

Cast: 
Susan Sarandon (Louise Sawyer), Geena Davis (Thelma Dickinson), Harvey Keitel (Detective Hal Slocumb), Michael Madsen (Jimmy Lennox), Christopher McDonald (Darryl Dickinson), Stephen Tobolowsky (Max), Brad Pitt (J.D.), and Timothy Carhart (Harlan Puckett) Directed by Ridley Scott (#100 - Blade Runner, #530 - Alien, and #739 - The Martian)

Review: 
Thelma & Louise is an engaging road movie that has its shares of laughs and tough moments that belies itself on the strength of its two main characters. It manages to serve as great entertainment full of self-discovery and sharp honestly that resonates even after over two decades since its release. Sarandon and Davis make for a capable duo in part because of how their distinct personalities mix and match. Sarandon plays her role with a roughly honest type of viewpoint that never seems too cynical nor too out-of-place in any scene. Davis does a great job in making her dependably energetic character seem the perfect match to play with Sarandon, and her chemistry with Pitt is fairly well-done if not quick. Pitt has a slinky hustler charm to him that makes him watchable each scene that he is in, having a magnetic pull that served to be his breakthrough role. Keitel does a good job, evoking honestly in his authority role that never comes off as distracting. Madsen sells his casual rocker role fairly adeptly, quick to charm and care. McDonald plays his character with the right sense of control and inflated self-importance that fits the movie pretty well. The film has numerous particularly emotions in its scenes, whether shocking or amusing, and it manages to never veer itself too much in one direction that would come off as distracting. The screenplay by Callie Khouri is a tightly packed one that was rewarded with Academy Award and Golden Globe honors. The film has a controlled look that feels fairly authentic, having an execution to it that is surely captivating - particularly since it doesn't betray its principles. It doesn't ever comes off as just a road movie without much substance, with these main characters becoming memorable ones to follow. It has some turns and cliches that seem par for the course for this type of genre, but it doesn't detract from its value as an adventure too much. Even at 129 minutes, this is a film that never feels like it is wasting any moment with these characters and the tale that it is weaving. The movie has an ending that certainly serves as a symbolic and memorable capstone to something that clicks at the right times with the right kind of people behind and in front of the camera. It makes a leap for entertainment - and it succeeds at that quite well.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Fletch.

Review #967: Fletch.

Cast:
Chevy Chase (Irwin M. "Fletch" Fletcher), Joe Don Baker (Chief Jerry Karlin), Dana Wheeler-Nicholson (Gail Stanwyk), Richard Libertini (Frank Walker), Geena Davis (Larry), Larry "Flash" Jenkins (Gummy), Tim Matheson (Alan Stanwyk), M. Emmet Walsh (Dr. Joseph Dolan), George Wendt (Fat Sam), Kenneth Mars (Stanton Boyd), George Wyner (Marvin Gillet), and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Himself) Directed by Michael Ritchie (#616 - The Bad News Bears)

Review:
Based off the novel of the same name by Gregory Mcdonald, Fletch is certainly one of those films that seems deserving of a cult following, owing in part to a variety of factors, the first starting with Chase himself. What is it about his performance that works so well? Perhaps it's because he actually seems perfectly as ease with the role that he's playing, where he doesn't look like he's just doing a job, with the ad-libbing being quite effective while not becoming ridiculously tedious. One of my favorite scenes is the scene where he is confronted by Baker's character and he gets pushed into a wall with framed pictures, noting one of them has a picture with Tommy Lasorda, who he notes he hates while punching the photo (I don't blame him, honestly). There are quite a few other good scenes involving wigs and disguises, and they are also pretty quirky along with amusing. Some could find Chase's schtick a bit tiresome, but I found it to go well with a movie that never aspires to be too conventional nor too ridiculous in its approach, with the quick wit feeling just right for the role. It's no wonder that he has said this is his all-time favorite personal role, because there's just something easy and natural about Fletch that works neatly, with that deadpan manner being quite entertaining for me. The rest of the cast is also quite enjoyable, always managing to hit the right chords of amusement and entertainment; Baker and Matheson are fairly decent adversaries, Chase has some decent chemistry with Wheeler-Nicholson, while Libertini and Davis are both fine standouts in the newsroom scenes. This is a fairly crafted thriller, managing to have the right kind of action and mystery that makes for some good quality entertainment that deserves the following it has.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

In a World...

Review #802: In a World...

Cast
Lake Bell (Carol Solomon), Fred Melamed (Sam Sotto), Michaela Watkins (Dani Solomon), Ken Marino (Gustav Warner), Demetri Martin (Louis), Rob Corddry (Moe), Alexandra Holden (Jamie), Nick Offerman (Heners), Geena Davis (Katherine Huling), and Tig Notaro (Cher) Directed by Lake Bell.

Review
Trailers (whether you love 'em or hate 'em), are certainly an interesting form of promotion for movies, and the voice (or voices) for those trailers certainly try to help sell the movie. The movie starts by showing clips of Don LaFontaine, who (quite possibly) is the most well-known voice actor for trailers, with his popularization of the phrase "In a World..." being the namesake of this movie. Bell also wrote and directed this film, and I'll give her credit for making a movie that at its heart is inherently easy to get behind. It's a movie that is likable enough and it zings with enough barbs to make for a relatively fine film. Bell certainly is a fine lead, having enough charm along with fine comic timing that makes for an interesting character to watch, with her and Martin also having a good chemistry with each other. Melamed certainly does a fine job as well, and while I wouldn't call him an antagonist, he certainly makes for an interesting character to watch with regards to his scenes with him and his (full grown) kids. The characters in the movie are pretty well-defined, all having some sort of quirk or just something that makes you want to watch them. The movie tries to mesh the comedy and drama and while it doesn't always seem to work perfectly, it is at least a movie worth seeing once. Is it for everyone? Probably not, but I felt that it worked on enough levels to work for me.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: Beetlejuice.

Review #107: Beetlejuice.

Cast
Michael Keaton (Betelgeuse), Alec Baldwin (Adam Maitland), Geena Davis (Barbara Maitland), Winona Ryder (Lydia Deetz), Catherine O'Hara (Delia Deetz), Jeffrey Jones (Charles Deetz), Annie McEnroe (Jane Butterfield), Glenn Shadix (Otho), Sylvia Sidney (Juno), Robert Goulet (Maxie Dean), Maree Cheatham (Sarah Dean), Dick Cavett (Bernard), and Susan Kellermann (Grace) Directed by Tim Burton (#040 - Batman )

Review
The film razzles and dazzles with an interesting story that evolves into a fest of effects and comedy, yet still making the film enjoyable. It's fun to watch anytime, especially in the nighttime. Keaton and Ryder stand out with their acting, with Keaton playing Beetlejuice so crazy and so good. Ryder plays the strange and Gothic Lydia (better then other goth girls in other films) who is impressive in this role (doing more roles in later life). The film is likeable and it makes you watch, not being a bore once. This will always be a classic for years and years to come...

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: Tootsie.

Review #084: Tootsie.

Cast
Dustin Hoffman (Michael Dorsey / Dorothy Michaels / Emily Kimberly / Edward Kimberly), Jessica Lange (Julie Nichols / Nurse Charles), Teri Garr (Sandra "Sandy" Lester), Dabney Coleman (Ron Carlisle, The Soap Opera Director), Bill Murray (Jeff Slater, Michael's Room-Mate), Charles Durning (Leslie "Les" Nichols, Julie's Father), Sydney Pollack (George Fields, Michael's Talent Agent), George Gaynes (John Van-Horn / Dr. Medford Brewster), Geena Davis (April Page), Doris Belack (Rita Marshall), Lynne Thigpen (Jo), and Estelle Getty (The Middle Aged Woman) Directed by Sidney Pollack.

Review
This is one of those classic comedies that always leaves a imprint on you, if not a memory of it. This was my first time watching it, and I feel the film works well. The acting is good, so good for Jessica Lange that she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, actually the whole thing got Oscar Nominations all aroung the board, winning just one. The film is balenced as it is a good film to watch all around.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.