2 Days in the Valley.

Review #1212: 2 Days in the Valley.

Cast: 
Danny Aiello (Dosmo Pizzo), Greg Cruttwell (Allan Hopper), Jeff Daniels (Alvin Strayer), Teri Hatcher (Becky Foxx), Glenne Headly (Susan Parish), Peter Horton (Roy Foxx), Marsha Mason (Audrey Hopper), Paul Mazursky (Teddy Peppers), James Spader (Lee Woods), Eric Stoltz (Wes Taylor), Charlize Theron (Helga Svelgen), and Keith Carradine (Detective Creighton) Directed by John Herzfeld.

Review: 
Sometimes you just need a crime movie about people who share in common the fact that they are just a bunch of weirdos - whether you have seen this type of movie before or not. They aren't exactly winners, but they have some sort of "unrealized potential" (as described by writer/director Herzfeld) - and it all comes together to make an okay film. Herzfeld's previous experience with direction of films was primarily television specials and movies (such as his two works with ABC Afterschool Special in 1980 and 1981), with one theatrical release with Two of a Kind in 1983. Admittedly, the cast listing is likely to prove more interesting, since you have a movie that can say it has scenes with key highlight stars such as Aiello, Headly, Mazursky, Spader, Stoltz, and Theron making for a feature that probably should have been better. It won't serve as anyone's favorite film to watch for anyone's marathon, but at least there is enough here in terms of charm and occasional action to make it a fair use of 105 minutes. It sure tries to move itself swiftly with tricks and twists, some of which that work and others that mostly feel like a tap on the door rather than a big blast. It is at least sometimes present with a sense of dark humor that rolls alongside a plot connecting its dots together across people in the San Fernando Valley, which goes well enough. Its the interactions that can come from it that make this roll through the bumps, such as Aiello and Headly, or Mazursky (a director who can't go through ending it all in a cemetery because his yapping dog is with him) with Mason. Easily, the one who I revel in watching is Spader, who walks right through playing a slimy creep like this without struggle, whether acting with Aiello and a clock or with Theron. Aiello is also pretty fun to be with, wry and useful to be around with, such as when having to interact with these other nuts (including the one he thought would work fine as his other hitman partner). The time spent with Daniels and Stoltz isn't too particularly long, but it is fine to see how they act within the lines of the cop angle of the film - one with cynicism, one with ambition. Hatcher falls as the weak point, not being as interesting to follow with, minus one fight with Theron that actually is pretty amusing to see go down. Cruttwell is somewhat amusing, but he doesn't really have much to do for the second half. The best that can be said for the film is that it doesn't overstay its welcome, bookending itself with some charm and decent entertainment (with a worthy enough climax) - it isn't perfect, but there is something here worth curiosity, due to its assembled cast and where they go from there. It is a movie that finds itself on a road going 76 on a 70 limit, having a bit of movement without going off the rails or all the way still.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Wolf (1994).

Review #1157: Wolf.

Cast: 
Jack Nicholson (Will Randall), Michelle Pfeiffer (Laura Alden), James Spader (Stewart Swinton), Kate Nelligan (Charlotte Skylar Randall), Richard Jenkins (Detective Sgt. Carl Bridger), Christopher Plummer (Raymond Alden), Eileen Atkins (Mary), David Hyde Pierce (Roy MacAllister), Om Puri (Dr. Vijav Alezais), and Ron Rifkin (Doctor Ralph) Directed by Mike Nichols (#175 - Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, #550 - The Graduate, and #637 - The Birdcage)

Review: 
I suppose there must have been a desire to make a new kind of werewolf film for the 1990s, particularly since this film doesn't even use the word "werewolf", as if that was somehow taboo or something. It's also clear that they really wanted to be taken seriously, since this is a romantic horror film. On the whole, the film is decent, but it doesn't really live up to the potential it could've reached, although I certainly do find some enjoyment from it, whether when trying to be a metaphor or for unintentional amusement. Perhaps this is a movie that needed more beastly nature, since the real horror that jumps out involves office politics at a publishing house. The screenplay was done by author Jim Harrison and Wesley Strick, although there were un-credited re-writes done by Elaine May. Harrison was not a particular fan of the final result of the film made by Nichols, explaining "I wanted Dionysian, but he wanted Apollonian. He took my wolf and made it into a Chihuahua. I cracked up for 10 minutes and then went out into the country and stood in front of a wolf den and apologized while my dog hid under the truck." This is a strange film to spend 125 minutes with, and it does sometimes feel a bit too long.

The acting does help carry the movie well enough. Nicholson is entertaining, being watchable as ever without overdoing anything, whether when prancing around with mutton-chops or when having more energy to him after being bit. After all, this is a movie that gives him a bunch of abilities to show off as a wolf, such as being able to read without his glasses, being able to be more active in romance with his wife, jumping in the air, or having animals hate him. Pfeiffer, in a role that occasionally delves into cliches, manages to come out as someone interesting to follow along with, having a few moments with Nicholson that makes this romance seem semi-workable. Spader is excellent at playing such a smarmy character like this one, making the art of flattery and treachery that works oozy wonders each time he's on screen. Nelligan is okay, but the real highlight in the supporting cast is Plummer, who plays his domineering rich guy role with an understated touch. The special makeup effects are done by Rick Baker, who you may recognize from his work on other films, most notably An American Werewolf in London (1981) and Coming to America (1988). His effects here are pretty good, although they certainly feel restrained in contrast to the bits involving the romance or the office scenes, although at least they are given time to shine in the climax. Honestly, the movie is more fun when it doesn't feel so restrained between either being a metaphor or being actual horror/romance. One of my favorite bits of amusement comes when Nicholson's character decides to "mark his territory" at the bathroom when he's firing Spader's character, as if this was supposed to be taken seriously. Other other fun bit comes when Nicholson's character finds out that he has been cheated on by his wife through his super-scent, so he goes up to the house where his wife and the other guy are located, and he bites the other dude on the hand before going up the stairs, taking one look at his wife, and then leaves. The climax is a bit of a ridiculous one, and it isn't as effective as it probably should've been. Maybe it's the fact that there really isn't that much buildup for its showdown between its two wolves (complete with the use of slow motion), or maybe it's the fact that the film keeps shuffling between what it really wants. This is especially apparent in the scene after involving a shot of eyes mixed in with a shot of a wolf - and that's it. If you think the film will resemble something like The Wolf Man (1941), you will likely be disappointed, but I did manage to find some strange enjoyment out of how weird and energetic it is, even if it manages to muddled in ridiculousness at times. It isn't a highlight in the horror or romance genres, but it works just enough for me to win out as entertainment.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Supernova (2000).

Review #1139: Supernova.

Cast: 
James Spader (Nick Vanzant), Angela Bassett (Dr. Kaela Evers), Robert Forster (A.J. Marley), Lou Diamond Phillips (Yerzy Penalosa), Peter Facinelli (Karl Larson), Robin Tunney (Danika Lund), Wilson Cruz (Benjamin Sotomejor), Eddy Rice Jr (Flyboy), Knox Grantham White (Troy Larson), and Vanessa Marshall (Sweetie) Directed by Thomas Lee (Walter Hill (#1072 - 48 Hrs and #1091 - Last Man Standing), Jack Sholder (#476 - A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge) and Francis Ford Coppola (#592 - Dementia 13))

Review: 
Surprise, it's a late-night second review to begin October! Welcome to Spooktober. This month will have numerous reviews of things related in some way to horror, and I hope to write and post ten reviews before the month ends on the 31st. This film, of which belongs to the sci-fi/horror genre, has a bit of an...interesting history that helps give context to the final released product. The review of the film itself begins in the second paragraph.

The idea for the film originally was developed by William Malone as "Dead Star'', which involved a space expedition finding alien artifacts and brings them back to Earth with consequences, and it was first pitched to studios in 1990 as "Dead Calm in outer space". Painter and noted set designer H. R. Giger was asked to make some concept sketches to help promote the film. Gradually the story (done by Malone and Daniel Chuba with screenplay by David C. Wilson) changed to one about a medical ship answering a distress signal that finds a vessel near a black hole and rescues the only survivor of the ship who is carrying a mysterious object with him. Geoffrey Wright (director of films such as Romper Stomper) was originally hired as director for production, which was set to begin in April 1998. However, he left just prior to production beginning, having creative differences with the producers. Hill was brought in with only a few weeks to spare before the start of filming, and he wanted to make changes to the script, but his vision was different from what the studio had wanted. The budget was apparently cut in half during production, with the final budget for the film (a USA-Switzerland co-production) being around $90 million. The effects were done by Digital Domain, but with less effects than planned. MGM had a partnership with them that would provide effects for the film below usual rates for effects, but the partnership fell through, meaning it would cost more to put it, resulting in the effects-work being cut in half. Upon completing principal photography a few months later, Hill assembled his cut of the film, but without all the effects added into it, due to them not all being finished. When MGM wanted to show his cut without the effects to test audiences, Hill was opposed, stating that the film would not have good reception without the effects added in, which proved correct. Further arguments led to his departure from the film. Shoulder was enlisted to do re-edits and re-shoots to try and salvage the film. His version streamlined things a bit more, and although the results were a bit better in screenings, the results weren't up to what the studio wanted, and they shelved the film until 1999. Coppola, a board member for MGM and famed director of such films like The Godfather trilogy, was enlisted to help try and give the film another set of editing, most notably by adding a romance scene between Spader and Bassett's characters - by re-editing out-takes from a romance scene involving two other people and digitally editing their features and skin color. In any case, this is a movie that couldn't even have a decently cut trailer for its January release, utilizing deleted, extended, or alternate footage not seen in the film.

Knowing the details of a production as troubled as this one was doesn't make the film any more palatable to sit through, but it at least gives some sort of context for why this is such a sloppy movie. Whether as science fiction or horror, it manages to be a complete failure, having little to none of the standards needed to succeed on any level, being neither scary nor interesting to look at. They managed to make a film that feels like it was created from the scraps of other films and their ideas, with Alien (1979) being one I can think about off the top of my head. At least that film didn't have some magic MacGuffin with a bunch of science mumbo-jumbo to go with it, including one bit about the orb being "nine-dimensional" - but that is just one of several things to pick at with this film. The characters in this dreck are all fairly stale and not too particularly interesting to go along with, with the actors only being able to drag these paper people they play as far as they can. Spader and Bassett come out of it with the least lost, and while they can't save the film, they are at least watchable in some way, presenting some sort of charm - even if they don't have too much chemistry with each other. Forster clearly suffered in terms of screen-time from the edits, since he's in the film for not even twenty minutes, so there isn't much for him (or for the viewer) to grab onto. Phillips does okay with not being too one-note for a character such as this. Facinelli plays the villain of this sorry film, and he can't quite make this character come off as anything other than mildly annoying. I especially like the fact that the climax was re-edited in order to take out a big effects sequence involving his character changing form because the studio "couldn't see the actor" - yep, because that was the only issue. Tunney doesn't do much to generate interest with her character, which also can apply to the other people in this limited cast.

By the time the film wants to start a body count, there isn't really many people that it can use to even make a body count, and the people that it does take out are pretty much taken out in a span of about ten minutes. The look of the film certainly doesn't help make this fun, since a good chunk of the film has some sort of shade of blue dominate the screen, which can make the effects (which already feel like a cut-scene) seem a bit murky. By the time the movie throws its shamble of a climax at the audience, you will be left wondering how they managed to pass such a weird junky product in only 90 minutes, complete with a laughable reveal. On the whole, this is a laughable misfire of a movie that is best left to the dumpsters of obscurity for horror and sci-fi fans, worth only for the cheapest thrill of seeing how such a dumb product can possibly be made.

Overall, I give it 4 out of 10 stars.

Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Review #706: Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Cast
Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark / Iron Man), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Mark Ruffalo (Bruce Banner / Hulk), Chris Evans (Steve Rogers / Captain America), Scarlett Johansson (Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow), Jeremy Renner (Clint Barton / Hawkeye), James Spader (Ultron), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Don Cheadle (James Rhodes / War Machine), Elizabeth Olsen (Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Pietro Maximoff / Quicksilver), Paul Bettany (Jarvis / Vision), Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill), Anthony Mackie (Sam Wilson / The Falcon), Linda Cardellini (Laura Barton), and Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter) Directed by Josh Whedon (#312 - The Avengers)

Review

It's a good movie. Is it great? No, but it is an entertaining movie. While it admittedly stuffs itself a little too much with a bit of everything, that's not to say the movie isn't too imperfect. To say there is a load of heroes in this film is a bit of an understatement, though the movie doesn't utilize all of them, which is disappointing if you liked War Machine. Or the Falcon. But hey, at least we get three new heroes into the fray, though Quicksilver in this film isn't as interesting as the one played by Evan Peters in X-Men: Days of Future Past. Why the two versions are so different is beyond me. Olsen does make Scarlet Witch seem interesting, which is welcome with me. As usual, our main six Avengers are good with each other, and it is nice to see some character development for Hawkeye (in the sense that I remember his name now. Oh, and something about a family), which is fine. But of course, this review can't function without mention of James Spader as Ultron. I knew at some point I'd talk about Spader (who I find perpetually awesome in The Blacklist. Boston Legal was fun to watch when I was younger, though it's been about...four years since I've seen it), and here we are. I like his performance. Yes, he's constricted to just his voice, but I find his tone very well suited to a role such as this. His performance is really entertaining, though I wonder if he is up to the same level as Loki's villainous role in the first film. The effects are nice, and it is refreshing to see The Vision's look, though I do wonder why he made a cape (No capes!). But the movie is good. It does over stuff itself with characters and plot lines, but to be fair, it's not like that's all a bad thing. This Marvel universe is only getting bigger, and I can't wait to see what's next. It's not a step back from the first film, more of a transition to the next phase, which is fine with me. Enjoy the movie, and try to snag as much popcorn as you can. Or whatever. 

Trailers seen before the movie: Insidious 3 (ha!), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (double ha!), Masterminds (meh), Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (interesting), and Fantastic Four (why?).

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: Wall Street.

Review #095: Wall Street.

Cast
Michael Douglas (Gordon Gekko), Charlie Sheen (Bud Fox), Daryl Hannah (Darien Taylor), Martin Sheen (Carl Fox), John C. McGinley (Marvin), Terence Stamp (Sir Larry Wildman), James Karen (Harry Lynch), Hal Holbrook (Lou Mannheim), Sean Young (Kate Gekko), and James Spader (Roger Barnes) Directed by Oliver Stone.

Review
This film is a classic, pure and simple. Sheen and Douglas play each other off so well, with Douglas being the main man here, doing an excellent job, especially with his "Greed is good" Stone mixes so many things from different periods of time to get them all matched into respective characters. The one single flaw is Daryl Hannah. I don't know why, but her acting here is...Dull. I know she plays basically a lackey to Gekko, but couldn't they at least make her do a better job at it? The film is excellent in value that makes you interested and a little bit smarter at the end. We are close to 100 Reviews. Countdown: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5...

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.