The Rookie (1990).

Review #2487: The Rookie (1990).

Cast: 

Clint Eastwood (Sergeant Nick Pulovski), Charlie Sheen (Detective David Ackerman), Raul Julia (Ulrich Sigmund Strom), Sônia Braga (Liesl Strom), Tom Skerritt (Eugene Ackerman), Lara Flynn Boyle (Sarah Ackerman), Pepe Serna (Lieutenant Raymond Garcia), Donna Mitchell (Laura Ackerman), Coleby Lombardo (Joey Ackerman), Marco Rodriguez ("Loco" Martinez), Xander Berkeley (Ken Blackwell), Roberta Vasquez (Officer Heather Torres), Hal Williams (Detective Powell), Paul Ben-Victor (Felix "Little Felix"), and Tony Plana (Morales)

Directed by Clint Eastwood (#1252 - Space Cowboys, #1310 - Million Dollar Baby, #1476 - Pale Rider, #1501 - Unforgiven, #1550 - Gran Torino, #1638 - Bird, #1757 - Sudden Impact, #1831 - High Plains Drifter)

Review: 

I'm sure you've heard this before: buddy cop movie pairing two distinct folks up for strange hijinks and action to go around. The script to the film is credited to Boaz Yakin (in his second credit after The Punisher [1989]) and Scott Spiegel (the co-writer of Evil Dead II [1987]). This was the second Clint Eastwood film released in 1990 after White Hunter Black Heart, a film that Eastwood apparently had a personal interest in (so, yes, "one for them and one for me"). While that movie wasn't exactly an audience favorite, The Rookie didn't fare too much better at the time because of its release in December 1990 that got overshadowed by Home Alone, released three weeks earlier (did you know that movie was the highest grossing comedy of all time for decades?). The highlight of the film for those at the time may have been the stunt work, with major scenes involving no miniatures or blue screens, which were filmed at night. Of course, this is also the movie where Eastwood gets sexually assaulted by a woman and it is also the same movie where Raul Julia and Sônia Braga were cast to play a couple of Germans. So there's that.

It is a silly and loud affair that almost seems tailor-made for those who enjoyed stuff such as Lethal Weapon, Tango & Cash, you get the idea. But I can't help but wonder if the problems with the film come from the fact that Sheen and Eastwood just don't mesh that well together. Even Tango handled that better. One sometimes wonders who exactly was thought of for the role besides him, as if even Emilio Estevez would've been better off playing the toils of someone trying to be by-the-book in a weary world (this is where I try to not just wish for a different movie in the middle of talking about this movie*). But Eastwood doesn't exactly come off that great either, as if he himself is tired of playing a Dirty Harry pastiche (ironically, The Dead Pool from two years earlier was a better movie). The movie just seems flat-footed for a good chunk of its two-hour runtime, never really getting into full gear with its energy beyond neat stunts (again, mostly at night). It just feels like an obligation film, one that goes through the motions that almost sounds like it was supposed to be a parody of the action thriller, right down to the assault scene which is there because, uh, because. But instead the parts that are meant to be funny aren't as funny and the parts that sound like they want to be serious (such as the flashback trauma) sound like a riff. Even the moments where Julia says racial epithets (get it, he's playing a rough German?) sounds like it was dug up for a joke for the parody rather than an actual serious/fun thriller. Boyle was on Twin Peaks in the same year this premiered and it can easily be said that she has more to actually do on that show than here*, which is kind of sad, and the less said about Skerritt's lack of presence, the better. Julia and Braga technically are the best part of the film, but they can't save the film from meandering as much as it does. As a whole, I wish I could appreciate the movie more, but there is a clear air of lethargic nature to the whole proceedings that you don't get from the usual Eastwood fare. Even when the Dirty Harry movies got a bit long in the tooth, you could still see some zip to them. Here it just doesn't sound like anyone but the stuntmen is having fun, but it doesn't seem quite enough to make for a well-rounded film to actually recommend.

Overall, I give it 6 out of 10 stars.

*For whatever reason, I thought of Tom Hanks. Or hey, what if it was Emilio Estevez matched up with his father Martin Sheen? Or even Eastwood playing the beleaguered lieutenant for a whole film would probably be ideal. 

*As a person who's seen the first six Twin Peaks episodes, anyway.

Poltergeist III.

Review #1199: Poltergeist III.

Cast:
Tom Skerritt (Bruce Gardner), Nancy Allen (Pat Gardner), Heather O'Rourke (Carol Anne Freeling), Zelda Rubinstein (Tangina Barrons), Lara Flynn Boyle (Donna Gardner), Richard Fire (Dr. Seaton), Nathan Davis (Reverend Henry Kane), and Kipley Wentz (Scott) Directed by Gary Sherman.

Review:
Was there really a big desire to make another Poltergeist film? The previous films were successes with audiences (with the first making ten times its budget and the second making double), so why not make a cheap sequel - complete with O'Rourke and Rubinstein being the only ones returning, with a reduced budget of $9.5 million, roughly less than half of the sequel's budget. Sherman (who directed and co-wrote the film with Brian Taggert) thought that the setting of the film being a building was a scary one, stating that "there are people on the other side of the wall, and no one cares that you are in trouble". Perhaps that could have proven true, but the final result is a movie that proves to be just another disappointing Poltergeist sequel. The film sure tries to make sure you won't forget who Carol Anne is, since characters in the film keep saying her name. I lost count after about the tenth time Kane (or someone else) said it, and it sure seems more like something to ridicule than be terrified of.

I do appreciate the in-camera effects, which were done live on the stage, with some highlights including a corpse being clawed out of at one point, and some of the mirror effects are a bit spooky. They can't save a movie that seems to meander in cheese. Nobody in the film does a terrible job, but they can't really give this film any sense of suspense or sell this as something worth using much effort over. Skerritt and Allen are okay at least, although the tonal shift for Allen's character near the climax feels abrupt and tacked on in order to deliver tension. O'Rourke does a fine job with her role once again, just as captivating and watchable as before in her final film. Rubenstein is just as offbeat as ever with giving exposition and occasional amusement, such as when she interrupts her session of tea and drops everything to fly on a plane after sensing danger for Carol Anne. Boyle and Wentz are okay, but their characters don't really have much to do other than just play the teenagers in a horror film (with the latter being forgotten about when it came to the ending). The angle involving the family and O'Rourke doesn't really hit as well when compared to the family angle from the previous two films. Fire is pretty annoying, but it is a bit hard to really make a skeptic in a horror film (particularly a sequel) seem anything other than just one to make for conflict, and he isn't really too interesting to follow with in any case. Davis (or more specifically, Corey Burton in a recording booth smoking a bunch of cigarettes to get that proper raspy voice) doesn't make for much of a villainous presence, perhaps in part because it is strange to even see Kane again in the first place. They might as well had just made up a new villain anyway, since his return is just as strange, seeing as Carol Anne was doing a bunch of hypnosis sessions while attending some sort of school for the gifted - complete with a skeptic doctor who believes it is all a product of mass hypnosis (which is pretty stupefying, actually). I guess getting stabbed with a spear just isn't enough closure. In any case, the film just doesn't have a real big scare up its sleeve besides occasional tricks for its 98 minute run-time.

The ending of the film is a letdown, particularly with its stinger that actually tries to sequel-bait. The film had its ending changed in post-production, which was actually more optimistic than what eventually made it onto the screen. Both endings keep the sacrifice made by Tangina, but while the original ending simply had the family return to the real world, the revised ending includes the John Hancock Center having two lightning bolts strike it (the only visual effect added in post-production) while Kane's laughter is heard; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer wanted to punch-up the ending, which I suppose they valued more than a real ending. It should be noted that the re-shoot (done months after production ended) occurred without O'Rourke, who tragically died on February 1, 1988 from misdiagnosed intestinal stenosis. Four months later, the film was released, with the movie not being as successful with audiences - in part due to reduced marketing by MGM, who wanted to avoid being thought as exploitative, to the point where Skerritt and Allen did not do interviews for the film, lest they get asked questions about O'Rourke. In any case, the film is just not that scary, feeling just as pale of an imitation as the original, with only occasional bits of interest sprinkled in. If you were into the sequel and want to see a further supernatural tale involving some of the characters from before, this may work for you. Anybody looking for a quality follow-up to just the original or one wanting a proper close to the series will probably be disappointed.

Overall, I give it 5 out of 10 stars.

Wayne's World.

Review #806: Wayne's World.

Cast
Mike Myers (Wayne Campbell), Dana Carvey (Garth Algar), Tia Carrere (Cassandra Wong), Rob Lowe (Benjamin Oliver), Lara Flynn Boyle (Stacy), Michael DeLuise (Alan), Lee Tergesen (Terry), Dan Bell (Neil), Sean Gregory Sullivan (Phil), Brian Doyle-Murray (Noah Vanderhoff), Colleen Camp (Mrs. Vanderhoff), Kurt Fuller (Russell Finley), Chris Farley (Security Guard), Meat Loaf (Tiny), Frank DiLeo (Frankie 'Mr. Big' Sharp), and Ed O'Neill (Glen, the manager at Stan Mikita's Donuts) Directed by Penelope Spheeris (#238 - The Little Rascals)

Review
From the opening minutes, Wayne's World pulled me in, with the Bohemian Rhapsody scene being one of the first highlights of the film. There's something entertaining about seeing people listening to that song and enjoying themselves with such energy. Everything about the movie feels enjoyable, from Wayne (and sometimes Garth) talking to the audience and breaking the fourth wall to the numerous amount of gags played all throughout the film, including the ending(s). The characters are enjoyable to watch, with our main duo especially having great chemistry, right from their opening scene on the aforementioned show they host. Lowe is enjoyably smarmy, making for a neatly fit villain. Carrere is also a good highlight, even doing her own vocals for the songs; my favorite scene is when her and Myers share a conversation in Cantonese, with the subtitles on the bottom playing even after they stop talking. My personal favorite minor character is Ed O'Neill as Glen, who while only having a few lines manages to fit into a quirky environment like this, what with his observation on steam leaving out of a body. Alice Cooper makes a fine cameo appearance, in part because of his interaction with Wayne and Garth, who were certainly not worthy, but we at least were, enough to see a fun little scene. On the whole, Wayne's World has enough jokes and fun characters to make for a (wait for it) truly excellent movie.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: Men in Black II.

Review #212: Men in Black II.

Cast
Tommy Lee Jones (Agent K), Will Smith (Agent J), Lara Flynn Boyle (Serleena), Johnny Knoxville (Scrad), Rosario Dawson (Laura Vasquez), Rip Torn (Zed), Tony Shalhoub (Jeebs), and Tim Blaney (Voice of Frank the Pug) Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld.

Review
Greetings, fellow reader who clicked the hyperlink from the review of Kingsman: The Golden Circle. Enjoy this review from 2012. In retrospect, this is an okay sequel that doesn't really strive to do anything too special that the first film hadn't done, although I still found it to be decent entertainment, mostly because of Jones and Smith. The third film is the best of the two sequels, ultimately. 

Five years after the success of the first film, this was released. And it works for the most part. It's a decent enough sequel that has some of the stuff that made the first good in the first place: Good effects, with a good enough cast fit into a usual run-time. It has some laughs and is worth seeing at least once for anyone. Ten years after this, there would be a sequel (at the rate of time they're going, the next will be in 2027/2032). All in all, this is a pleasant sequel and one of many successes for Will Smith.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.