Tag: 1997

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Movie Review

Batman & Robin (1997) Movie Review

Batman and Robin – ABC Film Challenge – Comic Book Movies – U (Uma Thurman) – Batman and Robin – Movie Review

Batman and Robin

Director: Joel Schumacher

Writer: Akiva Goldman (Screenplay)

Writer: Bob Kane (Characters)

Cast

Plot: Batman and Robin try to keep their relationship together even as they must stop Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy from freezing Gotham City.

Runtime: 2 Hours 5 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Batman and Robin starts when Mr Freeze (Schwarzenegger) has started committing crimes in Gotham. Batman (Clooney) and Robin (O’Donnell) have been trying to stop his attacks. Meanwhile, Poison Ivy (Thurman) arrives in Gotham looking to work with Bruce on her latest project.

Once Ivy gets rejected, she finds Mr Freeze has the same problem, as Batman. This leads to the two teaming up to take on Batman and destroy Gotham City. Meanwhile, Bruce has his own problems back home, as Alfred (Gough) is getting sick, and his niece Barbara (Silverstone) arrives at the mansion.

Verdict on Batman and Robin

Batman and Robin is the fourth action adventure in the franchise. It sees Batman facing off against three more enemies Mr Freeze, Poison Ivy and Bane. They want to destroy Gotham and Batman. As Batman continues to deal with enemies, he finds his own team continuing to grow to aid in his fights.

This might well be the most criticised Batman movie ever. It does embrace the comedic side of the comic book movie. Sure, the comedy does come too often, leaving us not getting any action. However, this does make this a bonkers movie you will never forget and still, to this date, the only one to have Mr Freeze and Poison Ivy in for the modern audience. This is a lot more fun than it should be, just don’t take it too seriously.

Final Thoughts –Batman and Robin is bonkers and entertaining in so many different ways.

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Movie Review

The Night Flier (1997) Movie Review

The Night Flier – ABC Film Challenge – Favourites – N – The Night Flier – Movie Review

NIght Flier poster

Director: Mark Pavia

Writer: Mark Pavia, Jack O’Donnell (Screenplay)

Writer: Stephen King (Story)

Cast

Plot: A reporter is on the trail of a vampiric murderer who travels by plane.

Runtime: 1 Hour 37 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Night Flier starts when a reporter with no morals Richard Dees (Ferrer) gets his latest investigation. He works on supernatural cases, with the latest case being about a mysterious plane. The pilot uses the name Dwight Renfield (Moss) and seems to be leaving a trail of bodies behind him.

Richard dives into his investigation pushing out rookie reporter Katherine Blair (Entwisle). As his investigation continues, he goes deeper into his past until he learns the truth about the pilot.

Verdict on The Night Flier

The Night Flier is a horror mystery following a reporter investigating a mysterious pilot. It sends him down a path around the mysterious night killer that he learns is a vampire. As the mystery about his connection to the reporter grows.

This is one of the many forgotten Stephen King stories. It brings his own vision of a vampire to life, with a unique twist. The idea that a vampire flies around in a unique plane makes this very interesting. This also gets a message about how reporters can cross the line to get a story. The movie is very slick and gets to give us a surprise with how everything ends up unfolding. This movie also has a great leading performance by Miguel Ferrer.

Final Thoughts – The Night Flier is a dark twist on the vampire figure.

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Discussion Piece

25th Anniversary of Kiss the Girls

25th Anniversary of Kiss the Girls

Kiss the Girls

On October 3rd, 1997, Kiss the Girls was released in the cinema. Kiss the Girls was directed by Gary Fleder who was fresh from Things to Do In Denver When You’re Dead. He followed this one up with Don’t Say a Word, Runaway Jury and Homefront. The movie is based on the Alex Cross character created by James Patterson. Kiss the Girls screenplay came from first-time writer David Klass, who only has a couple more credits to his name. They include, Desperate Measures, Walking Tall and Emperor.

The Story

Kiss the Girls sees Dr Alex Cross (Freeman) heads to North Carolina and goes in search of a serial killer that has branded himself Cassanova. The local detectives Ruskin (Elwes) and Sikes (McArthur) have been coming up short and Cross knows his niece has become one of the latest missing girls.

When Kate Mctiernan (Judd) is the latest woman abducted by Cassanova. She learns about the others being held captive and uses her own skills in self-defence to escape. After Kate escapes, she teams up with Cross as they search for the location, she was held captive.

This is an intense story, that deals with a serial killer and the hunt for them before they take their latest victims. It keeps us guessing and continues to bring twists along the way.

Box Office

Kiss the Girls was made from a budget of $27 Million and made $60 Million at the box office. This makes it the second most successful film in the franchise. Where Along Came a Spider brought in $105 Million, which does include the international box office, data not available for Kiss the Girls. The 2012 Alex Cross movie did a lot worse at the box office, only managing to make back its budget of $35 Million. Kiss the Girls was the 47th highest-grossing movie of 1997, again without international income. If we are generous and give it the same numbers as Along Came a Spider, it would put it around 36th for the year.

Alex Cross Legacy

Alex Cross went on to appear in two more movies, first Morgan Freeman returned for Along Came a Spider. Secondly, Tyler Perry took over in Alex Cross. Despite the strong Box Office return. It is strange that Morgan Freeman’s run never got to make another Alex Cross movie. The failures in the Box Office didn’t help the Alex Cross reboot get started.

Cast

Kiss the Girls did the right thing by bringing in Morgan Freeman for the role of Alex Cross. The 1990s saw him in many supporting roles, from The Shawshank Redemption to Se7en. This was one of his first truly leading solo roles. Ashley Judd was fresh off Heat and A Time to Kill. Before following up this role with a string of thrillers. The Princess Bride’s Cary Elwes had quite the following after that movie, despite it being ten years prior. He appeared in some of the most successful 90s movies before this with Liar Liar, Twister and Robin Hood: Men in Tights. There are also smaller roles for Entourages Jeremy Piven, Fresh Prince of Bel Air’s Tatyana Ali and American Pie’s Mena Suvari.

Critic Response

Kiss the Girls only received a 33% on Rotten Tomatoes. However, Roger Ebert was one of the fresh reviews quoting ‘Freeman and Judd are so good, you almost wish they’d decided not to make a thriller at all — had simply found a way to construct a drama exploring their personalities.’ USA Today critic Mike Clark was less favourable though quoting ‘Even those engrossed by the build-up here are likely to kiss off the rest after suffering through Girls’ groaner of a wrap-up.’ The Rotten Tomatoes scores are nearly identical for both of Morgan Freeman’s outings.

Metacritic uses a different formula. One that gives films a chance to be more average, instead of only good or bad. 17 reviews, the score is 46, with 10 reviews being mixed, three negatives and four positives. The positives include Roger Ebert’s previously mentioned review with a score of 88. The scores match up with Along Came a Spider too, being only a couple out, with more mixed reviews than anything else.

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Movie Review

Rapid Assault (1997) Movie Review

Rapid Assault is a by-the-book action film.

Rapid Assault Poster

Director: Fred Olen Ray

Writer: Sean O’Bannon (Screenplay)

Cast: Tim Abell, Jeff Rector, Lisa Mazzetti, Arthur Roberts, Don Scribner, Harrison Ray

Plot: A terrorist creates a biological weapon in an abandoned undersea lab. A government operative is dispatched to confiscate the weapon and eliminate the terrorist. This lone Navy SEAL must undertake a dangerous underwater mission to stop a madman from unleashing a deadly toxin that could destroy the world.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Rapid Assault starts in the aftermath of Lars Rynark (Scribner) stealing biological weapons. The government turn to Navy SEAL James Decker (Abell) to lead a mission to take back the weapons.

Decker is joined by David Phillips (Rector) as they look to infiltrate the base. Joined by escaped prisoner Angela Strichman (Mazzetti). They must navigate the base and elude capture. Looking to save the day from the terrorist waiting to use the weapons on US soil.

Thoughts on Rapid Assault

Rapid Assault is an action thriller that looks like a cheaper version of ‘The Rock’. Seeing a Navy SEAL pair needing to get into a base, to stop a biological threat. It will offer up twists along the way, without being anything we haven’t seen before.

When it comes to the action, we have the safe action. Decker needs to take on more difficult threats as the film unfolds. The military watching on, waiting for the right thing to do, works well, even if they look helpless.

The performances in the movie are fine. Nobody shines, Tim Abell isn’t the cool or ruthless leading man. Don Scribner isn’t the most menacing villain.

If you want to watch the movie, it is here.

Final Thoughts – Rapid Assault is a simple TV action movie, easy to watch.

Rapid Assault Rating
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Movie Review

ABC Film Challenge – Oscar Nomination – L – Life is Beautiful (1997) Movie Review

Director: Roberto Benigni

Writer: Vincenzo Cerami, Roberto Benigni (Screenplay)

Starring: Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Giorgio Cantarini, Giustino Durano Sergio Bini Bustric

Plot: When an open-minded Jewish waiter and his son become victims of the Holocaust, he uses a perfect mixture of will, humor, and imagination to protect his son from the dangers around their camp.


Tagline – An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all.

Runtime: 1 Hour 56 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Life is Beautiful starts as we meet Guido (Benigni) who travels around his town to try and keep things positive with his humour and energy, meeting Dora (Braschi) despite covering up that he is a waiter, even though she is dating someone else in the town.

When Guide and Dora finally end up together, they start a family having a son Giosue (Cantarini), only for Guido’s Jewish background to get the attention of the town, seeing the family taken to a concentration camp by the Nazis. Here Guido will try to keep his positive look on life, despite knowing what the fate of his family will end up being.

Thoughts on Life is Beautiful

Thoughts – Life is Beautiful is the multi-Oscar winning movie that shows how one man gave everything to maintain a positive attitude for his son in a concentration camp during the Holocaust, despite knowing what fate is waiting for them. This is a film that plays out like a comedy for the first part, showing how Guido is always trying to find the best out of everyday life, no matter how difficult it might be for him. This is showing in the energetic performance from Roberto Benigni that carries the film, between the happy life they have made for each other and the strength in the face of reality he is facing for his family. The two complete opposite locations we have are important to the change in tone the film goes through, with the positive beautiful Italian village, bringing all happiness in life, while the concentration camp shows the negative everyone is going through. This might well make too much fun of the holocaust at times, not getting enough of the serious side to what was happening, but it will leave with one of the most heart breaking visions of many Holocaust films.

Final Thoughts – Life is Beautiful is a powerful movie, filled with heart, in a heart breaking world.

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Movie Review

ABC Film Challenge – 90s Movies – # – Home Alone 3 (1997) Movie Review

Director: Raja Gosnell

Writer: John Hughes (Screenplay)

Starring: Alex D Linz, Olek Krupa, Rya Kihlstedt, Lenny von Dohlen, David Thornton, Haviland Morris

Plot: Alex Pruitt, an 8-year-old boy living in Chicago, must fend off international spies who seek a top-secret computer chip in his toy car.


Tagline – This Christmas, staying at home will be an adventure.

Runtime: 1 Hour 42 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Home Alone 3 starts when a group of terrorists Petr (Krupa), Alice (Kihlstedt), Burton (Von Dohlen) and Earl (Thornton) lose a chip, forcing them to race to Chicago to get it back. They set up in a quiet neighbourhood, looking to get the job done quietly, but they are unaware of young Alex Pruitt (Linz) who has been off school with the chicken pots, seeing them break into the different homes.

Alex looks to stop the thieves and will need to make his own traps to make sure the terrorist don’t break into his own home.

Thoughts on Home Alone 3

Thoughts – Home Alone 3 is the latest film to come into the franchise, with this one putting the kid up against a group of terrorists who just want a computer chip, forcing the kid needing to defend his home. This does bring a bigger serious of peril that the kid will find himself in, even if the terrorist don’t plan on killing anyone, meaning you might end up having more sympathy for them. The traps created are a lot of fun and do feel like they are painful as they are planned for. The comedy from the film does seem to rely on how people react to each incident the characters go through. The performances are strong throughout, with the first supporting role from Scarlett Johansson being one you will remember for a while.

Final Thoughts – Home Alone 3 is an easy to watch family film that the whole family can enjoy, despite never reaching the heights of the original.

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Movie Review

ABC Film Challenge – 90’s Movies – F – The Full Monty (1997) Movie Review

Director: Peter Cattaneo

Writer: Simon Beaufoy (Screenplay)

Starring: Robert Carlyle, Tom Wilkinson, Mark Addy, Paul Barber, Steve Huison, Hugo Speer, Lesley Sharp, Emily Wolf

Plot: Six unemployed steel workers form a male striptease act. The women cheer them on to go for “the full monty” – total nudity.


Tagline – Six men. With nothing to lose. Who dare to go..

Runtime: 1 Hour 31 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Full Monty starts as Gaz (Carlyle) and Dave (Addy) two recently unemployed steel workers are struggling to find themselves new jobs, with themselves finding life difficult to get through, until they learn about the Chip n Dales. The pair find Lomper (Huison), Guy (Speer), Horse (Barber) and their old gaffer Gerald (Wilkinson) also struggling after unemployment.

When the six decide to try their luck at a striptease in their local town, they will find themselves needing to overcome their own obstacles about themselves in their last attempt to try and make money.

Thoughts on The Full Monty

Characters & Performances – Gaz has seen his life turned upside down, his wife has left him, he is about to lose the rights to see his kid, as he is looking to find a way to put his life back together. He is always looking to make money and when he learns the money behind a striptease, he looks to bring the guys back for their own striptease and to have enough money to still see his son. Robert Carlyle is great here, bringing the tough as nails character to life, despite all his inner vulnerabilities. Dave is the best friend that will find himself working with Gaz through the difference schemes to make money, he has started to become lifeless at home, losing the spark he once had in life. He is always worried about his weight, which is the biggest talking point in the film, showing us how a man can question how men talk about women. Mark Addy brings us the likeable character to life, being the heart and soul of the film. Gerald is the former gaffer to the guys, he has kept his unemployment a secret from his wife as he is looking for a new job, his dancing skills have grabs the attention of the guys as he looks to put them to use for the people he used to work with. Tom Wilkinson completes the main three members of the cast who all work wonderfully together. The rest of the characters do help address the other problems they would be facing in this world, as they look for their own reason to get out of their slumps, with the whole cast being brilliant here.

Story – The story here follows six unemployed former steel workers that put their differences aside to put together a striptease after hearing the money that could be made from it. This is a story with so much more going on, with the deeper diving into the mass unemployment in certain areas, the damage is has done to the people, mostly the men who have lost their jobs, different reactions to cover for it and even touching on the darker side of suicidal thoughts when everything is taken away from them. We get to look a body image, agism and sexism, with this being one of the most complete scripts in years. It will give us the idea that people can come together for a better reason to make things better for everyone around them.

Themes – The Full Monty is a comedy set in the backdrop of an area Sheffield that has been struck by a massive unemployment levels, showing us just how bleak the areas looks, even if it is bringing the people together more. While the story is a comedy, it will hold these moments back for the serious side of the film, which is why it is such a stand out.

 

The Full Monty is the full package of reality for people who must come together for their own better futures.

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Movie Review

ABC Film Challenge – 90’s Movies – B – Bean (1997) Movie Review

Director: Mel Smith

Writer: Richard Curtis, Robin Driscoll (Screenplay)

Starring: Rowan Atkinson, Peter MacNicol, John Mills, Pamela Reed, Harris Yulin, Burt Reynolds

Plot: The bumbling Mr. Bean travels to America when he is given the responsibility of bringing a highly valuable painting to a Los Angeles museum.


Tagline – Be afraid, be very afraid, Mr. Bean has a passport.

Runtime: 1 Hour 29 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Bean starts when Mr Bean (Atkinson) gets sent from the Royal National Gallery of London to LA to represent England in their gallery working with David Langley (MacNicol). With the Americans believing Mr Bean is a great art expect, they grant him all access to the gallery.

When a famous painting, Whistler’s Mother arrives, it doesn’t take long for Mr Bean to ruin the pieces, leading to David needing to go on a desperate mission to try and save his career.

Thoughts on Bean

Characters & Performances – Mr Bean is known as the slacker at the National Gallery of London who most board members want axed, but the chairman won’t allow it, he gets sent to America to mostly get rid of him. He doesn’t know a thing about art but is thrust into a world where they believe he is an expect, which is filled with his errors along the way, ones that will lead to him needing to comically try and fix. Rowan Atkinson became an international star with this role, while it might not be a character I enjoy watching, he commits to make a role that will enjoy laughing with. David Langley is the expect in the LA gallery knowing this latest piece of art will be a moment that changes his life, he welcomes Mr Bean into his home, but at a cost, as his family doesn’t want him around, Mr Bean could bring his life into chaos on levels he would never have imagined. Peter MacNicol does well in this role, which will see him needing to work off Rowan’s slapstick style. The supporting cast will all bring us a serious side that must react to the slapstick style of his comedy.

Story – The story here follows Mr Bean as he is set to LA to get out of the hair of the British Gallery, here he finds himself in a position where the people believe he is an expect on art, only for his actions to cause more problems that he is used to getting involved in. this is an extended version of a typical Mr Bean skit, taking him into a world where he shouldn’t be involved in, while trying to have the heart of a family adventure. It doesn’t try to complicate a simple idea either which is could well have done like many other extended comedy show films.

Themes – Bean is a comedy that will get the laughs if you like the slapstick style of Mr Bean, using the location to put Mr Bean in a new land, a place where he has never been, making him the tourist in this world. The straight faced reaction to most of what is going on with the American characters does help for parts of the film.

 

Bean is a comedy that might not get the laughs he wants to, but ends up coming off well enough for the fans of the style.

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Movie Review

Franchise Weekend – Starship Troopers (1997) Movie Review

Director: Paul Verhoeven

Writer: Edward Neumeier (Screenplay) Robert A Heinlein (Book)

Starring: Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Denise Richards, Jake Busey, Neil Patrick Harris, Clancy Brown, Seth Gilliam

Plot: Humans in a fascist, militaristic future wage war with giant alien bugs.


Tagline – Mankind just became an endangered species

Runtime: 2 Hour 9 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Verdict: Instant Classic

Story: Starship Troopers starts in a world where humans are not at war with a bug planet across the galaxy, students and young people are expected to join the federal service to become citizens. Johnny Rico (Can Dien), Dizzy (Meyer), Carl (Harris) and Carmen (Richards) all have their sights set on enlisting, Johnny and Dizzy are mobile infantry, while Carmen has bigger sights of being a pilot and Carl has his sights set on military intelligence, with his mind reading ability.

While Rico is going through his training and constant battles with the flashy Ace (Busey) battling for squad leader, Carmen is flourishing in the flight academy, but this is just training, now they must go into combat against the giant deadly bugs.

Thoughts on Starship Troopers

Characters – Johnny Rico comes from a wealthy family that want to send him to Harvard, but he has other plans, he wants to become a citizen, which means he must join the military, here he excels in training until a mistakes sees him disgraced. He loses his family and will remaining fighting under a new squad leader, proving himself as one of the best soldiers in the infantry. Dizzy has spent her school life crushing over Rico, she follows him to mobile infantry, proving herself as one of the best soldiers. Carmen is the girlfriend of Johnny’s through school, she has set her sights on becoming a pilot in the Starfleet, something her grades could make easy for her, she proves an asset to the fleet rising up the ranks with ease. Ace is the rival of Rico’s in training, they both want squad leader and with the rivalry they become brothers in arms.

Performances – Casper Van Dien in the leading role makes himself remember forever with his character, this will define his career without question. Dina Meyer shines too, while this cast is fantastic and understands just what movie they are in. Denise Richard has been criticised before, but here she works in the modern future world and Jake Busey add more comedy as times to his role.

Story – The story here takes us to the future where humans are waged in a war with bugs from across the galaxy, we see how the soldiers and pilots are dealing with the increasing threat they are going to be facing. This story does present itself in a satirical look at the military behaviour and how it can become a propaganda machine forcing young people into joining under false promises, it also shows how humans will always look to conquer another area no matter how outnumbered or out of place they are in their invasion behaviour. Plenty of this story over accentuates the idea of what is going on, which will add moments of comedy.

Action/Sci-Fi – The action in the film is war style military attacks with laser bullets flying literally everywhere and the bugs ripping bodies apart. The sci-fi side of the film shows us just how far the human race has come with transportation across the galaxy, despite not giving them the brains when it comes to war.

Settings – The world created is fantastic with Earth looking futuristic without being all that different, while the bug planet feels like a battleground.

Special Effects – The effects in the film are also flawless, with a mix of practical and CGI which barely look like they have dated even after being over 20 years old.


Scene of the Movie – The first battle shows the scale of the war.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – Nothing really.

Final Thoughts – This is one of the best sci-fi films you will see, it is wildly over the top and doesn’t miss a beat with style that knows just what the film is meant to be.

Overall: Fun, Brilliant and Entertaining.