Best Movies

Because of its great stunts, appropriately listenable score, and remarkable cast (from a fangirl perspective particularly), [i]Knightriders[/i] doesn't at all feel or look dated. The film was beautifully shot for its time and its budget.

Romero favorites Tom Savini, Ken Foree, Patricia Tallman, Scott Reiniger, Christine Romero (, and, and, and...) are all in fine form here. Savini especially is surprisingly good as the antihero Morgan. Though I've never been a fan of Ed Harris, he is exceptional in this his second film role. Look for the cameo by an obnoxious, buck-toothed Stephen King.

Though the film was an utter flop, it's sublimely watchable and infinitely entertaining. Recommended. Most definitely.

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[left]Did I mention the tights?
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John Duigan's [i]Lawn Dogs[/i] is an extraordinarily rich film, a compelling class drama, a suburban fantasy folktale, a buddy melodrama.

And as such, it moves me unlike any other film I've yet encountered. Of course, it is a movie that has come to define a treasured time period in my life. So it is very possible that my mind just glazes over its flaws. It is with a clear head, however, that I maintain that the movie's closing scenes are some of the most emotionally resonant scenes ever committed to film. Without fail, I am moved to tears each and every time I watch its climax.

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Young Mischa Barton is a revelation. Sam Rockwell? Even moreso. And the energy between the unlikely pair feels almost tangible on the screen. Though Barton has since gone on to explore the fathomable depths of FOX teen drama, I don't doubt that she has another great performance in her tiny body. Sam Rockwell has continued to build a fine body. Of work.

[u]The not so good:[/u] Upon my last viewing of the film (this afternoon), it came to my attention that Sam Rockwell might be wearing a set of false upper teeth. That will no doubt be a source of distraction in subsequent viewings because I am extraordinarily silly and allow myself to become distracted by such things...Though rich in content, the film looks slightly made-for-television, unlike any other Duigan film I've seen ([i]Sirens, Wide Sargasso Sea, Molly, Flirting[/i], etc.)...Though the film's original score is gorgeous, the pop songs selected for the soundtrack are oddly and jarringly outdated (young men in the late 90s listening to Alannah Myles' "Black Velvet"?!).

Not unlike her [i]Bend It Like Beckham[/i], Gurinder Chadha's [i]Bride and Prejudice[/i] is a feather-light, saccharine taste of Bollywood.

I knew very little about the film beforehand. That it was a bolly update of Jane Austen's [i]Pride and Prejudice [/i]was obvious, but to what extent I did not know. I was a bit disappointed to realize that[i] Bride[/i] matches nearly all of [i]Pride[/i]'s major plot points and characterizations; I was hoping it might be a looser interpretation. Here Elizabeth (Lalita) is Indian, and Darcy is American, but it's all there, neatly mirroring its literary source. [i]Bride [/i] distinguishes itself by being a musical -- a musical rife with horrifyingly corny montages and song-and-dance sequences.

Despite the alarmingly high cheese factor, the film is surprisingly watchable. Each of the Indian scenes is wildly colorful and filled with eyecatching ethnic dress and mouthwatering ethnic foods. If I can avoid the type of cheese present here, I should be excited to experience more Indian film fare. Oh, the colors!

The pride and prejudice between modest, smalltown Lalita and the wealthy, well-coiffed Hollywood!Darcy works well. To be terribly honest, I've never finished Austen's novel. I have, however, watched --no-- devoted myself to the wonderful [url="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112130/"]BBC-A&E miniseries[/url] no fewer than a dozen times. So, I'm, like, a qualified expert, not unlike [i]Pride[/i]'s Lady Catherine de Bourgh:
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[/size] [center][size=1]"There are few people in England, I suppose, who have more true enjoyment of music than myself, or a better natural taste. If I had ever learnt, I should've been a great proficient."[/size]

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"Queen of Bollywood" Aishwarya Rai is absolutely luminous and performs well. (I might have a [i]sliiiight [/i]girlcrush on her.) The Indian supporting cast was serviceable, the non-Indians less so. Martin Henderson (Mr. Darcy) is a limp-wristed bore. The character of Mr. Wickham is a callous cad, but that doesn't come across in actor Daniel Gillies' schoolboy smarm.

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[left]Though I would sooner watch the [i]Pride [/i]miniseries twelve more times before experiencing [i]Bride and Prejudice[/i] again, Chadha's film is a safe but nonetheless enjoyable contribution to the sub-sub-subgenre of Jane Austen adaptations.
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I can't remember the last time I had so much fun watching a movie.

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[left]:: snort ::
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