The Godfather Part III (1990)
DIRECTOR: Francis Ford Coppola
CAST: Al Pacino, Andy Garcia, Talia Shire, Diane Keaton, Sofia Coppola, Eli Wallach, Joe Mantegna, Bridget Fonda, George Hamilton
REVIEW:
The Godfather Part III is an example of the difficulties inherent in releasing a sequel to an acclaimed film series after so much time has elapsed. The 1972 original and its 1974 follow-up are rightfully regarded as one of the greatest one-two punches in cinematic history, with Part III considered a bit of a tired-out afterthought; indicative of the general lack of enthusiasm, it was the first Godfather movie not to win Best Picture, and the first for which Al Pacino did not receive an Oscar nomination. The Godfather Part III is not as bad of a movie as it’s often derided as; in fact, it’s a good one, with some tremendous moments, but it’s not a great one, and for the Godfather franchise, that’s just not quite good enough.
Continue readingThe Untouchables (1987)
DIRECTOR: Brian De Palma
CAST: Kevin Costner, Sean Connery, Robert De Niro, Andy Garcia, Charles Martin Smith, Patricia Clarkson, Billy Drago
REVIEW:
Brian De Palma’s magnum opus The Untouchables (loosely inspired by the television series, which in turn was loosely based on historical fact) freely takes sizable liberties with the true story it loosely tells and is an unabashedly Hollywoodized saga of the 1930s clash between Treasury officers led by Eliot Ness and Prohibition-era Chicago crime lord Al Capone, but this is a case of the filmmakers not letting the facts get in the way of a good story. The Untouchables doesn’t pretend to be a docudrama, instead a rousing adventure that serves up a plucky band of underdog good guys versus the seemingly all-powerful big bad. It’s easy to get swept up in that kind of David vs. Goliath story, and The Untouchables succeeds on virtually every level, serving up colorful hissable villains, juicy dialogue, a fast-moving pace, some memorable action sequences, moments of humor and tragedy, and a crowd-pleasing triumph of good over evil. Continue reading
At Close Range (1986)
DIRECTOR: James Foley
CAST: Sean Penn, Christopher Walken, Mary Stuart Masterson, Christopher Penn, Crispin Glover, Millie Perkins, Eileen Ryan, Kiefer Sutherland, David Strathairn, Tracey Walter, R.D. Call, J.C. Quinn
REVIEW:
At Close Range is a spare, no-frills crime drama that eschews overdramatic embellishments and portrays a dark true story in unvarnished docudrama fashion. Set in 1978 and based on the story of the Bruce Johnston gang (with names changed), it centers on Brad Whitewood Jr. (Sean Penn), an aimless juvenile delinquent who gets drawn into the orbit of his sociopathic father Brad Sr. (Christopher Walken), who runs a local gang stealing tractors and mechanical parts. At first, Senior dazzles the impressionable youth, showing up in flashy cars, throwing money around, giving Brad a sniff of a life that seems a lot more exciting and glamorous than his. It’s not too long before Senior shows a dark side, but it might be just long enough for Brad to be in too deep. Continue reading
Witness (1985)
DIRECTOR: Peter Weir
CAST:
Harrison Ford, Kelly McGillis, Lukas Haas, Jan Rubes, Alexander Godunov, Josef Sommer, Danny Glover, Patti LuPone, Brent Jennings, Angus MacInnes
REVIEW:
Witness is billed as a thriller or a crime drama, but that’s just the plot skeleton. What it’s really about at its core is love and longing, and about how the randomness of life can throw two people into contact long enough to fall in love, even if they can never truly be together. Continue reading
The Godfather Part II (1974)
DIRECTOR: Francis Ford Coppola
CAST: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, Robert Duvall, John Cazale, Talia Shire, Lee Strasberg
REVIEW:
A companion piece in the true sense of the word and regarded as arguably the best sequel ever made, The Godfather Part II (which was greenlit before the first movie was even released) only further deepens and enrichens the characters and themes from its predecessor while Francis Ford Coppola and Mario Puzo weave an even more ambitious web. Like The Lord of the Rings, The Godfather and The Godfather Part II are less a film series than one combined continuous story rightfully taken as a whole.
Continue readingWait Until Dark (1967)
DIRECTOR: Terence Young
CAST: Audrey Hepburn, Alan Arkin, Richard Crenna, Jack Weston, Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Julie Herrod
REVIEW:
An adaptation of the 1966 play of the same name by Frederick Knott, written for the screen by Robert Carrington and Jane Howard Carrington, Terence Young’s suspense crime caper Wait Until Dark almost succeeds in spite of itself; the plot has more holes than Swiss Cheese, but a slick twisty-turny—-if far from airtight—-script keeps things moving along and reels the viewer in in spite of themselves, assuming they have a decent margin for suspension of disbelief.
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