Movie Review

(On TV, September 2000) A Chinese movie parody? Heck, yes, and a pretty funny one at that. Though much better in its first hour when it spoofs action films, (what with the totally unexpected The Matrix gag and the hilarious Mission: Impossible mask riff) it then moves on to parody the less-familiar genre of Hong Kong gambler films. Still, The Tricky Master is a fun way to spend an evening, and there are a few touches (like the appropriate use of Computer-Generated Imagery) that ought to perk anyone’s interest. Don’t expect much more, however, than a series of comic vignettes (most of which making references to films you’ve never seen) loosely connected together by a threadbare plot. Stay at the end; bloopers run through the credits.

(On TV, September 2000) As cat-and-mouse movies about cops and robbers go, this one’s pretty good. A great script (loses steam in the last hour, though) filled with clever details, neat tricks and fun repartee provides the solid foundation for the film, and the good acting does the rest. It’s interesting to see how the villain plays upon the ultra-competent protagonist’s biggest strengths in order to get his way. On the downside, there are at least two major plot holes (the locked emergency exit, and the final car’s origin.) as well as a few incoherently staged scenes (the middle shootout is particularly confusing). Still, the film is slickly produced, and the result is engrossing. A Hong Kong film that would hold its own against Hollywood fare.

(On TV, August 2000) A rarity: a Hong Kong police drama that doesn’t turn into a full-blown action film. (Until the end, that is, but once it happens, it’s more of an intrusion than anything else.) The portrait of corruption presented here is done with great care, reaching an apex in a discussion in a pool that neatly encapsulate most of Hong Kong cinema’s relation with cops and criminals. Not a whole lot of fun as a film (it gets long with time) but a rather good film on its own. Think of it as the Chinese Serpico.

(On TV, August 2000) The Ottawa-area movie scene is almost a joke in itself, which makes this film doubly surprising. Made around the city (which here doubles for New York!) for a low, low, low budget, Two’s a Mob aims to be a parody to such crime movies like Goodfellas, The Usual Suspects, The Godfather and other assorted films of the genre. While not every joke works and the pacing isn’t always sustained, Two’s a Mob remains a pretty good low-budget film. Writer/Actor Dan Lalande is a master of deadpan humor, and some of the gags are truly inspired (such as the movie-within-a-movie Three’s a Triad, the Corel product placement, and a neat library/rifle gag.) Better than “oh, it’s local so it’s good”; holds up fairly well against similar Hollywood film such as Jane Austen’s Mafia! So allow me to do my part for local cinema: Track down and rent Two’s a Mob! It’s worth it!

(On VHS, August 2000) This, in many ways, seems like a Hong Kong version of an teenxploitation Hollywood film. You know the genre: Hot new “teen” star is featured in a project that does nothing but make him/her look good. Acting talent optional. Gen-X Cops is a lot like that, as a flimsy excuse is used in order to use three young rebel cops on a dangerous assignment. No reason is ever given to us as to why we should cheer for these three; the simple fact that they are there and that they’re rebellious seems to be enough for us to like them. Things don’t get moving until nearly the end. There’s a cool Jackie Chan cameo.

(On VHS, August 2000) With a title like that, you can expect plenty of gore and plenty of nudity. To Bordello Of Blood‘s credit, it does deliver that, though even more nudity would have been appropriate. Not execrable, but not particularly good; you get an adequate B-movie. For fans of the TV series.

(In theaters, August 2000) Two very different films in one. The first 90 minutes are a one-note comedy about old guys going into space. How droll. How implausible. Then, in the last thirty minutes the protagonists finally make it into space and the film switches gears to full-blown humourless technothriller with a pure-SF ending shot. Both movie are good; it’s the transition between the two that may annoy a few viewers. Otherwise, the film is quite enjoyable, with great performances by four veteran actors (Eastwood, Gardner, Sutherland and Lee Jones, though Tommy positively looks like a young man compared to the other three). The romance feels hammered into place, and doesn’t bring all that much to the film. Otherwise, the film is directed with a quiet self-assurance that is a welcome change of pace from the last few space techno-epics. Point for further discussion: The rise of the action films for the elderly?

(On TV, August 2000) Breezy, fun, unpretentious comedy about two adorable bubbleheads (the lovely Mira Sorvino and Lisa Kudrow) blustering through their high-school reunion. Janeanne Garofalo, as usual, steals the show. Many clichés of this type of film are addressed. Great eighties soundtrack. The conclusion is amusing by its adherence to expectations. Maybe not as clever as expected, but still a rather good time.

(In theaters, August 2000) One wouldn’t expect a teen sex comedy to stimulate much intellectual discourse, but it’s hard to go through Road Trip without noticing that if it is emblematic of today’s culture, then there has been some progress. Notice how many plot mechanics are driven by confident females. See the -unsubtle, but hey- black fraternity sequence as a message of racial harmony. Ignore the oft-gross humor -seems to be the current rage after all- and see how it’s, at the core, a relatively decent comedy with a few good laughs. At least Tom Green isn’t as annoying as predicted. And that’ll be Road Trip‘s epitaph; better than expected. Just don’t overanalyse it.

(On VHS, August 2000) If I had to pick and choose films ready for a remake, I wouldn’t go for bad films that inexplicably became popular (Planet Of The Apes) nor classic films that really don’t need to be redone (Psycho). I’d select films that had a lot of potential, but for some reason failed to completely exploit this potential. Repo Man is pretty much the prototypical example of this: A good script that already contains classic lines (“The life of a Repo Man is Always intense!”) but could be polished, roles that are good showcases for actors (in this case, a very young Emilio Estevez), special effects used carefully but that don’t really survive today’s practiced eyes and an overall sense of fun that would really be appropriate to try to re-create. Until then, however, you can always go back and rent this version, which is definitely bizarre but always a blast.

(In theaters, August 2000) A surprise: As an underdog sports comedy, it offers nearly nothing we haven’t seen before, from the oh-so-wacky characters to the last-game photofinish ending. The film grinds to a halt as soon as it tries to build some romance between (cliché alert!) the quarterback and the head cheerleader, but fortunately, the rest is so enjoyable that it doesn’t really matter. The heart of the film is in the gonzo football stunts, which are very enjoyable even to a neophyte of the sport. All is wrapped in a competently-edited (take note, Hollywood sports directors!) package, and if it’s not as good a film as its contemporary Any Given Sunday, it’s certainly far more accessible. Despite everything, it works, and the result is pretty good.

(On VHS, August 2000) This films fails on its own merit. But as if to illustrate who bad, and how cheap it is, consider this: I always watch TV with the captioning turned on. In Phantoms, it quickly became obvious that the poor captioner was working from the film itself, not the screenplay; whenever things got confused, the captioning included notes such as [inaudible]. Cheap, much like the rest of the film, which relies at first on big music (faithfully captioned as [music] regardless of importance) and then on increasing mumbo-jumbo backed by the National Enquirer to deliver what is after all the hype a completely standard monster movie. Not much fun, its only saving grace being that Joanna Guest is easy on the eyes.

(On VHS, August 2000) An unconventional tone is set early on as the film begins with a sassy, irreverent first-person narration. Unfortunately, there is such a thing as being too sarcastic, and The Opposite Of Sex, in whole, is a lot like that when it tries to hard to be twisted, mean, hip and darkly funny at the same time. Granted, some of the jokes are quite funny (there’s a great fake-death gag near the end), and Lisa Kudrow is simply adorable as the brainy spinster, but overall the film is simply too gratuitously self-aware to be enjoyable.