Another one of those movies that I watched after it first was released but have only recently watched again. I must say I probably thought more of it some 30 years ago. Nothing against the actors. I think they all did a credible job. I just think two and a half hours was too long to spend with the Colonel (oops, sorry, Lieutenant Colonel). Even Slade himself admits that he has always been a screw-up, and it seems since the incident that led to his blindness he has gotten much worse, and suicidal to boot. Fair enough, at times he did seem to be a waste of skin, so suicide was a viable option. Lt. Colonel Frank Slade can be casually insulting or verbally abusive to any person that enters his orbit: friend or foe, family or stranger, it doesn’t matter. And he can be physically abusive for provocations that we mere mortals learn to swallow in silence or with some modicum of class. Yes, that is his style, but wait. That applies to men only, it seems. With women, whom he magically knows are attractive by their smell despite his blindness, he is courtly, charming, respectful with only occasional lapses of lewdness. So if he can be a normal human with attractive women, what is his problem with everyone else? Well, of course it doesn’t matter, because he is larger than life and the centerpiece of the movie. All of his moods and actions lead up to a speech he delivers at the end of the film, words that prove he is the hero of the movie. I would like to think that his time spent with Charlie was transformative for him and led to real character growth, but really, I don’t think that anything short of miraculously regaining his sight would have achieved that happy result.
"Charlie" (Chris O'Donnell) is a hard-up student at the posh Baird prep. school where his bursary-funded status sees him looked down upon by many of his fellow, silver-spooned, colleagues. Their rather pompous principal "Trask" (James Rebhorn) is the victim of a rather messy and humiliating prank, and convinced that "Charlie" and his rather spineless pal "George" (Philip Seymour Hoffman) know whodunit, he decides to convene a meeting of the entire school to force confessions from the boys. Meantime, and always hard up for cash, "Charlie" is offered a job babysitting a blind man. Boy, is he in for a shock! His introduction to "Lt. Col. Slade" (Al Pacino) certainly opens his eyes. This man is a bully, not really any other word for it. He lost his sight fighting for his country, and initially appears as little better than an intolerant and foul-mouthed thug with quite a superiority complex and a penchant for bourbon. "Slade" and his new helper are destined for a luxury trip to New York for Thanksgiving. First class flights, a suite in the Waldorf and a $28 burger turn the young man's head but no so much as the confession his employer makes as to the purpose of the trip. What now ensues does follow a rather predictable path, but it's really the two characterisations that shine here. Pacino has, arguably, the easier part to play. His being the stronger, more forceful role as the epitome of the obnoxious. It's O'Connell who has to tread on the eggshells as he must reconcile his need for the cash, his dread of what awaits him back at school and a growing interest in this man of contradictions. By going to extremes so often, "Charlie" (and the audience) are introduced to a man who has standards he feels are long gone. Loyalty, dignity and maybe most of all - integrity. It's those virtues that he hopes to see in his companion - but will he? We are treated to a well written and delivered tour-de-force from Pacino here in what I think is easily his most emotional and visceral performance, and O'Donnell works well as the shy, introspective foil with whom he fences on an increasingly less one-sided basis. A disastrous trip to his family for turkey lunch is tempered by one of the best performed tangos you're ever likely to see on screen - and I found 2½ hours just flew by in a compelling and enthralling fashion. New blood in old veins, or vice versa, or both?
"We're the Marvels" follows a young woman preparing a Thanksgiving dinner for a group of friends as a practice run before making actual Thanksgiving dinner for her family. As we see the prep, the dinner, and the aftermath, out of order, we start to see that she and her friends similarly struggle with feelings of over-reliance on others - a feeling that’s just waiting to burst.
Movie Star Rating : 0 Read More
For Dan Gallagher, life is good. He is on the rise at his New York law firm, is happily married to his wife, Beth, and has a loving daughter. But, after a casual fling with a sultry book editor named Alex, everything changes. Jilted by Dan, Alex becomes unstable, her behavior escalating from aggressive pursuit to obsessive stalking. Dan realizes that his main problem is not hiding his affair, but rather saving himself and his family.
Movie Star Rating : 6.8 Read More
An epic love story centered around an older man who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer's. From a faded notebook, the old man's words bring to life the story about a couple who is separated by World War II, and is then passionately reunited, seven years later, after they have taken different paths.
Movie Star Rating : 7.9 Read More
A gangster, Nino, is in the Cash Money Brothers, making a million dollars every week selling crack. A cop, Scotty, discovers that the only way to infiltrate the gang is to become a dealer himself.
Movie Star Rating : 6.6 Read More
Captures the essence of Willa Cather's haunting story of Pittsburgh circa 1900. Lost in a world of fantasy, young working-class Paul dreams of escaping his dreary existence in turn-of-the-century Pittsburgh. As fate would have it Paul gets his chance by stealing some money and subsequently running off to glamorous New York City.
Movie Star Rating : 7 Read More
Portrays the misunderstandings, losses and shipwrecks of the past of an unusual character who walks the streets of San Telmo forced to build a new identity.
Movie Star Rating : 5.8 Read More
Honey Daniels dreams of making a name for herself as a hip-hop choreographer. When she's not busy hitting downtown clubs with her friends, she teaches dance classes at a nearby community center in Harlem, N.Y., as a way to keep kids off the streets. Honey thinks she's hit the jackpot when she meets a hotshot director casts her in one of his music videos. But, when he starts demanding sexual favors from her, Honey makes a decision that will change her life.
Movie Star Rating : 6.3 Read More
Breaking Olympia The Phil Heath Story 2024 - Movies (Apr 26th)
Cash Out 2024 - Movies (Apr 26th)
Infested 2023 - Movies (Apr 26th)
All India Rank 2023 - Movies (Apr 26th)
Hack Your Health The Secrets of Your Gut 2024 - Movies (Apr 26th)
Humane 2024 - Movies (Apr 26th)
Possessions 2024 - Movies (Apr 25th)
Dusk for a Hitman 2023 - Movies (Apr 25th)
Love Lies Bleeding 2024 - Movies (Apr 25th)
Blood for Dust 2023 - Movies (Apr 25th)
City Hunter 2024 - Movies (Apr 25th)
Good Burger 2 2023 - Movies (Apr 25th)
Challengers 2024 - Movies (Apr 25th)
Madame Web 2024 - Movies (Apr 24th)
The Pod Generation 2023 - Movies (Apr 24th)
6 Hours Away 2024 - Movies (Apr 24th)
Food Inc. 2 2023 - Movies (Apr 24th)
Blackout 2023 - Movies (Apr 24th)
Mean Girls 2024 - Movies (Apr 24th)
Civil War 2024 - Movies (Apr 24th)
Hanky Panky 2023 - Movies (Apr 24th)
The Talk - (Apr 27th)
S.W.A.T. - (Apr 27th)
Gold Rush- White Water - (Apr 27th)
Blue Bloods - (Apr 27th)
The Last American Vagabond - (Apr 27th)
MSNBC Reports Andrea Mitchell Reports - (Apr 26th)
Deadline- White House - (Apr 26th)
The Price Is Right - (Apr 26th)
House Hunters- All Stars - (Apr 26th)
Beyond Paradise - (Apr 26th)
The Next Step - (Apr 26th)
Deal or No Deal - (Apr 26th)
Bargain Hunt - (Apr 26th)
Selling Houses Australia - (Apr 26th)
Small Town Potential - (Apr 26th)
Once Upon a Time... Man - (Apr 26th)
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen - (Apr 26th)
Secrets of the Superagers - (Apr 26th)
The Bold and the Beautiful - (Apr 26th)
Lets Make a Deal - (Apr 26th)