jholtz

Oh, my...where to start? Beautiful scenery and good use of actual footage. But, honestly, I watched the entire thing twice, including extras, and kept waiting for the award-wining movie. Helen Mirren playing an emotionally inhibited, superior British woman. Same tired blah, blah, blah about the royals not liking Diana and vice versa. Same message about the royals being out of touch with contemporary sensibilities (no! really?). Same guesswork about what the daily life of the family looks like. I suppose royalty fans will like it.

Now, what might be meaningful is if, 50-ish years from now, the royals are gone and someone, some day, wonders why they were eased out. This movie would give them a clue. There were no sympathetic portrayals here.

...and if you haven't, then you won't appreciate it. Many comments focus on how this movie isn't a comedy, yet isn't a drama and seems confused. They're right. It's both, because that's how it is when you or a loved one is addicted and struggling with rehab. My siblings and I can't watch this very often, because it's simply too right-on at points. A particularly electrifying element is the series of Gwen's flashbacks of her childhood.

Sure, there are flaws - as adorable/yummy as he is, Viggo Mortensen's character is actually a caricature - but they're slight. Bullock captures the vulnerability of the "outsider" feeling perfectly, whether at a family gathering, rehab or a social occasion, as well as the boorishness that often accompanies trying-too-hard efforts. Other characters are not as fully developed, which is perhaps the greatest weakness of the movie. I suspect this is due to uneven editing, because those with more camera time are real.

...keithw1975! This show perfectly portrays the life of every professional woman I know, including myself. Amy and Maxine have to fight for respect in difficult careers and, even when they've earned the respect, they cannot afford to show the slightest hesitation to anyone except those closest to them. It's a lonely life in many ways, but you watch how they cope, sometimes well and sometimes not. And that's the real world!

What's most impressive about this show is that each of the women are portrayed as strong in their own way, even Gillian, who was a bit wimpy in the earlier years. You see her strength in dealing with substance abuse, losing a child, infertility and childbirth, as well as her own changing role in the family. She becomes just as valuable a role model for Lauren as Amy and Maxine. I wish that every girl I've ever known had the same sort of guidance and role modeling.

I'm sorry that it's been canceled.

Yes, the movie was fast paced; yes, it held my attention; yes, it was more mature than the first two. That said, it was sadly disappointing.

I've read all the books and saw the first two movies. I went to this movie with two children who saw the first two movies, and their parents, one of whom knew nothing about the books or the movies. No one but I understood the movie. No one could follow it, beyond the surface story.

Too much essential detail was left out, evidenced by the questions I heard afterwards: What are the dementors doing when they do that sucking thing? Why did they keep going after Harry and not the other students? Why didn't Harry get in trouble for zapping Snape? Why did Sirius Black break out now? How did they know which animal was involved? What happened to Trelawney? Why didn't McGonigle know what was going on? More important, why didn't Snape know what was going on??

On a different level, why not a bit more attention to making Dumbledore look more similar to Richard Harris? A little more hair, a little more beard would have done wonders. No, that might not matter to adults, but it matters to children!

I can only hope that a Director's Cut exists, and that IT will be what's on the DVD when it's released.

Okay, I have to admit that I can't be objective about this movie because I'm a female Al Fountain who would love to have a similar experience.

Sam Rockwell is funny, touching, hilarious and pitiful as Kid, who leads a decidedly offbeat life, not entirely by choice. When John Turturro's ultra rigid Al meets the Kid, the careful borders of his life start to unravel. Initially threatening to him, the wacky experiences gradually show him how stifled he's become.

If you have impressionable teens, this is not a good choice (sex, vandalism, minor drug use). If you're a technical purist, you'll have problems with it, too. But this a feel-good flick that has a solid message at its core.

I was shocked to see a weighted score of 4.7, because this movie is full of fine performances...Danny Wahlberg, Rose McGowan and Amanda Peet most especially. Sure, what plot there is isn't original, but after you've seen a hundred or so movies, what plot is? It's all the other aspects that make a movie stand out, and this one does.

Before seeing this movie, I would've said that I loved everything Kathy Bates has done. Now it's everything-minus-one. James Woods is pathetic...not his character, his acting. Someone should've told him that "poor" is not synonymous with dirty, nor ignorant, nor cliche. Ditto for Randy Quaid's stereotyping. The only redeeming feature is Henry Thomas, who isn't a strong enough actor to carry this sodden mess. If you enjoy the country, you'll enjoy the scenery. That's the best I can give it.

I'm a serious fan of both independent and quirky films, but this is simply terrible.

I didn't want to like this movie. I'd heard so many mixed reviews, and overwhelmingly negative comments about Al Pacino's performance. However, Michelle Pfeiffer was fantastic, well outside her typical glamorous fare, as a tired, cynical, wronged waitress who hopes for nothing more than some ease. Even Pacino's performance wasn't bad as an ex-con, short-order cook, although nothing to brag about in comparison to Pfeiffer.

I rented this DVD in part because of the previously posted, highly favorable review, but was far less impressed. The special effects are undoubtedly stunning. Samantha Morton as Agatha is a real find; I expect to see much more of her in the future. However, anyone who was awed by Max von Sydow in "Judgment at Nuremberg" will be dismayed at the depths to which he has sunk, because this is, simply put, just another cautionary tale about the evils of technology. And really, do we need another movie based on a tired premise, especially one that serves primarily as a vehicle for Tom Cruise?

This was the scariest movie I have ever seen. Kidman--not a favorite of mine--was brilliant, and Fionnula Flanagan was perfect as Mrs. Mills. The tension between them was palpable. Alejandro Amenábar deserves tremendous credit for a stunning movie, included getting the details right, from both medical and historical perspectives.

A good--not great--movie. The premise is interesting and historically it's as accurate as one can expect. Cameron Diaz is razor sharp as Jennie, and DiCaprio is adequate. However, Daniel Day-Lewis, as William 'Bill the Butcher' Cutting, is absolutely stunning. He makes a tilted head or a perfectly timed gaze say more than any other cast member. DiCaprio will get star credit, but without Day-Lewis "Gangs" is just another period piece.

Despite the now-clumsy cinematography--which is beautiful, regardless--this is one of the most understated, yet powerful, portrayals of socioeconomic disparity I have seen. Tom Courtenay is simply wonderful. His facial expressions often seemed to make dialogue unnecessary. Highest recommendation.

The special effects were excellent and Helen Hunt was attractive; those are the good points. The best to be said for the rest is that we laughed. If they had even ONE person on staff who had been through a tornado, it probably wouldn't have been so funny. Helen Hunt certainly wouldn't have made it out of the storm cellar in one of the first scenes.

I'm a BIG Bette Davis fan, so her tendency to overact doesn't usually bother me, but "Poison" is way over the top. The plot is ludicrous by any standard, and without the charm that Bette clearly displays in her other movies (Jezbel, for instance,) to bolster it, the movie falls flat.