AmateurMovieReviews.com

One of America's most talented Country Western groups, the Dixie Chicks, has released a movie that seeks to determine what ever happened to one of our country's fundamental tenets, that of free speech. It is something the three singers have wondered about it for the better part of three years.

Once one of the most popular country music groups in America, the film features the trio of ladies as they experience the backlash that often accompanies political dissent. The ostracized group moved from the top of the music world to also ran status after one member of the group uttered a rather innocuous comment, at least by American standards. It was back in 2003, on a London stage, that Dixie Chick Natalie Maines offered a somewhat pointed, albeit mild opinion of President Bush. The singer offered the comment that she was ashamed President Bush was also fellow Texan.

For having the audacity to publicly share their political views the group was essentially blackballed by Country Western media folks. With Country Western fans strong supporters of the military and ultimately the President, the Dixie Chicks ended up being put into a position where their fan base was forced to make a decision about the politics of the group.

The criticism led to corporate media conglomerates influencing air time at outlets all across the country. According to the film, "Shut Up & Sing," the fuss created by the words led to the Chicks being banned from air play by management in various media outlets.

As the movie is set to premiere this weekend in both New York and Los Angeles, at least one film company has said that NBC wouldn't accept an ad for the film. Though the political season has been ripe with ribald ads and features several with notoriously false claims about candidates, the ad for Shut Up & Sing seems rather innocuous.

The ad shows some footage of the Iraq War then provides the basic context to Maines' 2003 remark about fellow Texan Bush. But the it also shows Maines calling Bush "dumb" for one comment he made about the group.

Shut Up & Sing chronicles the three years that members of the music group spent attempting to keep their once promising careers on track. The film is rated R for language.

By Christina VanGinkel

When we purchased our first DVD player a few years ago, the one request that I had was to be able to buy the complete set of the Planet of the Ape DVD's. I was all of four years old when the first Planet of the Apes show was made back in 1968, and I grew up watching the classic in the making as the show progressed from episode to episode. What follows is my own accounting of the first episode, Planet of the Apes, as it sets up the storyline for the rest of the shows, including Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, and Battle for the Planet of the Apes. Be warned though, that if you watch the first show, you are destined to watch them all, for you will want to know how the story continues, each ending in waiting for the next to begin.

Starring Charleston Heston and Roddy McDowall, the original Planet of the Apes is set in a time that spans across the ages. The story starts when a manned ship with four astronauts aboard, three men and one woman, turns itself over to full automatic via computers after being in deep space for six months. However, by their calculations, they figure the earth has aged seven hundred years since they first took off from Cape Kennedy, as they have been traveling by the speed of light and that the people who originally sent them on the expedition are long gone.

When they land, three of the four astronauts are alive. The fourth, the woman Stuart, has aged and died and resembles a mummy more than a human being. They find that they have crashed into a body of water and must race to escape before their ship sinks. Once they determine it is safe, they blow the hatch and abandon ship. Before they do, Taylor, played by Charleston Heston, sees the clock on board, and it says it is the year 3978, much further into the future than they had expected it to be.

As the men paddle away from the ship, they watch it sink into the abyss, and realize that wherever it is they are at, they are there to stay. Unsure of where they are, other than being three hundred light years away from where they began, they have no clear idea where they have crashed. They paddle until they reach a shoreline that is rocky and desolate looking. They take stock of what they have as far as supplies go, which includes a pistol and a medical kit, and they also figure they have food for three days; though they do not have a clue how long a day is under the present circumstances. They run a soil test and determine nothing will grow where they are at, so they had better go in search of somewhere that food will grow.

Landon (Robert Gunner), Dodge (Jeff Burton), and Taylor set out to see what they can find, with no clear design of where they are headed. They encounter thunder and lightning with no rain, cloud cover at night, a strange luminosity, but no moon, and are quickly running out of water as tensions start to rise.

The first sign of life they find is a flowered plant, which gives them the spirit to continue their search for whatever may be out there. Before they find anyone though, they encounter what looks like scarecrows. The forms are apparently a warning of some kind, but when they reach them, they also encounter trees and water. The appeal is too much and they surge on, throwing themselves into the pool of water at the base of a waterfall. On the far shore, they find footprints, and then their clothing is stolen. There are other people about. Now they are in a strange land and naked. They follow as best they can, finding their belongings scattered about and recover enough to cover themselves.

They find a group of people in a cornfield. They do not appear quite normal though, and Taylor thinks they are mute. As they watch the people, a horn sounds in the distance and the people try to run for cover. The horn was announcing the coming of apes on horseback and on foot patrolling the cornfield. The apes use nets to catch the people, Dodge is shot dead, Taylor is shot in the neck and captured. He comes to just long enough to hear an ape talk as he takes a picture of some fellow comrades standing over a pile of dead people.

The next time he comes to, he is strapped on a table as two apes, apparently doctors, are discussing him as if he were nothing more than an animal. Afterwards, he is moved to a cage where the female doctor (Dr. Zira played by Kim Hunter) he remembers from his first encounter is trying to get some other caged humans to talk. Another ape, Dr. Zaius (portrayed by Maurice Evans), belittles her for trying. She gives him the name of Bright Eyes. He leaves, and Dr, Zira gives him a treat, a female human (Linda Harrison) who he eventually names Nova.

When next we see them, Taylor and Nova are in a cage outside with several other humans. As the apes stand by, a fight breaks out amongst the humans. Zira tells the other apes not to hurt Taylor. As Dr. Zaius walks away from the encounter, he spies writing on the floor of the cage where Taylor was just removed. He scratches it out with his cane.

Taylor grabs Zira and hands her a piece of paper that he has written his name on. Before she realizes this though, one of the ape guards beats Taylor. Zira reads the note though, and calls for a leash and collar for him and takes him back to her home. Zira's fiance, Cornelius, played by Roddy McDowell, questions him as he writes down answers. Cornelius at first thinks it is a trick. As they discuss what to believe or not believe, Dr. Zaius comes to the home asking them if they forgot their appointment, and he has Taylor returned to the lab.

Back in his cage at the lab, he overhears that Dr. Zaius has ordered him gelded. When the ape guard enters his cage, he knocks him unconscious and escapes. He runs into a building where apes are worshipping, and is seen by a child ape who points him out to the others. He again runs through the encampment of apes, and though caught temporarily, he soon escapes again. He finds himself in a museum of sorts, where he discovers Dodge has been stuffed like an animal. Back outside, he is once again captured.

As Zira comes forward to ask why they have him, that he is her charge, she is told that he is no longer, and Taylor at that time speaks for the first time, his throat healed enough for him to tell the apes to let him go and to take their dirty hands off him. All of the apes in hearing range are shocked to hear a human speak.

Back in his cage with Nova, he talks to her, even though she does not understand him. He is trying to teach her to say the name Nova. The apes come and take Nova away, using a hose to control them. They move her to another cage. The apes are obviously fearful of a human that can talk.

Several apes come back and take Taylor from the cage, using a collar and leash; they lead him to a room where Dr. Zaius, Dr. Zira, and Cornelius, await, amongst others. It is a hearing to determine what shall become of him. As he stands naked before them, Cornelius asks what the tribunal is for. When Zira tells the others that Taylor should have the right to know what the charges against him are, she is told that he has no rights, as he is not an ape. When Taylor talks, trying to defend his self, orders are given to silence him. One ape claims that his brain was tampered with by the ape doctors and that is why he can speak. Taylor hands Cornelius a piece of paper and asks that he read it out loud or him, as he ahs been banned from speaking. He only reads a few words when he is stopped, that the claim that he arrived from outer space is ridiculous.

The apes nonetheless decide to go and check out all the apes caught the day Taylor was, to see if there are any others that talk. He recognizes Landon, but it is too late, his brain has been cut into and his ability to speak is gone. Taylor is dragged back to the hearing, and when he tries to speak out, he is gagged. While Cornelius does not believe that he came from outer space, he does believe that eh came from the forbidden zone as Taylor's earlier description matches his own memory of when he once traveled there with permission to explore.

Zira and Cornelius are charged with various penalties for speaking out in favor of Taylor. Taylor is told by Dr. Zaius that he has been placed in his custody. He tells him that he plans to do experiments on him. He will spare him he says, if he tells him where he really came from. Taylor stands his ground and says he knows nothing of this world, only that he came from another planet. Dr. Zaius tells him he has six hours to tell him the truth before he starts experimenting on him, and has him returned to his cage.

When an ape by the name of Julius comes to get him to put him in a zoo, saying that he has been spared, the ape guard does not believe the order. Julius is really Dr. Zira's nephew and he helps Taylor escape. He takes Nova with them. By the dark of night, they go to Dr. Zira. She puts them in a cage on a back of a wagon and heads out of the village.

Outside of town, they meet up with Cornelius who has horses and supplies ready. Cornelius tells Taylor that he is in charge of this expedition, but Taylor tells him only he is in charge of himself, and that he does not plan on being caught again. Cornelius and Zira must prove their theory, or face their accusers.

When Cornelisu asks Taylor if he has any proof of the things he said, Taylor said all the proof he has is maybe a flag or a deflated raft. They travel to the forbidden zone with the horses and the wagon. When the terrain gets too rough for the wagon, they load what they can onto the horses. Taylor asks Cornelius why it is called the forbidden zone, but he has no real answer, other than it always has been. When they come to a river, they follow it. It leads to an ocean. Along the shore is where Cornelius had found proof of what he said was an earlier time. As Cornelius is about to show Taylor what he found the first time he was there, other apes arrive along with Dr. Zaius. Guns are drawn and Taylor tells Dr. Zaius if anyone comes closer, he will be the first one shot. Cornelius tries to tell Dr. Zaius that the cave along the shore holds proof of what they believe. He goes with them up tot eh cave. They leave Zira's nephew to stand guard.

In the cave, Cornelius shows Dr. Zaius his evidence, including proof of a culture that was more or at least equal to their intelligence. The main piece of evidence is a human doll, a doll that says mama. Taylor asks Dr. Zaius if an ape would make a doll that talks.

When they hear shooting outside, they all run out of the cave except for Dr. Zaius. Taylor fakes that he has been shot, Dr. Zaius tosses the doll that he has been holding down into the cave, and when Dr. Zaius comes out of the cave, Taylor grabs him and takes him hostage. He tells him to tell the other apes to pull back. They use the opportunity to make a trade, Dr. Zaius for a horse and enough food and water to last a week for him and Nova, and fifty rounds of ammo. Meanwhile, he ties up Dr. Zaius, much to the chagrin of Dr. Zira and Cornelius. He asks Dr. Zira and Cornelius to go with them, but they decline.

Before Taylor leaves, Dr. Zaius has Cornelius read something that talks of a harbinger of death, man. Taylor bids them farewell, and as he tells Dr. Zira that he would like to kiss her goodbye, she says ok, but that he is so damn ugly. Dr. Zaius admits to Taylor that he has known about man all along. Taylor and Nova ride off. The ape soldiers begin to follow, but Dr. Zaius calls them off, telling them to let him go. He then orders them to seal off the cave, and tells Zira and Cornelius that any evidence inside of the cave that would clear them must never be seen, and that they will stand trial.

The show ends as we see Taylor and Nova following the shoreline until they come to what remains of a shattered and broken Statue of Liberty. Taylor realizes that he is home, that he is on the planet Earth. He curses humanity as the waves wash in around him. If this peeked your interest, be sure to check out the rest of the Planet of the Ape movies.

Rating: * * * * * (Out of 5)

Singin' in the Rain is one of the most loved and celebrated film musicals of all time from MGM, before a mass exodus to filmed adaptations of Broadway plays emerged as a standard pattern. The joyous film, co-directed by Stanley Donen and acrobatic dancer-star-choreographer Gene Kelly, is a charming, upbeat, graceful and thoroughly enjoyable experience with great songs, lots of flashbacks, wonderful dances (including the spectacular Broadway Melody Ballet with leggy guest star Cyd Charisse), casting and story. This was another extraordinary example of the organic, "integrated musical" in which the story's characters naturally express their emotions in the midst of their lives. Song and dance replace the dialogue, usually during moments of high spirits or passionate romance. And over half of the film, a "let's put on a play" type of film, is composed of musical numbers.

Because the colorful, witty film is set in 1927, it humorously satirizes and parodies the panic surrounding the troubling transitional period from silents to talkies in the dream factory of Hollywood of the late 1920s as the sound revolution swept through. The film's screenplay, suggested by the song "Singin' in the Rain" that was written by Freed and Brown, was scripted by Betty Comden and Adolph Green (who also wrote On the Town ). The time frame of Comden's and Green's script, the Roaring 20s Era of flappers, was mostly determined by the fact that lyricist Freed (and songwriter Nacio Herb Brown) had written their extensive library of songs in their early careers during the 1920s and 1930s, when Hollywood was transitioning to talkies. The musical comedy's story, then, would be best suited around that theme. Except for two songs, all of the musical arrangements in the film to be showcased were composed by Freed and Brown for different Hollywood films before Freed became a producer.

The plot of the film is actually an autobiography of Hollywood itself at the dawn of the talkies. The story is about a dashing, smug but romantic silent film star and swashbuckling matinee idol, Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly), and his glamorous blonde screen partner/diva, Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen), who are expected, by studio heads, to pretend to be romantically involved with each other. They are also pressured by the studio boss to change their silent romantic drama and make their first sound picture. There's one serious problem, however - the temperamental, narcissistic star has a shrill, screechy New York accent. The star's ex-song and dance partner, Cosmo (Donald O'Connor) proposes to turn the doomed film into a musical, and suggests that Don's aspiring actress and ingenue dancer girlfriend, Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds), dub in her singing voice behind the scenes for lip-synching Lina. The results of their scheming to expose the jealous Lina and put Kathy in a revealing limelight provide the film's expected happy resolution.

Everyone has seen the film's signature "Singin' in the Rain" dance number at one time or another (even those who have never laid eyes on a full Hollywood musical). In the scene, Gene Kelly's character has just kissed Kathy good-night. In a classic, heart-lifting, enchanting dance sequence during a cloudburst, he does a glorious, almost five minute performance of the title song "Singin' In the Rain", a spontaneous expression of his crazy-in-love, euphoric mood and happiness over his new-found love for Kathy. The title song has become movie legend as the most famous dance number in American film, and it is Gene Kelly's finest solo performance ever, although he was suffering from a 103 degree fever.

Composed of only ten distinct shots (with a dissolve at its beginning, at the front door, and at its ending), Kelly strolls down the empty two blocks of street in the rain passing shop windows. At first he keeps his umbrella open above him to keep dry, but after a few short steps, he shrugs and closes it (and either lays it on his shoulder, swings it, keeps it to his side, or imaginatively incorporates it into the number). He skips on the sidewalk, exuberantly climbs on and swings around a lamppost with one hand, with his umbrella folded up in his other outstretched hand. He continues to saunter and slosh along, then jumps and tap-dances through the puddles, becoming more and more child-like. He lets a drainpipe of rainwater drain on his upturned, broadly-smiling face, kicks up water, splashes, cavorts, and stamps around with sheer delight. After twirling on the cobble-stoned street, he balances on the street curb like a tightrope walker. When a mystified and vaguely hostile policeman finally walks over to find out what he is doing jumping up and down in deep puddles, and looks at him suspiciously, he reacts guiltily toward the authority figure. (When the camera cuts from one view to another, Kelly's two hands on the umbrella change to only his right hand on the umbrella.) He slows down, turns, and answers simply: "I'm dancin' and singin' in the rain." He closes his umbrella, grins boldly, walks off, hands his umbrella off to a needy passerby and waves back toward the policeman from afar.

The sound effects are caused by the rain and the pools of water. There is a background noise of the hiss of rain falling, accompanied by the squelchy sound of the taps. This eventually escalates to the gushing sound of the water-spout and the louder, splashing noise made by Kelly jumping up and down in the puddles. Holes were specially dug on the sidewalk and filled up with water (six puddles), precisely where Kelly's choreography demanded them, and a lake was dug out in the gutter of the street. In fact, the whole number, which was shot out of doors on one side of the permanent streets built on the studio back lot (East Side Street), demanded complex engineering to deliver the right flow of water through a series of pipes for the rain and the downspout. The area was also blacked out with tarpaulins (rather than shooting 'day for night') and had to be lit from behind so that the rain was visible in the glare from the carbon arcs and to avoid reflections in the shop windows. (In the opening and closing downpour sequences of Rashomon, Kurosawa added ink to the rain to make it more visible and a similar method was used in Singin' in the Rain.)

We feel his joy through his singing and dancing. I am not sure how he could have expressed that same sensation through dialogue or any other way. In that sense, the choreography has replaced the words in the script, and the dance sequence is filled with signification. Each movement, combined with the singing and the background sound effects, enforces our sharing of his emotions.

Another amazing choreography is showcased in O'Connor's solo number, "Make 'Em Laugh." In it, O'Connor contorts, bounces, and flings himself around in a manner reserved exclusively for stunt performers in the modern era. Even more awe-inspiring, the vast majority of the scene is performed in single, uninterrupted takes. No camera cuts to hide transitions from one leap to the next: All are completed in sequence, in real time. The sheer energy of these performances, Kelly climbing onto the roof of a trolley car before leaping off into a convertible; the leading trio simultaneously walking across a couch and tipping it onto its back; O'Connor running up a wall and flipping over backwards, inspires comparisons with other great physical performers, from silent comedians Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd to modern day action stars like Jackie Chan.

This goes beyond ordinary dancing, just as Buster Keaton's antics go beyond ordinary acting and Jackie Chan's stunts go beyond ordinary martial arts. And, like Keaton and Chan, Kelly and company incorporate props and objects around them into their performances: a lamp-post, an umbrella, a dummy, curtains, a plank being carried by workmen, whatever comes to hand. It's a robust, energetic mode of dancing; and Kelly, with his square jaw and muscular build, gave dancing a more virile, macho face than debonair Fred Astaire.

What makes this movie work so well is a magical combination of factors that Hollywood never managed to bring together again in any other musical. Most musicals are stagey, artificial affairs, with actors breaking into show-stopping numbers that are only thinly tied together by perfunctory, even annoying plots. Characters are often one-dimensional, and can behave with jarring shifts in mood or motivation as required by the song lyrics, supposedly falling in love with other characters that they know as little as we know them.

Singin' in the Rain is so different. First of all, its song-and-dance numbers are worked with some plausibility into the story, which is entertaining enough to be worth watching for its own sake, even if there were no singing or dancing. And yet it is full of such joy that it demands singing and dancing; the musical elements aren not just tacked on. The characters are vivid and delightful, and the romance that develops (amid much bantering and posturing) between Don and Kathy is completely engaging. The film shines with the joy of performance; everyone involved is obviously having enormous fun and it is infectious.

What constituted the decline of the traditional musicals? I believe the traditional musicals have simply evolved into another kind of films, martial arts films. There are many similarities between the two. One is the interrelation between the choreographical conception and the camera. The framing and the editing are fundamental for the perception and the efficiency of the spectacle. We can also note that the framing will be tighter on the character to capture small details, but the editing should not destroy the initial movement. The secret is the continuity, especially when the main object of representation is movement, like dancing or fighting. The director, choreographer and editor determine the mise-en-scene when the fidelity of movement is absolutely necessary to a good representation. While the older musicals and modern martial arts films tend to favor continuity, Hollywood movies nowadays, whether actions or musicals, tend to have a different representation.

In musical movies, like in martial arts cinema, the best films have been made by the people who know the object being represented, whether it is dance or martial arts. These people often become choreographers or directors and they understand perfectly how to use the frame to emphasize their art. Moreover, most of them have their say in the editing. Gene Kelly was involved in many aspects of filmmaking.

The genre of movie musical has mini revival in recent years with the success of Moulin Rouge and Chicago. The newer films are more stylized but at the same time the actors' performance is minimized and other cinematic techniques compensate for that. The rapid cutting, the constant camera movement, and dramatic music and sound effects must labor to generate an excitement that is not primed by the concrete event taking place before the lens. In Singin' in the Rain, almost all the dance scenes are made up of just a few long takes, thanks to the actual dancing abilities of the lead actors. By doing so, it allows the movement of the bodies to take over the story telling, therefore choreography dominates over other filmmaking techniques.
Singin' in the Rain is not only the best of the genre, it is one of the best films of all time. It is almost flawless in every department, with every dance sequence transports us to a world of dreams. It is the kind of film that you can watch over and over again and still have a smile on your face.

SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, screen play and story by Adolph Green and Betty Comden; directed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen; produced by Arthur Freed. Running Time: 1 hour 59 minutes. Don Lockwood . . . . . Gene Kelly Cosmo Brown . . . . . Donald O'Connor Kathy Selden . . . . . Debbie Reynolds Lina Lamont . . . . . Jean Hagen R. F. Simpson . . . . . Millard Mitchell Guest Artist . . . . . Cyd Charisse Zelda Zanders . . . . . Rita Moreno Roscoe Dexter . . . . . Douglas Fowley Dora Bailey . . . . . Madge Blake

If there is anything that a movie fan can look forward to it is the annual American Movie Classics TV presentation of Monstervision where for 24 hrs a day, 7 straight days, the TV is loaded with horror films. While one really needs to question the logic of slop like Hellraiser II and Friday the 13th the Final Chapter being promoted as classics, the channel does offer a ton of old Universal Horror film classics. (On a side note, the once great, now hopelessly pathetic Sci-Fi Channel used to have exclusive rights to the Universal horror library and now AMC does which is bizarre considering that Universal owns the Sci-Fi Channel)AMC did offer a cool triple feature of THE WOLFMAN, FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLFMAN, and HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and viewing the three films in a row is the same sequence these films were released theatrically in 1942, 1944 and 1945 respectively.

While THE WOLFMAN was the more serious of the two, the pulp oriented fun of the other two films does not detract from their quality.THE WOLFMAN introduces Lon Chaney Jr. to the world as Lawrence Talbot, a wayward son who returns home to stay with his estranged father in England after his older brother has been killed in a hunting accident. After stirring a great deal of controversy trying to pick up Gwen, a woman who is engaged to another man, Larry Talbot finds himself bitten by a werewolf trying to save a young woman who the werewolf has attacked. Now that he has been bitten, Larry Talbot is doomed to turn into a werewolf when the moon rises and no one believes him when he tells of his curse until it is too late. More than just a horror film, THE WOLFMAN has a tremendous amount of symbolism present with regards to the dysfunction of the family as well as a caustic warning of what can happen to a man who refuses to grow up and accept responsibility in life. This is not to say that the film is devoid of scares as Lon Chaney's fearsome portrayal of the werewolf is top notch.

FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLFMAN sees Larry Talbot awakened from his dead slumber by would be grave robbers. When he realizes that he cannot truly be killed, he seeks out Dr. Frankenstein who understands the secrets to life and death and might be able to give Larry the eternal piece that he requests. He ends up accidentally awakening the Frankenstein Monster (played by Bela Lugosi) and discovers that the Doctor has long since died, but that his granddaughter might hold the key to Larry's troubles. On a side note: pay attention to the way the Monster's lips move and no sounds come out. In the original cut of the film, the Monster had extensive dialogue as he learned developed the ability to speak at the end of the previous film GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN when Ygor's brain (Ygor was played by Bela). However, when the film was tested in front of audiences, they found the Monster speaking with Bela's Hungarian accent laughable so the dialogue was cut out or overdubbed and remains lost forever.

HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN is a fun and silly monster mash with Baris Karloff joining John Carridine's Dracula, the underrated Glenn Strange's Frankenstein Monster and Lon Chaney Jr. once again appearing as the long suffering Wolfman. While this film is the sillier of the three, it still has some genuine scares present in the form of Karloff's utterly malevolent Mad Scientist role.Even after nearly 70 years, these films hold up quite well and are highly entertaining. While the latter two films are far more pulpy than scary, they do not detract from the seriousness and fearsomeness of the monsters as opposed to, say, the NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET films where Freddy ceased being frightening and became a silly Henny Youngman joke spouting villain.

When I was a kid and watched these films for the first time on UHF TV on an old black and white set, I thought these films were fantastic. Today, they still come off as fantastic and will continue to age well. This is what happens when a film (or film series) is made well.

By Simon Woodhouse

World War II movies that don't contain scenes of conflict are few and far between. Even scarcer still are films in the same genre that don't even take place in one of the main theatres of war. It's easy to see why this is - battlefield scenes make for exciting movies. However, the outcome of such a massive conflict as WWII was just as much influenced by events that took place far from the war zone, as it was by the combat itself. Enigma is a movie that tries to show this aspect of the war. It's a tale of unsung heroes, and as such is told in a very down-to earth fashion. But that's not to say it doesn't contain just as much insight into the conflict as the more gung-ho stories do, it's just focusing on a different, but nonetheless important facet of the hostilities.

Set in and around Bletchley Park (though not actually filmed there), the British code breaking facility located in the Northamptonshire countryside, the film cleverly weaves two different stories around one character. Tom Jericho (Dougray Scott) is a code breaking genius, but intelligence such as his comes at a price. Whilst part of a team who cracked an earlier code, he pushed himself to the point of having a nervous breakdown. Now his help is needed again, so he's brought back to Bletchley Park even though he's barely recovered from his previous ordeal. To make matters worse, the British Secret Service suspect there's a spy within the ranks of the code breakers, and they've sent Agent Wigram (Jeremy Northam) to try and sniff him out. This story of potential espionage forms one half of the tale surrounding Tom. The other plotline involves an attempt to unravel the secrets of the enigma machine, a clever device invented by the Nazis for sending and receiving coded messages. It's vital the code breakers understand the latest German communications, in order to save Allied shipping from Nazis submarines.

As Tom tries to find a way into the enemy codes, he's implicated in the spy ring by his earlier involvement with Claire Romilly (Saffron Burrows), a pretty young girl who used to work a Bletchley. Claire broke Tom's heart, something that also contributed to his breakdown. Now he's back at Bletchley he wants to see her again, but she's gone missing, a sinister turn of events that further adds to her implication in something underhand. Claire's best friend Hester (Kate Winslet), is also concerned for her whereabouts. Together Tom and Hester form an unlikely alliance intent on trying to find out exactly what's happened to Claire.

The film quickly turns into a mystery reminiscent of such classics as The 39 Steps and North By Northwest (both Hitchcock masterpieces). Told partly in flashbacks, and partly in the here-and-now, the movie never becomes confusing. Each different time frame is easy to appreciate due to Tom's mental condition. In the here-and-now he's teetering on the edge of another breakdown, whilst in the flashbacks he's madly in love with Claire.

Clever in its use of good guys and bad guys, the movie portrays the British Secret Service as the nasty men in black. Tom and Hester, using nothing more than there own intuition and risking serious consequences if they're caught, struggle to try and find Claire before Agent Wigram can get his hands on her. Because the audience learn what's happening as Tom and Hester do, it's not long before this film draws you in. Dougray Scott and Kate Winslet display a genuine chemistry, and it's their performances that carry the film. Kate Winslet's character is also the exact opposite of that portrayed by Saffron Burrows - she's dowdy, plain and unassuming. But she's got a real spark and ultimately outshines her more gorgeous co-star.

As the film progresses the two storylines become more intense. The pressure on the code breakers to decipher the Nazis messages moves up a notch, when the Allies realize the largest supply convoy ever sent across the Atlantic is heading straight toward the largest ever concentration of U-boats, but they've no idea where the subs are. At the same time, Tom and Hester realize Claire probably was involved in sending secrets to the Nazis, but Agent Wigram is breathing down their necks at every turn.

Some smashing dialogue, especially the banter between Tom and Hester, helps the film move along at a cracking pace. Considering there's very little 'action' as such, it's certainly not a dull movie. The Big Brother aspect of the British Secret Service turn them into really menacing bad guys. This aspect of the story is highlighted all the more by Tom and Hester's risk taking in order just to find Claire.

On the strength of this movie, Dougray Scott really should be further up the ladder of fame. Kate Winslet (always good), is perfectly cast in the role of Hester, and what's more she doesn't need to assume a fake British accent to play the part. Saffron Burrows isn't really the equal of these two, but luckily hers is only a minor role and becomes less important as the film goes on. Jeremy Northam's portrayal of the caddish Agent Wigram is spot on. He's all smiles and charm, but underneath you just know he's not to be messed with.

If gung-ho war movies are your thing, then Enigma probably isn't for you. But if you love all those old Hitchcock gems, and lament the fact 'they don't make them like that anymore', then I think you'll be just as fond of this film as I am.

Recently in our homeschool curriculum, my two middle-school aged daughters were assigned the classic Charles Dickens novel, Great Expectations. The novel turned out to be a bit harder than they expected, so I decided to read it aloud to them. When I found the book difficult to read aloud, we acquired the book on CD, completely unabridged. It was a treat to listen and by the end of the story, we had all fallen in love with dear Pip, his friendly pal, Herbert, and many of the other characters in the book. Just before we finished, I promised my daughters that when we finished the book, we would watch the movie. True to my word, I searched online, in libraries, and in book stores for the movie version of Great Expectations, and I was surprised to find many different versions of the movie made over the past sixty years. Finally, I settled upon the oldest version I could find, as I was not looking to put a modern spin on the story. I found a 1945 version of "Great Expectations, " the movie, directed by Academy Award winner, David Lean.

When we sat down to watch the movie, we were delighted to find that the characters had been cast so well. The hero, Pip, is played by a quiet John Mills, who, while a bit boring, seems to really capture the quietness and wonder of Pip. Jean Simmons is delightful as the icy Estella, who captures Pip's heart but cares little for him. Martita Hunt is exactly how my daughters and I pictured the odd and eccentric Miss Havisham, who lives like a hermit in her broken down old house. Bernard Miles is the beloved Joe, and Eileen Erskine, the housekeeper, and ultimately Joe's wife, Biddy. Also were Francis L. Sullivan as the mysterious Mr. Jaggers, and Ivor Barnard as the unusual and hilarious Mr. Wemmick. Yet, perhaps our favorite character of all, and a complete surprise, because we did not recognize him, was a young, sprightly Alec Guiness as Pip's dear friend, Herbert Pocket. We all remembered an old, bearded Sir Alec Guiness as the soft spoken Obi wan Kenobi of Star Wars fame. Yet, this young Herbert is quite a different Alec Guiness. The only part of him we unmistakably recognized were his soft, kind eyes. He was delightful to watch.

The story is about young, orphaned Pip who lives in England with his sister and her husband, Joe, a blacksmith. Pip's sister is unmercifully mean to him, but by a series of unexpected events, Pip is given a fortune to become a gentleman in London. He leaves kind Joe and his cruel sister behind to live in the city, dress formally, and all that went with this type of arrangement in late 19th century England. In the process of his good fortune, Pip must learn the value of friendship and relationship, regardless of education or socio-economic background. Pip associates the lower class with his cruel sister and the ignorance of her husband Joe, and this prejudice is solidified when he meets the kind Herbert and his family, who are of the upper class. Yet in the course of the story, Pip learns that the wealthy and elite are often heartless and careless with their treasures, while the poor and downtrodden will give the shirts off their backs. This is a hard pill for Pip to swallow, and in the end, he is a much humbler young gentleman than he was when he first went to London. He begins the movie with a kind heart and ends it with an enormously kind and compassionate heart.

Although the movie leaves out much of the details that were in the book, it does not divert from the original story. Due to time constraints, many scenes are shortened considerably, and others are left out all together, but the idea still comes through loud and clear. We have not yet seen any other versions of this movie, and at this point, we do not want to. The characters on the screen are exactly the way we imagined them while reading the book; and if that is not good movie making, I do not know what is.

Jack Black...one of those fellows whom you either like or you can't stand...stars in this adorable, amusing flick, directed by Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite), written by Jared and Jerusha Hess. Jack is Ignacio, a Friar at a Mexican orphanage responsible for meal preparation. Ignacio grew up in this very monastery, and now is an adult with no skills to serve him in the real world. As a result, he sees no future for himself. He loves the orphan children he cooks for daily, but is forced to use leftover and donated ingredients and as a result the food is simply disgusting...always fascinated by the Lucha Libre wrestling circuit, Ignacio hatches a plan to become Nacho Libre and make enough money to ensure his charges are finally well fed...while at the same time impressing the new Sister at the convent, Encarnacion (Ana de la Reguera).

Lucha Libre is the term in nearly every Spanish-speaking country for any type of professional wrestling or freestyle wrestling. It began in the early 1900's and truly took off in Mexico in the 1930's when American wrestlers headed south of the border. Wrestlers are known as luchadors...the plural is luchadores. Masks have been used since inception, and all wrestlers in Mexico use them until the end of their career. It's common for luchadors on their 'final tour' to become unmasked, their character being officially retired.

Lucha is forbidden by the church, and Ignacio risks being thrown out of the monastery, but when he sees an ad for a match that will earn him a cash prize the temptation is too much to bear. An apparently homeless, painfully thin man steals his donated chips one evening, and Ignacio notices his skill and decides to make him his wrestling partner...Esqueleto (Hector Jimenez). They lose their first match but are presented with an envelope full of money anyway...their share of the spoils. For the first time, the orphans are served delicious, fresh salad and plenty of other goodies. Nacho feels a bit like a hero instead of a loser for a change, and he loves it, though we begin to wonder if he will become caught up in the quest for fame and forget the reason behind wrestling in the first place.

The cast of wrestling characters in this film are hilarious...two little people who call themselves 'Satan's Cavemen', and Ramses, Nacho's long time idol whom he has placed upon a rather high pedestal. Jack Black is fabulous throughout, from his accent, his eyebrows, and his body language right down to his pudgy self in tights and shirtless. He is constantly amusing, and I simply can't imagine the film without him.

As they progress up the ladder of Lucha, Nacho and Esqueleto begin to desire fame and all that goes with it...when they attempt to enter the 'inner world' of the sport at a party (the scene with Esqueleto and Ramses' manager's overweight daughter is a knee slapper), they are promptly rejected. They do manage to discover that the winner of an upcoming match will go on to fight Ramses himself and turn pro in the process, and this becomes the focus of Nacho's world. Unfortunately, it is at the expense of the very people he so wanted to care for and impress...Encarnacion reminds him on the evening of the party that there is no food for the orphans for breakfast, and he tells her there will be by morning. In the rush of excitement, he forgets and returns home with nothing to find that she has taken care of everything in his stead. She's disappointed, the kids are upset and in an attempt to retain her respect he reveals that he is indeed a Lucador and that with the proceeds from his upcoming match he plans to purchase a bus for the children so they can take many field trips. He is acting as God's warrior, wrestling for good...how could there be anything bad about it?

Nacho is of course unsuccessful and loses the match, then heads out to the desert to live the rest of his life alone and shamed. Esqueleto comes to him a few days later to let him know that the winner of the match has suffered an 'accident' and sustained a broken foot that will keep him sidelined...since Nacho came in second, he now gets to fight Ramses.

Nacho Libre is entertaining from start to finish, without any gaps or boring spots that are typical for this genre. Also, the movie is 100 minutes long, which I found to be very refreshing...most films wind up dragging the storyline on and on to make the movie longer, often at the expense of the plot. Short, sweet, and rated PG so it's safe for the kiddies. In fact, they may cheer louder than you do.

Rating: * * * * * (Out of 5)

United 93 was not at all what I imagined it would be. It was a hundred times better than what my expected. Even though five years have past since that tragic event, the memories of it have not faded; and they never will. It was a courageous decision to make a film about September 11.

The majority of people go to the movies to escape from the reality, and the movie factory that is Hollywood is good at churning out flicks that are as removed from reality as they possibly can… even movies that are based on real events. Director Paul Greengrass very intelligently avoids all the artificial drama that accompanies most Hollywood film. When the actual event was as shocking as 9/11, it is just unnecessary to add any more.

The film begins without any opening credits or opening music. The film is shot like a hyper kinetic documentary. The editing is fast and to the point. Barry Ackroyd's excellent cinematography utilizes natural lighting, and he is not afraid to have shadow on the actors' faces. It makes the viewers feel like they are in the middle of all the actions. John Powell's music is perfect as it heightens the tension but never calls attention to itself. The sound of the film is like a Robert Altman film with multiple layers of dialogue, but the sound mixing creates so much chaos but never confuses the viewers.

Another bold, but ultimately wise decision, was to cast non-recognizable actors. Greengrass even went as far as casting real life air control room staffs to play themselves in the film. The reason for this is that there is no preconceived notion of who they are. In a typical Hollywood movie, we would get the back stories of a few of the key characters and thus making them stand out as either heroes or villains. There is none of that United 93. The terrorists are not portrayed as villains and the passengers are not portrayed as heroes. They are portrayed as real, ordinary people. The scenes in the plane show us real human behavior instead of movie heroism. The way the film is presented, the viewers only get to see what is happening, almost in real time, of that fateful morning. Of course we know what is going to happen, but the present tense of the film puts us back in time to experience it again. Greengrass does not put the blame on anyone; the tone of the film is neutral. It does not comment on or make judgment on the events. It simply presents us a very realistic re-enactment of what happened, pieced together by the little evidence available to the best of the filmmakers' abilities.

I think the film's trailer really misrepresented what the film is about, and I think it turned off a lot of people, including myself. The trailer gave the impression that the film was like a thriller, and more damaging, it was like a typical Hollywood thriller. It almost seemed like the film or the studio was exploiting the event. Of course, Peter Greengrass' film is anything but. It is an exceptional film that is respectful to the events, to the people involved and especially to the victims. I am glad I finally saw it. Now I have a bad feeling that Oliver Stone's World Trade Center is going to be that typical Hollywood thriller in the United 93 trailer.

Written and directed by Paul Greengrass; director of photography, Barry Ackroyd; edited by Clare Douglas, Christopher Rouse and Richard Pearson; music by John Powell; production designer, Dominic Watkins; produced by Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Lloyd Levin and Mr. Greengrass; released by Universal Pictures. Running time: 115 minutes.

WITH: As the Flight 93 Crew: JJ Johnson (Capt. Jason M. Dahl), Gary Commock (First Officer LeRoy Homer), Polly Adams (Deborah Welsh), Opal Alladin (CeeCee Lyles), Starla Benford (Wanda Anita Green), Trish Gates (Sandra Bradshaw) and Lorraine G. Bay (Nancy McDoniel). As the Flight 93 Passengers: David Alan Basche (Todd Beamer), Richard Bekins (William Joseph Cashman ), Jane Folger (Susan Blommaert), Ray Charleson (Joseph DeLuca), Christian Clemenson (Thomas E. Burnett Jr.) and Liza Colon-Zayas (Waleska Martinez). As the Flight 93 Hijackers: Khalid Abdalla (Ziad Jarrah), Lewis Alsamari (Saeed al-Ghamdi), Omar Berdouni (Ahmed al-Haznawi) and Jamie Harding (Ahmed al-Nami). At the Herndon, Va., control center: Ben Sliney (as himself). At Northeast Air Defense Sector: Maj. James Fox (as himself).

Two of my favorite types of movies are comedies, and cop movies. When you combine the two together, for me it is usually a great movie unless the plot is absolutely horrible. For some reason or another, movies that cross the two genres (if you can even call cop movies a genre) are pretty common.

One of my favorite movies that cross these two genres in the 2000 movie, Me, Myself and Irene, which stars Jim Carrey as Officer Charlie Bailey gates an officer of the world's finest police department, the Rhode Island State Police. The film also stars Renee Zellweger as Irene P. Waters, a woman who finds herself in the middle of a lot of trouble.

The movie starts off many years ago with Charlie and his 'soul mate'. They get married, and after a brief fight with an African American little person limo driver named Shonte, the movie moves to the emergency room, where several months later, Charlie's wife is giving birth. This is when the movie gets hilarious because, well Charlie's wife Layla gives birth to triplets, who were obviously fathered by the limo driver.

Eventually, Layla leaves Charlie for Shonte, and leaves Charlie with the three kids; Jamal, Lee Harvey, and Shonte Jr. Charlie loves his children so much, that he can't see the truth that the kids are not even his own kids, which is quite
funny considering the whole town is laughing at him (He even goes to confession in a scene and says that he thinks the whole town is laughing at him, which he is replied to with "Charlie, is that you?".

Charlie refuses to let himself take care of any of his problems, and as a result he is taken advantage of by nearly everyone in the small Rhode Island town. Eventually though, Charlie snaps and soon enough he is diagnosed as having advanced delusionary schizophrenia with involuntary narcissistic rage, with a split personality named Hank Evans. Doctors give him a prescription, and as long as he takes it (which causes severe cotton mouth) he will be able to control his advanced delusionary schizophrenia with involuntary narcissistic rage.

Charlie soon gets assigned to escort Irene P. Waters back to the state of New York, after she is arrested in Rhode Island for a supposed hit and run in New York. Charlie with his pills, takes Irene on his police motorcycle and begin their journey to New York. Charlie delivers Irene to the police station in New York, he goes to a hotel. Irene is interrogated, and almost killed before she goes and finds Charlie at his hotel. Irene goes to explain on how she was almost killed, and they leave the hotel, but at the same time, Charlie also leaves his medication at the hotel.

Soon the audience is introduced again to Charlie's other personality, Hank Evans, who is the complete opposite of Charlie. While Charlie is nice guy, Hank is a mean spirited man who doesn't take crap from anyone (and its Charlie who usually pays the price). Hank tries to get fresh with Irene, and soon the subplot of the romantic interest between Charlie / Hank / Irene starts to unfold.

From this point on, the movie's main plot is having Charlie / Hank try and get Irene away from getting killed by one of ex-employers named Dicky who is working with a detective of some sorts named Lieutenant Gerke. From this point on, the plot of the movie gets a little confusing. I have watched this movie several times, and I still don't completely understand what exactly is going on. Maybe it's because I just keep laughing at all of the jokes. The movie continues with several comedic events and the introduction of several minor characters, including a man named Whitey (played by Michael Bowman) who plays a crucial part near the end of the movie.


To me, this movie represents some of Jim Carey's best work. He's a comedian, and the role of a split personality police officer just screams his name. He pulls off the transitions between the two characters (Charlie and Hank) so well, while delivering so many funny lines throughout the entire movie. Carey's characters also flow very well with Renee Zellweger's Irene character making perfect onscreen chemistry.

If you are a fan of movies like Super Troopers, of actor Jim Carrey, or simply want to see a low level comedy that is pretty funny, then check this movie out. It's definitely one of my favorite comedies, and my favorite Jim Carrey movie.

By Simon Woodhouse

The buzzword in Hollywood these days seems to be 'franchise'. If a movie looks as though it might spawn a whole host of sequels, and therefore generate piles of cash by stretching an original premise to breaking point, no one stops to think about quality control. You can count on one hand the number of sequels (or prequels) that have lived up to the original. Like most franchises, the Alien movies have been going steadily down hill over recent years. The first one was a masterpiece, the second one sort of so-so, but by the time you get to number three you're in really dodgy territory.

If there has to be such a thing as a sequel, it works much better if the movie follows on from its predecessor, especially if what came before did reasonably well. Aliens (the second Alien film) took the original idea and pushed it in a new direction. Whereas the first film was all creepy and moody, the second one was just gung-ho action all the way. Though not as good as its parent, Aliens at least showed that the people involved were willing to acknowledge the first film. Aliens ended with three and a half of the cast surviving relatively unscathed (the half being Bishop the android). So you'd think it would make sense to bring this little group back for number three. But when has sense ever played a part in movie sequels?

As the opening credits are rolling, we're treated to a bit of back-story. This rather clumsily stitches together what is to come, with what happened at the end of Aliens. But it's a shame that two of the previous films best characters are written off in a heavy-handed piece of non-story. This ham-fisted approach sets the tone for the rest of the movie.

Besides needing a snot-dribbling monster, no Alien film seems to be able to see the light of day without involving the character of Warrant Officer Ripley (Sigourney Weaver). Alien 3 is no exception to this rule. The film starts with Ripley crash landing on the planet of Fiorini 161. Thanks to the crass opening sequence we know there's an alien with her (even if she doesn't), a fact that removes any suspenseful is-there isn't-there subplot. Fiorini is home to a penal facility, and nothing else. So what a stroke of luck that out of a whole planet, Ripley manages to crash land right outside the prison. Clumsy plot points like this pop up throughout the whole film, but perhaps the moviemakers were hoping no one would notice.

For some reason that's never explained, most of the prisoners have terrible British accents. Perhaps this is supposed to make them seem more sinister, whereas in actual fact it just makes them sound daft. Having landed on the planet and been taken in by the convicts, Ripley's adventures in Alien 3 can then be divided into four handy, bite-sized chunks. Chunk one - trying to find out if there's an alien down there with her. Chunk two - finding out there is. Chunk three - trying to convince everyone else there's an alien down there with her. Chunk four - trying to kill the alien. As this ponderous series of events roll by, various co-stars get dispatched by said alien. But because the previous two movies have shown us exactly how the beastie does this, seeing it mangle its victims doesn't have any real impact. And while we're on the subject of the alien, its incantation in this movie has it looking a little odd. The creature is CGI in some scenes, and animatronics in others, but these two renditions of the same beast don't look anything like each other. The computer-generated alien is black and shiny, whereas the puppet version is brown and crispy. Once again, perhaps the moviemakers just hoped we wouldn't notice.

For a while it looks as though a subtle sub-plot within the movie might save it from itself. Ripley becomes romantically involved with Clemens (Charles Dance), the prison's doctor. This is good, because Charles Dance delivers quite a fine performance. He's cool and collected, whilst everyone else swings wildly from one hysterical fit to the next. Unfortunately his liaison with Ripley is cut short. This leaves the prison (and the film) populated by panic-stricken inmates whose antics shift from irritating to hilarious and back again. The character of Dillon (Charles S. Dutton), the prison's chief inmate, seems to be there to try and inject the proceedings with a degree of rational, hard-man wisdom. But it's an over the top performance that's even more unrealistic than the CGI alien. The final few scenes contain a couple of 'twists', however these don't work, because by then the whole thing is such a shambles all they do is add to the ridiculousness.

In an ideal world Alien would have been a standalone movie that spawned no sequels. The fact that it has, and that they've all featured the character of Ripley, reflect badly on the first film. It's difficult to watch Alien without pondering the franchise's woeful mishandling. Alien Resurrection came after Alien 3, and it's difficult to know which film is worse. If pushed, I'd say the third movie stinks the most. There's really nothing note worthy about it at all. My advice to anyone lucky enough to have only watched the original film, is do yourself a favor and leave it at that.

Directed by: Ridley Scott
Written by: Dan O'Bannon
Starring: Tom Skerritt (Dallas)
John Hurt (Kane)
Sigourney Weaver (Ripley)
Yaphet Kotto (Parker)
Harry Dean Stanton (Brett)
Ian Holm (Ash)
Veronica Cartwright (Lambert)


: Far off in the cold reaches of space, the crew of a comercial tow ship investigates an S.O.S and find that they are the ones in need of saving :

In the distant future the massive space ship Nostromo silently drifts through space. Its crew of 7 are blissfully sleeping in cryo-stasis; instead of staying wake on a journey that would take years.
Computer monitors switch on and the ship's life support system turns on, waking the crew from their slumber 10 months too early. The ship's Captain Tom Skerritt) logs onto the ships supercomputer (known as Mother). Here he discovers the reason for their rude awakening. It seems the ship has picked up a faint signal and, obeying its directives, has altered its course accordingly to locate the beacon's.
The only problem is, it's having trouble deciphering exactly wat the nature of the beacon is.

Whilst Captain Dallas is chatting to the computer, we meet the rest of the crew: Kane (Hurt) 2nd in command, Ripley (Weaver) 3rd in command, Ash (Holm) the ships science officer, Lambert (Cartwright) the communications officer and Parker and Brett (Kotto and Stanton) a pair of bickering engineers. There's also Jones, the ships cat.

Eventually they locate the planet that the signal is coming from (called LV-426 in Aliens). A landing craft is released and they all venture down to the planet's surface. After touching down, Dallas leads a team including Kane and Lambert to locate the beacon. Aftertrekking a few kilometres of inhospitable terrain, a huge spaceship emerges over a ridge. A spaceship like nothing built by man.
A crack in the side allows them entry to the vessel and they are gobsmacked at what they find. There is a huge skeleton growing out of a chair in the middle of the room with a hole in it's chest where something burst out of.
After some more exploring Kane finds a shaft that leads down to a mysterious room filled with leathery eggs. Investigating on leads to it opening and a disgusting, large parasite melting through his helmet and attaching to his face (these little buggers are called Face Huggers).

Arriving back, Ripley refuses to let the exploration team back in unless they go through quarantine. The science officer, Ash, opens the air-lock and lets them in; disobeying a direct order.
With Kane in the medi-lab, they attempt to remove the parasite by cutting off one of it's many legs. The smallest incision causes bio-acid to spew out and eat through the floor and the deck below. After it comes to a stop, the crew realise they can't cut the creature off without kiling Kane. Who in their right mind would attack a creature with acid for blood?

The crew are called back to the lab by Ash, who is just as surprised to find the face hugger missing. A quick search around the room finds it dead in a corner. And it's not long before Kane regains consciousness. All is fine. Or is it?

The crew are all sat around a table eating Chinese food (where do they get Chinese food so far into space?) and are having a few laughs, jokes and complaining about pay. Kane starts coughing and choking on his food (Parker jokes "the food ain't that bad, man"). His choking turns nasty and he really starts spasing out: Screaming and convulsing beore falling to the table. The others try and restrain him, but leap back in terror as his chest suddenly erupts in a fountain of blood and gore. In the middle of his chest hole, and the cause of it, a viscious snake-like creature (grown from an egg implanted by the facehugger) looks around the room, then races off down a orridor, leaving the stunned crew in silence.

After discussion, the crew decide to hunt the little sod down and kill it. All they have in the way of weapons though are a few flamethrowers that Parker put together and a home made motion detector. Split off into 2 teams, one of them get a fright as the cat jumps out at them. Realising they'll pick it up again on the detector, Brett goes to look for it. As he's looking, he steps on something and holds it up for a better look. it seems the alien has shed its skin. Brett encounters the alien and this time it's big, almost feet tall and very powerful. Brett's close encounter doesn't last long. Time for a new plan.

Will the crew manage to kill it? Who will survive and what will be left of them? What is the secret directive Mother has? And why does Ash seem to want to protect the creature at all costs?
Well, these are questions you're going to have to answer yourself. Plus, nearly everyone has seen Alien, and if you havent, you bloody well should.

The film is slow-paced to begin with (almost an hour goes by until we see the alien) and we're giving a view of the ship and a look around before the crew are awakened, and as they walk around too. We get to see all the little details of circuit bards, long, dark gothic corridors, high-tech mechanisms and all sorts of nooks and cranies (perfect for a monster to hide in and jump out).
Constant slow, lingering camera movements implant a feeling of axiety and fear before the first words are spoken (over 5 minutes into the film). As we meet the characters, we realise that thy are just the same as us: human beings. Not stereotypical chiselled good looks and catwalk models (although Sigourney Weaver was, and still is, absolutly stunning in my eyes). These are normal people doing a normal job. Parker and Brett show this best with their constant bitching about pay and insults to each other.

This film works on so many different levels, each one disturbing us even further. Like any decent suspence/horror film, Alien takes its time to slowly introduce us to the threat: not just thrusting it into our faces with a sign saying "be scared now". It's a slow build up until the crescendo that is the dinner scene. That scene is one of the most disgusting and infamous scenes in all of cinema history.
A lot of people disagree when I say this is a Sci-Fi version of a haunted house film, but it is. It has all the cliches of a haunted house flick (even down to the person being scared by the cat jumping out at them), but distorts them so much you don't know what's what.

One of the sub-narrative plots in this film is the notion of male rape. The face hugger being the rapist, forced itself onto Kane, rammed something down his throat and impregnated him. This idea freaks out a lot of men and once they realise that's what's happening in the film, they won't watch it again.

Ridlet Scott's directing is powerful and masterful (as per usual). the set design is incredible, detailed and still impresses to this day (if you look, you can make out what some of the set is made from. There's one part near the end when a computer console is covered in plastic components of an Airfix aeroplane. Not that I'm complaining).

The actors do a terrific job, particularly Sigourney Weaver (but then I am biased) and Ian Holm as Ash; who has the biggest twist in the film and no one who hasn't scene it will work it out right until it is revealed.

But the top marks go to the genius of H.R. Geiger and his design of the Alien creature. Long before James Cameron's high-action sequel took the creature out of the shadows and into the open, H.R. Geiger's creature was starkly original, even perverse (designed with male sex organs poking out of female organs) and director Scott wisely kept the creature hidden in the shadows. Sure it was just a man in a suit, but it was one massivly impressive suit. keeping it in the dark not only heightened the fright factor, but also kept the suit out of the scrtinizing eye of the movie-goer. Nothing ruins a monster movie like being able to see the seam or the zipper on the back, and Scott erased that probability by keeping it low lit and hidden. We see all we need to see of the hostile creature, and what we do see is scary as hell.

The most impressive scenes are easily in the last 20 minutes or so. Scott's directing and O'Bannon's writing perfecty bounce off each other and meld to create a horror masterpiece. This film is almost perfect apart from one thing, just as Ripley is about to escape, she goes back for the cat. How crazy and stupid is that? This woman has gone from meek to mighty and goes back for a dumb cat. A lot of people say it's a good thing; showing her nurturing side (which is shown a lot more in Aliens), but maybe she went back so the writer could fit in an extra bit of suspence.

But that aside, Alien wel deserves to be called a horror masterpiece, and one of the best at that. The film being set in space is incidental, as Alien has all the clustrophobic and undeniable feeling of a haunted house/monster-on-the-loose film. One of Ridley Scott's best films, Alien is taut, suspenseful and a classic scare show.

Everyone has to see this film at least once.
Gets 10 out of 10 in my book any day

Rating: * * * * (Out of 5)

Thank You for Smoking is witty; it is entertaining; and it flows briskly. Jason Reitman's directorial debut film has all the qualities of a good comedy. However, it lacks the bite to be considered a good satire. It moves just a tad too briskly to rob the viewer the time to ponder the implications of the film's messages. But it is a good effort for a first time writer/director. If nothing else, the wonderfully written protagonist of the film is enough to hold your attention for the entire hour and a half of its running time.

It is never easy to create a hero that the audience sympathizes with, especially one that is a spokesman for tobacco companies, one who has "flexible morals", and one who belongs to a group that proudly calls themselves the "Merchants of Death", basically the most despised man in America. Nick Naylor (played by Aaron Eckhart) is all of those things. Yet, the character is so charming and persuasive that you just cannot help but to feel for him. Nick is a lobbyist. As he tells us, Michael Jordan plays ball; Charles Manson kills; he talks. If he takes a one of those career choices questionnaires, it would probably point him to the direction of a lobbyist, because he is simply very good at it. He is the vice-president of the fictional Institute of Tobacco Research, which is funded by the tobacco companies. So naturally, the institute's purpose is to release research results that favor the tobacco companies. Nick would then spin the results, not as truth, as he knows truth is not important, but as "freedom of choice" since that is always correct.

The film is also about Nick's relationship with his son, who lives with his mother. When Nick has the idea to put smoking back in movies, and on his way to Hollywood to meet with super agent, Jeff Megall (played by Rob Lowe), he takes his son along. It is funny to see that Jeff is even more Nick than Nick, and a Hollywood agent works just the same way as a tobacco lobbyist. We get to see that Nick is not such a bad guy after all, his morals might be a bit off, but he genuinely cares about his son.

Opposing Nick is Senator of Vermont, Ortolan Finistirre (played by William H Macy), who proposes to put a "Poison" sticker on cigarette packets. On top of that, an anti-cigarette group threatens to kidnap and kill Nick. In the middle of all that, there is a conniving journalist, Heather Holloway (played by Katie Holmes) who complicates matter even more for Nick.

Even though I was entertained by Thank You for Smoking, I found myself wanting more than just simple entertainment. Mr. Reitman's film could have dug a little bit deeper into the interesting question of the ethics of capitalism, and its implications of our society. To take a cue from the great satires, such as Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, or any of Luis Bunuel's films, it is not enough to simply present an absurd (although in this film, the idea is really not that absurd) moral, it is necessary to support it with sharp social criticism. This is where I think Thank You for Smoking falls short. It is a good film, but it could have been a great film.


A Room 9 Entertainment presentation of a David O. Sacks production in association with Content Film. Produced by David O. Sacks. Executive producers, Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, Max Levchin, Mark Woolway, Edward R. Pressman, John Schmidt, Alessandro Camon, Michael Beugg. Co-producers, Daniel Brunt, Daniel Dubiecki, Mindy Marin, Michael R. Newman. Co-executive producer, David J. Bloomfield. Directed, written by Jason Reitman, based on the novel by Christopher Buckley. Running time: 92 minutes. Nick Naylor - Aaron Eckhart; Polly Bailey - Maria Bello; Joey Naylor - Cameron Bright; Jack - Adam Brody; Lorne Lutch - Sam Elliott; Heather Holloway - Katie Holmes; Bobby Jay Bliss - David Koechner; Jeff Megall - Rob Lowe; Sen. Ortolan Finistirre - William H. Macy; BR - J.K. Simmons; The Captain - Robert Duvall; Jill Naylor - Kim Dickens; Pearl - Connie Ray; Ron Goode - Todd Louiso

By Simon Woodhouse

In recent years computer animation has started to take over from traditional, hand drawn cartoons. This trend seemed to start with Toy Story, the first full-length feature from Pixar Studios. The movie generated a pile of cash, and so inevitably spawned a sequel. For a while Pixar seemed to have the computer animation field to themselves, but recently other studios have been getting in on the act. Unfortunately some of the results haven't been all that good. Pixar's films do so well because they don't just rely on the computer animation, they also have lovable characters you can't help but like. In fact, the computer animation is almost incidental; it's the script that makes the films work. The Iron Giant is probably the last truly great, conventionally animated movie, and just like the Pixar stuff, it's the characters and the script that make it so good.

The film is very loosely based on a children's book written by Ted Hughes back in the late 60s. The moviemakers, however, have changed the story wholesale, even altering the original title - The Iron Man. But despite this butchery of a classic, the end result is an extremely watch-able, extremely enjoyable film that's got a real personal charm about it.

Ordinarily I'm not a fan of cartoon films. I find Disney's bile inducing stuff from the 90s totally unbearable. Singing teapots and heavy moralistic overtones aren't my idea of entertainment (then again, perhaps I'm not their target audience). The Iron Giant contains none of these things. No one sings, there are no comedy sidekicks providing slapstick 'laughs', and the story doesn't involve a wholesome family unit.

Set on the East Coast of America during the 50s, the film pays homage to the classic Sci-Fi theme of mysterious invaders from another planet, which was actually just a metaphor for US paranoia about the Soviet Union and the nuclear arms race. Hogarth Hughes (voiced by Eli Marienthal) isn't really interested in what's happening in the USSR, but that's understandable because he's only ten years old. Like most boys of his age, he's into comic books and trashy Sci-Fi films. The child of a single mother - Annie Hughes (voiced by Jennifer Aniston), Hogarth spends his days entertaining himself with an over active imagination. Home alone one night when his mother is forced to work late at the diner, Hogarth hears a mysterious noise outside and sets off into the woods to investigate. Here he encounters the Iron Giant, a fifty-foot tall metal man who comes from who-knows-where. Though the first meeting doesn't go very well - Hogarth is terrified, they soon become firm friends.

As far as big-screen robots go, the Iron Giant has to be amongst the coolest. Not only does he look great, but considering he's got no movable facial features besides his mouth, he manages to convey the whole range of human emotions. This metal monster is 'voiced' by Hollywood hard man Vin Diesel. But the robot doesn't really talk, only uttering the odd word here and there. However, this limited vocabulary is enough to provide a few really touching moments.

Being made of metal, the Iron Giant has to eat metal to survive. When various pieces of farm machinery start showing up with large bite marks in them, someone calls the government, who send Kent Mansely (voiced by Chris McDonald) from the Unexplained Phenomena Department (a forerunner of the X-Files I guess). Mansely is a man convinced of his own self-importance, even if no one else is. In order to help him hide the Iron Giant from Mansely and the government, Hogarth seeks the help of local beatnik artist Dean McCoppen (voiced by Harry Connick Jr). Between them they manage to keep the robot out of harms way, until Mansely convinces the army to come to town.

Though the plot is simple, it's certainly not patronizing. Unlike Disney films, there isn't a stereotypical, extremely ugly villain (a not so clever way to teach kids that all good looking people can be trusted). Rather than having a personification of 'evil', the movie suggests that an irrational fear of the unknown is far more dangerous.

Not helped by a lackluster marketing campaign on the part of Warner Bros, the movie fared badly at the box office. This is a shame, because it's a breath of fresh air in the world of feature length cartoons. There's humor, but it's neither childish nor smutty. All the actors provide voices that perfectly match their respective characters. In fact, this film is probably Jennifer Aniston's finest celluloid moment. Harry Connick Jr's laid back tone absolutely fits the character of Dean, against which the over-excitable Mansely is an excellent contrast. So even if you're not a fan of cartoon films, I'd recommend The Iron Giant. But a word of warning, the penultimate scene is a bit of a tear jerker, and right up there with the death of Bambi's mom. So if you're a big, butch guy like me, just pretend you've got something in your eye.

By Simon Woodhouse

Movies set in the near future went through a bit of a renaissance a few years ago. And rather interestingly, they all looked very similar. Minority Report, I Robot, and this film, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, have a shared vision of the future. It's a place where technology is king, almost to a point where it seems as though people are only there to act as a background detail. These films have very little in the way of a soul, and are really just effects-driven, CGI workouts that create a bit of instant hype but quickly disappear off the radar.

A.I. tries to put a bit of humanity back into the near future scene, but it's a forced, fake sort of sentiment that's no more real than the CGI effects present in much of the film.

In years gone by, Sci-Fi movies used to start with a bit of scrolling text that explained the back plot. Nowadays audiences don't seem to be able to cope with that sort of thing, so it's a voice over that delivers the necessary set up information. A.I. is no exception to this rule. The movie begins with a fatherly narrator explaining how the Earth's climate has been shafted, most of the planet flooded and strict population controls put in place to stop everyone starving to death. But robots, who don't require food to function, are deemed a necessary part of society. This basic premise presents what seems like a continuity error. If the planet has been flooded and there's starvation due to over population, that means there are more than enough people to keep the modern society functioning, so what are the robots needed for? Perhaps it's best just to ignore these sorts of plot holes, and instead sit back and enjoy the movie.

Wholesome married couple Henry (Sam Robards) and Monica (Frances O'Connor), have got it all - lovely house, nice car, plenty of cash. But they still require our sympathy because their young son is in what seems like a permanent coma, the result of his involvement in an accident. Monica is pining for the boy, so Henry gets her a humanoid robotic replacement called David (Haley Joel Osment). He's a prototype whose makers have tried to programme him to feel love, the consequence of which causes him to develop an over-bearing attachment to Monica. When family unity is threatened, Monica realizes David has to go. But if she returns him to the manufacturers he'll be scrapped, and because she does feel something for him she doesn't want that to happen. She works out a compromise, which leads to the film's first really powerful scene. However, because David and Monica are both actually quite irritating characters, I took some pleasure in seeing them suffer (I know, I'm a horrible person).

This is where the film falls down. It serves up doses of sickly sweet sentiment that are just too much to swallow. Had the characters been a little more down to earth and easier to identify with, then I'd have felt what they felt. As it is, I can't feel sympathy for Monica when her life is so perfect, and David is the typical Hollywood robot creation - the mechanical person struggling to understand emotions (think of Data from Star Trek, only more irritating).

Having been rejected by his 'mother', David thinks if he becomes a real boy Monica will love him. This delusion has arisen from Monica's reading of Pinocchio to David as a bedtime story, and subsequently the 'boy' thinks if he can find the Blue Fairy (a character from the book) he'll be turned into a real child. In order to complete this quest he joins up with a robot called Joe (Jude Law). But as neither of them have much idea about the real world, they don't realize the Blue Fairy is just a character in a story. The film plods along on this rather naive storyline, stringing out the ups and downs of David and Joe for over two hours. It's a tedious journey, punctured at every possible moment by bouts of stomach churning sentiment that are so over the top they're impossible to take seriously. And just when you think it can't get any worse, the final few scenes reach new depths of saccharin sickliness.

Originally a long time project of Stanley Kubrick, the movie was taken up by Steven Spielberg after Kubrick's death. This is probably where all the sugar sweet sentiment comes from. I find it hard to believe that Kubrick, the man who bought us A Clockwork Orange, The Shining and Full Metal Jacket, would have been party to a film such as this. Perhaps if there'd been a different actor in the role of David, the movie might have been a bit more watch-able. Haley Joel Osment certainly can act, but his benign robot expression becomes irritating very quickly. The script is probably to blame for Frances O'Connor's performance, as it seems to require her to jump from one hysterical emotion to the next, with hardly a pause for breath in between. The only really decent bit of acting comes from Jude Law, but even though his character starts off interestingly enough, it's soon buried beneath an avalanche of schmaltz.

But having said all this, A.I. does sit well in the company of its peers. What I mean is, it's no better or worse than Minority Report (another Spielberg film) and I Robot. So not only do they share a common vision of the future, but they're all equally as bad when it comes to plot, acting and script.

Rating: * * * * * (Out of 5)

Since they first appeared together in Flying Down to Rio, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers had discovered that the chemistry they had with each other was truly one of a kind. The studios knew it too, and so did anyone who had seen them dance together. The next step was obvious: pair them up; hire the best composers to write the music; and let Mr. Astaire and his long time collaborator Hermes Pan choreograph the dances. This was just pure business common sense. The Pandro S. Berman produced Top Hat has gotten the formula of musicals down to a science. A chart was used to measure the exact timing of each scene, each comedic moments, each dialogue scene, and of course each dance sequence. The production was precise and the product was as close to perfection as it could be.

The plot of the film is entertaining enough, but its purpose is really to set up the dance numbers. Top Hat has two of the most famous dance numbers in cinema history. In the "Isn't This a Lovely Day?" number, Mr. Astaire sweetly courts the lovely Miss Rogers in a gazebo. As they are stranded there by the heavy rain, he sings to her,

Isn't this a lovely day
To be caught in the rain?
You were going on your way
Now you've got to remain

Mr. Astaire dances to woo her and she soon joins in. The dance becomes their conversation, and the two supreme dancers say the most eloquent sentences with their body movements. The smile never left their faces as they dazzle us with their lightening speed footwork. There is no need for dialogues when their delightful movements fully exhibit the joyousness of falling in love. The scene is all the more magnificent due to Mr. Astaire's insistence that it be shot wide with as few cuts as possible. With editing cut down to a minimum, the illusion of cinematic time and space is also minimized, and therefore the viewers cannot help but to marvel at the reality of the dancers' techniques and stamina; and to accept the characters' blissful romance.

"Cheek to Cheek" is perhaps an even more famous number. While the dance is not as flashy as "Isn't This a Lovely Day", the subtext is far more complicated. In a series of mistaken identities, Dale (Ginger Rogers) thinks that Jerry (Fred Astaire) is the husband of her friend, Madge (played by Helen Broderick). Not aware of this mistake and being completely in love with her, Jerry dances with her "cheek to cheek". He sings to her:

Heaven, I'm in heaven
And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak
And I seem to find the happiness I seek
When we're out together dancing cheek to cheek

Dale, who is also in love with Jerry, cannot help but be swooned by romance of the song and the dance. The chemistry between the couple reaches a height that is rare in even their other dances. Ms. Rogers, as the dramatic focus of this number, portrayed her emotional dilemma wonderfully.

Top Hat takes us to a fantasy world where everything is beautifully decorated, everyone is smartly dressed, every mistake can be resolved, and every dance is a small slice of heaven. Along with Swing Time and Singin in the Rain, this wonderful film has reached the limits of its genre and then transcended it. It has to be considered as one of the very best films in the history of cinema.


Directed by Mark Sandrich Writing credits: Allan Scott; Dwight Taylor (also story)
Produced by Pandro S Berman
Original music: Irving Berlin
Cinematography by David Abel
Film editing by William Hamilton
Art direction by Carroll Clark and Van Nest Polglase
Costume Design by Bernard Newman (gown)
Runtime: 101 min

Jerry Travers - Fred Astaire Dale Tremont - Ginger Rogers Horace Hardwick - Edward Everett Horton Madge Hardwick - Helen Broderick Alberto - Erik Rhodes Bates - Eric Blore Curate - Donald Meek Curate's Wife - Florence Roberts Hotel Manager - Gino Corrado Call Boy - Peter Hobbs

1936 Academy Awards nominations:
1. Best Art Direction:Carroll Clark; Van Nest Polglase
2. Best Dance Direction: Hermes Pan (For "Piccolino" and "Top Hat")
3. Best Music, Original Song: Irving Berlin (For the song "Cheek to Cheek")
4. Best Picture

By Christina VanGinkel

My family saw Ice Age, the animated adventure, when it first hit the big screen. All of us, kids and adults, could hardly wait for it to be released on DVD so that we could further enjoy this family style comedy whenever we felt like it. Little did I know that when our young grandson came for a visit when he was just barely two years old, that he would fall so in love with the characters, that we would end up sending him home with our copy.
However, it did not take us long to go and purchase a replacement. We ended up missing it so much that we just had to buy another copy, this for a household where two adults and one teenager live.

When there is nothing good on television, and we just want to grab something that we know, all of us will enjoy and get a couple of laughs from at the same time, we pop in Ice age. If we have company and a little one or two are with, and we want to keep the television viewing suitable for all, we will automatically grab this show.

Ice Age tells the story of three unlikely comrades. A wooly mammoth that goes by the name of Manny, a sloth named Sid, and the saber toothed tiger Diego. There is a fourth character, a nut stashing squirrel, but I do not know if he would be considered a main character as most of his interaction in the show is with his nut and not the other main characters.

The beginning of the show actually starts with the squirrel as he attempts to hide his nut with hilarious and unbelievable results. The main story line though revolves around the other three, Manny, Sid, and Diego. The ice age is in full swing, and as the animals begin their migrations, Sid the sloth finds himself seeking help from an unlikely hero, the one and only Manny, a wooly mammoth. When the two come across a human infant, left abandoned when a pack of saber tooth tigers attack his family, the two unlikely friends take it upon themselves to return the little person to his herd. Enter Diego, one of the very saber tooth tigers that caused all the problems in the first place. First disguising his real reasons for wanting to help them return the baby, he soon ends up on their side, going against everything, and everyone, he has up to this point considered his family. The ending is a good-natured look at how things could be if everyone would just learn to get along.

Ice Age is rated PG for mild peril, but I cannot think of anything that even the youngest viewer would have a problem with, save for a tender hearted person who might be a bit upset when baby goes flying down an ice slide, (actually quite fun looking the way they put the whole scene together!). Some might also be a bit apprehensive when Sid, Manny, and Diego with baby in tow must traverse a hot lava field. Still, it is by far the best, animated film I have yet to see, save for maybe part two, Ice Age, the Meltdown. In comparison, The Meltdown is about equal when it comes to laughs and watch-ability! The Meltdown has yet to be released on DVD though, so for now, any in home viewing of these two sure to be classics, must end with the choice of the first Ice Age. (Watch for the release of Ice Age, The Meltdown on DVD towards the end of November 2006.)

Ice Age stars many voices of well-known actors, and this might have played a part in its popularity when it was first released, though its storyline and animation is what made it into the great show that it is. Manny, the wooly mammoth is brought to life with the voice of everybody's favorite, Ray Romano. Diego, the saber tooth tiger that goes over to the good side is really the voice of Denis Leary. Sid, my personal favorite in the show is transformed into the fun loving sloth that he is with the voice John Leguizamo.

By Simon Woodhouse

Above everything else, movies are a vehicle by which a story is transferred from one group of people (the film makers) into the consciousness of another group of people (the audience). With this basic premise in mind, does it really matter if a film has surround sound, or crystal clear photography? I would say no, because the story is the most important aspect, not the medium by which it's being told.

Last night I went to a one-off screening of Blade Runner at my local cinema. The quality of the film wasn't very good - it had probably been lying in a studio film vault for twenty years, and the sound was pretty basic too. But did it make a difference to the story? Not one bit. When a movie is right it's right, and no matter under what circumstances you see it, the greatness will still shine through. I've watched the film umpteen times on video and DVD, but it's twenty four years since I first saw it at the cinema. And despite what I said in my opening paragraph, it's such a visual film that watching it on a TV (no matter how big) just doesn't do it justice.

As was popular with Sci-Fi films at the time, a few paragraphs of text open the movie. From this we learn about replicants, genetically engineered people who are basically slaves in the year 2019. But they're also very smart and very strong. This sometimes makes them a threat to their masters, and so they're only used on off-world colonies, and outlawed on Earth. The penalty for ignoring this rule is death. This is where the film's main character, Deckard (Harrison Ford), comes into things. It's his job to find and kill any replicant silly enough to come back to Earth.

In this vision of the future however, Earth is in a bit of a state. The film is shot against a backdrop of constant darkness and rain. Set in the city of Los Angeles, it paints the metropolis as an overcrowded hellhole full of the sort of people unable to qualify for a ticket off of Earth.

Into this world of permanent night comes four replicants, compelled to return to Earth in order to find more life. You see, replicants only have a four-year life span, after which they simply drop dead. This makes them more controllable, and stops them developing human emotions that might compel them to not want to be slaves anymore. Though reluctant to do so, Deckard is forced to track down and eliminate the four renegade replicants. This requires a degree of detective work, but he also relies on his gut instinct. However, in what is a rather clever sub-plot, he becomes romantically involved with a replicant called Rachel (Sean Young). She's a prototype, and allowed on Earth only because she's the prodigy of genetic engineering genius Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel).

Originally released in 1982, Blade Runner didn't do too well at the box office. At the time, Star Wars was dominating the world of Science Fiction movies, and Blade Runner couldn't be more far removed from that trilogy of films. But to most hardcore Sci-Fi fans, Blade Runner is the movie against which all others are measured. Directed by Ridley Scott (the man behind Alien), it's a dark, humorless vision of the future, and has none of Star Wars' talking robots and furry humanoids.

As the movie progresses, Dekard hunts down the replicants one by one. But their leader, Roy (Rutger Hauer), isn't going to give up without a fight. He's not prepared to accept a four year life span, and so is trying his best to reach Tyrell, the only man who can help him. Eventually he does, and this meeting is one of the film's most powerful scenes. Inevitably the movie's climax involves a face-off between Deckard and Roy. This takes place in an abandoned apartment block, a setting that typifies the state of the Earth as a whole - run down and decaying.

For a Sci-Fi film, Blade Runner contains some beautiful dialogue. And though Harrison Ford is the star, it's Rutger Hauer who steals the show. His every line is delivered with just the right amount of emotion. He's threatening, but at the same time vulnerable, which is an unusual thing for a Sci-fi movie, a genre in which baddies are bad and goodies are good and there's no middle ground. Daryl Hannah also delivers a fine performance (probably the best of her career) in the role as Pris, the sinister replicant girlfriend of Roy. Complimenting the actors and the script, a series of lavish sets give the film a real sense of place. Whether it's Eldon Tyrell's bedroom, Deckard's apartment or the bustling Los Angeles' streets, all the settings blend in to form a complete picture of life on a totally urbanized planet Earth. So you've got good acting, a great script and wonderful sets, what else could you want? Well, there's also a sublime soundtrack courtesy of movie-music guru Vangelis.

All these attributes come together to create what is arguably the greatest Sci-Fi film of all time. Often imitated but never bettered, Blade Runner hasn't lost any of its potency in what is nearly twenty-five years since its release. No Science-Fiction fan's movie collection is complete without a copy of this film. Re-released in 1992, the movie is now available in a Director's Cut, and though this isn't vastly different from the original theatrical version, it does contain a subtle clue as to Deckard's true identity. I'm not going to tell you what that is, as trying to spot it will add yet another level of enjoyment to an already excellent film.