Never having subscribed to Home Box Office (HBO) let alone watched the HBO show about what looked like a bunch of my expectations for Sex and the City, a movie based on the cable program, were low. Starring squinty Sarah Jessica Parker, who will never be leading lady material, as a writer named Carrie Bradshaw, and featuring her three gal pals, Sex and the City is better than expected. Parker could be decked in diamonds and still look to me like the best friend in Footloose, and the silly soap opera bobs up and down never gaining traction. The nicely packaged Sex and the City piles on the outfits—bony Parker looks ridiculous in everything but the wedding gowns—the arched eyebrow lines and the alcohol (and, at this rate, all four of them ought to head for rehab). Though it sputters and stalls, there is usually something good to look at or listen to and it is often something relatable. Awkward, silent moments in the back of a taxi—an emotional rescue on New Year's Eve—the wonder of a properly lighted walk-in closet, there's a refreshing honesty about what people, especially women, really feel about having it all in the big, lonely city. True, Parker's character is irrevocably petty and Cattrall's aging blonde horndog is as nutritious as a Hostess Ho-Ho, but sometimes you gotta give in to the laughs and there's plenty of that in this feminine fairy tale.…Full Review »
But a movie has to be judged on its own merits, and Cradle of Life is executed in a sort of workman like fashion. It's a tad slow and overlong mainly because the plot is so thin, but the action sequences have their moments. It derails when the gang reaches the title Cradle of Life, where they encounter shadow demons and a realm where physics don't apply. The ending is lifted almost entirely from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, including the decision about what to do with Pandora's Box. And in the end, Lara Croft, just like the audience, doesn't really care what's happened, who's been hurt or if the world has been saved. It was just another day at the office for this video game heroine.…Full Review »
What's a sure fire way to make money off of the raging hormones of teenage boys? Sell them video games with bodacious big breasted babes. The Tomb Raider games are a hit and its no mystery why. For all those same reasons, it's just as likely that a movie based on the game will rake in the cash as well. Fortunately for the franchise, the film doesn't actually need to be any good to make tons of the gorgeous green. The real problem is that Tomb Raider doesn't even TRY to become more than its video game ancestor. Had there been some sort of attempt to break the bonds of videogamedome and elevate the film to the level of cinematic spectacle, Tomb Raider might have turned into a summer movie to get excited about. However, rather than make that attempt, its director appears more interested in making a Tomb Raider homage.…Full Review »
The Cell is rated R for bizarre violence and sexual images, nudity and language. To call The Cell disturbing is a bit of an understatement. I've never winced so many times during one film in my life. However, that is exactly the reaction Tarsem is going for. He doesn't want you to be unmoved. He wants you to be horrified--so horrified that you sometimes can't even watch. There are moments which are so hard to watch, you may feel as if you are really there, experiencing it all firsthand. I won't try and convey the disgusting acts portrayed on screen, as it isn't easy to put into words. This is a film based solely on visuals, and visuals alone. It works. And I know for sure, I won't be forgetting it anytime soon.…Full Review »
