Momma's Past Picks 'n Pans 
 |  Directed by James Mangold Written by Steven Rogers & James Mangold Starring: Meg Ryan, Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Breckin Meyer, Natasha Lyonne, Bradley Whitford, Philip Bosco, Bart DeFinna Kate & Leopold is the cinematic equivalent of comfy flannel pajamas and a hot cup of cocoa. Not much new here, but just like comfort food, it's a warm fuzzie that soothes the hormonal edge and makes you go... aahhhhh. Hugh Jackman was a delight to watch & certainly has the female swoon factor pegged and Meg Ryan was... Meg Ryan except what was with her horrendous hair style!? Gawd, I wanted to brush it! My main gripe was not with the movie, for I enjoyed it. But I could have enjoyed it much much more as all, and I repeat, all the intended magical & original scenes had been shown in this film's T.V. spots & theatre previews, leaving very little new material to experience while watching the movie enfold. This took all the surprises away from me and frankly, I'm getting tired of films being ruined by this all too frequent promo practice. Thank god the delicious Hugh Jackman up close on the silver screen was worth the price of admission alone! |
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 |  Directed by Irwin Winkler Written by Mark Andrus Starring: Kevin Kline, Hayden Christensen, Kristin Scott Thomas, Jena Malone, Mary Steenburgen, Mike Weinberg, Scott Bakula, Jamey Sheridan, Ian Somerhalder, Scotty Leavenworth, Barry Primus Life As A House asks what would you do if you only had a few months to live? Would you spend your precious time dealing with the sudden, shocking news? Would you fall into webs of depression & despair? Or would you take advantage of the time you had & accomplish the things you've always wanted to do? Irwin Winkler's script asks us these questions, & while the movie's final outcome is inevitable, the end of the road isn't the topic here. It's the journey itself that makes this trip worthwhile & Kevin's the driver at the wheel giving us an oscar winning performance. It's one thing to admire the emotional grasp of a movie, but it's another when we become so intently involved in a movie that it triggers a real emotional response. This is a powerful, moving, poignant, & unforgettable film. |
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 |  Directed by Tony Scott Written by Michael Frost Beckner Starring: Robert Redford, Brad Pitt, Catherine McCormack, Stephen Dillane, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Larry Bryggman, Zoltán Benkóczy Spy Game is one perfect intelligent thriller. A fabulous script + Robert Redford and Brad Pitt together = s-m-a-r-t and y-u-m-m-y to the max! |
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 |  Directed by Iain Softley Written by Charles Leavitt Starring: Jeff Bridges, Kevin Spacey, Alfre Woodard, Mary McCormack, David Patrick Kelly, Saul Williams, Peter Gerety, Celia Weston SYNOPSIS: K-PAX is the latest offender in the 'let's see what the cute and funny mentally ill can teach us' genre. Instead of the hoped for movie-magic panacea, I found this overly long (2 hours+), unoriginal, wannabe warm fuzzie commited all the usual Hollywood sins, cliches and then some. Momma's Top Ten Adjectives for K-PAX:
yawn... 'nuff said. |
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 |  Directed by Barry Levinson Written by Harley Peyton Starring: Bruce Willis, Cate Blanchett, Billy Bob Thornton, Troy Garity, After another long summer filled with lame lack-luster hollywood block busters, that I wouldn't pay a dime to see, I was really looking forward to seeing the sneak preview of (a favorite director) Levinson's Bandits. Well that was "then" this is "now" and all I can say is... so much for high hopes! For the first time, I was left totally detached by a Levinson production. Go figure! The film had all the elements... good casting with Bruce playing the charmer, Billy Bob playing... well... Billy Bob (with the film's only true comedic moments) and Cate, playing against type, the red headed ditzy distressed gal pal. So we get a little action... a little romance... a little comedy... and very little story. We had sat through 3/4 of this over two hour long silly saga when the film got caught in the theatre's projector forcing us to sit for over five minutes while the only image up on the silver screen was the projection of the stuck frame burning and melting before our eyes. At least that was original! As we waited in our seats, for the film's repair so we could get back to the movie, I turned to Da Hunk and said... frankly I really don't care how the story ends and I could of left the theatre right then and there because the story had no heart and I wasn't at all anxious to see it through to the end nor did I care by then how it ended. But of course we stayed and of course the ending was totally predictable. I'd just wait and catch Bandits on video tape. If you're really in the need for a good caper now, just rent True Romance, The Sting, or Pulp Fiction.
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 | Directed & Written by Kevin Smith Starring: Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith, & all the usual suspects SYNOPSIS: The final installment of Kevin Smith’s New Jersey chronicles ("Clerks," "Mall Rats," "Chasing Amy"). Unfortunately, after so totally enjoying Smith's first three films in this series, this so called grand finale... Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back left me not with a bang, but with a "duh" and a wimper. The plot-line was so thin one could truely call it invisible. From beginning to end, all I saw and heard was gag after gag that fell flat or was too inside for most viewers to get. Heck even the teenage studmuffins in the theatre were barely uttering a chuckle and when they did laugh it seemed forced at best. Granted, I saw this film immediately after viewing the fine Deep End below, and did laugh on occasion... ergo the two bag rating, but I only wish I had as much fun as the stellar cast of cameos appeared to have had as they shot this silly saga. Talk about your disappointment!
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Directed by Scott McGehee & David Siegel Starring: Tilda Swinton, Goran Visnjic, Jonathan Tucker, Peter Donat, Josh Lucas, Raymond J. Barry, Tamara Hope, Jordon Dorrance The Deep End is an evocative thriller lead by the powerful performance of Tilda Swinton. Taking care of others often involves self-sacrifice, and mothers will put themselves in harm's way to shield their young and after seeing this film, I'd want Swinton for my mother any old day. Superficially the story concerns a vicious run of bad luck. Noirish events are set in motion when Margaret (Swinton) tries to cover up the accidental death of her son's unsavory friend. The next day a man with a dice tattoo on his neck knocks on her door and demands $50,000 to suppress a videotape linking her son to the death, which police have ruled a homicide. The dramatic heart of the film concerns Margaret's dealings with the blackmailer, cagily played by Goran Visnjic, ER's Slavic heartthrob. Yet The Deep End is not your run of the mill blackmail movie. The superb acting and fine direction elevates it above the rest of the slim 2001 summer movie pickins. Luminously shot in Lake Tahoe, we viewers are taken on an eerie joy ride with a mother as she works arduously and secretly to protect her child. In this summer of dull, poorly scripted so called block-buster films, this one surprised me right to the end, with it's great acting, direction, and quiet intensity. |
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 | Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz Written by Jean-Christophe Grangé Starring: Jean Reno, Vincent Cassel, Nadia Farès, Dominique Sanda, Karim Belkhadra, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Didier Flamand, François Levantal SYNOPSIS: A secretive, insulated university in the French Alps is threatened by a diabolical killer. A brutally mutilated corpse and a graveyard desecration send two cops, both well-stocked in the attitude department, on converging paths. The Crimson Rivers is a French (subtitled) mystery thriller worth the price of a ticket for Thierry Arbogast's cinematography alone. Every single shot is very well crafted & supports the dark side of the plot. The acting by Jean Reno & Vincent Cassel are both top notch & I especially enjoyed the first two thirds of the film. My only regret is that the conclusion was a bit too hasty & illogical for my liking, but Jean Reno's always one of my screen favorites. Overall it's an entertaining piece, even though it suffers from some glaring inadequacies & a contrived ending. Despite that I give it four bags, just for the splendid time I passed watching it & the good moments (a well crafted fight segment, the scenic beauty & the interesting camera work) it contains. c'est bon |
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 | Directed & Written by Thomas Bezucha Starring: Arye Gross, Eric Schweig, Tim DeKay, George Coe, Louise Fletcher, Nan Martin, Veanne Cox, O'Neal Compton, Corinne Bohrer Big Eden is about home and family. It hits upon the universal longing and hope we each have for finding a place where we are loved, and the unconditional desire to see those that we love find happiness. If you are feeling like seeing a film with a lot of soul I enthusiastically recommend Big Eden, a very heart-tugging, heart-warming film about a gay man returning from NY to the beautiful mountainous Wyoming town he left 18 years earlier to take care of his ailing Grandfather. The love from the townspeople makes you want to believe such a place exists. It recalls the atmosphere of one of my favorite TV shows Northern Exposure filled with loving wacky characters. Big Eden's simply a beautiful story beautifully told. A wonderful heart warming movie that is suitable for everyone... young and old, gay and straight, male and female. You'll be grinning like a moron at it's sweet conclusion. Fact is... I'm still smiling like a fool in the film's afterglow & you will too. Big Eden was just a lush delight! |
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 | Directed by Dominic Sena Written by Skip Woods Starring: John Travolta, Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Don Cheadle, Vinnie Jones, Camryn Grimes, Sam Shepard, Zach Grenier Swordfish starts off with a big bang & then quickly gets lost in it's own pretensions. I am so very weary of so called block-buster films that are all bells & whistles with no original storyline to engage the audience! Now & then one hears some snappy dialog, but almost every piece of cinematic business throughout this silly saga has been done way too many times before leaving me with few surprises. John Travolta is always fun to watch on the screen, but his villainous role alone couldn't save me from the Swordfish "ho-hums". I just can't recommend you spending your hard earned bucks on this mindless action film when someday you can catch it on cable for free when you're bored & you need some background T.V. noise. This fish wasn't totally smelly, just way too bland for my taste. Rent Face Off, Get Shorty, or Pulp Fiction for better thrills & original stories!
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