Jennifer Beals

Average customer rating:

More Of A Pet Project Than True Cinema ...But Still ...
cult classic
Please for the love of Christ don't watch this movie!
FOUR STORIES FOR THE PRICE OF ONE
A surprise and worth many viewings

Four Rooms
Starring: Antonio Banderas , Jennifer Beals , Paul Calderon , Sammi Davis , and Amanda De Cadenet
Director: Quentin Tarantino , Anders, Allison , and Rodriguez, Robert
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Comic Action | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Farce | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Indie & Art House | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( F ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

From Dusk Till Dawn (Dimension Collector's Series)
True Romance - Director's Cut (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Jackie Brown (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Natural Born Killers
Reservoir Dogs (15th Anniversary 2-Disc Special Edition)

ASIN: 6305327041
Release Date: 1999-04-20

Amazon.com

This unbearable quartet of stories was written and directed by hot filmmakers Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction), Robert Rodriguez (El Mariachi), Allison Anders (Gas Food Lodging), and Alexandre Rockwell (In the Soup), which only proves that even the smart guys can really blow it sometimes. The anthology is linked by the hotel in which all the events are taking place, and by Tim Roth as a bellboy flitting from scene to scene. Nobody overcomes the insufferable air of self-congratulation that permeates this exercise in forced hipness. With Bruce Willis, Madonna, Lili Taylor, Ione Skye, Jennifer Beals, and Antonio Banderas. --Tom Keogh

Description

Don't miss the fun in this hilariously sexy comedy that has Antonio Banderas (THE MASK OF ZORRO), Madonna (EVITA), and a sizzling all-star cast checking in for laughs! It's Ted the Bellhop's (Tim Roth -- PULP FICTION) first night on the job ... and the hotel's very unusual guests are about to place him in some outrageous predicaments! It seems that this evening's room service is serving up one unbelievable happening ... after another! Also featuring Academy Award(R) winner Marisa Tomei (1992 Best Supporting Actress, MY COUSIN VINNY), FOUR ROOMS is a wild night of highly original comedy entertainment you'll enjoy ... without reservations!

Customer Reviews:

More Of A Pet Project Than True Cinema ...But Still ..........2007-06-10

An anthology of short films bound by one character is what you'll find in FOUR ROOMS. And all of the shorts are directed by four different directors with decidedly four different styles that overlap one another via Ted the Bellhop (Tim Roth,(...) .

It is Ted's first day on the job and it just so happens to be one of the busiest days of the year for the hotel (New Year's Eve). Relieving the old bellhop who'd worked there for fifty years, Ted is given sage advice that eventually falls apart on him (mostly related to sex, accountability, and keeping one's own council.)

The first episode is entitled "The Missing Ingredient." A clutch of witches inhabits a hotel room and they try to stir up incantations to revive a lost sexual sisters. Sammi Davis, Amanda De Cadenet, Valeria Golino, Ione Skye, Lili Taylor, Alicia Witt, and sex-pot Madonna round out the cast here. All of the witches brings a required item to the resurrection ceremony ...except one. She forgot to bring the sperm of a young man to add to their concoction. Enter Ted the Bellhop who finds his manliness much in need. This was the weakest of the four stories, failing to develop the tale or any of its characters, thus making the entire thing fall flat on its cinematic butt (even though there were plenty of nice butts and boobs in it). (...) director Allison Anders misses his mark.

The next episode is "The Wrong Man." Sigfried (David Proval) and his wife Angela (Jennifer Beals) are having an interesting New Year's Eve playing a rather kinky game of tie-up-the-wife- and-see-what-happens. Ted is brought into their midst and the sparks start to fizzle. Is Sigfried gay? Is Angela psychotic? Funny thanks to David Proval's history as a film bad-guy, this one had potential thanks to director Alexandre Rockwell.

The third installment is "The Misbehavers." A husband and wife played by Antonio Banderas (...) and Tamlyn Tomita plan to spend a romantic evening out but have to take their two misbehaving kids with them. Or do they? Enter Ted the Bellhop again. They hire him to watch over the boy and girl while they're away. Porno channels, a dirty syringe, flames, and a dead hooker all await the husband and wife upon their return. More of a slapschtick homage to (...), this over-the-top episode was directed by (...) director Robert Rodriguez -- who loves to direct Antonio Banderas (they worked together on (...) and (...) Probably one of the more laugh-out-loud endings of the four.

The final short is "The Man From Hollywood" directed by and starring Quentin Tarantino (...). At the end of his shift as well as his wits, Ted is summoned to the penthouse suite where he gets involved with a wager between two very drunk Hollywood types. Norman (Paul Calderon) and Chester Rush (Tarantino) have a bet going that Norman can't light his cigarette lighter ten times in a row without it failing. If Norman succeeds, he'll get Chester's cherry and expensive car. If he doesn't, Norm will lose a finger. But none of his friends in the room want to be responsible for doing hacking it off should Norman lose the bet. Enter Ted again. Offered a large stack of (...) bills if he'll do it, Ted numbly picks up a meat clever and...

But we won't give away the ending.

Seeming more like a pet project than anything of note, this 1995 offering is entertaining but sorely bland. The Jerry Lewis antics of Tim Roth are admirable (Lewis also starred in a film entitled (...) but the homage to comedy of days gone by felt forced or missing.

There are still laughs to be found but don't expect too many chuckles.

cult classic.......2007-05-28

If you are a Tarrintino fan you must buy this movie. It features four different stories, all with different directors. Must have for any cult classic fans.

Please for the love of Christ don't watch this movie!.......2007-02-04

I'm not usually one to be critical of a thing and not back it with balanced insightful information, but I wasted enough of my life with this movie to go that deep. I would rather have spend the 90 minutes hammering my fingertips flats with a ball peen hammer. Just don't do it. It's not funny no matter your "mindset" or "frame of reference".

FOUR STORIES FOR THE PRICE OF ONE.......2007-01-18

Bellhop (Tim Roth at his best) vs guests.

The first two stories suck (minus one star) with Maddona as herself.

The third story is priceless.(Antonio Banderas at his best as the head of the Latin Kings)

The fourth story is a great sequel to a "Twilight Zone" episode.(Bruce Willis and Quentin play themselves)

Marisa Tomei at her best as a crack-ho.
Kathy Griffin at her best as the hotel owner.

Adult content.

Worth having in your collection.
Once you see this, you'll want to share it with your friends.

If you like this movie try
Clay Pigeons
Without a Clue
Disorganized Crime

A surprise and worth many viewings .......2006-12-25

I'm not typically a Tim Roth fan, in fact the work he did in Planet of the Apes was so convincing I couldnt ever see him playing an enjoyable or particularly likeable character. From the moment Roths character goes out to start his shift at the hotel you get a feeling this guy has the best of intentions.

Each of the "Four Rooms" contains a different story, with different characters, Roth being the only connection between the four. Some smaller plot elements tie the four rooms together as well. These are slight and might be missed, but help to make the movie more whole.

My favorite "room" is the Tarintino room. Once you see Quentin you know things are going to get really funny, really dark, kind of weird but always worth the price of admisssion. His is the last of the four rooms though.

Antonio Banderas' room is also great. Although hes not a major part of this room, because the story focuses on his two kids in the scene, his reaction to the mischief the kids get into is awesome! Very fuuny.

Madonna has a nice little role as the head of a witch coven. In their room they are trying to raise a goddess, and need some "special" help from Roth.

Depending on how you like your comedies this movie may or may not be very funny to you. I liked it becuase I thought it was a bit smarter than slap stick comedies...Roths caricature of the proper British bellboy is the absolute best part of the movie as a whole.

Not perfect but worth owning and worth watching again and again.

Average customer rating:

Love This Music
Dynamic, fun, and spicy
Way before my time but still pretty cool for an 80's movie!
:-(
What a soundtrack. Too bad the movie couldn't keep up.

Flashdance
Starring: Belinda Bauer , Jennifer Beals , Bettina Birnbaum , Don Brockett , and Philip Bruns
Manufacturer: Paramount
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Musicals & Performing Arts | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Drama | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( F ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Footloose (Special Collector's Edition)
Fame
Dirty Dancing (Ultimate Edition)
Saturday Night Fever
Ghost (Special Collector's Edition)

ASIN: B00005JKG5
Release Date: 2002-10-08

Amazon.com

That Oscar-winning title song buzzes in your ears long after the movie has stopped. The attraction here is youthful spirit and a pulsating score, because the weak story is merely a conduit for the song-and-dance numbers. The plot is every young woman's daydream come true. Jennifer Beals holds down a macho job as a welder by day, but performs erotic dance numbers in a club at night. It's not a strip club, so her morality remains intact. She dates her wealthy boss (Michael Nouri) and practices hard for the day she can audition for the upscale, local dance school, even though she has no formal training. It is malarkey, of course, unless you view this as total romantic fantasy. It works because you are carried along by the sheer force of the energetic, boisterous, MTV-style imagery by director Adrian Lyne. Beals is a plus as the stubborn, pouty, somewhat eccentric young woman made all the more interesting for her driving ambition. In the end, she is aided by her Prince Charming, who arrives bearing favors. Mind you, this is not the same as a rescue, as Beals is one rather tough damsel who does just fine on her own. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Customer Reviews:

Love This Music.......2007-05-10

I just have to have this movie. I am slowly buying movies I like on DVD. On most occassions, I also buy the CD.

Dynamic, fun, and spicy.......2007-03-30

If you like music, dance, and romance, I'm sure you will like this movie. It won a couple of Oscars for best original score and best original song. Jennifer Beals was also nominated as best actress. I very much enjoyed the dance scenes and music. As a matter of fact I watched the final dance scene over and over. Last but not least, the plot holds your interest. It emphasizes following your dreams and never giving up. Great flick!

Way before my time but still pretty cool for an 80's movie!.......2007-02-01

The 80's produced some of the corniest movies of all time but I must admit, this one was not bad. I think this movie was more of a trendy film and a cultural statement than a masterpiece. It's about a young woman named Alex who is a steel worker by day and an exotic (non nude) dancer by night. She dreams of becoming a professional dancer one day but has no formal training. A very cool scene is when she goes to the snooty dance school to apply and is wearing dirty work boots among all the elegant dancers and she runs out of the building because she is so intimidated. Alex ends up dating a rich guy, which makes for some clever lines and funny scenes. I think Jennifer Beals is gorgeous in this movie and in great shape! Overall, this is a movie that was great in it's day not because of a huge budget or great acting (though the acting is pretty good) but because it made a huge statement and influenced fashions of the 80's. The message here is: You can do anything you put your mind to and should not be afraid to strive for the things you dream of! I also liked the fact that this was made in a time when strong female characters were just becoming popular. Don't watch this movie if you want something deep and meaningful. This is more of a nostalgic and 'fun' movie for when you want something not-so-serious. The movie has a refreshing innocence about it. I found it to be very inspirational and I thought it had a positive message for women. Honestly, it made me want to cut the collar out of my sweatshirt so it hangs over one shoulder, throw on a pair of spandex and leg-warmers and hit the gym and accomplish some of MY goals! I thought this was a cute movie (even though it's really outdated) and I would watch it again!

:-( .......2007-01-05

I bought this movie because it reminds me the 80's. But I just could'nt got "the feeling" It can't be seen. This movie advices only to be use on Region One in wich I am part of, my dvd player shows only the initial presentation and nothing more, not even the main menu. I wrote to the seller but never got an answer.

What a soundtrack. Too bad the movie couldn't keep up........2006-09-13

This movie is one of cinema history's seminal examples of a soundtrack carrying a movie to success. "Saturday Night Fever" from a few years before is another example, but that movie could actually stand on its own. Jennifer Beals' torn neck sweater and table dancing routine aside, I don't think this one could.

I understand this movie is near and dear to the hearts of a lot of 80's children, and I will agree this is one of the all-time great soundtracks of cinema. The problem is, the movie's plot is a slow-moving, wasted opportunity.

Physically, Beals is sexy enough to keep your attention, and her portrayal of working-class girl in a man's job striving to express herself was a pretty novel idea when this movie was made. But her unsympathetic personality and mediocre acting undermine her character. Come to think of it, the acting all around is a bit weak.

But that's not the problem. The movie suffers from two fatal let-downs. The first is the plot itself. Feminism-affirming depictions aside, it's pretty simplistic, unimaginative stuff, even for a dance movie. What's worse is how slow it all moves. The drama sequences in-between dances drag on, straining your patience and sympathy for the character's plights.

The other more tragic flaw, since it is a movie about dance, is the cinematography. While it's certainly not the worst cinematography ever, (check out "the Limey" next time you want a headache.) the dance sequences look like they've been salvaged from scraps on the cutting room floor. We're supposed to be moved by Beales' character's natural talent, but for most of the movie we never get to see her do much except walk and pose in a crazy mashup of bad edits. By the time the final dance scene finally comes along, the drama of her audition performance is ruined by drawn-out, bad editing. It almost seems the judges let her into Juliard simply because she was able to stay in the air for longer than a minute.

Perhaps I'm a purist for asking for good dancing onscreen to consist of more than rapid-fire editing. But if it's a movie about dancing, one would think the least they could do is show dancing. Many movies before and after Flashdance managed to get this right ("Saturday Night Fever" certainly did, to its great success), but maybe nobody told this movie's director. It's a shame.

The Grudge 2 (Unrated Director's Cut) [Region 99]

Average customer rating:

It's all getting a bit boring now . . .
Much creepier and more atmospheric than The Grudge
Some people are so harsh...
It was okay, but hey i want more of those scares thant make you say beep!
Just awful

The Grudge 2 (Unrated Director's Cut) [Region 99]
Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar , Amber Tamblyn , Edison Chen , Arielle Kebbel , and Jennifer Beals
Director: Takashi Shimizu
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Horror | Genres | DVD | Video

Thrillers | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( G ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Saw III (Unrated Widescreen Edition)
The Return (Widescreen Edition)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning - Unrated (New Line Platinum Series)
The Departed (Two-Disc Special Edition)
The Descent (Unrated Widescreen Edition)

ASIN: B000LRZHQY
Release Date: 2007-02-06

Amazon.com

The Grudge 2 is a spooky installment in Takashi Shimizu's hardworking Ju-on/Grudge series of horror pictures. It doesn't carry the disorienting thrill of the very first Japanese Ju-on features, but it's a lot creepier than anybody could have expected. The story picks up from the end of the first Hollywood version of The Grudge, and has nothing to do with Ju-on 2, Shimizu's Japanese sequel. Sarah Michelle Gellar returns (a distinctly supporting role) as an American woman traumatized by her experiences with a haunted house in Tokyo; younger sister Amber Tamblyn flies over to help out. This particular storyline doesn't have much meat on it; the murder house is still there, and people who go inside have a disconcerting habit of dropping dead. Fortunately, two other plots thread into the basic one: a group of American schoolgirls in Tokyo become intrigued by the legend of the house, and some Chicago apartment dwellers are unsettled by domestic anxiety and the weird sounds coming from next door. (This storyline, featuring Jennifer Beals, gives the film its extremely satisfying opening sequence.) As usual with these movies, sequences come to us in non-chronological order, and it's up to us to piece it together. You can guess where the film is going, but the slow trajectory toward its final sequences is surprisingly involving. The movie was widely panned upon its release, which says more about the presumption of the law of diminishing sequel returns than the film itself--it's a decent little horror flick. --Robert Horton

Stills from The Grudge 2 (click for larger image) <table border="0" cellpadding="4" width="100%" cellspacing="4">

</tr> </table>

More The Grudge 2 at Amazon.com <table border="0" cellpadding="4" width="100%" cellspacing="4">

<td><img border="0"src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0007YXQEG.01.TZZZZZZZ.jpg">
The Original Grudge</td>

<td><img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000K4WPCC.01.TZZZZZZZ.jpg" border="0">
More Horror on Amazon.com</td>

<td><img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0009S2T0M.01.TZZZZZZZ.jpg" border="0">
Japanese Horror on Amazon.com</td> </tr>

</table>

Product Description

Acclaimed producers Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert and Taka Ichise have re-teamed with director Takashi Shimizu and screenwriter Stephen Susco to present this heart-stopping sequel to the smash-hit thriller, The Grudge. When Aubrey Davis learns her sister Karen (Sarah Michelle Geller) has been hospitalized, she immediately flies to Tokyo. Once there, she learns her sister's horrifying story and discovers that the fatal supernatural curse has been unleashed. Now, as the grudge spreads across the world, a new host of unsuspecting victims are about to become infected by the force that can't be stopped -- and won't be killed.

Customer Reviews:

It's all getting a bit boring now . . ........2007-06-22

I'll say one thing, the previews make this film appear to be more interesting than it really is. Could this film have anything to do with the same director of the first? From watching this, I can't say this is the case. Why have these Asian horror films now become so derivative? You'd think we're watching a typical American horror film. I can't say anything much other than except for the intruiging ghost of Kayako (she really steals the show doesn't she?), this film isn't that great.

Much creepier and more atmospheric than The Grudge.......2007-06-11

Unlike The Grudge, which I found to be a total dud of a horror movie, The Grudge 2 actually has its creepier moments. In my opinion, this sequel is vastly superior to the original, so I'm a little perplexed as to why it has gotten such bad reviews. Like the original, it tells its story in a nonsequential manner. That's not as big a problem this time around, as you know to expect it, but I was a little frustrated by the fact that one big story arc seemed to have nothing whatsoever to do with the rest of the movie until the very end. Of course, what matters here, even more than the story, is the scare factor, and The Grudge 2 greatly ratchets up the creepiness and atmosphere to satisfying levels, and it does so from the very start.

The story picks up immediately after the events chronicled in The Grudge, as Aubrey Davis (Amber Tamblyn of Joan of Arcadia fame) is dispatched to Japan to bring her sister Karen (Sarah Michelle Gellar) home. Gellar turns in a memorable cameo appearance, but the Grudge mantle is quickly placed solely around the neck of Tamblyn as she tries to figure out what happened to her sister. With no one but an interested journalist (Edison Chen) to help her, she eventually succeeds in learning much more than is healthy about "the house" and the curse associated with it. At the same "time" (remember, this is "Grudge time"), you have three young girls who make the mistake of visiting the ghost house; it's basically a prank by two cool girls to scare new girl Allison (Arielle Kebbel) - scare her they do, but let's just say this prank really, really backfires. It makes for a great, really creepy opening to the film and supplies some great moments the rest of the way. Then you have yet another story arc playing out that has the creepy little Japanese boy doing double duty in a Chicago apartment building. Following the arrival of a mystery guest next door, things take a very bad turn for the family of a little boy who is just far too curious for his own good. I didn't really care for this storyline, as it just seemed to interrupt all the good creepy stuff going on in Japan, the changes in family behavior happen far too drastically, and, most importantly, it's hard to put this aspect of the plot into context until the very end.

When I reviewed The Grudge, I said it would only be scary if you think hair and kids wearing mascara are scary. The Grudge 2 isn't what I would call scary, either, but it does deliver a number of really creepy moments. Gellar makes a most memorable exit from the story, Allison's experience in the "closet" may have you gripping the arms of your chair, and Aubrey makes for a most sympathetic character. Tamblyn doesn't have the screen presence of a Sarah Michelle Gellar, but the all-too-brief appearance of Jenna Dewan (the hottest woman on planet Earth) is enough to make you forget Gellar altogether. If you weren't impressed with the first film, you should definitely give this sequel a try.

Some people are so harsh..........2007-05-30

[This review is of the "Unrated Director's Cut"]

Look, Shimizu wasn't trying to make "The Godfather" here. He was making an Americanized sequel to its Americanized predecessor. And considering he was working with a pretty shallow script he did a damn good job.

The Grudge movies (Japanese and American alike) are about atmosphere, creating an eerie motif. Shimizu does this splendidly. The out-of-sequence plot certainly helped to distract from its lack of depth. Some of the acting was adequate while other performances fell flat but, hey, it's a horror movie for crying out loud.

Where this movie shines is in its overall creepiness. While a few of the kill scenes were tension-less, most were not. That damn ghost, Kayako (?), was scary as hell and there was a lot of originality in the execution of her scenes. The camerawork was of Oscar caliber which elevates what should be a "C"(ish) movie to a strong "B".

Very few movies make me "jump" these days and the Grudge 2 did it several times to me. Not to mention there were a few scenes that deeply disturbed me (i.e. when that girl threw up the milk and then DRANK IT!).

If you're a fan of any of the other Grudge movies then certainly check this out. If you didn't like the first one (I was not a fan of the first American one until I saw the unrated cut which added just the right amount of gore for this sort of movie), then this one probably won't win you over. But if you dig ghost movies or supernatural thrillers then be sure to at least rent this one.

It was okay, but hey i want more of those scares thant make you say beep!.......2007-04-30

This movie is a below average horror flick,but with such an ugly cover you'd think you'd be leaving the light on on the night you watched it but yeah you'll be saving electricity.Okay, tnis movie needs more of the scare factor and not the lousy acting factor.See,this is what happens when you interrupt with us asians,HOLLYWOOD!I AM AN AVID HORROR FAN,AND HOPE THEY DO BETTER IN the next flim.meanwhile,why not try shimizu's newest flim about a flying lady in a red coat?

Just awful.......2007-04-29

There is not a single redeeming quality in this whole movie. The acting is wooden, the storyline from the original (which also wasn't that good, but looks like "Apocalypse Now" compared to this atrocity) is mutilated for the purposes of throwing the handicapped blue chick at everyone, everywhere, for no purpose other than for us to see just how contorted and blue she is. Oh, and another blue little kid sits in a closet and meows like a kitten when the door opens--boo!

On the other hand, you have to respect the kind of guts that go into making a movie like this. Takashi Shimizu knew this was a horrible movie when the script was written, when he was filming it, and was released. And he knew people would rent, buy and watch it anyway. The money made to fund the filming of this movie could have gone to feed hungry children in Japan. Or to make a really big piggy bank in the form of the Buddha. Anything would have been more constructive than this movie.

As for the blue chick, maybe we'll hear about a lawsuit launched one day by her and other disabled people against Shimizu for taking advantage of the handicapped: her and the audiences who claimed to enjoy this. Stay far, far away.

Average customer rating:

Top pedigree, middling result.
Things that make you go huumm!
Highly Recommend
Jurors Are Not King Solomon
In which the nasty, evil gun lobby tries to buy a jury ...

Runaway Jury (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: John Cusack , Gene Hackman , Dustin Hoffman , Rachel Weisz , and Bruce Davison
Director: Gary Fleder
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

( R ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Rainmaker
The Firm
The Client
The Chamber
The Pelican Brief

ASIN: B00014NEZI
Release Date: 2004-02-17

Amazon.com

Based on the bestseller by John Grisham, Runaway Jury is a slick thriller that's exciting enough to overcome the gaps in its plot. The ultimate target has been changed: Grisham's legal assault on the tobacco industry was switched to the hot-button issue of gun control (no doubt to avoid comparison to The Insider) in a riveting exposé of jury-tampering. Gene Hackman plays the ultra-cynical, utterly unscrupulous pawn of the gun-makers, using an expert staff and advanced electronics to hand-pick a New Orleans jury that will return a favorable verdict; Dustin Hoffman (making his first screen appearance with real-life former roommate Hackman) defends the grieving widow of a gun-shooting victim with idealistic zeal, while maverick juror John Cusack and accomplice Rachel Weisz play both ends against the middle in a personal quest to hold gun-makers accountable. It's riveting stuff, even when it's obvious that Grisham and director Gary Fleder have glossed over any details that would unravel the plot's intricate design. --Jeff Shannon

Description

From master storyteller John Grisham and the director of Don't Say A Word comes a taut suspense-thriller that "grabs hold of you and never lets go" (Philadelphia Metro). In their first film together, screen legends Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman face off in this electrifying nail-biter about a ruthless jury consultant who'll do anything to win. With lives and millions of dollars at stake, the fixer plays a deadly cat-and-mouse game with a jury member (John Cusack) and a mysterious woman (Rachel Weisz) who offer to "deliver" the verdict to the highest bidder. Packed with danger, intrigue and pulse-pounding twists and turns, Runaway Jury rules!

Customer Reviews:

Top pedigree, middling result........2007-06-09

Another John Grisham thriller is churned out as a star studded movie. It seems the books with the most thrills have been taken, as this is somewhat pedestrian, although still entertaining.
So what's it about? A big trial against the gun manufacturers is in progress, and both sides are anxious to have the jury on their side. The gun manufacturers hire Gene Hackman, representing the dark corporate side of jury manipulation. However, the apple-cart is upturned when it turns out that the jury is already being manipulated and may be for sale, engineered by someone on the jury and an accomplice (Weisz).
The collection of stars is fantastic - Hackman, Hoffman, Cusack, Weisz. In fact, as the interesting extras point out, Hackman and Hoffman have never shared screen time before. Seeing them in their one big screen moment together is the highlight of the movie. Hackman does not quite bring the same complexity to the role as he did to his other Grisham movie, `The Firm', but he lends real gravitas to his unscrupulous jury consultant. Hoffman is unusually restrained for the most part to play a convincing attorney, but it's Cusack once again who shows himself as a truly natural talent, morphing into just about any role he is given with ease. Here, the entertainment is in watching him manipulate the jury with some applied psychology, while his own motivation remains obscured until a time of his choosing.
Most of the movie is a bidding war and cat and mouse game, until the final denouement unveils the true motivation in a reasonably satisfying way. Along the way, the thriller elements seem shoehorned in, with the real joy in watching the process of choosing and manipulating the jury - the indictment of the system the movie is aiming at.
It's a solid enough story, and well told - but somehow you get the feeling the source material was never as cinematic as Grisham's previous movie adaptations. The cast and acting, especially by Hackman and Cusack, make this worthwhile. For legal thriller buffs, it won't disappoint, but it's not the real classic it might have been.
The extras where Hackman and Hoffman chat about their on screen scene together and their long friendship, is probably the most interesting thing on the disc.

Things that make you go huumm!.......2007-05-18

Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, John Cusack and Rachel Weisz what could be better? Gene Hackman, always the consumate professional, is wonderfully sinister. Dustin Hoffman delivers. And Cusack and Weisz simmer as a scorned couple out for redemption in this tight thriller. It makes you wonder sometimes whether or not companies really do go to this extent to rest decisions in their favor. It's also kind of scary knowing technology exist that allows people with know how avenues to poke around in your private matters. In the end, Runaway Jury delivers!

Highly Recommend.......2007-03-04

Just watched this movie for the second time, and it was as suspenseful as the first. Great acting, and a plot that keeps you guessing. I liked that although there was some emphasis on the issue of semi-automatic weapons in the hands of civilians, I never felt like this was the focus of the plot. The way the characters played and conned each other through out was the most interesting for me, definitely takes the viewer on a good ride. What is great too is that I forgot how the movie ended, which made my second viewing that much more interesting.

Jurors Are Not King Solomon.......2007-02-28

The acting in this Grisham book made movie is excellent. As others have reviewed, Hackman is exceptional in his role as the cool, calculating jury selection expert. Cusack is equally cast and performs admirably as the juror with a motive who ends up having the tale revolve around.

It unfolds slowly, suspensively with snippets of past events flashed at the right moments to reveal just enough and keep enough still in doubt.

Having just served on jury, this is fascinating stuff. Wonder two things: how true to book? how true to civil Louisiana trials? In any case, for viewing this is riveting tale with sophisticated technology, body language experts, and feasting upon human behavior at its weakest.

Makes for great drama! Grisham is winner again and this movie depiction is worth the watch.

In which the nasty, evil gun lobby tries to buy a jury ..........2007-01-21

This is an exciting and entertaining thriller, which has been marketed as an expose of jury tampering. However, the storyline also has a very strong position on the manufacture and sale of guns.

The story is underpinned by the assumption that everyone associated with the firearms industry is totally corrupt and evil, and that all those involved at any stage of assembly or distribution in supplying a weapon to any murderer are as much to blame for his actions as he is. If you strongly disagree with that opinion, then unless you can suspend your views while watching the film you will not enjoy it.

My own views are considerably more sympathetic to gun control than polls suggest the average American to be, and even so I had to think myself into a much harder line anti-gun position than I actually hold in order to enjoy "Runaway Jury". This film could almost have been called "Bowling for Columbine II."

Having said this, it is a gripping story. The film begins with the father of a little boy celebrating his son's sixth birthday before going to work, where he is shot dead when a recently sacked colleague returns to his former office with an assault rifle and kills a large number of his former co-workers before turning the gun on himself. Then the film jumps on two years to jury selection in the case which the widow is bringing against the manufacturer of the weapon with which her husband was murdered. Dustin Hoffman plays the local lawyer who represents the widow: he is assisted by a big-city expert on jury selection who joins the team for 30% of his usual fee because of his opposition to firearms. On the other side, Gene Hackman plays Rankin Fitch, a ruthless and unscrupulous expert on jury selection (and jury tampering) who is retained by the arms industry.

John Cusack plays Nick Easter, a member of the jury who with his girlfriend Marlie (Rachel Weisz) appears to be conspiring to sell the verdict to the highest bidder. But is that really what they are doing? And to what length will the arms industry go to get the result they want?

Much of the acting is first rate, especially by Hoffman, Hackman, Cusack, and Weisz. The tension of the story develops well, and the twist with which the film ends is very clever.

If you like thrillers and good acting, and either take the Michael Moore approach to guns or can put any alternative view aside for 122 minutes, you will almost certainly enjoy this film. If you're a member of the NRA or work for a firearms manufacturer, you should probably give it a miss.

Average customer rating:

Denzel and Scene Stealing Cheadle Make This A Winning Adaptation
Devil in a Blue Dress - Great African American Film Noir
Very good performances hung on not much substance.
this movie rocks, man!
Tooo good for words

Devil in a Blue Dress
Starring: Denzel Washington , Tom Sizemore , Jennifer Beals , Don Cheadle , and Maury Chaykin
Director: Carl Franklin
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Murder & Mayhem | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Film Noir | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Thrillers | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Detectives | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Neo-Noir | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Mystery & Suspense | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | African American Cinema | Genres | DVD | Video

General | African American Cinema | Genres | DVD | Video

Mystery & Suspense | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( D ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

A Soldier's Story
The Mighty Quinn
Ricochet
Virtuosity
Mo' Better Blues

ASIN: 0767818075
Release Date: 1999-03-09

Amazon.com essential video

Despite rave reviews as one of the most stylish and intelligent detective pictures in a number of years, this 1995 adaptation of Walter Mosley's novel never found a mass audience. Too bad, because Carl Franklin's film is nearly perfect in every way, from its rich, shadowy look to its depiction of life in post-World War II black America (L.A.-style) to the acting of Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle, and others. Washington plays Easy Rawlins, an aircraft factory worker who is laid off only to find his true calling: as a private eye, albeit an unlicensed one. Hired to find a missing woman, he becomes entangled in a complex but satisfying case involving sex, corruption, racism, and of course money. Top-notch from top to bottom--and Cheadle is dangerously funny as Easy's best friend, a killer named Mouse. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews:

Denzel and Scene Stealing Cheadle Make This A Winning Adaptation.......2007-04-04

Devil in a Blue Dress is a wonderful adaptation of Walter Mosely's fantastic late 40's detective series featuring black private eye "Easy" Rawlins.

Rawlins is a World War II veteran trying to get reestablished in LA following the war. He finds himself helping out someone hired to look for a white woman who is married to a prominent politician. Soon, he is caught up in the double dealings, mystery, and intrigue that only a 40's private eye can be involved in, and "Easy" begins to have it very, very hard.

He enlists the help of his Texas cousin "Mouse," played by Don Cheadle in what is one of the best scene-stealing performances in the past twenty years. "Mouse" hasn't met anyone besides "Easy" that he dosen't want to kill, and he works hard at being an efficent killer. The byplay with Washington's Easy is hysterical, and provides excellent comic relief.

This move is enjoyable on just about nearly every level. If you haven't seen it, you owe it to yourself to watch Devil in A Blue Dress very, very soon.

Devil in a Blue Dress - Great African American Film Noir.......2007-01-09

This film directed by Carl Franklin from his own screenplay, based on the novel by Walter Mosley is great. It is a wonderful example of film noir comng from the late 1940's section of Los Angeles that is not seen in films, and from an African American perspective. I highly recommend owning this DVD with commentary from Franklin.

Very good performances hung on not much substance........2006-10-17

Devil in a Blue Dress (Carl Franklin, 1995)

I'm still attempting to figure out what to say about this movie after two weeks. Usually, this is a sign that it simply didn't leave enough of an impression on me to say much of anything, but at least I liked it.

Easy Rawlins (Denzel Washington), an out-of-work electrician, is hired by an acquaintance of a friend to go looking for Daphne Monet (Flashdance's Jennifer Beals), the missing fiancee of a political candidate in an upcoming election. There's more to it than that, of course, but this is a movie where things tend to get complicated and spoiler-laden very quickly.

The movie is chock full of good performances, notably Washington and Don Cheadle as his friend and partner Mouse. The problem is that these performances exist in a vacuum; the movie never really comes together, with wooden dialogue and a paint-by-numbers plot that sacrifices a good deal of the subtlety of the novel. It's a decent genre mystery flick, but it's not what it could have been. ** ½

this movie rocks, man!.......2006-09-27

very good script adapted from a great writer's novel. great casting and amazing performances by all the actors. the directing, editing and the shooting are also too good to not mention it here. this is a perfect noir genre movie, very dark and moody but also got pretty funny sometimes. i enjoy it very much.

Tooo good for words.......2006-06-30

I usually could talk for hours about how good I think Denzel Washington is, and I could talk even longer about a great movie but this is different it was too good. Maybe it was the surprise of it that made it have more impact, as I had only ever heard whispers about it before until I saw it on the shelves of my local DVD rental store. Positively one of the best private eye films ever. All technical aspects of the film were surperb, soundtrack excellently placed, Denzels performance was magical and supporitng cast brillianlty chosen.
An absolute GEM! Full of class and nastalgia, as close to classic as you can get in this torrid time of remakes and half baked modern movies.
A+++++

Average customer rating:

Never Received
Highly emotional and inspiring, look beyond the robbery
Morally Bankrupt
IT WAS GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"catch" a great movie that you WILL love!!

Catch That Kid
Starring: Jennifer Beals , Corbin Bleu , Lucy Butler , Elizabeth Decker , and Michael Des Barres
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Crime | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Comic Action | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

Comedy | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Action & Adventure | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Kids & Family | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Agent Cody Banks 2 - Destination London (Special Edition)
Agent Cody Banks (Special Edition)
Clockstoppers
Big Fat Liar (Full Screen Edition)
Spy Kids 3 - Game Over (Two-Disc Collector's Series)

ASIN: B00005JN0D
Release Date: 2004-06-01

Description

Get ready for an exciting, high-stakes adventure with Maddy, Gus and Austin: three kids on a top-secret mission! They're close friends, each with special talents: a champion rock climber, a computer genius and a mechanical whiz specializing in high-speed go-carts. Their challenge: to crack a high-tech bank vault and pull off the biggest heist their homeroom has ever seen --all to save Maddy's ailing Dad! They may have a plan that's foolproof, but they're not even old enough to drive!

Customer Reviews:

Never Received.......2007-01-15

Never received this item had to ask for refund. Will affect the possibilities of my ever ordering rom amazon again.

Highly emotional and inspiring, look beyond the robbery.......2006-07-29

This movie is a heart warming story of a daughter trying to think her way out of her father's dismal medical condition, of which her mother is unable to afford the costly but highly effective surgery for him to recover. This movie has great kid actors/actresses in it and is a super movie to watch with your kids, I found it was highly emotional and inspiring. The movie is developed for kids above 7-8 years old, who will more than over look the morality of the bank robbery which has taken so many harsh digs throughout it's critics. If you can look beyond the robbery, the kids are learning the depths of their friendships, undeniable love for family, and also unconventional thinking that is sometimes called for in this sometimes red-taped, unsympathetic society. And for those concerned about the morality demonstrated within this film, the Vice President of the bank himself legitimizes the robbery committed by the children as a security precaution to prevent future instances and commends the children for their bravery. The daughter is given a cash reward by the bank for finding flaws in their highly sophisticated security system, enough money to afford the much needed surgery for her father. My kids loved it and so did I.

Morally Bankrupt.......2006-02-14

I was suckered into getting this movie by its similarities to the movie "Spy Kids". While the action was fun, this movie sends lots of bad messages to kids. You spend the greater portion of the movie seeing the kids lie and steal. Not only from the "large corporate entity", but they also lie to one another. They pull dangerous stunts and run from police riding go-carts on city streets at night. In the big wrap-up, they get caught. Here I am waiting for the kids to learn that what they did was wrong. The mom barely shames them and then lies to police to get them out of trouble. In the end they are rewarded for their "work". Dad is saved and all is well, but at what cost? This movie had a terrible message.

IT WAS GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.......2005-08-22

IT WAS GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(ok, so the point of the movie wasn't that great) BUT THE PLOT WAS GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ALL YOU PEOPLE WHO THOUGHT IT WAS TERRIBLE ARE JUST WEIRD!!!

"catch" a great movie that you WILL love!!.......2005-06-19

Cath That Kid is one of THE BEST movies ever!!! Max Thieriot, Corbin Bleu, and Kristen Stewart play best friends who rob a bank so that Maddy (Kristen Stewart,) can pay for her dad's surgery. in order to rob the bank, Maddy gets Gus (Max Thieriot,) and Austin (Corbin Bleu) to help her rig go carts and hack into the bank's computer system. this is a totally fresh movie! you have to see it!!

Average customer rating:

obnoxious
"Sex And The City or Boys' Night Out"
decent film, but not one to go out of the way for
Roger Dodger - I likey
"It's All About The Visuals"

Roger Dodger
Starring: Campbell Scott , Jesse Eisenberg , Isabella Rossellini , Elizabeth Berkley , and Jennifer Beals
Director: Dylan Kidd
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Black Comedy | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( R ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

The Tao of Steve [Region 99]
Whipped [Region 99]
They Shoot Divas, Don't They
The Secret Lives of Dentists [Region 99]
Out of Line

ASIN: B00005JLX8
Release Date: 2003-03-18

Amazon.com

Campbell Scott bristles, burns, and sneers as Roger, a would-be smoothie who gets jilted by his older lover (who also happens to be his boss at an advertising agency). When his teenage nephew Nick (Jesse Eisenberg) appears at his office the next day, hoping for lessons in how to deal with the ladies, Roger uses his nephew partly as a foil, partly as a prop as he vents his anger and unhappiness on women in a scathing tour of bars and parties. A sharp script and multidimensional performances make Roger Dodger more than a standard war-of-the-sexes diatribe. Scott (Big Night, The Spanish Prisoner) doesn't ask for sympathy and doesn't allow for pity--his award-winning performance as Roger has defiance and dignity, whether the character is spitting bile or humiliating himself. Featuring strong supporting performances from Eisenberg, Isabella Rossellini (Blue Velvet), Jennifer Beals (In the Soup), and (surprise) Elizabeth Berkley (Showgirls). --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews:

obnoxious.......2007-01-15

This movie just doesn't do anything for me. I am suspicious the marketing people and staffs working on this movie write most good reviews here.

The movie is just creepy. The uncle totally abuses his nephew. That's so not showing a kid how to play the game. That's child abuse. The main character (the uncle) is obnoxious. He just keeps yapping and yapping nonsense. It gives you a headache.

The dialogues are poorly written. It's not smart or funny. Everything coming from the main character's mouth makes me want to hang myself. He is so annoying and 99% of the movie is him talking.

"Sex And The City or Boys' Night Out".......2006-12-01

"Roger Dodger" is a very clever and witty film with the memorable performances from Isabella Rossellini, Elizabeth Berkley, Jennifer Beals, and Jesse Eisenberg (as Roger's teen-aged nephew Nick who one day unexpectedly comes to NYC to pay his uncle a visit and to learn from him the fine art of seducing women).

The film belongs to Campbell Scott who gives a wonderful performance as a man that sure knows how to talk but who has a lot to learn on how to communicate and relate to somebody. It's been said that men love with their eyes and women - with their ears. While I am not completely in love with what the main character, Rodger Swanson says, I am deeply in love with How Campbell Scott delivers Rodger's theories about sex, gender differences, and voyeurism.

decent film, but not one to go out of the way for.......2006-10-30

I did like this movie, but it just did not do a lot for me. The "gameplay" of finding companionship has been overdone in films, so there really was nothing new about the script or the conversations that roger had with young nephew mick, or with the girls they met. However, done as a tour through new york, and having it be an uncle showing his young 16 year old nephew through the perils, pretty clever. Overall though, it just left something to be desired, unfinished. And the ending was just not great. Needed something a little different. As for the DVD preparation, the special features are really quite useless. If you can borrow this, or pick it up for cheap on VHS, do it. If not, rent is once on dvd and pass it around so no one else spends too much on this film.

Roger Dodger - I likey.......2006-10-27

Young teenager comes to NYC and learns the way of the woman from his rebel advertising exec. uncle. Hasn't this happened to everyone? We're young and awkward around women -- just can't seem to get the words out -- hopeless. But wait, we go to visit colleges and ironically come home with the education that really matters, the one you can't learn in class. It's a cool premise and it plays out nicely. This indie feature is well shot, fast paced, and written like a swiss watch. Well cast and a great story. If only it were real.

"It's All About The Visuals" .......2005-12-19

Prepare yourself for an illuminating evening which begins in an upscale New York bar but slowly degenerates into visiting some of the more unseamly locations of the big city. The story revolves around Rodger (Campbell Scott), an egotistic, insecure, overly analytical wordsmith who has just been dumped by his female boss (Isabella Rossellini). His sixteen year old nephew Nick (Jesse Eisenberg) unexpectedly shows up in his office and Roger decides to break the young boy in 'New York Style.' Prepare for a crash course in how to pick up a woman as taught in the sometimes alluring, often times sleazy world of Uncle Roger, the proverbial lounge lizzard.

Dialogue is everything in this film and most of it comes from the incredibly glib and searing tongue of the recently scorned Roger who has yet to learn how to deal with rejection. Roger is the self-proclaimed prophet of the "Gender Wars" and is determined to teach his naive nephew how to cope with the opposite sex. This is as close to a one-man-show as you can get and Campbell Scott pulls it off in amazing fashion.

This is a film that demands your full attention. The dialogue comes fast and furious and you really don't want to miss a thing in this somewhat pessimistic but well contructed production.

Average customer rating:

You won't be disappointed
Subtitles?
Top-flight writing and acting
There is a lot of "there" here... this is possibly the best film you've never seen.
Costumes were good.

Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle
Starring: Jennifer Jason Leigh , Campbell Scott , Matthew Broderick , Peter Gallagher , and Jennifer Beals
Director: Alan Rudolph
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $9.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Reds (Special 25th Aniversary Collector's Edition)
The Notorious Bettie Page
1900 (Special Collector's Edition)
The Conformist (Extended Edition)
Hollywoodland (Widescreen Edition)

ASIN: B000BZN1OQ
Release Date: 2006-09-05

Amazon.com

The press kit's historical notes should be standard issue for anyone who sees Alan Rudolph's (The Moderns, Choose Me) look at the famous intellectuals who dotted New York's finest hour in the 1920s. If you only know the names of Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, et al. in passing, this movie will hardly generate more study. These writers and thinkers, most famous for having lunch daily at the Algonquin Hotel, seem as weightless and thin as the fictional ones in The Moderns. Most luminous is Mrs. Parker (Jennifer Jason Leigh), whose passion for unhappiness is rarely interrupted. Leigh, in a performance that viewers seem to love or loathe, swirls "witty" dialogue with pure force and must be praised for keeping your interest in a life that was so dreary. The chief problem is not the performances (Campbell Scott is quite fun in a change-of-pace role); it's that the movie comes off as a taped show on stage: the characters are not real and it's all dress-up. Rudolph illustrates his main character's writing (done far too seldom in writers' bios) by having Leigh speak Parker's poetry directly into the camera. --Doug Thomas

Description

Cigarette smoke and laughter... The hollow clink of martini glasses and biting one-liners... This was the famed lunch scene at the Algonquin Hotel's Round Table of the 1920's, home to a circle of mutually supportive young artists that defined the heyday of New York sophistication and a literate era of wit and intellect. At the heart of the round table sat Mrs. Dorothy Parker (Jennifer Jason Leigh), one of the sharpest, most biting wits of the past century. But beneath the raucous laughter is a darker and richer tale filled with passionate affairs, friendship and tragedy, all captured in this striking masterpiece of unrequited love and self-destructive impulses from acclaimed director Alan Rudolph (The Secret Life of Dentists, Choose Me). All-Star Cast! Featuring Jennifer Jason Leigh (Single White Female, Fast Times at Ridgemont High), Campbell Scott (The Exorcism of Emily Rose), Matthew Broderick (The Producers, Ferris Bueller's Day Off), Peter Gallagher (TV's The O.C., American Beauty), Academy Award winner Gwyneth Paltrow (The Royal Tenenbaums, Shakespeare in Love), Heather Graham (Boogie Nights, Lost in Space), Jennifer Beals (TV's The L Word, Devil in a Blue Dress), Andrew McCarthy (Weekend at Bernie's, TV's Kingdom Hospital), Wallace Shawn (Clueless, The Princess Bride), Martha Plimpton (Parenthood, 200 Cigarettes), Lili Taylor (High Fidelity, Short Cuts), James LeGros (Living in Oblivion, The Rapture), Nick Cassavetes (Face/Off, director of The Notebook), Stephen Baldwin (Posse, Threesome), Stanley Tucci (Big Night, The Devil Wears Prada), Keith Carradine (Nashville, The Long Riders) and Jon Favreau (Elf, Swingers).

Customer Reviews:

You won't be disappointed.......2007-01-15

Critics moaned when Jennifer Jason Leigh was tapped to portray Dorothy Parker, the Grand Lady of Barbed Words whose light shone brightest in the colorful 1920s. And, predictably, many critics trashed Leigh's performance. But, while Leigh made her name making sexy comedies and sexy thrillers, she actually does an excellent job here as the witty wordsmith in "Mrs. Parker & the Vicious Circle." OK, so she played a sexy wordsmith, getting naked with fellow writer Charles MacArthur (Matthew Broderick) for an eye-candy romp. But the sex and nudity, for all its visual appeal, could have hit the cutting-room floor without much being lost from the film. The romance that makes this film worth watching is the romance that never happens: Parker's non-romance with humorist Robert Benchley (Campbell Scott).

Let's face it, Broderick shared top billing with Leigh because he's a name. But it's Scott who deserved it; it's Scott's Benchley who provided an excellent foil for matching wits and barbs with Parker. They were, it seems, the perfect match -- but the film tells us they never consummated for fear of losing what closeness they already had.

Parker, Benchley and, to some extent, MacArthur were part of the Algonquin Round Table, the so-called "vicious circle" of the title, a regular gathering of the luminaries of the writing field back in the good ol' days of Prohibition. And director Alan Rudolph assembled a fine cast to round out the circle: Robert Sherwood (Nick Cassavetes), Edna Ferber (Lili Taylor), F. Scott Fitzgerald (Malcolm Gets), Harold Ross (Sam Robards) and Alexander Woollcott (Tom McGowan), among others, plus occasional cameos by the likes of Will Rogers (Keith Carradine) and a lively Harpo Marx (J.M. Henry).

We get to see them talk and drink at New York's Algonquin Hotel, we get to see them drink and talk at private parties. We also get to see them put on a variety show, the highlight of which is Benchley's fumbling financial report. Occasionally, we see a few of them working, as writers and editors of Vanity Fair and the fledgling New Yorker.

The film plays havoc with chronology, jumping around in the '20s, '30s, '40s and '50s, interspersed with brief scenes of Leigh reciting a few lines of Parker's immortal poetry. But most of the film is set in the '20s, and that's where the real color lies. (To drive that point home, Rudolph had later scenes filmed in black and white, while the early stuff in the '20s is in vivid color.) The Round Table comprised some of the finest literary minds of the age, and the lines popping out of their mouths throughout the film are classic literary gems. The best are traded between Parker and Benchley, who flirt outrageously across the years but never "misbehave" -- with each other, anyway -- like so many of their peers were doing.

Some of the best scenes are shot at the Table, with the camera panning from face to face as they drop lines -- many of which today crowd the pages of any good book of quotations -- with machine-gun rapidity and a surgeon's precision.

Of course, Parker's life wasn't all grins and giggles, and Leigh manages to show us the pain beneath the giddy facade. Parker, like many of her friends, was an alcoholic. She was unlucky in love and kept outliving her beloved dogs. She attempted suicide a few times; the movie shows only once. She was proud, but often too poor to sustain her lifestyle. She survived most of her friends, sank into senility and, despite her wishes, died on a sunny day. She also excelled in a field and an era dominated by men, and her name and writings outlasted the work of many of her male contemporaries.

This isn't a feel-good film by any stretch, but it's not dark and depressing, either. It's a slice of life -- in this case, a slice of several extraordinary lives from a very different time. The dialogue borrows heavily from the characters' actual words, and it's some of the most sparkling dialogue to show up on the big screen in a very long time.

by Tom Knapp, Rambles.(n e t) editor

Subtitles?.......2006-10-20

Does someone know if this DVD has English subtitles or at least closed captioning? Thanks!

Top-flight writing and acting.......2006-10-17

I had owned this film in the VHS version, and it wasn't easy finding the DVD version but finally was able to get it via Amazon.
If you have any interest in the New York literary society of the 1920s; in the writers Dorothy Parker, Charles McArthur, Robert Benchley,Alexander Woolcott, etc; or if you just enjoy watching great acting, you should not be disappointed with this film. Even Harpo Marx (as a character) makes a brief appearance.

There is a lot of "there" here... this is possibly the best film you've never seen........2006-10-02

Simply put, a remarkably well written, well acted, well cast, well directed film about Dorothy Parker, her immediate round circle of friends and their successes and failures in life and art. It is also a portrait of the creative process -- from the emotional lows that generate artistic incentive, to the short lived highs that act like temporary band-aids for writers, painters, etc. It all makes for some real drama and Jennifer Jason Leigh is perfect in this role. She's subtle, and dramatic when need be. Her dialog, her one liners and their delivery might allude you, like the many cameos of famous people of the times, if you don't pay close attention. However, it's worth every minute if you do. To paraphrase Mrs. Parker, there is a lot of there here in this film.

Costumes were good........2006-09-29

Jennifer Jason...Can someone PUHLeeze tell me why she ALWAYS plays the same role! ANd why all of her characters have seriously bad elocution!The so called ~Bostonish...or upper crust--east coast accent does Not include..slurring your words as if a consonant was too much WORK. It as if her upper lip is never engaged at all..Not even to smirk! Does she have a BOTOX complex..USE YOUR FACE..Including your upper lip...
But then again...Maybe she was acting JUST like Dorothy Parker..WHo ahem..happens to be dead..! ( no disrespect intended..)

Jennifer Beals played her little tiny wee part with so much more depth and nuance..WHY didn't she play Parker..I believed her character! Gwyneth..Love her..! Bit part..but she added a much needed warmth to the film..

I cared for one character..And the best part was his bit giving a financial report..I thought that was BRILLIANT..! BRavo..But Mr. Benchley was the most endearing and 3 dimensional character..THANK YOU..

WIll someone Please make this film over..And Do it right..! And don't just call up your buds..for a tupperware party and say..HEY..Lets make a movie..! Dorothy Parker deserves MUCH MUCH better..I can't EVEN imagine the biting remarks she would print..How about.. 'It's all about me..And I hated it..!But the costumes were nice..!

Average customer rating:

"Attack! Attack! Attack!"
Not for a mainstream audience.
Every effort has been spared on Weinstein's DVD of this lost labor of love
Oddly Enough Miramax New DVD is a waste !
Okay, yeah, I like this movie.

The Thief And The Cobbler
Starring: Jennifer Beals , Matthew Broderick , Toni Collette , Kevin Dorsey , and Donald Pleasence
Director: Richard Williams
Manufacturer: Miramax Family Films
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Animation | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( T ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Cats Don't Dance
The Princess and the Goblin
Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland
A Troll in Central Park
The Pebble and the Penguin - Family Fun Edition

ASIN: B000GFLKE4
Release Date: 2006-11-21

Amazon.com

Directed by Oscar-winning animator Richard Williams (Who Framed Roger Rabbit), The Thief and the Cobbler began production in 1968, so it actually predates 1992's Aladdin. Also known as The Princess and the Cobbler and Arabian Knight, Fred Calvert completed the film after Williams lost the rights to his dream project. Narrated by Matthew Broderick (replacing Sean Connery) as Tack the Cobbler, the CinemaScope-shot story takes place in ancient Baghdad. When Tack upsets Zigzag the Vizier (Vincent Price), the wizard drags him off to the royal castle, where Princess Yum Yum (Jennifer Beals) falls for the bashful boy and saves him from execution. Unfortunately, Zigzag plans to marry the princess in order to succeed her father, King Nod (Clive Revill). The Thief (Jonathan Winters), meanwhile, is more interested in gold than love and takes off with the protective orbs topping the palace. Together Tack and Yum Yum attempt to retrieve them in order to prevent Zigzag and the One-Eye army from conquering the city. Despite the fanciful hand-drawn animation, which borders on Yellow Submarine-style surrealism--a film with which Williams was involved--the finished full-screen product represents a compromised version of his original widescreen concept. The added dialogue and songs, which have a generic bent, make for an awkward fit with Williams' more distinctive work. Rife with intricate patterns and M.C. Escher-like optical effects, his intended audience was adults rather than kids. Still, The Thief and the Cobbler is a must-see for the inventive material that remains. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Description

The film tells a story which takes place in an oriental city from the tales of thousand and one night. It covers the friendship of a thief knowing all tricks to survive in the city and a poor cobbler/shoemaker who has to struggle in order to live.

Customer Reviews:

"Attack! Attack! Attack!".......2007-05-31

Like "The Magnificent Ambersons" or "Superman II", "The Thief and the Cobbler" is the ruin of a masterpiece. Richard Williams' intricately animated film was butchered by the studio, and the two title characters, both intended to be largely mute roles, had nearly non-stop dialogue dubbed onto their every scene (Tack, the cobbler, actually becomes the narrator of the movie!).

The plot of "The Thief and the Cobbler" -- an original story, not an adaptation of a traditional tale or literary work -- has sometimes been criticized as dull and unmemorable. I agree with this assessment; Williams' statement during the film's production that it would be the first animated feature whose plot would tie together like a detective story at the end seems wildly off-base, and more applicable to "The Lion King" than "The Thief and the Cobbler". Nonetheless, enough of Williams' achievement can be glimpsed in the released film to convince me that the plot would have served well enough as a vehicle for the fantastic animation had the film been completed as Williams intended.

It is indeed to be hoped that an official restoration and rerelease of this film are soon undertaken. Until then, the current (pan-and-scan) DVD is worth a rental, but not a purchase.

Not for a mainstream audience........2007-05-04

This is not your run of the mill, slick, sugar coated animated film. And to many reviewers here, that's a good thing. I rented this film by chance, looking for something my [...] daughter hadn't already seen a dozen times. Needless to say I turned this film off 30 minutes in. My daughter did want to finish the film, but I found the story and style of animation a bit too creepy and strange. Those of you who don't know anything about this film be WARNED - the animation style is clearly late 60's early 70's - not that it's bad, it's just not represented as such on the box cover. I think most of the reviewers here must be animation buffs, and/or fans of the films maker. Granted I know nothing about the history of this film, and I didn't even watch the whole thing but I just wasn't compelled to continue watching.

Every effort has been spared on Weinstein's DVD of this lost labor of love.......2007-03-02

Richard Williams' legendary labour of love The Thief and the Cobbler is one of those films that was just born unlucky. After spending three decades working on it, the animator over-ran the budget and was taken off his own picture, with the gaps filled in by cheap Thai and Hungarian animation that sticks out like a sore thumb, many of the original voice cast (Anthony Quayle, Donald Pleasance, Felix Aylmer, Sean Connery) redubbed, musical numbers added and the film retitled The Princess and the Cobbler in a version that only seems to have ever been released in Australia (sadly, the Australian DVD is panned and scanned from the original Scope ratio, as is this release). Then, to add insult to injury, Miramax re-edited that version even further from Williams' intentions and retitled it Arabian Knight to cash-in on the success of Aladdin, leading to a film intentionally designed as anti-Disney animation being marketed as the very thing its creator was rebelling against.

The Miramax cut presented here is quite painful to watch at times, not least because of the horrendous non-stop stream of subconciousness mutterings from Jonathan Winters dubbed over the silent character of the Thief, best described as the cinematic equivalent of sitting next to a loquacious drunk with exceptionally bad breath on the last bus home. At one point Roy Disney tried to restore the film to its original conception, seeking out the lost and unused sequences and talking about getting Williams to finish the film his way - only for the Disney-Eisner feud to see the film's champion leave the company and the film in the Weinstein's tender mercies.

The film would never have been a masterpiece: for all it's visual audacity there never seems to have been enough of a story. Williams was clearly more interested in animating increasingly elaborate and intricate sequences involving the Thief than in filling out the plot points, but what's especially astonishing is that in an incredible act of cinematic vandalism many of the most visually inventive parts of the film hit the cutting room floor even though whole sequences had been completed - indeed, even much of the truly extraordinary work in the climactic destruction of the war machine has been cut. While some of these scenes were relegated to the end credits sequence, in some cases their omissions leads to massive continuity problems and gaps in the plot. To make matters worse, the original footage seems to have disappeared, preventing its partial restoration. Still, I suppose we should be grateful (though surprised would be a more appropriate reaction) that they didn't replace Vincent Price's voice as well.

There are surviving moments of visual genius, particularly a brief but amazing chase sequence across chequered and patterned floors and backgrounds that is all the more impressive for being entirely hand-drawn (Williams started work in 1968 long before computer animation was even a glimmer on the far horizon), but they're never enough to compensate for the fact that you don't really care about the characters or the story around them. The Cobbler in particular is a bland and uninteresting character, all the more so for being mute (or at least in the original version until the last line of the film, originally delivered rather clumsily by Sean Connery, though both released versions gave him voice-over dialog - in this Miramax cut the Cobbler is voiced by Matthew Broderick). The work print, filled out with storyboards and pencil tests, gives some impression of what has been lost and how much better this could have been, though that is not included on this disc (widely circulated at conventions, it would at least been a gesture to animation fans to include it regardless of its poor quality). But whichever version you see you'll be left with a film that frustrates and astounds to varying degrees.

Sadly, while they have reverted to Williams' title, Miramax's DVD is exactly the same `Arabian Knight' cut with no restored footage or extras. In fact, it manages to be even more disappointing than their laser disc release - while that at least was in 2.35:1 widescreen, this every-effort-spared barebones release doesn't even have a widescreen transfer. Shameful.

Oddly Enough Miramax New DVD is a waste ! .......2006-11-14

It is still another Pan/Scan transfer of the the US cust from 93 so we still can't see the film in it's 2.35:1 Widescreen transfer. This release was a complet ewaste of time and resources for the company. Maybe in 10 more years we can see it the way it was meant to be seen. for now just You Tube it to see the complete film that is really well put together.

Okay, yeah, I like this movie........2006-08-06

I remember watching this when I was 3 or 4. I'm 14 now, and I still love it. But I actually get the jokes now.

Average customer rating:

ONE THUMB UP ONE THUMB DOWN!
A 1980's version of the Bride of