Grab a snack, pull up a chair, make yourself
comfortable and welcome to "Deja Review." My
husband, Joel, gets credit for the title. He says it
fits because I am
reviewing movies that have already been reviewed when
they were
initially released to the theaters.
The ratings:
- One of the top few films of this or any year, see
it for sure
- Excellent movie, I recommend it
- Average show, its likeable
- Poor movie, pass it by
0 - One of the worst films of this or any year, don't
bother to see it
Sling Blade
Billy Bob Thornton wrote, directed, and stars in this
sometimes long and
slow-moving film as Karl, a retarded man who is
released from a state
hospital, after 25 years, for killing his mother and her
lover. He returns
to his hometown and befriends a young boy, Frank.
Problems start to
build when he learns that Frank and his mother, Linda,
are being abused
by her boyfriend.
I was very impressed with the acting. Thornton was
brilliant and very
believable as the simple yet very complex Karl, and
deserved the oscar
nomination. I am a country music fan and I am
embarrassed to say that
I didn't recognize Dwight Yoakam as Doyle, the abusive
boyfriend. John
Ritter was surprizing good as Vaughn, Linda's gay
friend (check out the
haircut!). Lucas Black, who played Frank, is a
fourteen-year-old with a
bright future. (And for those of you who may've been
fans of the short-lived TV show "American Gothic," Lucas Black played the role of Calib
against Gary Cole's evil role as the devilish Sheriff Lucas Buck.)
What I really liked about this film was that it not
only entertained me
but it made me think and feel. Yes, I recommend this
one.
Citizen Ruth
Citizen Ruth
is a comedy about Ruth Stoops, a
poor, pathetic, paint-sniffing junkie.
And on top of it all she's pregnant
(did I say
comedy?). Ruth, played by Laura Dern, becomes the prize
in a tug-of-war
between the fanatical "Baby Savers" and the pro-choice
zealots, each
offering her $15,000 to see things their way. All Ruth
ever wants to do
is be alone with her Walkman and paper bag full of
paint fumes.
Also starring Swoosie Kurtz and Burt Reynolds, it's an
entertaining film
for people on either side of the fence.
Ladybird Ladybird
You'll have to look hard to find this film, and when
you do, you'll
find that it is a hard film to look at. Ladybird
Ladybird is a
shocking, true story of the underprivileged in present-day England. It
follows the life of Maggie Conlon. When we meet Maggie,
played
terrifically by Crissy Rock, she is a single mother of
four who drifts
from one abusive relationship to another. Deemed an
unfit mother, social
services repeatedly takes her children away. Even when
she meets a good
man, her problems are not over.
Keep the tissues near by. I tearfully recommend it.
Secrets and Lies
Secrets and Lies, staring Brenda Blethyn and Marianne
Jean-Baptiste, is
a touching story about roots and identity: the reunion of
an adopted
daughter (now 27 years old) with her birth mother, half
sister and
extended family. The director spends more time on
character
development than on plot, but this, in turn, helps him to
create very
interesting family members within a very entertaining
film.
It's a British film heavy with regional accents, some actors
easier to
understand than others. (Don't worry, it gets easier as the
film goes
along.) Nominated for several Academy Awards, it's a winner
in my book.
