This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
Joseph L. Mankiewicz's "Cleopatra" was a massive box-office failure when it was released. It is a typical embodiment of Hollywood, at that time, producing grand-scale, grandiose "historical epics" that white-washed so many of the stories it portrayed -- i.e. biblical movies, this film, et al. Caucasian actors speaking with American and British accents playing Middle Eastern, Egyptian, and so on characters. It seems pretty silly. But darn it, the movies are all so ENTERTAINING. "Cleopatra" is certainly no exception. It's epic, visually stunning, brilliantly designed entertainment. And Liz is her usual commanding self as the queen. The role was tailor-made for her. And the movie is certainly very, very long -- a major test of patience for anyone with short attention spans or who gets fidgety easily. But it's just such an excellent movie.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
Original & Still the Best - A Furry, Funny Classic
on December 15, 2019
Posted by: Arcadiadreamer
Verified Purchase:Yes
I could write a long essay or op-ed on how deeply and dearly I still love "The Muppet Movie". There are too many heartfelt things I can say about it -- too many to describe here. But I suspect almost anyone anywhere has seen the movie. It is -- quite simply -- charming, hilarious, clever, delightful, nostalgic fun for the whole family. Kids will appreciate it for the characters and the hilarious moments; adults will be able to catch the somewhat subversive jokes that would fly over a child's head. Kermit and the gang are old friends we can all delight in seeing anytime in entertainment, but "The Muppet Movie" is the original and still the very, very best of all their big-screen and small-screen feature-length adventures. A genuine classic.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
Clint Eastwood's "Unforgiven" is my number-one favorite film of all time. It's a film-poem of exquisite beauty, depth, and meaning along many morality themes. Like a good number of his latter-day films, it concerns an older man looking back on a life with regrets. And while he's had some underwhelming missteps as a director since then, he's first and foremost a cinematic artist and craftsman of genius talent. I'd place this film, "The Mule", in roughly that same category of films he masters so easily. A man who has made choices that have caused him to fail his wife and daughter. But he's trying to make amends somehow, even though the way he ends up doing it is yet another misstep, albeit a well-intentioned misstep. This is one of Clint's best, and another favorite for me.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
I've been one of the maybe thousands of DC fans who've been extremely disappointed in how they've handled (or mishandled) the rollout of their DC Universe of movies. The worst offense of all is that they, for some reason, gave hack Zack Snyder the keys to the kingdom. His "vision" (if he's solely responsible) made a nauseating, revolting, offensive, grim, sloppy, narratively stupid, unwatchable mess of the cinematic versions of our heroes. So, I was overjoyed when "Wonder Woman" was rightfully directed by Patty Jenkins and was a witty, thrilling, emotional, heroic, fun epic. And I can say the same thing about "Shazam!". It's all of those qualities I just described about "Wonder Woman". It's a family-friendly movie (with the usual PG-13 elements), and at the center is a hero we can maybe all relate to and root for. It has a heart-warming theme about family and finding a place to belong. This one's a real winner.
Poltergeist II - One of the more effectively spooky and financially successful horror films of the '80s got an inevitable sequel with this effects-heavy installment. The Freeling family is trying to grapple with the devastation wrought by the ghosts and ghouls that destroyed their lives. The insurance company doesn't believe their story about what happened to their house, so Steve (Craig T. Nelson), Diane (JoBeth Williams), and their kids, Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke) and Robbie (Oliver Robins), have been reduced to living in the home of Diane's mother, Jess (Geraldine Fitzgerald). Unfortunately for the Freelings, however, their new residence, just like their last, is situated on a haunted patch of unholy ground. Poltergeist III - Evil spirits follow a young girl from the suburbs to the city in the third installment to the blockbuster horror series, Poltergeist. Carol Anne Freeling (Heather O'Rourke) is now 12 years old and living with Patricia and Bruce Gardner (Nancy Allen and Tom Skerritt), her aunt and uncle, in a high-rise apartment building in downtown Chicago. Carol Anne attends a school for gifted children, where the staff psychologist Dr. Seaton (Richard Fine) attributes her past troubles with noisy ghosts to mass delusions and hypnotic suggestions. However, Carol Anne isn't so sure that the explanation is that simple, especially since she still sees threatening apparitions in the mirrors of her apartment.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
When I saw "Poltergeist II: The Other Side" in theatres in 1985, I imagine I may have been one of the few moviegoers who thought it was vastly superior to, and scarier than, the first film. Without the heavy Spielberg influence, the writers and director must've been free to go for the throat and make "The Other Side" a more interesting film. I still love it.
On the other hand, "Poltergeist III," the other movie in this two-film bundle DVD, is an unwatchable, boring mess. Not recommended at all.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
I saw "Empire Records" back in the '90s when it first came out on home video, and I loved it. It's a true cult classic! And, wow, what an amazing soundtrack! With young actors who were on the threshold of fame, with the always-enjoyable Anthony LaPaglia as their hip boss, with a clever script, and with that jaw-dropping and awesome record store (something all of us vinyl lovers sorely miss nowadays), "Empire Records" is a blast of a flick. From director Allan Moyle, who also helmed the equally classic "Pump Up the Volume."
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
John Carpenter's "Christine" is a fun film. It's not Carpenter's best film by a long shot, and in many ways he might've been the wrong director for it. Back in the day, I didn't think it was very good. But with the passage of time, it has grown on me with a seductive, creeping allure, to the point that I'm now happy to own it on Blu-ray. Christine may have a gorgeous body, but at heart she's a cold and evil killer. I'd hate to meet her in a dark alley! An entertaining film.
Ridley Scott returns to the universe he created, with ALIEN COVENANT, a new chapter in his groundbreaking ALIEN franchise. The crew of the colony ship Covenant, bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world. When they uncover a threat beyond their imagination, they must attempt a harrowing escape.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
As a longtime devotee of director Ridley Scott, I'd been thrilled that he was returning to the "Alien" universe with "Prometheus," and was even more excited that he was heading back out into the galaxy with "Alien: Covenant." But I was terribly disappointed with "Covenant." It's lacking in true, genuine terror and thrills. There are few well-known actors in the film to hold my attention, and the strange lark of having James Franco play a cameo role was jarring and seemed unnecessary. With John Logan aboard to write the script, I had higher hopes. But aside from a few gripping scenes, the film was ultimately unengaging and lifeless. But of course, being a Ridley Scott film it's shot beautifully and has impeccable production design. Just not that interesting overall.
This reviewer is a member of the Best Buy Tech Insider Network Program. This invitation-only program provides BestBuy.com reviewers with manufacturer-supplied products for the purpose of writing honest, unbiased and usage-based reviews. Outside of receiving products to test and review, Best Buy Tech Insider Network Reviewers are not compensated in any other way.
I always loved Winnie the Pooh when I was a child. In many ways, he was my best friend. I have many fond memories of dragging around my stuffed Pooh bear. And I have even greater fond memories of seeing "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" when I was very small. I hadn't seen it in years, and I confess as a now 48-year-old adult I longed to revisit it with wistful nostalgia. It holds up just as beautifully now, with its heart-tugging sweetness and humor. There's a pleasure in this film that can rarely be found in any of Disney's current-day computer-animated movies.