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Nicholas Cage and Alison Lohman in "Matchstick
Men"
courtesy of Warner Home Video
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"Nicholas Cage Meets His Match"
In "Matchstick Men" Nicholas Cage is Roy Waller, a con artist with phobias. He and his partner Frank (Sam Rockwell) have a lucrative scam business going but Roy is still not happy. His life takes a turn upward when his daughter Angela (Alison Lohman) enters his life. She is someone he never knew existed.
The movie has a lot of twists and turns and is overall enjoyable. Cage is very good in his role but Lohman is even better. She is an amazing actress and does a great job of playing a young teenager. In her scenes with Cage she is every bit as talented as he.
Remember when Meg Ryan was America's Sweetheart? Well it seems those days are gone with the wind. Nowadays Meg is interested in trying new things in her career, and none of them are working. Ms Ryan can currently be seen in theaters in "Against the Ropes" whereby she portrays sexy and smart Jackie Kallen. The movie has been a major flop.
On video Meg can be seen in "In the Cut," a sexy, psychological thriller directed by Jane "The Piano" Campion. In it Meg plays a schoolteacher who gets involved with a policeman (Mark Rufalo), who she later comes to think might be a murderer.
In this film Meg has a fairly explicit nude scene and is not the slightly fluffy actress we have known and loved in the past. The movie is dark and murky - and ultimately not very good. It is a valid effort by Meg to change her image but she needed to find a better vehicle with which to do it.
If you like sci-fi adventures you might want to check out "Returner." This is one of those "Terminator" type movies in which a person from the future comes back to the present in order to change history. The "good guys" in the future are in danger of dying if the fate of the world is not changed.
This is a Japanese film with subtitles, and it does copy from several different movies. Still it is a fun film to watch and time travel always make for an interesting plot.
If you have to have a dose of "Scooby Doo" adventures before the new real life version hits theaters, then pick up "What's New Scooby Doo? Volume 2." This is another collection of four episodes of the cartoon hit and has all the fun you expect from Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Daphne and Velma.
There is something about these characters that fascinate kids and adults alike. Maybe it is because at heart they really are funny. So join the fun and watch "What's New Scooby Doo? Volume 2" with your kids, or alone if need be. You are assured a lot of fun.
Another classic is out on DVD and available for your viewing. It is "The Damned" and it is terrific. This is the 1969 Luchino Visconti film about one German family's downfall prior to the days of World War II.
Charlotte Rampling, Helmut Berger and Dirk Bogarde head the cast and they are all at their best. They help keep the focus on this intense, dramatic story of love, passion and betrayal.
Robert Carlyle heads the cast in "Once upon A Time in the Midlands." This is the story of a man who sees his ex-wife turn down a marriage proposal on national TV. This inspires him to return to his hometown and try to win her back so he can be a family man again with her and his daughter. But thing are not that easy and the road to winning her back may be almost impossible with all the opposition he has going against him.
The film is titled "Once Upon A time In the Midlands" because it is patterned after the spaghetti westerns like "Once Upon A Time In the West." This film takes place in the Midlands of England.
Finally we have another classic film and this one is "A Death In Venice" which is based on a novel by Thomas Mann. Dirk Bogarde stars in the film as a composer who goes on vacation to Venice. He seeks rest but doesn't find it because his life is made more complicated by his attraction to a young man on vacation there too.
The film is a lyrical one with very symbolic occurrences helping frame the story. It becomes a morality play of sorts, and focuses on the struggles all men have to do what is right. |
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©2004 Jackie K. Cooper |
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