Colin Farrell in "S.W.A.T"
courtesy of Columbia Home Entertainment
"S.W.A.T.: A Perfect Rental"

VHS tapes and DVD's were created for movies that you want to keep forever, or rentals that are not deserving of a full movie price admission. "S.W.A.T." falls in the latter category. It is a movie you want to see but you don't want to spend the big bucks on it.

The movie is a remake of the TV show of years gone by which starred Robert Urich and Steve Forrest. Now their roles are taken by Colin Farrell and Samuel L. Jackson. Both are okay in these new roles but don't fit them as well as the parts did the originals.

Farrell is once again the bad boy of the team. This seems to go along with his off-screen persona and makes him even more believable than he acts. Jackson is the cool head who organizes the S.W.A.T. team and also gets LL Cool J and Michelle Rodriguez' characters to come along for the ride.

The movie is full of explosions, car chases, and crashes. It even has a really nasty villain played by Olivier Martinez. This is what makes the movie worth watching - as a rental. It ain't great moviemaking but it is fun.

One of the strangest movies you are likely to see this year, or maybe any other year, is "Northfork." This movie is straight out of David Lynch country and concerns things that may be real or are only imagined.

The time is 1955 and a Montana town is being evacuated because a dam is going to be built which will put the area underwater. A group of "evacuators" comes to the community and most of the people agree to move on, but some hard shell people refuse. The film is a slow look at various people involved in the situation.

Nick Nolte, James Woods, Claire Forlani and Daryl Hannah are a few of the actors seen in the film. You will recognize a variety of others who appear in small parts. The story unfolds in a tedious and confusing manner but yet it is fascinating in a strange sense. This is one of those movies you have to see to believe. And even after you have seen it, you probably won't believe it or understand it - or both.

Jeffrey Combs returns to his role as Dr. Herbert West in the follow-up to the cult film "The Re-Animator." This sequel is called "Beyond Re-Animator" and goes on with more gore and horror. The story concerns West's abilities to make dead bodies live again, I think. I got a little confused in "the plot" but do know the film has a pretty high gore count.

Probably the only people interested in this movie are those who were fans of the original. If so, have at it and enjoy yourselves.

Another sequel out this week is "Leprechaun: Back 2 Tha Hood." Once again Warwick Davies plays the angry leprechaun and those who cross him end up with a lot of trouble.

There are people who love this series, I think this is number 6, and would watch anything with "Leprechaun" in the title. So for those of you who want more "Leprechaun," here it is.

If you like martial arts movies then you want to get "So Close." This is an Asian film that has women in the top roles as the bad guys and the good guys. And they are all beautiful. So what's not to like except that it isn't in English and you don't know any of the stars.

Still for fun and excitement you could do worse than "So Close."

Believe it or not, there is a new Steven Seagal movie out in video stores. It is titled "Belly of the Beast" and it is Seagal's best effort in ages. He looks slimmer and trimmer and he has a lot of enthusiasm for his role as a CIA agent searching for his kidnapped daughter.

Steven Seagal and Jean Claude Van Damme have both fallen on hard times with their movies, but this one should give Seagal fans something to cheer about. It is entertaining and exciting, two adjectives which have been missing from his last couple of efforts.

And finally for the kids there is "Bob the Builder: Tool Power." This is a forty-five minute trip into the world of Bob and his friends. Teamwork is the key word and the kids will have a ball watching the adventures.

"Bob the Builder" is a popular character and you will want this new set of stories for your young ones.

 

 

 

 

 

©2004 Jackie K. Cooper

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