Alison Pill and Lindsay Lohan in
"Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen"
courtesy of Disney Home Entertainment
"The Teen Queen Of Comedy"

Lindsay Lohan has emerged as the queen of teen comedies. She first came on the scene in the Disney remake of "The Parent Trap." That was followed by the remake of "Freaky Friday" where she really came into her own. Now she can be seen on video/DVD in "Confessions of A Teenage Drama Queen."

In this film she is the star and carries the entire film on her young shoulders. But the role of an overly dramatic and ambitious teenager is perfect for her. She also is a gifted comic who knows just how to go for the laughs.

In the film she is a girl from New York City who gets transferred to New Jersey. She has to try to fit into a high school that doesn't understand her at all. But through wit and wisdom she survives. 

Meg Ryan was barely out of her teens when she started her career. At first she made a career out of playing light-headed and fluffy women. Now she is on video in "Against the Ropes."

This movie is based on the actual life of Jackie Kallen, a boxing promoter. This role requires Meg to be tough and feminine at the same time as Kallen goes about lining up bouts for her fighter (Omar Epps). The boxing profession is a good ole boy syndicate and Kallen has her work cut out for her.

The best parts of the movie are the scenes with Ryan and Epps. They have good chemistry. Charles S Dutton also adds spirit to the film as the trainer Kallen hires. Dutton also directed the movie.

"Against the Ropes" is an okay rental but not a highlight of Meg's career.

Phillip Roth's novel "The Human Stain" has been made into a film with actors of the highest pedigree. Nicole Kidman, Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris and Gary Sinise star in this controversial story about a professor with a long hidden secret. The storyline is good and the acting is good, but these actors are not good for the storyline.

Hopkins plays the professor with a secret and Kidman is the cleaning woman he becomes involved with after his wife dies. If ever two people were miscast in their roles, these two are it. And this miscasting makes the movie less than it should be.

You will probably still want to rent it because all of these actors are so compelling, but be prepared to be disappointed.

For the past two years Ben Affleck and Matt Damon have been involved in "Project Greenlight." This is a competition whereby a screenplay is selected and a film is made. The entire process is shown on HBO and the final product is shown in theaters.

"Project Greenlight, the 2nd Season" is in stores now and it is a collection of all thirteen episodes of "Project Greenlight" plus the full film "The Battle of Shaker Heights." On the DVD there are some extra specialties such as a behind the scenes commentary on the movie and the making of the movie.

The film itself wasn't a big hit but the HBO show concerning the problems behind the scenes was a must for film students. Now you can see it all together and all at once. It is a look inside Hollywood that you don't often get to see.

"Broken Wings" is a heart-breaking film which stars Orly Zilbertshaz-Banai as a young woman forced to care for her two younger siblings as well as her own two children when her husband dies. The family learns that life can be tough but the strong do survive.

The movie is in Hebrew with subtitles, but the beauty and power of the story overcomes that inconvenience. This is a movie for movie lovers and is well worth the time to watch it.

For some reason I am still a Steven Seagal fan. Most of his movies now go straight to video but I always catch them there. His newest is "Out of Reach" in which he plays a man battling the mob in a human trafficking scheme.

Seagal is always a cool actor to watch. Plus his movies always have interesting storylines. This one does and he is solid in it.

Okay, so most of you aren't enthused. Well just keep the name in mind in case you run out of something to watch. It's "Out of Reach" and it is Seagal's newest movie/video.

 

 

 

 

 

©2004 Jackie K. Cooper

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