Epinions Recent Reviews for mgreber

All The Pretty Horses: Film Without A Cause

Thu, 19 Jul 2001 19:15:33 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - When you decide to make a movie out of a popular novel, you are bound to run into some criticism -- is it faithful to the original text? Is it better, or worse, than the source material? The most important question, however, in my opinion, is why...

Proof of Life: The K&R game, and a bit of romance

Wed, 18 Jul 2001 19:33:59 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Proof of Life is what I would call an interesting blender experiment. On one hand, we start with Missing In Action (an awful Chuck Norris film, if that's not redundant) and Let's Get Harry (a solid Mark Harmon vehicle). Then, we...

Vertical Limit: Implausible action and bland acting

Mon, 16 Jul 2001 21:34:22 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Some tasks exist in the world that only a handful of people can perfect. Mastery of the highest levels of martial arts, for instance. The ability to sing in perfect pitch, or to hit a 92 M.P.H. slider over the centerfield wall. The ability to decipher...

Home and Away: Memoir of a Fan: Home and Away: Life as a Sports Fan

Fri, 13 Jul 2001 19:39:51 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - A few weeks ago, I was sitting in the splendor of Pacific Bell Park with three friends, playing hit ball and watching the Giants beat the Padres during a balmy evening on San Francisco Bay. At the same time, Game 1 of the NBA Finals was occurring, and...

Requiem for a Dream: The Perils of Addiction

Fri, 13 Jul 2001 15:13:08 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - It’s pretty rare that a film can make you stand back and shake your head in awe. It’s not that Requiem for a Dream is a perfect film, but it’s one of the more unique pieces of cinema to come along in quite awhile.

Director Darren...

Shrek: Short People Got No Reason To Live

Fri, 13 Jul 2001 15:09:08 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - It was as early as the first scene in Shrek when I began to suspect that I might not be swept off my feet by the film like so many other folks. The film begins, ever so regrettably, to the Smashmouth song “All-Star.” In this and so many ways,...

The Anniversary Party: Could it be this easy to make a brilliant film?

Fri, 29 Jun 2001 19:45:30 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - The Anniversary Party is by any definition, a tremendous accomplishment. The sheer triumph of making a film with numerous "name" Hollywood actors for less than $4 million is jaw-dropping in today's environment. The fact that this film was filmed...

As time goes by, we’ll always have Casablanca

Sat, 23 Jun 2001 18:49:49 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Rick: Who are you really, and what were you before? What did you do, and what did you think, huh?

Ilsa: We said no questions.

Rick: Here’s looking at you, kid.

The other night I was feeling a bit...

Fearless: Heartwarming Tragedy

Wed, 20 Jun 2001 02:08:17 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Fearless begins with Max Klein (Jeff Bridges) walking peacefully through a cornfield, holding a baby in his arms and leading a wide-eyed boy behind him. It soon becomes apparent that Klein and the others have survived a plane crash. In contrast...

Notorious: Hitchcock, Grant and Bergman create a true classic

Sat, 16 Jun 2001 03:40:39 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious is a classic suspense film, one that essentially serves as a primer for scores of directors and writers to copy in subsequent decades. With classic performances from Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman and Claude Rains, and...

The Filth and The Fury: From Antichrist to Anarchist

Sat, 16 Jun 2001 03:32:33 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Whether you like them, loathe them or have no opinion about their music, it’s hard to argue that The Sex Pistols are one of the most influential bands in the last 25 years. This is even more impressive when one realizes that the band was only together...

Barefoot In The Park: The Light Romantic Comedy Primer

Tue, 12 Jun 2001 21:23:40 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Paul Bratter (Robert Redford) has just gotten married to Corie (Jane Fonda). We meet them on the day of their wedding, taking a horse-drawn carriage to the Plaza, where they shack up for six days, without leaving the room. We instantly can tell two...

Swordfish: Above average fodder for the cheap and shallow…like me.

Sun, 10 Jun 2001 04:08:53 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - It takes a somewhat brave film to start with a discussion of the crap that Hollywood churns out, especially a film that never pretends to be intelligent or particularly original. Given that the person uttering these lines is John Travolta, who hasn’t...

The Eyes of Tammy Faye: Go watch a real train wreck instead.

Wed, 6 Jun 2001 02:19:15 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - The first clue you get in the “documentary” The Eyes of Tammy Faye that this might not be the hard-hitting analysis of the fall of the Bakker’s is that it is narrated by Ru Paul Charles. Yes, that Ru Paul. The second clue is the way the...

Lawrence of Arabia: An "epic" in all the right ways

Tue, 5 Jun 2001 01:45:11 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - When you consider yourself a movie buff, or at least a movie fan (I’m not really sure exactly what constitutes a “buff” in these terms, and I’d rather not go farther with this sentence), there are always a few omissions you feel strongly about...

Mission to Mars: Bad, Brian De Palma! Bad!

Sat, 2 Jun 2001 03:02:46 GMT

rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Hi there. My name is Brian De Palma. You may know me from some of the movies I’ve directed. I’d prefer that you think of me in terms of my successes: The Untouchables, Scarface, Carlito’s Way, to name a few. Remember Carrie, with Sissy...

American Graffiti: Not just "Happy Days: The Movie!"

Tue, 29 May 2001 19:04:46 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - The tagline for American Graffiti is "Where were you in '62?" It's meant to evoke nostalgia in its target audience, mainly those in the same age group as George Lucas. This is the generation that graduated from high school in the late fifties...

The Perfect Storm: Perfection in Bad Screenwriting

Wed, 2 May 2001 02:36:57 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - On the list of books I’ve enjoyed that I thought had no chance of successful film adaptation, The Perfect Storm ranked right near the top. It’s a story that sets out with the knowledge of a sad ending, and worse yet, the majority of the film is...

Billy Elliot: Dancing in a Town Called Malice

Wed, 2 May 2001 02:31:19 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Liking Billy Elliot was the last thing I wanted to do. (Okay, in the interest of full disclosure, the actual last thing I really want to do is to sit in a locked room with Carol Channing, Gilbert Godfried and Tom Green, while...

Kurt and Courtney: Smells Like The Worst Kind of Journalism...

Sat, 21 Apr 2001 04:56:43 GMT
rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - If Kurt and Courtney was anything but a documentary, it might be decent entertainment. There’s certainly some memorable characters:

1. The ambitious girl, making notes for herself as a child to “be friends with Michael Stipe,” and...

This Is The Story of Bonnie and Clyde

Tue, 17 Apr 2001 03:09:01 GMT
rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - There are a lot of “classic” films out there that turn out to be utter disappointments. Sometimes it’s due to the culture changing to where the concept is no longer shocking or funny (see: Some Like It Hot) or the acting style now seems overblown...

Almost Famous: Count The Headlights On The Highway (or Hold Me Closer, Tony Danza)

Tue, 10 Apr 2001 21:40:54 GMT
rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - In 1973, I was five years old, so a film about the rock scene of that year shouldn't evoke nostalgic sentiment with me, and yet it does. I've never been backstage at a concert, never gotten on a tour bus, and never known the conflict a critic has...

Meet The Parents? Um, no thanks...I'll pass.

Sun, 25 Mar 2001 00:06:19 GMT
rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - Although I’m a huge movie fan, I readily admit that my fondness comes with a wide brush – I enjoy all sorts of movies, one who enjoys Die Hard as much as Cinema Paradiso. While the prior analogy might be a bit of a stretch, my point is...

The Contender: Leaving a Legacy Is Tricky Business

Wed, 14 Mar 2001 03:53:46 GMT
rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - The Contender makes no bones about its aspirations – inspired by the great political films of the 1970’s like All The President’s Men and The Candidate (the latter of which I admittedly haven’t seen), director and writer Rod Lurie...

Bring It On: When bare mid-riffs go bad.

Wed, 28 Feb 2001 05:13:41 GMT
rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author mgreber - They say that that which doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. After watching Bring It On!, I am pretty confident that I could bench press the White House. For a film with such promise (good material, hot chicks), it fails in almost every...