THE IRON LADY: TIN FOIL FLICK

For a film called THE IRON LADY this movie was felt more like it was formed from Reynold's wrap. But what else would you expect in a movie made about a Conservative woman by a group of Liberal die hards? Its difficult not to bring politics into a film of this nature since the centerpiece is a politician. But when all that's offered is a one sided description how can you not?

For those who are confused while watching a film that jumps back and forth in time then stop reading and forget this movie. It does that from start to finish and not very well. The object of the movie, the Iron Lady in question, is ex-British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, portrayed here by Meryl Streep in an Oscar winning performance. Just another example of why the Oscars mean so little these days.

The film opens with Thatcher in her later years post PM status and after the death of her beloved husband Dennis (Jim Broadbent). At this time Thatcher was dealing with the impending onset of Alzheimer's as well as the loss of the man she so desperately cared for. We watch as she attempts to force herself to part with those things left behind, clothes and the like. And while she does, so various items and things around her home lead her to remember her past.

We get glimpses of young Margaret as she works in her father's store while the other girls walk past. We she her listening and being influenced by her father's speeches to the locals touting the value of a solid business front not willing to cower to the Nazis as they attempt to bomb the country and force the people into hiding. These are the ideas that formed the basis for her beliefs but they are given short time here.

Flash forward as Margaret deals with her daughter or perhaps the other way round. We see her getting ready for a dinner with friends where her opinions are asked but she seems buried in the past and her guests seem more embarrassed than pleased to hear her views. Her daughter acts the same.

Back in time we see how Margaret meets Dennis but not how they fell in love. Margaret decides to take on the establishment and become a female member of Parliament. Her struggles in the face of chauvinism can be seen here with a touch of the problems she faced but more in focus as to the differences in clothing choices, a bright blue dress among a sea of black suits.  Then back to her slow slide into dementia.

The important historic moments in Thatcher's life are touched on but very lightly. Incidents like the Falkland War and the miner's strike feel like they are mentioned without any depth to them. Other items like the Iran hostage situation are ignored completely. With the amount of story involved in Thatcher's life I was left wondering why the film makers here decided that her illness seemed the most interesting part of her life instead of those more interesting historical moments. Then again when thinking about Hollywood's depiction of Conservative figures I recalled the attempt to make Ronald Reagan look senile and mentally ill as well. The friendship between Reagan and Thatcher is barely touched on in this film.

Streep won the Oscar for best actress for her performance here. I am at a loss as to understand why with the exception of the fact that she is Hollywood royalty and is nominated for anything she does these days. I saw little acting here and more impersonation. If that's all it takes to win an Oscar then Rich Little should have had an entire shelf lined with the trophies. I will admit that I've never been a Streep fan up front but this movie did little to change my mind.

It would be nice if folks in Hollywood would take a historical topic and present the facts untarnished by their own viewpoints when making the film. I have little doubt that there were bad things about Thatcher but there were good as well. A movie that would choose to present both sides and let the viewer decide would have been interesting. This movie did little but make you wonder how she stayed PM for 11 years. Then again the movie also made you wonder about her sanity the longer you watched.

To capture an entire life in 105 minutes is difficult at best. To present it accurately and fairly even more so. Some may watch this film and think they've learned about Margaret Thatcher. It only made me want to look deeper into her life as this felt more like fluff than biographical film. The only good thing this movie presented was the love and adoration Thatcher felt for her husband. Even a story revolving solely around that would have made a better film.

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LIMELIGHT: THE DISCO DON

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed the self-absorbed attitude taken by folks who live in the New York hoi paloi? For some reason these people seem to think that if they're interested in something then everyone else is interested in the same thing, or that they should be. Perhaps this explains why they seem interested in a fashion or idea that never catches on until several years later at which time they think it has passed. High profile dance clubs was one such creature and LIMELIGHT, a documentary covering the life of New York club owner Peter Gatien, tells us much about that world of the past.

Gatien was a Canadian who had an idea, the desire to build the ultimate club in New York City. Long past the days when disco ruled in clubs like 54, Gatien wanted to make something special and achieved his dream when he built clubs like Limelight, The Tunnel and Palladium. Each had its own decor, style and theme and each was popular with various crowds. The clubs became THE place to be seen by various celebrities and in turn created a few of their own.

But the clubs came tumbling down when it came to what went on behind the scenes. While Gatien wanted to create a place for people to hang, for people to enjoy themselves and to ultimately make money in the process, to do so meant including others. When you toss that many people into the mix something is bound to go wrong. As the film describes various people involved in Gatien's clubs were involved in many things from drug dealing to murder and their contributions with these things led the collapse of those same clubs.

While this was going on there was also a change in the world of New York City. Where the world on NYC was filled with drugs and crime and what many would consider socially unacceptable behavior, those in charge changed. Along comes a district attorney by the name of Rudolph Guliani who decides it's time to clean up New York. Times Square changed with the downfall of porn houses, pimps and prostitutes and the recreation of the area into a world filled with family oriented businesses. Included in this clean up were the clubs of Gatien, clubs filled with hedonistic leaning people who wanted to do what they wanted without consequence.

These two items combined to bring down the fall of the clubs and of Gatien. As the documentary unfolds you get the impression that Gatien wanted nothing more than to offer a place for club goers to gather while making a profit at the same time. For one man to control this entire empire would be impossible. The choices Gatien made in those who helped run things was his mistake. It was these people that chose to do things that would harm more than help his clubs.

 The film combines documented footage and stills from the clubs, news footage and interviews with those who were there to make an interesting film. It does so not using just those who were involved in the club side of things but government officials who helped lead to the closings of the clubs as well. Best of all it includes interviews with Gatien himself.

When you walk away from this film you won't consider Gatien the devil that he may have been portrayed as by those who prosecuted him. You won't consider him a saint either. You will have a behind the scenes look at what it takes to not only create a business but to keep it in check as well. This movie doesn't offer any clear cut bad guys. It does show the world as it really is.

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MERCENARIES: WHY DIRECT TO DVD GETS A BAD REP

There are tons of movies that are shipped out direct to DVD. Some of them are decent films and on occasion you get one where you wonder what folks in Hollywood were thinking when they release some piece of crap and yet release a great movie direct to DVD. And there are movies like MERCENARIES which make you forget about why direct to DVD but how did this movie ever get made to begin with?

The story is fairly simple. The US has an ambassador in the Balkans who's been captured by a ruthless general starting a coup of the country. They need to send in a team to rescue him but if it's an American team the political fall out will be disastrous. Instead, they decide to send in a team of mercenaries.

The team consists of several ex-military types led by Andy Marlow. And this is where things begin to go all wrong. First off the team looks like their uniforms were just purchased from the factory. Even outfits bought at army surplus stores look more worn than these do. Nicely creased, not a speck of dirt and it remains that way through most of the picture. The second thing is that there is no discipline among this team. While Andy is the man in charge, when a group of civilians are about to be killed the entire team ignores his plea to stick to the mission to help them. Mercs as depicted in most films follow orders, stick to plans and get the job done. Here they do what they want, make as much noise as possible while attempting to avoid detection and don't do one thing that would keep the enemy from knowing exactly where they are.

As members of the team are knocked off one at a time, they do rescue the ambassador and his lovely assistant who seems as familiar with weapons as the mercs are. Good thing since their numbers dwindle with each passing minute.

I'd love to say this film had some redeeming quality to it but there isn't a thing that I liked about it. The acting was amateurish at best, the script was terrible and the story lame. Then to cap it off the sets were amazingly bad. The movie looks like it was filmed in some Appalachian forest reserve rather than the Balkans.

Forget whether this movie is worth adding to your collection it's not even worth a rental no matter how low the price. As a matter of fact it's not worth wasting your time to watch if it was free. Pass this one by.

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MOTHER'S DAY: ANOTHER MESSED UP REMAKE

When I first saw the original MOTHER'S DAY back in the eighties I was conflicted. I found it to be disturbing, vulgar, and gross and yet original and a low budget film that you found yourself forced to watch through to the end and remembering. The remake of that film has none of those attributes.

This time around we start with a group of friends christening the new house a young couple has bought. It's obvious that the woman in question isn't quite sure how she feels, but we have no idea why yet. The oddest thing about this gathering is how different each couple seems; as if there is no way that these couples would be friends in real life.

The second half of the story revolves around a trio of bank robbers, one of which has been badly wounded during their last heist. Unsure of where to go to escape the net the police have cast to catch them as well as an upcoming hurricane, they head to the safest place they know, their mother's house. The problem is that the house was foreclosed on months before and they haven't kept in touch with their mother to know this.

After walking into the house, they confront the couples there and recruit one, who happens to be a doctor, to take care of their brother. Only then do they call their mother on an unsecured line to find out what happened. While waiting for her arrival, they try to figure out to do. The most volatile of the bunch terrorizes the couples in the basement while the smart on attempts to make a plan.

Mother shows with their sister in a motor home, their new place to live. It turns out that the special phone she gave them was lost a while back which is why they had no idea what happened. She tries to calm down the couples in the basement and reprimands her boys for their behavior. She seems to be the calm one of the family.

But that changes. When they tell her they've been sending her money to this location, she begins asking the new home owners what they did with the money. Both tell her that they never received any packages but she doesn't believe them. She sends the oldest boy out with the woman of the house along with the debit cards of each person there to get money. To escape the country they'll need $10,000. While they're gone, she tries to find the answers as to where the money went.

As the story unfolds, the couples begin to turn on each other. Some want to make an attempt to escape, others want to take on the bad guys while a third group just wants to play along with whatever they want. Degradation and torture follow (not nearly as has happened in worse films of this sort) and solutions aren't forthcoming. Just who will survive the night remains to be seen.

If you've seen the original film you'll notice tons of changes, the setting being the first. Gone are the two redneck killers from the original to be replaced with three bank robbers. Mother isn't an elderly woman being replaced here by Rebecca DeMornay. Hurricane? Where did that come from? Stolen money? Couples?

The original film, though brutal for the time, focused on three friends camping who are captured by two redneck brothers who are encouraged by their mother. It was a story of survival. It took place in the deep back woods in rural America. The only thing this film has in common with the original is death by Drano and an impaled crotch.

I have yet to understand why folks who love a film feel the need to revamp it to make it something different. If you loved it, why change it so much? Then again the real reason is easy. It's easy to cash in or get financing when you have a known commodity to help draw people into a theater or to purchase a movie. Unfortunately to date no remake has lived up to the original and this film is proof of that. Which is saying a lot since the original was one of the first films brought to you by the folks at Troma, a company that makes a point of miniscule budgets and plenty of over the top gore. Don't bother with the remake and seek out the original if you're looking for a real horror film. This one only hopes you won't know what the first one was like.

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SHAME: AN APT TITLE

Perhaps I've grown a bit jaded over the years. At 54 years old I've seen all sorts of movies. I've seen everything from low budget movies that were impressive to high budget movies that were terrible and the other way round. I've seen movies that were supposed to be great that I hated and movies that were supposed to be terrible that I loved. I've seen movies that were supposed to be high brow dramas that I agreed with. And then I've seen movies like this one that had all the trappings of high brow intellectual crap that critics love to meander over that in truth were nothing less than boring.

Michael Fassbender stars as Brandon, a young executive on the rise. Things seem to be going well for him professionally but personally not much so. Brandon is a character lacking something in his life. For the most part he has little if no love life going for him. At the same time, his sex life is exploding. Brandon is a sex addict of sorts. If he's not paying some high priced call girl for her time, he's surfing sex sites online or having sex conversations there as well. Personally his life is a mess.

If this weren't bad enough, Brandon's sister enters his life as well. Sissy is another totally messed up individual. Having been through many men in the hopes of finding the right one, she always seems to pick the losers. After a recent split she asks if she can stay at his place for a while. He relents and she invites him to see her perform at a local club. He finds it hard to believe she's found work but is stunned when she does well.

So now you have the set up of the story. And honestly it doesn't go much further than this. Each character's interaction with each other and Brandon's interaction with a woman he is attracted to despite his emotional problems make for the gist of the film. Long conversations that lead no where, revelations that aren't surprising and the lack of a character to feel sorry for, to sympathize with, make this one long boring film.

As I said earlier, there are films that critics love to praise with pseudo-intellectual clap trap, discussing the symbolism of what the director intended or how the actors were able to display intensity with a subtle nuance. More often than not when I've read reviews like this it tells me the critic was more interested in appearing to be in touch with the art crowd than writing an honest review that said either this is crap or I didn't get what the point was here.

For me with the amount of movies out there to watch, with the good, the bad and the ugly available either via Netflix, Redbox or the local store, I don't understand why anyone would waste time with something like this. To me it felt like time wasted that I can never recover. With the cost of a movie ticket or to purchase a DVD one has to wonder why anyone would consider something like this to be worth the amount of money they expect us to pay for it. Then again there are so many pretentious people in the world who want to make it seem as if they are so far above the fray that I'm sure this movie will at least make it's money back and cause another investor to put money into more films like it. So sad.

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STAR TREK-THE NEXT GENERATION: THE NEXT LEVEL

Fans of Star Trek are well known. They are devoted to the ideas professed by creator Gene Rodenberry that began with the original series and then carried over into every other incarnation. It was the idea that man would find peace with his fellow man, that people would accept one another for who they were, how they looked and that the boundaries of borders would no longer matter. It was a story of hope; hope that mankind would seek to find new worlds and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before.

The original series was short lived but the fans were not. So much so that they original cast came back to star in multiple films that gathered big box office. So much for what Nielsen ratings could tell. That series has found its way to homes via DVD and later blu-ray. The blu-ray editions are amazing featuring cleaned up prints with enhanced special effects. Now the same thing will happen to the second series, STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION. But before they release that they wanted to give fans a taste of what to expect thus this new release.

THE NEXT LEVEL offers three episodes of the series that went on to last longer than the original. They've chosen three episodes that are considered to be among the best with the hopes that once they are viewed here, people will be more than willing to collect the series itself when released. Again we're presented with the cleanest possible prints available as well as enhanced special effects. These are not replacing the original effects but cleaning them up and making them the best technologically they can be.

The first episode here is "Encounter at Far Point", the first episode of the new series that introduces the new cast as well as a recurring character from the series, Q. Here Q questions the ability of man to soar the heavens and to investigate space, to cross paths with creatures and civilizations unknown to man. He places Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) on trial to defend mankind and to show that they are not the primitive beings that he thinks they are. It is up to Picard to demonstrate that we are not the savages Q believes us to be.

The second episode is "Sins of the Father" in which Warf, the Klingon representative on the Enterprise discovers a brother he never knew existed and must return to his home planet to defend the honor of his father and family. Accused of being a traitor, a heinous crime in the honor bound beings of Klingon, Warf must discover the truth behind the accusation and who is actually responsible. But when he discovers this truth, will he be strong enough to do the right thing?

The last episode included here is "The Inner Light". This offered a very different role for Stewart as Picard. An encounter with an alien satellite emitting a beam of sorts results in Picard being hit with a ray that can't be disconnected. While others try to save him on the ship in his mind he is taken elsewhere, to another planet and another life where he slowly watches as that planet begins to fall apart. It doesn't happen in days but in years and with each passing year we see him marry, have a family and age. Is it really happening or is it something else?

STAR TREK in any incarnation was a science fiction series beyond any made. Not only was the dream of a peaceful world sending out people to explore the cosmos there but it offered so much more. It offered drama that focused on family which the crew soon became. It showed us that there were bigger things out there to worry about then our own petty squabbles. It showed that while we could be a violent race we could also offer peace as well.

Fans of THE NEXT GENERATION will be glad to have this tidbit to tide them over until the series comes out on blu-ray. For those unacquainted with the series, it's a good way to see what it was all about. This is a worthy addition for any blu-ray collection. The only bad thing about it is the wait for the entire series to arrive. 

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TEXAS KILLING FIELDS: BLAND WHODUNIT

Transplanted policemen have been a staple in movies for years. Take JAWS for instance. So it's not often that these sorts of films offer us little in the way of surprises when the theme is chosen. Such is the case with TEXAS KILLING FIELDS.

Brian Heigh (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is the relocated police detective in question. Having moved to Texas several years earlier he is teamed up with local hot shot Mike Souder (Sam Worthington). The pair are asked to be involved by the local sheriff (and Mike's ex-wife) when it seems a serial killer is on the lose.

The area in question is a matter of debate as far as jurisdiction is concerned. But killers never seem to worry about jurisdiction, they just find a place to dump a body and carry on. This seems to be the case as the bodies keep appearing and police keep investigating.

Even though it isn't in Heigh's area, he continues to look into the gruesome murders which weigh heavy on his mind.

Mike has a different attitude. He advises Brian to ignore the murders and concentrate on problems in their own back yard. But when the killer sees Brian taking notice he takes the murders to the police, leaving them clues and taunting them so that they'll stay on the case.

While all of this is going on a young girl in the area becomes a problem as well. Her mother dumps her outside while she "entertains" some of the local fellas. Brian and Mike both show some concern for the young girl and take her home giving her mother a warning. But if she did that where would the movie go?

The cat and mouse game back and forth between the killer, the police and the young girl is slow moving at best. The terrain is boring beyond belief to look at. And the mystery isn't all that complex that we can't figure out who's behind it all with little exertion.

All of the main actors involved in this film deserve better material and fortunately they have been getting it. This may not be the worst movie ever made but it's not one that most people would seek out and rightly so. There are far more interesting and entertaining films and mysteries that offer clues in with better methods. If the shelves at the local video store are bare, then perhaps this movie would be worth checking out. Otherwise let it slide.

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THE DIVIDE: NO HOPE

I'm amazed at the movies that depict the results of a nuclear war and how they've changed over the years. In the past, during my childhood years, there was always a sense of hope and cooperation between survivors in those films. During my teen years we were treated to the terrifying glimpse of the reality of the results of this form of war. And now as I've grown older, it seems a new generation feels that man can not do anything but remain destructive and petty. Where has all the hope gone?

THE DIVIDE opens with a nuclear bomb going off while Eva (Lauren German) watches from the window in her high rise apartment. Her boyfriend grabs her arm and they rush off down the stairs hoping to find an escape. Instead when they get to the lobby, they find themselves nearly crushed as the tide of people come running back in to avoid the blast wave and, fortunately for them, they have the chance to join a few that have made it to a bomb shelter in the basement.

The shelter was kept up by the apartment building's super, Mickey (Michael Biehn). And Mickey now intends to rule this basement as he sees fit, sharing what he has with the rest but by with certain restrictions. Some of the people want to leave but Mickey explains to them that the dust from the bomb will make the chances of survival outside next to impossible. It's better to wait it out till things settle.

Tempers and egos flare as each person wants to make their own decisions, failing to take into consideration that simply opening the door could do them all in. The posturing of males wanes back and forth while Mickey still controls them all in his most unpleasant manner.

The psychological aspects of being alive but trapped in a shelter play out throughout this film offering us little hope in a world where people care about one another but would rather focus on themselves only. Eventually help does arrive or so it seems. Instead the protective suited armed group that enters doesn't aid all but just a little girl in their midst. When members of this group later try to find out what's going on, the military welds shut the door and leaves them to themselves. Will they release them later? Who knows?

Before that day can happen the group begins to change. Not only physically but mentally as well. Life among the living deteriorates and the basest behaviors are displayed among them all. It becomes a sad tale in a world where insane attitudes seem to rule.

I'm not averse to movies that depict the world as it is. But it seems that these days a younger generation seems to have no hope in mankind or the world we live in. We've gone from a world where a generation dreamed of reaching to the stars to a world where we accept defeat at the hands of bombs. A new generation of film makers seems to see the worst mankind has to offer and expects that to be the norm rather than the exception. Then again with the self absorbed youths of today perhaps they're on to something.

It may seem as if I've revealed quite a bit about this movie, but most of it could have been witnessed in the trailer. There is much more that happens and all of it depressing as Hell. to me that's not entertainment. I couldn't find much that I could recommend about this film unless none of the things mentioned bothers you. Director Xavier Gens also made the film FRONTIERS which many touted as the best film they'd seen in years. I found that movie to be more disturbing than entertaining as well. But if you liked that one my guess is you'll enjoy this as well. For all others, pass it by.

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THE SITTER: TEEN COMEDY AT IT'S WORST

For some reason it seems that those who make movies feel that every teenager wants to be either grossed out or teased with the most gratuitous amount of foul language possible. I'll admit that when I was younger to hear someone drop the F bomb would stun me. But in today's world with today's films it's become rather passé.

Jonah Hill, who took a step forward when he went from the crude teen comedies he was making to star in MONEYBALL, takes two steps back with THE SITTER. Hill stars as Noah Griffith, a loser who lives with his mother, has no future planned and would rather be stoned than anything in the world. With the exception of having Marisa as his girlfriend. Marisa uses Noah for oral sex and nothing else, leading him to believe they have a connection when in truth she lusts after the local MMA star.

Wanting the best for his mother, Noah agrees to baby sit for her best friend while she goes out on a date that has bright prospects. Of course the kids are far from normal. Slater is a psychiatrist dream with so many problems that he can't think straight. Blithe is a wanna be celebrity elementary schooler. And that leaves Rodrigo, the adopted son of the family who has a penchant for blowing things up.

Noah gets a call from Marisa while sitting: pick up some cocaine and rush over to a party she's at and she might have sex with him. Being the responsible sitter he is, Noah packs the kids in the car and off they go to find the money to buy drugs and then deliver them.

Of course they end up doing nearly everything but with adventures involving robbing Noah's father's diamond business, dropping into an all black bar and running afoul of the drug dealer when Rodrigo steals a large plastic egg filled with drugs. The dealer gives Noah a few hours to recover the drugs or the money.

If you think this sounds like a twisted version of the classic ADVENTURES IN BABYSITTING, you'd be right. But unlike that movie which had more than its share of funny situations and laughs, this movie relies on the lowest common denominator of jokes to attempt to squeeze jokes out. And it fails almost every time.

While I watched I kept hoping that funny things would happen. There were a few rare occasions when they did but those were short lived. Instead I got more of the foul language in front of kids (or used by kids, something Hollywood thinks is funny these days) and references to drugs and sex that helped to create the worst years in the history of SNL, that period of time which never makes it to reruns on any channel.  These items are not funny just because you toss a lame joke at them.

Late in the movie Noah suddenly seems to care about the kids he's watching. But it comes far too late and out of nowhere. The entire time he spends with these kids at first seems like he's there to earn some money and help his mom. Before a few hours are over, he suddenly wants to help these kids find their place in life, something even he hasn't achieved. Not only does it make an unbelievable situation, it makes the film seem more awkward than helpful. 

Hill has made better movies in this genre, some that are even funny. But this movie is anything but.

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THE TERROR EXPERIMENT: HO HUM

It seems that horror films today have picked the top boogey man of the heap. With TWILIGHT we've decided not to fear vampires for a while and with the box office failure of THE WOLF MAN we've decided to use the stand by creature we love to fear: the zombie. So many zombie movies are out there as well as the successful book THE ZOMBIE SURVIVAL GUIDE making the best seller list that it only seems natural that film makers would make this the creature de jour of our time. Far too much so.

THE TERROR EXPERIMENT may not use our typical zombie but that's how things are going at present. We use variations of the zombie rather than stick with the stand by regular living dead. In this film a secret lab has a problem when a formula being worked on is released throughout the building. Except that it doesn't hit all floors. But the ones it does find its way to infects those working there and turns them into mind blowing violent zombies.

Okay maybe not quite zombies like we're used to. Remember I said they'd changed a little? These zombies are prone to violence and move as fast as humans do. It still takes a head shot to put them down and wounds just tend to piss them off. Naturally there are a few survivors and their goal is to get out. One survivor's daughter was in day care below so he's concerned about her and rather than just find an escape looks for her as well. The rest are the stereotypical mish mash.

While all of this is going on the building has been put into quarantine.  The fire chief is doing his best to control the situation until the CDC arrives to take over. When they do, it becomes a question of trying to help the survivors or simply destroy the building with all left inside to prevent the contagion spreading.

This sounds like a decent idea for a movie and on the whole it's not bad. But it lacks something, that extra oomph that would make it either a more horrifying movie or a more sympathetic one. The acting is basic and no one, including the star names attached over exceeds the expectations of a B movie. It could be that the story is becoming par for the course or it could just be that the film lacks that spark that makes it move to over the top status. As it is this DVD is just the usual without any real reason to make it that one you must see. If, however, the store shelves are bare or the Redbox is low, it might make a decent film to watch.   

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