Return to Oz

AKA:
Oz (USA) (working title)
The Adventures of the Devil in the Sky (USA) (working title)

Written by:
L. Frank Baum (novels)
Gill Dennis

Directed by:
Walter Murch

Made in:
UK & USA in 1985

Actors:
Fairuza Balk .... Dorothy
Nicol Williamson .... Dr. Worley & Nome King
Jean Marsh .... Nurse Wilson & Mombi
Piper Laurie .... Aunt Em
Matt Clark .... Uncle Henry
Michael Sundin .... Tik-Tok
Timothy M. Rose .... Tik-Tok (as Tim Rose)
Sean Barrett .... Tik-Tok (voice)
Mak Wilson .... Billina
Denise Bryer .... Billina (voice)
Brian Henson .... Jack Pumpkinhead (voice)
Stewart Larange .... Jack Pumpkinhead
Lyle Conway .... Gump (voice)
Stephen Norrington .... Gump (as Steve Norrington)
Justin Case .... Scarecrow

Plot:
It has been six months since Dorothy has returned to Kansas from Oz and she still can not sleep. She has been going on about imaginary places and people so much that Aunt Em takes her to see a doctor. Dorothy promptly escapes from the mental hospital and wakes up in Oz where her favorite chichen can now talk. There she meets a whole new bunch of friends and they set off to rescue the Scarecrow from an evil Nome King who has found her Ruby Slippers and has used them to lay waste to the Emerald city and take over Oz. IMDB

Review:
Another one of my childhood favorites. I absolutely love this movie!

It is supposed to be a sequal to The Wizard of Oz, but not really. The movie stands well on its own and it is enough unlike The Wizard of Oz to make it work.

A great movie for all ages.
And it is a bit creepy and scary, too!

If I had to choose between The Wizard of Oz and Return to Oz to watch on a rainy Sunday afternoon, I would pick the latter!

Haunted Honeymoon

Written by:
Terence Marsh
Gene Wilder

Directed by:
Gene Wilder

Made in:
USA in 1986

Actors:
Gilda Radner .... Vickie Pearle
Gene Wilder .... Larry Abbot
Dom DeLuise .... Aunt Kate
Jonathan Pryce .... Charles
Bryan Pringle .... Pfister
Peter Vaughan .... Francis Abbot Sr.
Eve Ferret .... Sylvia
Paul L. Smith .... Dr. Paul Abbot
Julann Griffin .... Nora
Jim Carter .... Montego
Jo Ross .... Susan
Roger Ashton-Griffiths .... Francis Jr.
Billy J. Mitchell .... Cop
R.J. Bell .... Cop
Ann Way .... Rachel

Plot:
Larry Abbot, speaker in the radio horror shows of Manhattan Mystery Theater wants to marry. For the marriage he takes his fiancée home to the castle where he grew up among his eccentric relatives. His uncle decides that he needs to be cured from a neurotic speech defect and exaggerated bursts of fear: he gives him a shock therapy with palace ghosts. IMDB

Review:
One of my childhood favorites! One of the best casts you can find. And one of the best comedies ever made.

Gilda Radner's last movie. Her health became increasing fragile during post-production so her husband Gene Wilder put it aside to focus on her. It was released at the end of 1988 to give Radner one more premiere before her death.

The movie has a very dry comedy to it and is very underrated.
Check it out, give it a chance, you'll love it!!

Red Eye

Written by:
Carl Ellsworth

Directed by:
Wes Craven

Made in:
USA in 2005

Actors:
Rachel McAdams .... Lisa Reisert
Cillian Murphy .... Jackson Rippner

Plot:
After attending the funeral of her grandmother in Dallas, Lisa Reisert must take the dreaded red eye flight back to Miami to make it to work the next day. Lisa soon meets Jackson Ripner and their attraction grows. But moments after take-off, Jackson reveals to Lisa her father's wallet that he swiped off his desk and his real reason for being on board. Jackson needs Lisa's help to kill the deputy secretary of Homeland Security who's scheduled to stay at the Lux Atlantic Hotel, the hotel Lisa is the manager of. If she refuses to help, Jackson will call his partner on the ground and have her father killed. At 30,000 feet, Lisa has no where to run and no time for rash judgement. IMDB

Review:
I didn't have many expectations going into the movie, after reading the plot. And I definately wasn't impressed after seeing the movie, either.

Not my type of movie. Way too fictional, why not a "normal" assassination instead of a missile to blow up the entire hotel??? Ehhh......

Anyways - the movie wasn't that good. The actors are okay, but the plot is horrible. I didn't dislike that it was on an airplane and all that, it was the whole assassination thing that annoyed me. It dragged on at the end, it should have ended when she found her father alive in the house. The whole Jack-chasing-her-around-the-house-for-15-minutes was really annoying. :/

Good points:
1. Cillian Murphy, from 28 Days Later, did an excellent job as an actor.
2. It was VERY short.

Crash

Written by:
Paul Haggis

Directed by:
Paul Haggis

Made in:
USA & Germany in 2004

Actors:
Karina Arroyave .... Elizabeth
Dato Bakhtadze .... Lucien
Sandra Bullock .... Jean Cabot
Don Cheadle .... Det. Graham Waters
Art Chudabala .... Ken Ho
Sean Cory .... Motorcycle Cop
Tony Danza .... Fred
Keith David .... Lt. Dixon
Loretta Devine .... Shaniqua Johnson
Matt Dillon .... Officer Ryan
Jennifer Esposito .... Ria
Ime Etuk .... Georgie (as Ime N. Etuk)
Eddie J. Fernandez .... Officer Gomez (as Eddie Fernandez)
William Fichtner .... Jake Flanagan
Howard Fong .... Store Owner

Plot:
Several stories interweave during two days in Los Angeles involving a collection of inter-related characters: a black police detective with a drugged out mother and a thieving younger brother, two car thieves who are constantly theorizing on society and race, the distracted district attorney and his irritated and pampered wife, a racist veteran cop (caring for a sick father at home) who disgusts his more idealistic younger partner, a successful black Hollywood director and his wife who must deal with racist cop, a Persian-immigrant father who buys a gun to protect his shop, a Hispanic locksmith and his young daughter who is afraid of bullets, and more. IMDB

Review:
I was unsure of this movie going into it, but now I rate it among movies like American History X.

There aren't many movies that can be told in this way and still hold the same excitement or meaning. And this movie pulls it off well!

Definately a movie for everyone to see, if not only because of the racial signifigance. A movie that will make you cry. And an amazing cast!

No less than:

Au revoir les enfants

AKA:
Auf Wiedersehen, Kinder (West Germany)
Goodbye, Children (International: English title)
Nouveau, Le (France) (working title)

Written by:
Louis Malle

Directed by:
Louis Malle

Made in:
France & West Germany in 1987

Actors:
Gaspard Manesse .... Julien Quentin
Raphael Fejtö .... Jean Bonnet/Jean Kippeinstein
Francine Racette .... Mme Quentin Julien's mother
Stanislas Carré de Malberg .... François Quentin (as Stanislas Carré De Malberg)
Philippe Morier-Genoud .... Père Jean
François Berléand .... Père Michel
François Négret .... Joseph
Peter Fitz .... Muller
Pascal Rivet .... Boulanger
Benoît Henriet .... Ciron
Richard Leboeuf .... Sagard
Xavier Legrand .... Babinot
Arnaud Henriet .... Negus
Jean-Sébastien Chauvin .... Michel Laviron
Luc Etienne .... Moreau (as Luc Étienne)

Plot:
During WWII, in a Catholic boarding school in the French countryside, two boys become friends. One is a French boy, Julien Quintin, and the other is a Jewish boy, Jean Bonnet, who is being hidden from the Nazis by the friars who run the school. Louis Malle directed this film based on what actually happened when he was at a boarding school himself during the war. IMDB

Review:
This is a great movie, and a very emotional movie at that. We watched it in a university French class, while we were reading lots of work during the Nazi possession.

This is such a great film and definately worth watching.

Language is in French and German. Luckily, I was taking German at the same time! So it was a very enjoyable movie for me, besides the greatness of the movie on its own. But I'm quite positive that there are subtitles available.

Only deserves:

Monster

Written by:
Patty Jenkins

Directed by:
Patty Jenkins

Made in:
USA & Germany in 2003

Actors:
Charlize Theron .... Aileen
Christina Ricci .... Selby
Bruce Dern .... Thomas
Lee Tergesen .... Vincent Corey
Annie Corley .... Donna

Plot:
A dark tale based on the true story of Aileen Wuornos, one of America's first female serial killers. Wuornos had a difficult and cruel childhood plagued by abuse and drug use in Michigan. She became a prostitute by the age of thirteen, the same year she became pregnant. She eventually moved to Florida where she began earning a living as a highway prostitute--servicing the desires of semi-truck drivers. The tale focuses on the nine month period between 1989 and 1990, during which Wuornos had a lesbian relationship with a woman named Selby. And during that very same time, she also began murdering her clientele in order to get money without using sex. This turned the tables on a rather common phenomena of female highway prostitutes being the victims of serial killers--instead Wuornos, herself, carried out the deeds of a cold-blooded killer. IMDB

Review:
I put off seeing this movie, but I'm not sure why. :/ Finally we bought the DVD and I wish it hadn't taken us so long to see it.

It was brilliant! And it is very sad and depressing.

Definately a movie worth watching. It is very moving and the acting is some of the best I've ever seen.

Deserves no less than:

Love Potion No. 9

Written by:
Dale Launer

Directed by:
Dale Launer

Made in:
USA in 1992

Actors:
Tate Donovan .... Paul Matthews
Sandra Bullock .... Diane Farrow
Mary Mara .... Marisa
Dale Midkiff .... Gary Logan
Hillary Bailey Smith .... Sally
Anne Bancroft .... Madame Ruth
Dylan Baker

Plot:
Tate Donovan, a geek biochemist with no luck at all with women, is persuaded by his friends to visit a gypsy, Madame Ruth. She gives him "Love Potion No. 8", an elixir which can potentially force anyone of the opposite sex to instantly fall in love with him. He shares the potion with his friend, Diane, and together they embark on a "scientific evaluation" that gets out of hand. IMDB

Review:
A hilarious movie! :)
I had to buy this one and share it with Fredrik. A fun, simple movie.

For its genre, it deserves a:

The Manchurian Candidate

Written by:
Richard Condon (novel)
George Axelrod (1962 screenplay)

Directed by:
Jonathan Demme

Made in:
USA in 2004

Actors:
Jeffrey Wright .... Al Melvin
Pablo Schreiber .... Eddie Ingram
Anthony Mackie .... Robert Baker
Dorian Missick .... Owens
Jose Pablo Cantillo .... Villalobos
Teddy Dunn .... Wilson
Joaquin Perez-Campbell .... Atkins
Tim Artz .... Jameson
Denzel Washington .... Ben Marco
Robyn Hitchcock .... Laurent Tokar
Liev Schreiber .... Raymond Shaw

Plot:
When his army unit was ambushed during the first Gulf War, Sergeant Raymond Shaw saved his fellow soldiers just as his commanding officer, Major Ben Marco, was knocked unconscious. Brokering the incident for political capital, Shaw eventually becomes a vice-presidential nominee, while Marco is haunted by dreams of what happened -- or didn't happen -- in Iraq. As Marco investigates, the story begins to unravel, to the point where he questions if it happened at all. Is it possible the entire unit was kidnapped and brainwashed to believe Shaw is a war hero as part of a plot to seize the White House? Some very powerful people at Manchurian Global corporation appear desperate to stop him from finding out. IMDB

Review:
Fantastic movie!
I've not seen the original, but I definately recommend this one! It was great the whole way through and definately keeps you on the edge of your seat.

Only deserves:

Hotel Rwanda

Written by:
Keir Pearson
Terry George

Directed by:
Terry George

Made in:
UK, Italy, & South Africa in 2004

Actors:
Xolani Mali .... Policeman
Don Cheadle .... Paul Rusesabagina
Desmond Dube .... Dube
Hakeem Kae-Kazim .... George Rutaganda
Tony Kgoroge .... Gregoire
Rosie Motene .... Receptionist
Neil McCarthy .... Jean Jacques
Mabutho 'Kid' Sithole .... Head Chef (as Kid Sithole)
Nick Nolte .... Colonel Oliver
Fana Mokoena .... General Bizimungu
Jeremiah Ndlovu .... Old Guard
Sophie Okonedo .... Tatiana Rusesabagina
Lebo Mashile .... Odette
Antonio David Lyons .... Thomas Mirama
Leleti Khumalo .... Fedens

Plot:
Don Cheadle stars in the true-life story of Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager who housed over a thousand Tutsis refugees during their struggle against the Hutu militia in Rwanda.

Ten years ago some of the worst atrocities in the history of mankind took place in the country of Rwanda--and in an era of high-speed communication and round the clock news, the events went almost unnoticed by the rest of the world. In only three months, one million people were brutally murdered. In the face of these unspeakable actions, inspired by his love for his family, an ordinary man summons extraordinary courage to save the lives of over a thousand helpless refugees, by granting them shelter in the hotel he manages. IMDB

Review:
An absolutely, incredibly moving movie.
A must-see for everyone. I cried so much during this movie, but also laughed as well.

It is so emotional, especially knowing that it is a true story, and that these things are still happening right at this moment.

This movie should be an eye opener for everyone.
Couldn't have picked a better cast.
Possibly one of the best movies ever made.

Deserves no less than:

Big

Written by:
Gary Ross
Anne Spielberg

Directed by:
Penny Marshall

Made in:
USA in 1988

Actors:
Tom Hanks .... Josh
Elizabeth Perkins .... Susan
Robert Loggia .... MacMillan
John Heard .... Paul
Jared Rushton .... Billy
David Moscow .... Young Josh

Plot:
A young boy makes a wish at a fairground machine to be big. He wakes up the following morning to find that his wish has been granted and his body has grown older over night. But he is still the same 12 year old kid on the inside. Now he must learn how to cope with the unfamiliar world of grown ups including getting a job, and having his first romantic encounter with a woman. What will he find out about this strange world? IMDB

Review:
A very fun, cute movie! An 80's classic and possibly one of Tom Hank's best movies!

Scooby-Doo

Written by:
William Hanna (characters)
Joseph Barbera (characters)
Craig Titley (story)
James Gunn (story)
James Gunn (screenplay)

Directed by:
Raja Gosnell

Made in:
USA & Australia in 2002

Actors:
Freddie Prinze Jr. .... Fred Jones
Sarah Michelle Gellar .... Daphne Blake
Matthew Lillard .... Norville 'Shaggy' Rogers
Linda Cardellini .... Velma Dinkley
Neil Fanning .... Scooby-Doo (voice)

Plot:
The Mystery Inc. gang have gone their separate ways and have been apart for two years, until they each receive an invitation to Spooky Island. Not knowing that the others have also been invited, they show up and discover an amusement park that affects young visitors in very strange ways. Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby soon realize that they cannot solve this mystery without help from each other. IMDB

Review:
What an absolutely horrible movie. :/
We didn't watch the entire thing, just bits when it was shown on TV, and that was still too much to watch. :/

The acting was horrible and the special effects were laughable.
I would never let my child watch this movie. :/

Naken

AKA:
Naked (literal English title)

Written by:
Mårten Knutsson
Torkel Knutsson

Directed by:
Mårten Knutsson
Torkel Knutsson

Made in:
Sweden in 2000

Actors:
Henrik Norberg .... Anders, the Naked Guy
Lisa Kock .... Maria, the girlfriend
Martin Forsström .... Pierre, the Evil Co-worker and supposed Friend
Anna Järphammar .... Pernilla
Dan Malmer .... Matte, the Naked Guys Friend
Victoria Silvstedt .... Rosita

Plot:
When Anders wakes up on his wedding day, he finds himself naked in an elevator, only remembering some of what happened. IMDB

Review:
A cute movie. :)
There aren't that many Swedish movies that I like, but I do like this one. :)

The first time I saw it wasn't that long ago, shown on TV, but I only got to see about 2/3 of the movie. But last night they showed the movie again, and I was able to see all of it, and I do really enjoy it. :)

It is very funny, and pretty typical Swedish. :)
It has a Groundhog Day thing going, but it works well in this context.

Not a movie for prudes, lots of male nudity in this movie.

Movie is entirely in Swedish. I've never seen it dubbed or with subtitles, but it may exist somewhere.

Not a perfect movie, but very funny.

The Astronaut's Wife

Written by:
Rand Ravich

Directed by:
Rand Ravich

Made in:
USA in 1999

Actors:
Johnny Depp .... Commander Spencer Armacost
Charlize Theron .... Jillian Armacost
Joe Morton .... Sherman Reese, NASA Representative
Clea DuVall .... Nan
Donna Murphy .... Natalie Streck
Nick Cassavetes .... Capt. Alex Streck

Plot:
Astronaut Spencer Armacoust was on a mission when he suddenly lost contact. When he got home, to friends he was the same, but to his wife he was different. She becomes pregnant, but as time progresses she begins to feel like the lives inside of her are not of this world. IMDB

Review:
For some reason I really enjoy this movie.
Annoyingly and embarassingly it mirrors The Devil's Advocate WAY too much. And I think that is why so many people aren't fond of this movie.

But I really like the ending and other stuff here and there. I do recommend this movie, but try to think of it as its own movie and not compared to The Devil's Advocate.










For Johnny Depp and because I like it, especially the ending:

Brewster's Millions

Written by:
George Barr McCutcheon (novel)
Herschel Weingrod

Directed by:
Walter Hill

Made in:
USA in 1985

Actors:
Richard Pryor .... Montgomery Brewster
John Candy .... Spike Nolan
Lonette McKee .... Angela Drake
Stephen Collins .... Warren Cox
Jerry Orbach .... Charley Pegler
Pat Hingle .... Edward Roundfield
Tovah Feldshuh .... Marilyn

Plot:
Brewster is a minor league baseball player. Unknown to him, he had a (recently deceased) rich relative. In order to test if Brewster knows the value of money, he is given the task of disposing of $30m in 30 days. Brewster isn't allowed to have any assets to show for the $30m or waste the money in any way. If successful, Brewster gets to inherit $300m. The biggest problem of all however, is that Brewster can't tell anyone what he's doing, so everyone thinks he's crazy. Add to this the fact that if he fails, two scheming trustees will get their hands on the money, Brewster's task is not an easy one. IMDB

Review:
A fun movie!
There are actually 5 versions of this movie that I know of, the first from 1914. I have never seen any of the others but I definately recommend this one!

Psycho (remake)

Written by:
Robert Bloch (novel)
Joseph Stefano (screenplay)

Directed by:
Gus Van Sant

Made in:
USA in 1998

Actors:
Vince Vaughn .... Norman Bates
Anne Heche .... Marion Crane
Julianne Moore .... Lila Crane
Viggo Mortensen .... Samuel 'Sam' Loomis
William H. Macy .... Milton Arbogast

Plot:
In this remake of Alfred Hitchcock's materpiece, Anne Heche takes over Janet Leigh's role of Marion Crane, a young secretary whose boyfriend, Sam Loomis (Viggo Mortensen), has troubles paying off a debt and his wife's alimony. One day, a rich client of her boss buys a house with $400,000 in cash. To fix her problems, Marion steals the money and heads out to California to live her dream life with Sam. But she gets lost in a bad storm and stops at the Bates Motel, where the proprietor, Norman Bates (Vince Vaughn), lives a very troubled life with his dominating mother, whom he lives with in their house on the hill next to the motel. A week later, Marion has vanished and no one can find her or the stolen money, not even Sam, her sister, Lila (Julianne Moore), or a private detective (William H. Macy) who has been hired to find Marion and the money. But a deadly secret is waiting to be discovered inside the Bates house. IMDB

Review:
Not the original. I'm not really fond of this remake. There are subtle changes here and there and I really dislike them. :/ I don't like some of the cast choices, either.

I prefer the original, of course, but it is okay to throw this in the DVD player to waste some time. :)

Clue

AKA:
Clue: The Movie (USA) (poster title)

Written by:
John Landis
Jonathan Lynn

Directed by:
Jonathan Lynn

Made in:
USA in 1985

Actors:
Eileen Brennan .... Mrs. Peacock
Tim Curry .... Wadsworth
Madeline Kahn .... Mrs. White
Christopher Lloyd .... Prof. Plum
Michael McKean .... Mr. Green
Martin Mull .... Col. Mustard
Lesley Ann Warren .... Miss Scarlet
Colleen Camp .... Yvette
Lee Ving .... Mr. Boddy
Bill Henderson .... The Cop
Jane Wiedlin .... The Singing Telegram Girl
Jeffrey Kramer .... The Motorist
Kellye Nakahara .... Mrs. Ho (the cook)
Will Nye .... Cop #1
Rick Goldman .... Cop #2

Plot:
Here is the murderously funny movie based on the world-famous Clue board game. Was it Colonel Mustard in the study with a gun? Miss Scarlet in the billiard room with the rope? Or was it Wadsworth the butler? Meet all the notorious suspects and discover all their foul play. You'll love their dastardly doings as the bodies and the laughs pile up before your eyes. Features three surprise endings!! IMDB

Review:
A great movie! :) This has been one of my favorites for a long time. A great cast and a hilarious movie! In my opinion it is one of the best movies ever made! I love this movie!!









And because it is absolutely one of my favorites:

The Wedding Singer

Written by:
Tim Herlihy

Directed by:
Frank Coraci

Made in:
USA in 1998

Actors:
Adam Sandler .... Robbie Hart
Drew Barrymore .... Julia Sullivan
Christine Taylor .... Holly Sullivan
Allen Covert .... Sammy
Matthew Glave .... Glenn Guglia
Ellen Albertini Dow .... Rosie
Angela Featherstone .... Linda
Alexis Arquette .... George Stitzer

Plot:
80's nostalgia flick in which Adam Sandler plays Robbie Hart, a suburban wedding singer who gets dumped at the altar by his fiancee. He meets Julia, who is engaged to the wrong guy, and he falls in love with her. He then tries to figure out how he can make her realize what a jerk her fiance really is. IMDB

Review:
A great comedy and a cute love story!

For the type of movie it is - it is perfect! Never get tired of watching it - and the music is great! :)

Sleepy Hollow

Written by:
Washington Irving (story)
Kevin Yagher (screen story)

Directed by:
Tim Burton

Made in:
USA in 1999

Actors:
Johnny Depp .... Constable Ichabod Crane
Christina Ricci .... Katrina Anne Van Tassel
Miranda Richardson .... Lady Mary Van Tassel/The Western Woods Crone
Michael Gambon .... Baltus Van Tassel
Casper Van Dien .... Brom Van Brunt
Jeffrey Jones .... Reverend Steenwyck

Plot:
Constable Ichabod Crane of the New York police arrives in the small village of Sleepy Hollow in 1799 to solve a mystery of murders. With all the victims found with their heads missing, everybody in Sleepy Hollow is talking about the ghost of the "headless horseman" who is out in the woods seeking revenge for his murder many years ago. Crane, believing only in logic, refuses to believe the public's theory about the horseman and begins his investigations, only to find his faith shattered when he himself encounters the headless horseman. A magical tale of sense against myth. IMDB

Review:
An awesome movie!

A great role for Johnny Depp. I always enjoy watching this. It is far enough from the Disney Ichabod Crane movie for it to work well on its own.