Category Archives: 1996

Stephen King’s Thinner - 1/2*

Another in a long line of Stephen King related theatrical duds (i.e., don’t expect The Shawshank Redemption). Billy Halleck (Robert John Burke) is an unscrupulous lawyer with quite a weight problem, weighing in about 300 pounds. In a car accident, … Continue reading

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High School High - *

This parody in the style of Airplane! has some scattered laughs, but not quite enough to overcome its fatal flaw: it takes itself just a bit too seriously. John Lovitz is Mr. Clark, the new history teacher at Marion Barry … Continue reading

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The Associate - * *

Riding the feminist wave of The First Wives Club, The Associate shows a woman struggling in a man’s world, but fails in its attempts to have her join it. Whoopi Goldberg is Laurel Ayres, a brilliant, yet struggling Wall St. … Continue reading

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Swingers - * * 1/2*

Swinging bachelors make a comeback in Doug Liman’s comedy. The action centers around Mike (Jon Favreau), a struggling stand-up comic, who has been distraught and upset since his girlfriend left him six months ago. His friends all try to cheer … Continue reading

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To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday - * 1/2*

This rather bland film about recovering from grief covers no new ground. David Lewis (Peter Gallagher) lost his wife, Gillian (Michelle Pfieffer), two years earlier in a freak boating accident. Now, on the anniversary of her death, and also her … Continue reading

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Sleepers - * * * 1/2*

Sleepers is a powerfully acted revenge flick. It starts out in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of west side Manhattan in the mid-1960s. Four boys, Michael (Brad Renfro), Shakes (Joe Perrino), John (Geoff Wigdor) and Tommy (Jonathan Tucker), form a strong … Continue reading

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Get On the Bus - * * *

Spike Lee’s alternately poignant and simplistic tale of twenty men’s journey from South Central L.A. to The Million Man March can’t help but grab your attention. Among those on the bus are George (Charles S. Dutton), who helped to organize … Continue reading

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Trees Lounge - * * 1/2*

In his directoral debut, Steve Buscemi creates a bleak portrait of a young alcoholic in a small town in this bitter comedy. Steve Buscemi stars as Tommy, the young alcoholic on a downward spiral. He’s lost his girlfriend to his … Continue reading

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Michael Collins - * * * 1/2*

Michael Collins is a brilliant epic tale whose implications are felt even today. Liam Neeson stars as Michael Collins, the Irish revolutionary in the early 20th century. After a series of unsuccessful conventional warfare attacks, the Irish Republican Army, under … Continue reading

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Looking for Richard - * * * 1/2*

What is Shakespeare? Why are his works so reknowned, and why is it so difficult to successfully deliver one of his plays to an American audience? These are a few of the questions Al Pacino poses and attempts to answer … Continue reading

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