Reviews
Radio Inside (1994)
strangely, one of my top five favorites
It's hard to put my finger on exactly what I liked about this movie. The three lead actors, especially McNamara and Shue are certainly a big part of it. The interesting locations (Miami Beach). On-screen exploration of a person's rather eccentric religious beliefs in a very creative way. Some very creative daydream/mood-setting scenes. I really connected with certain elements of the plot: a person's feelings of loss/guilt over the death of a family member, the big-brother/little-brother relationship, along with a few more standard movie plot elements like "love triangle", etc. Overall, the movie has a sort of slow, dreamy quality. Not a good movie to watch if you're in the mood for action, car chases, gunfights, etc. Overall, not a whole lot happens in the movie. It is largely a character study and is tightly tied to McNamara's character's perspective. I am generally conservative with my ratings, but I rated this movie very highly. I have seen it several times and i find myself thinking about it a lot, even though it has been quite a long time since the last time I saw it. Not having heard anything about it or seen a preview, this is one of a very, very rare category of movies for me that i selected off the rack at the video store (probably when they were out of the other five movies i wanted to get) and ended up being blown away. Now I feel lucky for having found it. I only wish it would come out on DVD (as of 6/01, it is only available on VHS).
Rosewood (1997)
historically inspired drama about a race riot in the south in the 1920's
wow! great film. very good acting performances from actors not normally known as leads (ving rhames, in particular).
this film has many features that could have made it very popular. the only one it lacks, apparently is a clear-cut "category" or niche in which to be marketed.
for example, it is certainly not an "action" film, though it contains a fair amount of action, and even contains numerous gunfight and chase schenes.
although the subject matter is rather depressing and some of the events and characters depicted are quite despicable, the film is ultimately uplifting.
i would rate this movie very highly.
the single film i would compare it to most closely is "matewan" by john sayles. "rosewood" shares characteristics with "matewan" at many different levels. both are based on historical incidents representing terrible injustices committed against the underprivileged class. both are set in early-twentieth-century united states. both combine suspense, action, and drama with very strong and interesting portrayals of characters and relationships. both are the product of talented, successful but "outside the hollywood mainstream" directors. both films defy easy categorization. neither was especially successful commercially.
the film could be compared with "the color purple", though rosewood is weighted a bit more towards action and suspense. one is tempted to compare to spike lee's "do the right thing", as well. this comparison is more difficult - rosewood definitely has a different "attitude".
A Bridge Too Far (1977)
powerhouse star-packed war movie
a veritable parade of major stars. extreme realism of wartime
military scenes (actual footage of large paratroop operations,
realistic military vehicles, realistic military problems and
snafu's, realistic casualties, etc.). rather long at about
three hours, it maintains consistently high quality though it
definitely lacks anything remotely like a "hollywood ending"
(this may be part of the film's message regarding war). in other
words, the movie's many concurrent subplots mostly do not
converge and end "neatly", as american moviegoers might expect
of a big-budget action movie; some may find this slightly
unsatisfying.
many people will undoubtedly connect this film with Saving
Private Ryan. the comparison is apt. "Bridge" is slightly less
graphical in its portrayal of violence, but shares many of the
same undertones. the war scenes in "Bridge" definitely have a
"documentary-like" quality, contrasted with (some of) the scenes
in "Private Ryan" which were gritty and gave the impression of
having been shot "from the trenches".
the movie might be criticized for lacking somewhat in character
development. there is not really any particular set of
characters in the movie about whom the audience really cares
deeply. in this way, it differs from "Private Ryan", which had
a core group which the audience came to know well.
i think this must be considered as one of the best war movies
ever made from a technical standpoint. the fact it is loaded
with "big" stars will undoubtedly be a source of entertainment
in itself for some, but unfortunately, few of them are given
enough screen time to really develop into in