Snatch (Widescreen Edition)

Amazon.com

Usually it might seem a tad unfair to begin a review by referring to the director's missis. But then the missis in question wouldn't usually be Madonna--a woman whose ability to reinvent herself several times before breakfast seems in marked contrast to that of hubby Guy Ritchie. Certainly, this follow-up to the filmmaker's breakthrough film--the high-energy, expletive-strewn cockney-gangster movie Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels--hardly breaks new ground being, well, another high-energy, expletive-strewn cockney-gangster movie. OK, so there are some differences. This time around our low-rent hoodlums are battling over dodgy fights and stolen diamonds rather than dodgy card games and stolen drugs. There has been some minor reshuffling of the cast too, with Sting and Dexter Fletcher making way for the more bankable Benicio Del Toro and Brad Pitt, the latter pretty much stealing the whole shebang as an incomprehensible Irish gypsy. And, sure, people who really, really liked Lock, Stock--or have the memory of a goldfish--will really, really like this. The suspicion lingers, however, that if the director doesn't do something very different next time around then his career may prove to be considerably shorter than that of his missis. --Clark Collis

Customer Reviews:

Snatch - Review.......2007-08-16

Director Guy Ritchie returns to London's mean streets, rife again with characters such as Bullet Tooth Tony (Vinnie Jones) and Franky Four Fingers (Benicio Del Toro). Several interlocking plots revolve around a scramble for a stolen 86-karat diamond, an attempt to fix a boxing match and ... pigs. Brad Pitt is a standout as a bare-knuckles fighter who speaks a gypsy dialect nobody understands.

rock 'em, sock 'em fun.......2007-08-13

This movie is a fast-paced, fun movie. If you have watched Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels (Widescreen Edition) and liked it, you will enjoy this movie.

Snatch.......2007-07-25

Guy Ritchie's kinetic, ultra-stylish heist film is an amalgam of all the best caper films, rolled out with a punk attitude and bristling Cockney accent. The plot is outrageous but loads of fun (wait until a certain dog swallows a squeaky toy), and the ensemble cast--Statham, Graham, Del Toro, Ford, and Serbedzija--may not all be household names, but their cocky, fiercely funny performances will stay etched in your mind. Nearly stealing the show is Pitt, playing a crooked bruiser whose Gaelic brogue is hilariously incomprehensible to everyone. "Snatch" this punchy, black-humored romp through London's criminal underbelly--before someone else does.

Stealin' stones and Breakin' Bones.......2007-06-27

What a follow-up to "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels!" It's the closest thing to a sequel without being one. Some say that "Snatch" is a poor follow up of Ritchie's first film, I say that this is an improvement on his signature style, an aggressive and a supercharged 21-gun salute to Britain film/filmmakers. The deftness displayed in this writer/director's pacing and editing is at times electrifying and sometimes simply beautiful. The soundtrack is not only superb and includes one of my personal favorite bands, Oasis, and is used to great comic effect as an poignant accompaniment to certain scenes.

In the vein of Pulp Fiction, Trainspotting, and Fight Club, Snatch is a gritty dance with the criminal element, revolving around a stolen 86-karat diamond that any good crook would give his right arm for. (And in one case, I mean that literally.)After a boggling series of double-crosses, triple-crosses, and multi-crosses, Snatch becomes a game of who will end up with the gem -- and how will they get it? Ritchie keeps us guessing at every turn, with Russians hiring mercenary crooks to steal the jewel, hit men sent to kill the mercenaries, mobsters trying to outwit the hit men, Jewish jewelers scheming to undermine the mobsters, a crazed bare-knuckled boxer looking for his payday despite the chaos, and one dog who's lost his bark.

And every one of these stories is hilarious.

Vinnie Jones as Bullet Tooth Tony, a hunter/assassin who chills his prey with deadly stares; Benicio Del Toro (Traffic) is caught-in-the-middle robber/gambling addict; Dennis Farina, a stressed jeweler who can never catch a break; or any of two dozen other apt actors who fully own their roles. In the end, though, you have to give a hand to Brad Pitt, still buff from Fight Club, as a slur-mouthed Gypsy boxer who always manages to get one step ahead of the crowd.

"Snatch" is great. There are some funny lines, and some of the violence is quite inventive. Several times in this movie I was reminded of the "strange occurrences" theme seen in Magnolia. I wholeheartedly recommend this film if you haven't already snatch it.

wish I would have seen this movie sooner........2007-06-21

Guy Ritche slid this one out a few years ago, and I missed it. A good cast including Jason Statham plays Turkish (the transporter, Crank) and Brad Pitt as mickey,the bare knuckle gypsy boxer. Essentially an Action Comedy. Turkish, a unlicenced boxing promoter, narrates the story as it revolves around and 84 carrot Diamond, and what eventually turns out to be a stuggle to try and save his own hide from Brick top, the underground promoter that "tells you what will happen". Its intriguing how thing and paths finally entertwine. Must see. If you like Lock, stock and two smoking barrels, this one I believe is better. And if You like Jason Statham, this movie is good as well. A good movie for any collection.

Average customer rating:

Again and again
aural bliss
I adore this movie!
No surround sound
Wonderful Film

The Red Violin
Starring: Carlo Cecchi , Irene Grazioli , Anita Laurenzi , Tommaso Puntelli , and Samuele Amighetti
Director: François Girard
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
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ASIN: B00008RV1S
Release Date: 2003-05-20

Product Description

Master violinmaker Nicolo Bussotti creates what will be his greatest achievement--a perfect violin, inspiring passion and obsession in every life it touches. Francois Girard's "The Red Violin" follows the imaginary history of this unique instrument as it travels across continents and through lives over the span of three centuries.

System Requirements:

Starring Carlo Cecchi, Colm Feore, Greta Scacchi, Jason Flemyng, Jean Luc Bideau, Samuel L. Jackson, Sylvia Chang

Directed by Francois Girard

Running time: 132 minutes

Amazon.com

Mounted in high lavish style, from the opening strains to coda, The Red Violin pays homage to the careful uses of color and composition without bothering to support these qualities with any real substance. Oh, it's a class act on the surface all the way, while failing on nearly every other level to convince. The story tells the story, revealing precious little else. The 17th-century Cremonese instrument-maker Niccolo Bussotti finishes his final violin with a curious red varnish, the secret of which spans the film, yet will come as a surprise only to the very sleepy. The odd voyage of this unique violin through history is then explored from one episode to the next, from child prodigy to gypsies to Victorian virtuoso to a clandestine enclave of art lovers in Shanghai during the Cultural Revolution. This is all framed by the violin's rediscovery in present day by instrument appraiser Charles Morritz (Samuel L. Jackson), for whom the perfect instrument strikes a resonant chord. The main scheme of the film, an object connecting a number of seemingly disparate stories, has been used many times, most notably in Max Ophuls's La Ronde. But while this approach is employed elsewhere to cause one scene to reverberate against another, The Red Violin is content to leave each episode thematically unconnected with any of the others. On the decorative level, the film may satisfy many viewers with its sensuous attention to tone and detail, as well as its eclectic and expertly performed score. But as narrative it is very slight. Just pierce the pretty crust of this puff pastry and gaze in wonder at the pocket of air within. --Jim Gay

Customer Reviews:

Again and again.......2007-08-22

Layer upon layer, this film reveals more upon each viewing. This is one of those curl-up on the couch type of films that never disappoints and transports the viewer back in time- with multiple shifts, and repeats key sequences each time advancing the immediate story a bit further. So there is ultimately a mystery unfolding and we are completely caught up in it, along with the fascinating motivations and impulses that compel each possessor or would-be possessor of the Red Violin. The music is integral and also drives the narrative, not just pretty movie music.
One of my favorites!

aural bliss.......2007-07-28

This movie is in my top 5 movies ever. It chronicles the history of a violin from the strings of the instrument in question. It is quite a departure role for Samuel L Jackson and he actually is the supporting actor to the violin. Great date flick!

I adore this movie!.......2007-07-12

This is one of my all time favorite films. Interesting and clever story line, beautiful music, violin by Joshua Bell, gorgeous scenery, and fabulous costumes. This movie has it all. I gave it as gifts to my friends.

No surround sound.......2007-05-29

I have seen this movie several times, and it is intriguing. The video portion of the dvd is fine. However, purchasers should be aware that the audio on this dvd is Dolby stereo only, not surround.

Wonderful Film.......2007-05-20

The RED VIOLIN is a beautiful film, witty and powerful. It traces the story of a violin as it is passed across many cultures and into the hands of many interesting characters.

The heart of this film is the score which, as a film of this title implies, features some incredible violin solos. Great musical performances by Joshua Bell and others giving this violin the majesty necessary to command its central role.

Average customer rating:

The Thinking Man's Animation
Great deep messages
The Last Unicorn
Superb, but...
Beautiful

The Last Unicorn
Starring: Alan Arkin , Jeff Bridges , Mia Farrow , Tammy Grimes , and Robert Klein
Director: Arthur Rankin Jr. , and Jules Bass
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000KJU128
Release Date: 2007-02-06

Amazon.com

A story line that truly deserves the A-list treatment, The Last Unicorn is memorable for its attempts to stay faithful to its origins, the Peter Beagle novel of the same name. The animation is vintage Rankin/Bass, and that's too bad; but there's an undeniable strength in this tale and telling. A unicorn (Mia Farrow)--she believes herself the last--searches for any others of her kind, while avoiding the malevolent Red Bull, the agent believed to have destroyed the rest of the herd. Along the way, she is mistaken, ignored, attacked, and obsessed about, finally finding help from a magician named Schmendrick (Alan Arkin) and a knight named Prince Lir (Jeff Bridges). A haunting film that pays homage to mythology and the people who love it. --Keith Simanton

Description

Brought to life by the luminary voice talents of Jeff Bridges, Mia Farrow, Angela Lansbury and Rene Auberjonois (STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE, "Boston Legal"), this animated treasure is the story of a lonely unicorn who sets out on an extraordinary quest to find her lost brothers and sisters. Along the way she meets a colorful cast of characters, including a bumbling wizard who magically transforms her into a beautiful damsel. When a handsome prince falls in love with her, he challenges the evil foe who holds her captive. But the task proves harder than imagined, and the unicorn soon discovers that real magic comes from believing in the impossible. Featuring songs performed by America.

Customer Reviews:

The Thinking Man's Animation.......2007-08-25

I have been a fan of this film since I was a child and owned it on VHS in the 80s. Even though the DVD does not have the special features it touts on the backcover, I was just happy to have the film on DVD -I thought they would never release it! The Last Unicorn is about an immortal unicorn who leaves her enchanted forest after learning the rest of the unicorns have vanished from the Earth. On her quest she meets many memorable characters: gypsywoman Mommy Fortuna, Molly Grue, Shmendrick the Magician- to name a few. Molly, Shmendrick and the unicorn ban together, Molly and Shmendrick on their own emotional quests, and journey to King Hagard's castle where the unicorns are being held captive. Along the journey she is almost captured by The Red Bull, King Hagard's demon that holds the rest of the unicorns hostage. If she is captured, their quests ends, so Shmendrick changes her into a human girl so they can get past the bull and enter King Hagard's castle. As an immortal creature she never had to deal with mortal concerns, and as the beautiful woman Amalthea she begins to understand what it means to be human: the serach of identity, love, conflict, empathy. She learns of regret and thankfulness, of life and loss. Like the hobbits from "Lord of the Rings," the unicorn concludes her journey, but is forever changed by the friends she made the experiences she had. The forest will always be her home, but she no longer like the rest of the unicorns, for they will never know what it is to be human. This film is deeper than any animated film has a right to be. It works on several levels, and the older I become the more I see in it. The plot is complex and almost all of the character's are three-dimensional. The characters are voiced by some great acting talent: Alan Arkin (Shmendrick), Jeff Bridges ( Prince Leer), Mia Farrow (The Unicorn)- to name a few. The musical score is very befitting. This is a great film for all ages. Children will love the story, and adults will see the bittersweet, dark chocolate themes that run below its animated surface. p.s. If you like this, then you should try watching the film "Nausicaa"- another animated classic.

Great deep messages.......2007-08-20

I loved it! I felt like a kid again. This is what we need in these times, a little bit of innocence and hope. No matter how old we are, we can still be children again. I enjoyed watching it with my nieces and nephews.

The Last Unicorn.......2007-07-13

The movie was not as good as I had expected & is a little mature for a 5 yr old. I wouldn't buy this again although my grandaughter seemed to like it alright.

Superb, but..........2007-06-08

This film is superb. I watched it many times as a young child, and am thrilled to be able to watch it again as an adult. It's one of the rare few films with more than enough wonder to hold the attention of a child, yet enough depth and honesty to touch the soul of a grown up; a deeply meaningful, poinient animated classic. Another reviewer described it as the "best animated film ever," and while I'm not quite bold enough to echo that sentiment, I can't seem to think of one that surpasses it at the moment.

That said, I'm deeply irritated by the edits that were made. The producers who did it should be ashamed of themselves for altering a single word. Who exactly did they think they were protecting? Or was it just a money thing? Stupid fools. Unchanged, it would get 5 stars, but in good concience, I must give it 4 stars for that reason alone.

Beautiful.......2007-05-21

The presentation (picture and sound) are excellent. The edits mentioned are very annoying (and not edited out of the earlier DVD edition) but the widescreen presentation is much nicer to watch. The extra features are somewhat interesting but do not reveal anything very interesting about the movie itself (story-writing, making of, casting, etc.). Worth getting, but I am also keeping my earlier DVD for posterity.

Average customer rating:

Very good musical
GYPSY IS ONE OF THE ALL-TIME GREATEST MUSICALS EVER!
Another Bang Up Classic
Quite a movie
Great Show, Great Film

Gypsy
Starring: Rosalind Russell , Natalie Wood , Karl Malden , Paul Wallace , and Betty Bruce
Director: Mervyn LeRoy
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00004RF86
Release Date: 2000-05-02

Product Description

Everything comes up roses when you let Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood and Karl Malden entertain you in the lavish movie musical of the Broadway hit about Gypsy Rose Lee and her formidable mother.
Year: 1962
Director: Mervyn LeRoy
Starring: Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

Widely considered, top to bottom, one of the finest musicals in Broadway history, Gypsy got lucky in its film version. Granted, Rosalind Russell doesn't have the bell-ringing voice one craves for in "Everything's Coming Up Roses," but as a domineering stage mom, she's truly fearsome. Trouping through vaudeville with her is her daughter, the future celebrity stripper Gypsy Rose Lee, played by Natalie Wood in all her youthful lusciousness. The production is studio-bound, but this actually fits the unreal show-biz world depicted. The Jule Styne-Stephen Sondheim score has no weak spots, and some of the burlesque numbers ("Let Me Entertain You" and the riotous "You Gotta Get a Gimmick") are so authentic, you'd swear they were at least 100 years old. Gypsy is one of those big, somewhat stately musicals that does satisfying credit to its stage origins; no cinematic ground-breaking here, but a swell way to spend a rainy afternoon. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

Very good musical.......2007-09-01

I love musicals...and I really liked this one...Natalie Wood was very pretty in this film and her acting was very good...Rosalind Russell was awesome in this film as the overbearing mother or stage mother...If you really like musicals then you probably will like this one...

GYPSY IS ONE OF THE ALL-TIME GREATEST MUSICALS EVER!.......2007-08-28

I am writing a review on the legendary masterpiece musical movie biography entitled "GYPSY" starring three of Hollywood's all-time greatest movie icons ever. I give you the late great ROSALIND RUSSELL, the late great NATALIE WOOD and KARL MALDEN. "GYPSY" was originally released in 1962 by Warner Brothers.

I must confess that I have always loved movie musicals. If you're like me, we all grew up loving musicals such as "THE WIZARD OF OZ," "WEST SIDE STORY," "CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG and "WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY" to name a few. However, I will always add one classic musical to this elite list that deserves to be mentioned as one of the all-time greatest musicals ever. That movie is "GYPSY!"

Who would have ever believed that a child star such as NATALIE WOOD would grow up to be one of Hollywood's most powerful and beautiful sex symbols of all-time. I am not only a hard core NATALIE WOOD fan, she is my most favorite actress of all-time. I naturally became a fan of WOOD because she was my mother's all-time favorite actress as well. My mom and NATALIE were born in the same year and were three months apart. The first time I ever gazed my eyes on NATALIE WOOD on the TV screen, I was child growing up in the Lone Star State of Texas. NATALIE was also a child herself co-starring in the movie entitled "MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET." From then on, I fell in love with NATALIE WOOD. I've seen all of her movies over and over again and I never get tired of watching or studying her. I have gazed into her beautifully sparkling hypnotic dark eyes on the TV screen endlessly up to this very day.

As for the movie musical "GYPSY," this movie singlehandedly made NATALIE WOOD into an even more immortal movie star than she ever was. NATALIE WOOD was beginning to gain a reputation in Hollywood as one of the most famous leading ladies around. "GYPSY" displayed NATALIE'S true talents as an actress, singer and dancer. Prior to "GYPSY," NATALIE was beginning to blossom into a beautiful actress by tackling complex roles in legendary movies such as "REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE," "SPLENDER IN THE GRASS" and "WEST SIDE STORY" to name a few. Her experience in these movies prepared her for "GYPSY." In my opinion, WOOD was so sizzlin' red hot on the screen that she redefined the term sex symbol. WOOD was so naturally sexy and lucious that she could have seduced any man into submission with her beautiful hypnotic eyes and dance moves alone.

"GYPSY" is the real life story of the late great celebrity stripper GYPSY ROSE LEE (Real name is ROSE LOUISE HOVICK). NATALIE would have to play HOVICK as a young teenager in this film before blossoming into the world famous celebrity stripper. What I truly love about "GYPSY" is that the film mostly evolves around WOOD. However, lets not forget the many true talents of two of Hollywood's legendary icons which supported WOOD magnificently in the movie. They are screen legends ROSALIND RUSSELL and KARL MALDEN. In my opinion, I truly believe that the ROZ'S singing in the film was incredible.

All I can say to you is that you have to see this movie if you haven't seen it. When you see this movie, you will love NATALIE WOOD and become a devout fan of hers as I have. I also highly recommend that you research further on Amazon com and either rent or purchase all of NATALIE'S films to hold dear in your own personal movie collection. I feel confident that you will enjoy all of NATALIE'S movies that she left for us as precious gifts. In doing this, you will realize that NATALIE WOOD was truly indeed, a priceless treasure. So here's to you NATALIE, ROZ and KARL. Thanks for reading my review and I truly hope that you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it for your reading pleasure. I also deeply hope that you will continue in reading all of my other reviews in the near future when time permits. NATALIE WOOD FOREVER! R.I.P. NATASHA NIKOLAEVNA ZACHARENKO A.K.A. NATALIE WOOD, Born 20 July 1938, Died 27 November 1981 at age 43. R.I.P. ROSALIND RUSSELL, Born 4 June 1907, Died 28 November 1976 at age 69. Also R.I.P. ROSE LOUISE HOVICK A.K.A. GYPSY ROSE LEE, Born 9 February 1914, Died 26 April 1970 at age 56. Forever in Entertainment, John L.

Another Bang Up Classic.......2007-08-09

Not many musicals do it. This one does, Ros Russell in top form and of course Natalie, can't go wrong. Even a little Karl Malden before "Streets" to round things out.

Quite a movie.......2007-08-03

There's always a movie that we see as a kid that sticks in our mind, because something about it was magical and something is forever changed, but life goes on....till we see that movie again decades later and the
shivers take over again. Was it Rosalind Russell as a dedicated vaudeville Mom, was it the yound and beautifull Nathalie Wood.... i think
it was the whole movie. Its a wonderfull experience and it should leave
a smile on your face if you like this kind of stuff.
Recommended.

Great Show, Great Film.......2007-06-19

I am a big fan of "Gypsy", having seen it onstage with Tyne Dale and Bernadette Peters on Broadway and having heard the recordings with those women as well as Angela Lansbury and Ethel Merman many times. This really is one of the best shows of all time, in my view. Clearly, Mama Rose is the main character and the show really rests on the shoulders of the lady playing her. For that reason, I can never understand why casting Rosalind Russell as Rose was ever controversial at all. There can be no doubt that she was a more skilled film actress than Ethel Merman. I think Russell is wonderful in this part: driven, brassy, pushy, comic, over the top, and, often, heartbreaking. Her "Rose's Turn" at the end is just great. She moves beautifully in the musical numbers when she needs too, as well. Sure, she does not sing all of her numbers by herself (her vocals are mixed, not dubbed, with Lisa Kirk's), and that has to be pointed out in an honest review. This was a common Hollywood practice in those days. Does it really make a difference? Not to me. This is not a stage production. We are not really watching a "performance", but the amalgamation of many days and weeks of performing into an edited whole. Kirk matches Russell's vocals well enough that it is not jarring or distracting. That said, Natalie Wood, who was dubbed in West Side Story sings her own numbers here. Her singing is pretty good. She is also gorgeous to look at and very believable as plain Louise who becomes glamorous Gypsy Rose Lee. Karl Malden is also good in the rather boring part of Herbie. The costumes are great, the sets are stagy, but opulent, and the cinematography really sumptuous. This is one of the last big, splashy Hollywood adaptations of a big Broadway hit, full of songs which have become standards, and a story which is moving, funny, and, best of all, ENTERTAINING. Get it!

Average customer rating:

Those Wigs!!!
Very good but not great
Atmospheric and brooding
decent
If you are going to tackle Bronte, do it right

Wuthering Heights (1992)
Starring: Juliette Binoche , Ralph Fiennes , Janet McTeer , Sophie Ward , and Simon Shepherd
Director: Peter Kosminsky
Manufacturer: Paramount
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ASIN: B0000AUHPK
Release Date: 2003-12-02

Amazon.com

Peter Kosminsky's 1992 adaptation of Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights goes to the extreme of casting Sinéad O'Connor in a brief bit as Brontë herself, but the film still doesn't approach the accomplishment of William Wyler's classic 1939 production (with Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon) or subsequent versions by Luis Buñuel and Robert Fuest. That doesn't make it unwatchable, however: it still offers The English Patient costars Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche as doomed lovers Heathcliff and Cathy. Binoche is a bit washed-out, but Fiennes makes a strong impression as the rejected laborer who makes his fortune and exacts a vengeance. Unlike Wyler's film, this one covers all the chapters of Brontë's book, but it is sodden with misery and lacks all grace. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Those Wigs!!!.......2007-08-11

I have seen 2 other versions of Wuthering Heights and of course read the Emily Bronte books in H.S. This version is not good at all. Those wigs worn by Ralph Fiennes and others distracted me for they were so bad. I cannot watch Ralph Fiennes most of the time and here he is not believable. Give me Sir Lawrence Olivier anytime. Sir Lawrence, though he did not get along with Merle Oberon during the filming, showed so much passion in the B/W version and even Timothy Dalton was tolerable. Juliette Binoche was boring and silly and my darling Jeremy Northam was hardly visable.

Very good but not great.......2007-05-28

I enjoyed this film from beginning to end and recommend it. I'm not sure exactly why I didn't give it five stars. Perhaps because it failed to live up to my memory of the book, which I read many, many years ago and my memory of the Lawrence Olivier screen version. Both of those probably formed "my" Heathcliff, which was different from Ralph Fiennes'. "My Heathcliff" was stockier, more physical, craggier, (looking more like Beethovan!) Fiennes' is more mental and serpentine.

However all of that is personal and Fiennes' performance is certainly powerful and convincing. I felt a sympathy for him, too, even in his last, most monstrous days. The scene in which he grabs Cathy from the coffin is memorable.

I was a little disappointed in the performance of Juliette Binoche. There was something unconvincing in her Cathy. Another reviewer suggested that she lacked the necessary qualities to play an English country girl. I'm not sure exactly how to define those qualities but I tend to agree with that comment. Perhaps she was less firey than the original.

I agree with others, too, that the sequences were choppy and somewhat rushed, especially in the second half. But it's hard to fit all of the novel into two hours. I did like the ending a lot.

In sum, it's a great story, very well done and certainly worth watching.

Atmospheric and brooding.......2007-05-27

Atmospheric version of classic. The movie is all about the interaction between the "players". Ralph Fiennes was excellent as the scheming villian.

decent.......2007-05-06

how some people say this version surpasses the 1939 version is beyond me....id really say its 3 and 1/2 stars......the pacing is just too fast...it all happens too fast...they fit the entire novel into an hr and 46 mins....we barely have time to FEEL the love between cathy and heathcliff before she marries edgar ..heathcliff comes back..cathy dies....it just happens so fast before we can really connect to the lovers...Fiennes is brilliant and is what really keeps u interested in the film....Binoche is ok but to me pales in comparison depthwise to Merle Oberon....just watch the scene where Cathy discovers Heathcliff runs away...in the 1939 version it is pouring rain and u can actually FEEL the pain and longing to have Heathlciff back.....makes me cry everytime...but this one Binoche barely seems to shed a tear or show any emotion in what should be one of the most emotional scenes of the film.......and the other actors in the film dont compare to those in the original..........still the film is beautiful to watch..contains great scenery on the moors.....and a wonderful score as well..id love to have the soundtrack....it just isnt as moving as the original.......but worth watching for a great performance by Ralph Fiennes

If you are going to tackle Bronte, do it right.......2007-04-30

Not to say that Ralph and Juliette are not fantastic actors in their own right, they are just not Cathy and Heathcliff. This production lacked so much of the novel's mood, that it just seemed esthetically boring. I personally would never hire that cinematographer again if I were the director/producer. I have YET to see a film version of Wuthering Heights that can do justice to Emily's art. I am not under some naive assumption that movies based on novels always turn out great (just look at Stephen King movies - BLECH!) - however we all thought that The Lord of the Rings could never be done properly, and then Peter Jackson came along to wow us all. It CAN be done with Wuthering Heights as well, and the great thing about it is, it would require no special effects. Just a great director, a better script adaption, and some actors who have chemistry - unlike the two in this one. They may be great, but again, they are no Heathcliff and Cathy. I really wish someone would get this right. Turn it into a miniseries ala Pride and Prejudice BBC style. Maybe they could get Clive Owen to play Heathcliff..... he would be a great one. Tall, dark, brooding, dangerously handsome. Perfect Heathcliff. Grrrrrrrrr.... ok enough of my Clive Owen fantasies.

Seriously though, it is the best adaptation so far, but not even close to being perfect. Filmmakers need to stop trying to turn this into a 90 minute theater picture and do it right with a BBC miniseries that has some meat to it, just like the novel. Look what they did with Jane Eyre! I really did not care much for the novel or anything else Charlotte tried to do, but they did a great job with that one. I actually loved it.

Someone.... PLEASE make Emily proud.

Average customer rating:

How importnat the Land is to an Irishman
Fertile Ground Rich With Irish History
Love this movie and story
Powerfully depressing and bleak
Cows Falling Through Space (o, the huge manatee!)

The Field
Starring: Richard Harris , Sean Bean , Frances Tomelty , Brenda Fricker , and John Hurt
Director: Jim Sheridan
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00005V1WP
Release Date: 2002-02-26

Amazon.com

After scoring an art-house hit and Oscar nominations for his previous film, My Left Foot, Irish director Jim Sheridan made this ambitious and hard-hitting drama, set in Ireland during the 1930s, about one man's obsession with a plot of land that his family has tended for generations. The results are decidedly mixed, and it's obvious that this kind of tragic allegory is better suited for the stage (where it originated as a play by John B. Keane). What makes the film worthwhile is the Oscar-nominated performance by Richard Harris as "Bull" McCabe, the fiercely stubborn man who's nurtured a prime field of rented land for decades, only to lose it when the owner auctions the land to an unwelcome American (Tom Berenger). Rather than sacrifice his life's work to this brazen invader, McCabe wages a personal war with powerfully tragic results. It's unfortunate that this potent drama never really connects on an emotional level, but Harris is never less than fascinating in a role that seems to virtually consume him as an actor. His performance approaches greatness, even when the film falls somewhat short of its dramatic ambitions. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

How importnat the Land is to an Irishman.......2007-08-23

My husband and I just returned from Ireland so we saw first hand how important the land is to the Irish. Richard Harris is Brillant in The Field. It really showed the struggles of a family in an Irish village.
Will make you think twice the next time you complain about how hard your life is.

Fertile Ground Rich With Irish History.......2007-08-07

Based on the play by John B. Keane, Director Jim Sheridan presents a gripping tale that is rich with Irish tradition and history in the film THE FIELD. Legendary actor, Richard Harris (Bull McCabe) plays a stubborn farmer who treasures the land he has cultivated, and forcefully and close to manically guards the land when he finds out that an American or as Bull refers to him, "Yank", played by Tom Berenger, suddenly appears to buy the land from the original landowner, Maggie Butler (Frances Tomelty); all tensions ensue.

THE FIELD brazens the Irish past, which includes its religious, social and class struggles and the unfortunate Irish famine. These issues come crashing down as the film plot thickens especially during the climax. The story revolves around Bull McCabe, a man who has carried the guilt and bitterness of the past, the death of one of his sons, Shamus, and his present burdens that exist with his only son, Tadgh (Sean Bean), who along with his cohort Bird O'Donnell played by John Hurt, exert unkind and child-like deeds toward Butler forcing her to sell her land.

The entire of production of the film is outstanding. Director of photography, Jack Conroy captures the beautiful mountainous and seashore landscape, which complement each dramatic scene. Jim Sheridan and Steve Morrison do a fine job in adapting Keane's play to film, and the story and its characters come alive with their production.

THE FIELD is tremendously moving. It starts out a little slow in the beginning, but it is the last hour that is both disturbing and powerful. Richard Harris received an Oscar nomination for best actor, and deservingly, by watching the film he is worthy of that distinction.

Love this movie and story.......2006-10-19

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and mine runs deep with this film. A long time fan of Richard Harris I feel his role in the movie was extraordinarily well performed. I found myself siding with McCabe. Seeing his dirty hands that worked the land, toiled over it, bleed into it and made it what it was. It was his from birth and then enters an American taking it away without a thought. To build something foreign on the land as well. McCabe loved the land, the American saw a profit. I was rivited from the beginning until the bitter end.

Powerfully depressing and bleak.......2006-09-08

With ordinary actors this movie would be depressing. With Richard Harris finding enormous, brilliant energy in his role as the doomed main character, it goes beyond depressing to being scorchingly, searingly upsetting. It's bleak, harrowing, dismal and severely gut-wrenching. If that's your kind of thing, this movie delivers it in spades, way more forcefully than the next ten downer flicks put together.

I saw it on cable and walked out before the final, awful ending. My wife sat through the whole miserable story and confirmed that the ending was even heartrending than the rest of the movie.

Two stars because of the acting, otherwise zero stars. Life is too short, and there are enough miserable things to deal with, that I prefer not to voluntarily subject myself to painful movies.

You've been warned. I wish I had been.

Cows Falling Through Space (o, the huge manatee!).......2006-07-15

I'm still not sure if this was supposed to be a comedy, but when I saw it with my drunken mob of friends back in the day, the majority of us burst out laughing at the Falling Cows and the immortal line, "We can't run off like tinkers!" Strangely enough, those of us who had ancestors directly affected by the true, historcal events of the Famine laughed loudest; whereas those of us attempting to deeply experience the pathos so that they might connect with our suffering, on-screen brethren with true, empathic feeling---well, our rolling in the aisles really ruined the evening for them. This is a very good film, but if you're not laughing by the end, there's something wrong with you; however, if you are laughing, there's something deeply wrong with you. And, by God's sanctifying grace, everyone might learn that there is something deeply wrong with all of us. I was born an original sinner...

Average customer rating:

Snatch - Review
rock 'em, sock 'em fun
Snatch
Stealin' stones and Breakin' Bones
wish I would have seen this movie sooner.

Snatch (Special Edition)
Starring: Ade , William Beck (II) , Andy Beckwith , Ewen Bremner , and Jason Buckham
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00003CXS4
Release Date: 2001-07-03

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

Snatch - Review.......2007-08-16

rock 'em, sock 'em fun.......2007-08-13

This movie is a fast-paced, fun movie. If you have watched Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels (Widescreen Edition) and liked it, you will enjoy this movie.

Snatch.......2007-07-25

Stealin' stones and Breakin' Bones.......2007-06-27

wish I would have seen this movie sooner........2007-06-21

Average customer rating:

ok, but should have just rented it
Where is the story?
Really a 3 and a half star movie.
Kinda lame
Sad and mesmerizing

The Man Who Cried
Starring: Christina Ricci , Oleg Yankovsky , Claudia Lander-Duke , Danny Scheinman , and Anna Tzelniker
Director: Sally Potter
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00005R87R
Release Date: 2002-01-02

Amazon.com

Fans of the testudinate pace and art-house vibe of writer-director Sally Potter's other works (Orlando, The Tango Lesson) will likely enjoy The Man Who Cried. Fegele (Christina Ricci) is a Russian Jew separated from her father as a child. Raised as "Susie" by an English family, she makes her way to Paris, where although the city's multiculturalism is vibrant, the Nazis are already on the rise and the secret of her origin becomes increasingly dangerous. The cast of The Man Who Cried is excellent; Cate Blanchett, Johnny Depp, John Turturro, and Harry Dean Stanton all do fine jobs in what could have easily degenerated into an accentfest. Depp and Ricci do very well with minimal dialogue--both go through the entire movie almost without speaking. The film moves at a leisurely pace and is beautifully shot. Not a film to show to a roomful of action movie fans, but it's well suited to people who like their films a little more European in flavor. --Ali Davis

Customer Reviews:

ok, but should have just rented it.......2007-05-14

If you're buying this because you're a Johnny Depp fan I recommend renting it first. It's set in the time of the jewish persecution and WWII. Personally I'm a bit tired of this and it is all repetative for me. This film was interesting in that it had a dark pensiveness and mystery about it, but still not worth purchasing. Just another sad story of persecution. The acting was good and there was an element of wonder, and the ending was happy though bitter sweet.

Where is the story?.......2007-05-01

Dress Johnny Depp as a Gypsy and put him on a poster and I would have been happy. That was the highlight of this movie for me. This incredible cast is amazingly wasted. How on earth can a movie like this lack a story or any kind of meaningful point? Somehow, it does.

Really a 3 and a half star movie........2007-04-08

"The Man Who Cried" starts, literally, from a child's point of view, and even as it pulls back to follow her journey to young adulthood, it never loses the child's sense of life's mystery and enigma. The first few minutes of the movie establish, with very few words and notable compression, the central events, beginning in the late 1920s, of a little Russian Jewish girl's early life, her separation from her father (who emigrates to America) and the violent circumstances under which she leaves her home and arrives in England. The little girl who started life as Fegele finds herself with a new name, Suzie, in an alien world where the only familiar sight is the gypsies who pass by her school. This, a photograph of her father, and the memory of the songs he sang are all that is left to her of her old life. The desire to reach America to find her father never leaves her.

Suzie (played as an adult by Christina Ricci) matures into a pretty girl with a lovely voice who leaves England to become a showgirl in Paris, where she meets Lola (Cate Blanchett), a Russian emigree, Dante (John Turturro), an Italian tenor, and most important, Cesar (Johnny Depp), a Gypsy horseman whose center is as still as hers. The lives of these characters interweave as the Germans approach, then occupy Paris. Suzie must decide whether to use the ticket Lola has given her to reach America, or to stay in occupied Paris.

The first minutes of this film are as good as any I've ever seen. (Claudia Lander-Duke, who plays Fegele/Suzie as a child, is particularly moving.) Though I don't think the movie subsequently ever again quite equals these moments (or that the plot quite supports itself toward the end), the haunting, almost dreamlike, atmosphere created by the wonderful photography, and the central relationship of Suzie and Cesar make the film well worth watching.

Kinda lame.......2007-03-13

There is something missing in this movie. I dunno, I just don't care about these people. I really want to, but I just don't connect with them. It's a beautiful movie, I must give it that.

Sad and mesmerizing.......2007-03-04

Christina Ricci is so believable as a lost Russian Jewish girl misplace in England where she is adopted by a Christian family who is in my opinion sadistic and vile. Cate Blanchett is excellent as a blonde show girl who falls in love with a man (John Turturo) who sees Mussolini as the Italians savior, and then leaves him because her heritage makes her a prime target for the Nazi's who are coming to power.

Johnny Depp, is seems can play any part well. He speaks little but his expressions speak volumes which for me is a sign of a great actor. I found myself feeling like a person across the room drawn into his presence.

The story line is wonderful for those of us who appreciate history and the lessons it has to teach about evil and how no matter how hard we may believe that the evil we see elsewhere can never come to our land, it can.

The music is mesmerizing as is the cinematography. Yes, its slow at times, but I appreciated this because it added some intellectual magic to the movie. Its a terribly sad movie, with an ending that is different. But feeling sadness isn't all bad.

Average customer rating:

Lots of fun
my new favorite workout
Innovative, sexy and fun!

Crunch: Cardio Go-Go Dance
Starring: Gypsy Clark
Manufacturer: Starz / Anchor Bay
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000S1MM8O
Release Date: 2007-09-04

Customer Reviews:

Lots of fun.......2007-09-14

I enjoyed this dvd workout. If you like dance aerobics, then you will enjoy this. The steps are easy and though you work up a sweat, it's not too intense. You still get a good calorie burn.

my new favorite workout.......2007-09-08

If you like dance-based exercise dvds, give this one a try. My heartrate was up through the whole work out and it is really fun. The instructor is adorable and steps are fairly easy to follow (it generally takes me a few runs through a routine to get the steps, but I was able to do most of them the first time through). It's just what I needed to get excited about exercising again.

Innovative, sexy and fun!.......2007-08-28

I was somewhat surprised by how much I e