File this under “really good movie I probably don’t ever need to see again.” Surprised by Ebert’s reaction, as I didn’t find it “excruciatingly boring.” It was certainly slow, but I don’t think it needed to be anything different. Homayoun Ershadi has a truly magnificent face, and the movie was well-served in giving so much… Read More Taste of Cherry (1997)

The only PTA movie I hadn’t seen (other than the brand new Licorice Pizza). It’s good, but not great–I could watch Philip Baker Hall all day long, and same goes for John C. I wish the screenplay had been developed a bit more, because it felt a little slight at the end of the day.… Read More Hard Eight (1996)

How have I not seen this before? Fairly great, especially in its action sequences. Michael Mann is a director I really love, and the way he shoots LA never fails to dazzle me. De Niro and Kilmer were the standouts here in a stacked cast, and I thought Pacino was actually a disappointment. He’s in… Read More Heat (1995)

Really surpassed expectations, largely because I don’t always connect with modern British sensibilities. But I found this to be really winning from top to bottom, filled with honest laugh-out-loud humor, a deep cast of characters who I really rooted for, and even a decent performance from Andie MacDowell (who is not usually someone I gel… Read More Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)

I wish I could have watched this movie as a 10-year old at a sleepover. That would have been the context where enjoyment would have been most possible. As an adult, though, this was a hard pass. Eastwood is boring, it’s filled with paint-by-numbers cliches, and it squanders the wonderful Rene Russo. Regressive and dull,… Read More In The Line of Fire (1993)

I’m reminded of the line from Moulin Rouge: this is a story “about a time, about a place…” Singles is a movie that is so specifically dated that it actually holds up really well. It’s light fluff, but there are some genuinely funny moments and it’s a fun time capsule for my honorary hometown.

Really fascinating. A bit too over the avant-garde edge for my personal taste, but also I haven’t been able to get it out of my head for the past few weeks. River Phoenix is a true revelation, and Keanu Reeves holds his own as well. Movies made in the PNW always make my heart ache,… Read More My Own Private Idaho (1991)

Fairly by-the-numbers, typical for its time. But really elevated by Robin Williams, with a marvelous against-type performance that was quiet, sensitive, and aching. I miss him dearly.

I’ve been forgetting to write. This movie has not aged well, and struck me as fairly goofy. James Spader plays a character who VIDEOTAPES women talking about SEX. Perhaps this was titillating or scandalous in the Reagan-Bush era, but it just seemed silly watching it now. Because it seemed so focused on the ostensible salaciousness… Read More Sex, Lies & Videotape (1989)