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"TO LIVE AND DIE IN L.A." Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr MOVIE: ***1/2 (out of 5 stars) BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: *** (out of 5 stars) Rated R Studio: MGM Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
William Friedkin directs this gritty mid-80s crime drama about a Secret Service agent named Chance (William Petersen) whose partner is killed during a counterfeit bust. Chance then sets his sights on L.A.’s biggest counterfeiter (Willem Dafoe), sending him spiraling out of control into the seedy underbelly of southern California gangsters.
WHAT I LIKED
I remember the summer of 1985 well. It was one of the best summers on record for movies, giving us films like “Back to the Future,” “Day of the Dead” and “Return of the Living Dead.” While I was just a little young to appreciate a film like “To Live and Die in L.A.” (or to sneak into the R-rated showings), there is a huge sense of nostalgia I had watching this film today.
“To Live and Die in L.A.” embodies the 80s in its heyday, with “Miami Vice” music and fashions. The film is cheesy as hell but it is a ton of fun for someone who remembered how this passed as uber-edgy back in the day.
Director William Friedkin, who has had some fantastic hits (like “The Exorcist” and “The French Connection”) along with quite a few misses (like “Rules of Engagement” and “Bug”), turns out a great crime drama with a car chase that rivals that in “The French Connection.” This movie embodies the machismo of the decade the way “Point Break” did the 90s.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
All of the problems that “To Live and Die in L.A.” faces result from it being a product of the 80s and a product of the action movie template. The acting is over the top, and the characters are seedy, but that’s the point of the film, after all (at least the seediness, not necessarily the acting). You don’t really have anyone to root for, but it’s more entertaining to watch things blow up in Chance’s face.
Also, there are plenty of filmmaking techniques from that era – including the overuse of a pop music soundtrack, a too cool nature of the characters and a yet-to-be-developed dynamic shooting style that the movie does tend to pale to the viewer who didn’t experience these mid-80s movies when they were cutting edge.
BLU-RAY FEATURES
The Blu-ray itself does not contain any special features, but at least the grain of the film is retained without washing it out to a plasticine level.
Fortunately, the Blu-ray is bundled with the standard-definition DVD, which includes a deleted scene and an alternate ending, a documentary about counterfeiting, a photo gallery and commentary by director William Friedkin.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Anyone who thought “Miami Vice” was cool, either back in the 80s or now.
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"WALK THE LINE" Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr MOVIE: ***1/2 (out of 5 stars) BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: ***1/2 (out of 5 stars) Rated R Studio: 20th Century Fox Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
Joaquin Phoenix plays the legendary Man in Black, Johnny Cash. The film follows the typical style of musician biopics, starting with the man’s humble beginnings, his rise to fame, his struggles with addiction and ultimately finding the woman he loves in June Carter (Reese Witherspoon, who won an Oscar for her performance).
WHAT I LIKED
“Walk the Line” is a very capably made film, and for someone like me who first heard of Johnny Cash when he was hosting “The Muppet Show” in the early 80s, this can be very informative on the star’s earlier life. Of course, don’t blame me... I wasn’t even born when the lion’s share of this movie took place.
What made this film work, and what ultimately won it most of its acclaim, were the performances of the actors. Witherspoon was definitely worthy of her Oscar with this film, but let’s not forget Joaquin Phoenix’s Oscar-nominated performance as Cash himself.
Films like these are nice to watch for the dreamers out there who think that making it in the entertainment industry is all fun and games. Not that everyone who makes it is addicted to pills like Cash was, but admit all the money and accolades, there’s a lot of struggles to be had.
Ultimately, “Walk the Line” is a love story between Johnny Cash and June Carter with plenty of musical diversions.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
The one thing that caused me to roll my eyes at “Walk the Line” when it was released five years ago was how similar the plot points were to “Ray,” the Ray Charles biopic. This isn’t necessarily the fault of the filmmakers, but rather the similar journeys that many stars go through in their lives. I can’t say which film was the better movie, though I enjoyed both.
BLU-RAY FEATURES
The Blu-ray includes the bonus material from the previous DVD release, including director commentary by James Mangold, ten deleted scenes with commentary by Mangold, extended musical sequences, the theatrical trailer and three futurities: “Folsom, Cash & The Comeback,” “Celebrating the Man in Black: The Making of Walk the Line” and “Ring of Fire: The Passion of Johnny & June.” The futurities provide some nice historical background to the characters in the film, especially for a young’un like myself who did not experience Johnny Cash’s music in his early career.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Johnny Cash fans and anyone who likes the tortured musician biopic.
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"THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND" Blu-ray Review by Kevin Carr MOVIE: ***1/2 (out of 5 stars) BLU-RAY EXPERIENCE: ***1/2 (out of 5 stars) Rated R Studio: Fox Searchlight Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
Forest Whitaker won an Oscar for his portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in this film, which is a fictional representation of Amin’s administration from within. James McAvoy plays Nicholas Garrigan, a fictional young doctor who is anointed by Amin as his personal physician. After being welcomed into the Presidential palace, Garrigan starts to discover the horrifying truth about Amin, and soon finds himself in danger.
WHAT I LIKED
The most impressive feature of this film is Whitaker’s performance as Amin. It’s one of the most deserved Oscar performances I’ve seen in years, and even upon a third viewing, I am continually stunned by the depth of his acting. Whitaker manages to make Amin sympathetic, likeable and even charming at times. At the same time, he also presents him as the horrible warlord that he was, responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. While watching the film, I realize that I have run into a handful of people in my life that have the same egomaniacal psychosis as Amin... fortunately these folks weren’t the dictator of an African country or anything like that.
While I am reluctant to suggest using Hollywood fodder as a substitute for a history book, this movie gives an interesting perspective of what it might have been like in Uganda in the early 1970s... at least from the Presidential inner circle. With no shortage of dictators in this world, it’s spiritually good to experience a film like this to be reminded that these kind of monsters can happen, are real and aren’t always monsters on the surface.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
There’s nothing that jumps out at me about this film in a negative aspect. Like many historical and Oscar-bait movies, this runs a tad long. Additionally, I wasn’t wild about the idea of creating a character like Garrigan to present the film. I might have rather seen this from a real person’s point of view to avoid confusion and second guessing about historical accuracy.
Oh, and I thought it would have been funny to have had Whitaker eating a human leg now and then, just to keep those cannibalism rumors alive... but that’s just me.
BLU-RAY FEATURES
The Blu-ray imports all of the DVD features from its previous release, including seven deleted scenes with optional commentary by director Kevin MacDonald, a feature commentary with MacDonald, “Forest Whitaker Idi Amin” featurette, the in-depth “Capturing Idi Amin” documentary and Fox Movie Channel’s Casting Session about the picture.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Anyone who wants to see a terrifying and kick-ass Oscar-worthy performance by Forest Whitaker.
