Movie Review: Domestic Disturbance (2001)

Genre: Thriller  

Director: Harold Becker  

Starring: John Travolta, Vince Vaughn, Teri Polo, Steve Buscemi  

Running Time: 89 minutes  

Synopsis: In New England, divorced boat builder Frank (John Travolta) is devoted to his 12-year-old son Danny (Matt O'Leary). Still dealing with the trauma of his parents' breakup, Danny is prone to running away and lying. Frank's ex-wife Susan (Teri Polo) agrees to marry the new-to-town and wealthy Rick Barnes (Vince Vaughn), but the unexpected arrival of mysterious stranger Ray (Steve Buscemi) exposes Danny to the dangerous true nature of his new step-father.

What Works Well: While this is a routine thriller, John Travolta and Vince Vaughn add solid star power and a layer of gloss. The genuine father-son bond between Frank and Danny provides a sturdy foundation of warmth built to withstand the turmoil of lies and deceit. Director Harold Becker keeps the pacing brisk and the running time short, efficiently setting the context and steadily increasing the level of menace. In a brief but welcome appearance, Steve Buscemi is the uninvited slime exposing Rick's secrets.

What Does Not Work As Well: The plot holes are glaring, including slipshod police work, murder as the worst possible means to cover criminal tracks, a stabbing committed in the open when a secure warehouse was nearby, an antagonist believing he can hide from a past splashed across the media, and a victim downshifting to stupid mode to make the crime as easy as possible. The foundational heist that triggers all the action remains a frustratingly abstract event.

Key Quote:

Rick: You may not know me, but you do know Danny.

Frank: Oh, I know. He lies. He lies to just about everybody. But you know what?

Rick: What?

Frank: He doesn't lie to me.

All Ace Black Movie Blog reviews are here.

Movie Review: The Death Of Stalin (2017)

A comedy satirizing the inept machinations of communism, The Death Of Stalin offers a few laughs but rarely finds a sustained groove.

In the Soviet Union of 1953, leader Joseph Stalin (Adrian McLoughlin) rules through terror. Any name landing on his notorious lists ends up summarily imprisoned or executed. Beria (Simon Russell Beale) is the feared head of intelligence and the man entrusted to carry out Stalin's atrocities.

When Stalin suddenly dies, panic grips his inner circle. The unsure Malenkov (Jeffrey Tambor) takes over as interim leader, but Beria manoeuvers to retain power behind the scenes. Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi) is the smartest of the men within the Central Committee, but risks being sidelined when assigned the seemingly menial duties of arranging Stalin's funeral. But Khrushchev makes good use of the opportunity and aligns with commander of the army Georgy Zhukov (Jason Isaacs) to plot a power grab.

A European production adapting a French comic book series loosely inspired by real events, The Death of Stalin is a throwback to Monty Python-style comedy from the 1970s, and carries the baggage of humour from another era. Director and co-writer Armando Iannucci rides a scattershot approach bouncing among sketched set-pieces and relying on the cast to make the most of limited ideas. And every contrivance is squeezed to the limit, often well past the point of yielding laughs.

So Stalin's death takes forever, his bumbling comrades running around holding committee meetings to decide whether to call a doctor. Funny for a while, Iannucci stretches the gag for the best part of 25 minutes. Later Stalin's offspring are introduced, but Svetlana (Andrea Riseborough) and Vasily (Rupert Friend) contribute very few jokes and are then stranded, making background noise to no effect. A side story related to dissident pianist Maria Yudin (Olga Kurylenko) struggles for any traction.

Whether funny or not, Iannucci features the constant drum beat of innocent people being shot as the film's omnipresent wallpaper. As an Animal Farm-style condemnation of communism The Death Of Stalin is uncompromising, but also heartless.

None of the characters receive any background context to round them into people worth caring about, so the cast members are abandoned to cartoonish corners and resort to enhancing bizarre attributes and buffoonery. Simon Russell Beale and Jason Isaacs leave the biggest impressions in exaggerated representations.

The Death Of Stalin carries a glossy look, the locations often lavish, the wardrobes crisp and the makeup convincing. But with a too-easy topic choice, the comedy leans on vulgarities before being exposed as out of time.



All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

Movie Review: Barton Fink (1991)

A dramatic comedy about writer's block, Barton Fink successfully gets into the head of a fledgling writer but stretches the concept to incredulous extremes.

In New York City of 1941, writer Barton Fink (John Turturro) achieves success with a new Broadway play and is celebrated as a rising star of the literary world. Despite espousing idealistic views of writing for the masses, Fink accepts a high-paying assignment to write screenplays in Hollywood and relocates to Los Angeles. His new employer is Jack Lipnick (Michael Lerner), boss of Capitol Pictures, who pretends to adore writers before assigning Fink to write a script for a lowbrow wrestling drama starring Wallace Beery.

Fink takes up residence in a derelict room at the cavernous but sparsely populated Hotel Earle, and struggles mightily with writer's block. The distractions include noise from adjoining rooms, peeling wallpaper, a singular picture of a girl on the beach, and talkative insurance salesman Charlie Meadows (John Goodman), who occupies the room next door. Extremely lonely and desperate to converse with another writer, Fink connects with W. P. Mayhew (John Mahoney), a legendary author now reduced to a state of perpetual drunkenness. Mayhew's secretary Audrey Taylor (Judy Davis) proves to be a better companion. With a deadline for delivering the script looming, there is a new major shock ahead for the hopelessly blocked Fink.

Written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, Barton Fink is an odd exercise, apparently a diversionary exercise the Coens used as break from the intensity of Miller's Crossing. Filled with salutes to written and cinematic landmarks, the film contains plenty to admire both aesthetically and intellectually, and hits at dead centre the intended target topic of writer's block. But only so much can be built around a white empty page that stares back. Desperate for variety the film veers towards a madcap tone, and a final third that is more amusing than effective.

The best moments are by far set at the Hotel Earle, an eerily empty place forgotten by time and carrying echoes of that most famous writer's block hangout, The Overlook Hotel from The Shining. But Barton's journey is not one of madness, rather just a banana skin where his idealistic spoutings slip on an inability to listen to the common man and a quick soul sell. The peeling wall paper, the pesky mosquito, the noisy neighbours, the incessant heat, and that darned too perfect picture on the wall do nothing except conspire to prevent Barton from writing.

John Turturro does what is necessary in the grey title role, the screen portrayal of an introverted writer struggling to find words by definition a rather thankless task.

Less interesting are the surrounding characters. W.P. Mayhew is not so much the inspiration Barton hoped to find but rather the ultimate victim of writer's block, a man with a destiny to meet his fate at the bottom of the bottle every single day. John Goodman is excellent as Charlie Meadows, a salesman who starts out as an irritant, evolves into a friend and companion, and then transforms into something else entirely as the script slips out of control.

Judy Davis as Audrey Taylor does not get a chance to register as much of anything, her obvious role as writer's muse truncated to serve a needless detour towards mystical mystery territory. Steve Buscemi as the hotel clerk and Tony Shalhoub as a movie producer get small supporting roles.

Undoubtedly thought provoking, Barton Fink offers plenty of talking points but is an ultimately less than cohesive experience.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

Movie Review: Reservoir Dogs (1992)

A violent crime drama, Reservoir Dogs introduced Quentin Tarantino to the world and unleashed stunning levels of profanity and violence in a tight independent production.

After a seriously botched off-screen jewelry store hold-up that ended in a wild shoot-out with police, a group of gang members who only know each other by pseudonyms convene at a warehouse to regroup and recriminate. Mr. Orange (Tim Roth) has been shot in the stomach and is slowly bleeding to death. The veteran Mr. White (Harvey Keitel) feels responsible for Orange taking a bullet during the getaway. The excitable Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi) is unhurt, having shot his way out of the chaos and then stashed the prized jewels at an unknown location. Pink is sure that an informant double crossed the group.

The cool and detached Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) is blamed for starting all the shooting, and White labels him a psychopath. In the melee Blonde has also managed to abduct a police officer (Marvin Nash), who may hold information about the double cross. The group was brought together by crime lord Joe Cabot (Lawrence Tierney) and his sidekick son "Nice Guy" Eddie (Chris Penn). Now Joe and Eddie need to clean up the mess and figure out what went wrong. With emotions running high among the group of armed strangers, sorting out who is responsible for what will not be easy.

Tarantino's directorial debut is a stunning crime film, filled with sharp dialogue, intriguing characters, and a story that gradually reveals itself through clever use of flashbacks. The central heist that causes the carnage is never seen, as Tarantino prefers to make his 100 minute compact film about people rather than events. The gang members are all strangers to each other, and the film is as much about a bunch of criminals getting to know each other and not liking what they uncover, as it is about the audience enjoying the experience.

The film is mostly set at the one warehouse, and stylistically Reservoir Dogs resembles a stage play on steroids. Most of the action is through intense, threatening dialogue exchanges, with guns being drawn and bullets flying at strategically timed intervals. There are numerous highlights, including several red mist Mexican standoffs, not all of which successfully de-escalate. Tarantino's staging and choice of perspective is often audacious, never more than when a character is shot and falls to ground long seconds later, after the camera has seemingly lost interest only to catch a crucial glimpse.

Oozing Blues Brothers-type cool in black suits, thin neckties and old-fashioned shades, the cast have a blast. The performances are excellent, with Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth and Michael Madsen particularly impressing. Keitel brings surprisingly prominent principles to Mr. White and Roth delivers most of his role from the ground and flat on his back. Madsen is a vision of understated insanity, a man so far on the edge he alienates hardened criminals.

The violence and profanity are legendary. The thugs basically converse through streams of expletives and insults interspersed with a just the few non-profane words. Appropriately, Reservoir Dogs is male-only territory, and the film features no talking parts for any women.When it comes to blood and gore Tarantino also does not hold back, with messy bullet wounds and large puddles of blood literally painting parts of the set a bright red. But the peak of depravity is a torture scene not for the faint of heart, as Mr. Blonde reveals his inner derangement dancing to radio tunes while administering some impromptu butchery.

At this reservoir, the dogs bark, bite, bleed and back stab, and all are off leash.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

Movie Review: Rising Sun (1993)

A disorganized murder thriller, Rising Sun attempts to inject cross-cultural corporate commentary into the story of a sordid death that occurs during a boardroom sex session. The result is a high quality but rather convoluted mess.

In Los Angeles, a large Japanese corporation is negotiating the takeover of a US tech company. The deal has political ramifications and Senator John Morton (Ray Wise) comes out strongly in opposition. During a lavish corporate reception hosted by the Japanese, escort girl Cheryl Austin (Tatjana Patitz) ends us dead after having kinky sex with an unidentified man on the boardroom table. Cheryl was the girlfriend-of-sorts of Eddie Sakamura (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), the son of one of the senior Japanese tycoons involved in the negotiations.

Lieutenant Web Smith (Wesley Snipes), a police liaison for foreign dignitaries, and Captain John Connor (Sean Connery), an expert in Japanese culture, are called in to help Lieutenant Tom Graham (Harvey Keitel) investigate the death. Web and John soon obtain a surveillance disc recording of Cheryl's death, and the visual evidence appears to implicate Eddie. But John senses a greater conspiracy, and recruits tech geek Jingo Asakuma (Tia Carrere) to prove that the disc has been altered. Eddie anyway finds himself on the run, while John and Web uncover a dense plot involving an internal power struggle and an attempt to influence the high-stakes negotiations.

An adaptation of the Michael Crichton book directed by Philip Kaufman, Rising Sun looks good and features watchable stars delivering smooth performances. Sean Connery as a detective who marches to his own drum with a deep appreciation for all things Japanese immediately elevates the proceedings, while Wesley Snipes, Harvey Keitel and Tia Carrere are never less than dependable. Plenty of rain and a glistening nighttime Los Angeles add an attractive aesthetic.

But as a plot, the film unravel rather quickly, and thanks to a flabby script it loses focus with remarkable ease. A lot of what may have worked as a book does not connect on the screen, and Kaufman is never able to find a human hook to any of the sprawling plot elements. Overlong at 125 minutes, the film starts turning in circles and as more of the conspiracy is revealed, less of it makes sense. Entire sub-plots are unnecessarily introduced and abandoned, including Steve Buscemi showing up late as a reporter delving into Web's past, and disappearing just as abruptly. By the end, minor characters come to the fore with no explanation, most of the loose threads are left dangling, a few Yakuza types show up to settle scores, and everyone goes back to work.

There are a few most unconvincing attempts to give Web a family life, while very little is known about John Connor. Kaufman inserts plenty of dialogue about the differences between Japanese and US culture, often intercut with scenes of misery on LA streets. While there is thoughtful material about the various forms of racism and observations on east meeting west, it's only the Americans who provide commentary. In a film purportedly about two cultures, all the Japanese remain poorly defined as stock characters.

Part buddy movie, part us-versus-them, part murder mystery laced with titillating sex, part corporate intrigue, and part Yakuza action thriller, Rising Sun throws everything at the well. Some of it sticks, but not much of it rises.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

Movie Review: King Of New York (1990)

A stylishly gloomy crime drama, King Of New York layers on the artsy violence but leaves behind any reason to care about its principal characters.

Crime lord Frank White (Christopher Walken) is released from prison and immediately heads back to New York to regain control of his empire. His gang members, led by Jimmy Jump (Laurence Fishburne), pave the way for Frank's return by killing rival gang leaders El Zapa and King Tito, the former in a phone booth outside a high class brothel, the latter in a hotel room.

Frank then applies pressure on Mafia boss Arty Clay and Triad leader Larry Wong, demanding a cut of their business. Clay refuses to cooperate, and Wong attempts to negotiate. Both pay a heavy price for failing to comply with Frank's wishes.With Frank's lawyer Jennifer (Janet Julian) keeping him and his men beyond the reach of the courts, police detectives Bishop (Victor Argo), Gilley (David Caruso) and Flanigan (Wesley Snipes) grow increasingly frustrated. Gilley advocates going outside the law to deal with Frank, adding fuel to the wave of violence sweeping across the city.

An independent production directed by Abel Ferrara with an emphasis on wild action set-pieces, King Of New York packs plenty of intense shoot-outs, chases, and general scenes of carnage and violence into a relatively short 106 minutes of running time. This is a film that transforms New York into a war zone where hundreds of bullet rounds are sprayed around on a nightly basis, as gangsters kill each other with savagery driven by hatred and the imperative need to control the drug trade.

Ferrara delivers all the brutality with an eye on moody and stylish packaging, the action often happening at night, the gangsters largely emotionless as they kill to the beat of rap music and under the toxic influence of drugs, with random gyrating women always within reach.

It's all wildly entertaining but also not even remotely realistic, and as an exercise in sleek crime depiction King Of New York is hampered by an almost complete absence of character introduction or development. Frank White remains an almost robotic blank slate, save for one quite unconvincing late speech about his criminality being less criminal than his rivals. A half-baked sub-plot about Frank channeling funds to an inner-city hospital project holds promise but is underdeveloped.

The secondary characters fare worse, and next to nothing is known about all the other crime bosses and the three police detectives. But Laurence (billed as Larry) Fishburne does get to let loose in a pretty insane depiction of the trigger-happy Jimmy Jump, a man so far gone on the culture of drugs and violence that he is actually enjoying the madness that comes with hurtling towards oblivion.

King Of New York dances to the beat of anarchic artistry, but beyond all the bloodshed the king has few other clothes on.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

Movie Review: Armageddon (1998)

A spectacular science fiction disaster adventure, Armageddon is a thrilling battle between hardened men and a killer asteroid. The film quickly jettisons common sense for outright escapism, a trade-off that succeeds thanks to a breakneck pace and a committed cast.

A large, Texas-sized asteroid is discovered on a planet-annihilating collision course with Earth. With the impact predicted to occur within 18 days, advance fragments of rock start pounding the planet, destroying portions of New York City. Dan Truman (Billy Bob Thornton) of the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is tasked with developing a strategy to save Earth, and settles on a plan to land a group of expert drillers on the asteroid as it passes near the moon, drill an 800 foot hole, and detonate a nuclear device deep within the rock's core.

Truman turns to veteran oil rig driller Harry Stamper (Bruce Willis) to lead the team. Stamper agrees, as long as he can use his regular crew of ruffians, including AJ (Ben Affleck), Rockhound (Steve Buscemi), Chick (Will Patton), Bear (Michael Clarke Duncan)  and Oscar (Owen Wilson). AJ is deeply in love with Stamper's daughter Grace (Liv Tyler), a relationship that Harry is not thrilled about. The men undergo intensive astronaut training and are then launched in two advanced space shuttles for a rendezvous with the killer asteroid, with limited time to fulfill their dangerous mission and save civilization.

One of the noisiest and craziest science fiction films is also among the best all-action spectacles from the 1990s. Armageddon is a dizzying experience, with everything dialled to over-the-top, from the end-of-the-world premise to the ridiculous oil-riggers-in-space concept. Director Michael Bay crams in explosions, wildfires, wanton destruction and narrow escapes into every corner of the movie's 151 minutes, deploying frantic editing to portray the carnage and even contriving to transform a routine refuelling stop at the International Earth Station into fiery fiasco.

Once the action switches to the asteroid, the screenplay by Jonathan Hensleigh and J. J. Abrams unleashes crash landings, canyon jumps, equipment failures, tragic team losses and groundquakes to add to episodes of space dementia and the ever-reliable secret military "Plan B" that threatens to jeopardize Stamper and his crew. There is not a moment that is not pressed into the service of endless thrills and death-defying escapades.

And yet, somehow, Bay pulls it all together, away from camp and towards rampant entertainment. As the tension mounts and the asteroid hurtles towards Earth, a good streak of self-deprecating wit keeps the action grounded, and the character of the fiercely self-confident Harry Stamper is among Bruce Willlis' best screen creations, providing a phenomenal focus for the sprawling film, and a centre of gravity for the mission.

His crew is efficiently coloured in with enough definition to create interest, with AJ as the surrogate son who wants to be a son-in-law, Rockhound a genius redneck, and Chick as the failed father regretting the life that passed him by. The likes of Aerosmith, Journey and Bon Jovi contribute to the thumping soundtrack.

By the time Armageddon reaches its climax, with self-sacrifice to the fore and individual acts of ultimate valour required to save the planet, Bay is able to strip his epic down to the human level of a father, a daughter, and the necessity to break one small promise in order to fulfill a greater mission. Armageddon flies on the ludicrous edge of control, but it always hurtles in the right direction.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

Movie Review: Billy Bathgate (1991)

An adaptation of the E.L. Doctorow novel, Billy Bathgate is crime fiction inspired by real characters. The film enjoys a stellar cast, but the story of a starry eyed teenager sucked into a mobster's inner circle receives generally superficial treatment.

In New York City of the 1930s, mobster Dutch Schultz (Dustin Hoffman) is a local hero to the street kids of the Bronx. Scrappy teenager Billy Bathgate (Loren Dean) is spotted by Dutch, and becomes an informal member of the gang. Dutch and his accountant Otto Berman (Steven Hill) are facing a range of problems, including an apparent betrayal by leading assassin Bo Weinberg (Bruce Willis), and a tax evasion charge that can threaten their criminal empire.

Dutch provides Bo with concrete shoes and drops him in the river, witnessed by Billy and Bo's flame Drew Preston (Nicole Kidman). Dutch wants Drew to become his girl, but she is aloof and independent. The gang relocates to a rural community in upstate New York to fight the tax evasion case, but Dutch's erratic and violent tendencies just add to his mounting problems. As Billy gets infatuated with Drew, rival mobster Lucky Luciano (Stanley Tucci) hovers to take advantage of Dutch's crumbling empire.

A competent but curiously unengaging film, Billy Bathgate never gets under the skin of its characters. Dutch, Drew and Billy are colourful but uninspired, behaving within limited parameters and without much depth.

Dustin Hoffman and Loren Dean are not given complex subtexts to work with, while Kidman takes Drew to a below freezing level of iciness, the moll who thinks that she can control her mobster boyfriend with an over abundance of cool. It's a magnetically mysterious turn by Kidman, but the mystery is not backed up by substance.

Ironically, the short-lived character of Bo Weinberg, as brought to life (and death) by an intense Bruce Willis, resonates more loudly than the principals.

Steven Hill as the grizzled accountant who has seen it all, and Steve Buscemi as one of Dutch's loyal gunmen, enhance the supporting cast with confident presence.

Director Robert Benton assembles a visually arresting aesthetic in recreating the New York of the 1930s, and maintains brisk pacing, bringing Billy Bathgate in at an economical 106 minutes. The film is never less than watchable, the characters making up for the absent backstories with total commitment to the cause at hand. The brief explosions of jarring violence are effective punctuation marks.

Presentably pleasing, Billy Bathgate is proficient but far from profound.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

The Movies Of Steve Buscemi

All movies starring Steve Buscemi and reviewed on the Ace Black Movie Blog are linked below:

Miller's Crossing (1990)

King Of New York (1990)

Barton Fink (1991)

Billy Bathgate (1991)

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

Rising Sun (1993)

The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Desperado (1995)

Fargo (1996)

Con Air (1997)

The Wedding Singer (1998, uncredited)

The Big Lebowski (1998)

Armageddon (1998)

Domestic Disturbance (2001)

Big Fish (2003)

The Messenger (2009)

Grown Ups (2010)

Rampart (2011)

The Death Of Stalin (2017)

All Ace Black Movie Blog reviews are here.
The Movie Star Index is here.

Movie Review: The Big Lebowski (1998)

A piece of classic modern nonsense, The Big Lebowski thrives on an mood of utter pacifist irreverence. The Coen brothers Ethan and Joel create a Chandleresque mystery in modern Los Angeles, through the cracked mirror of a skewed society where the peculiar is normal.

Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski (Jeff Bridges) is unemployed, penniless, and extremely mellow in his attitude to life. In contrast, his best friend Walter (John Goodman) is a strung out Vietnam veteran still fighting the war - any war. They spend most of their time bowling with mutual friend Donny (Steve Buscemi). Two thugs break into The Dude's apartment, demanding money owed by Lebowski's wife. Except that The Dude has no wife. Realizing that they have the wrong Jeff Lebowski, the thugs depart, but not before urinating on The Dude's carpet.

Spurred on by Walter, The Dude visits the mansion of the very rich other Jeff Lebowski (David Huddleston), seeking a new carpet. Before long, the rich Lebowski and his personal assistant Brandt (Philip Seymour Hoffman) hire The Dude to help secure the release of trophy wife Mrs. Bunny Lebowski (Tara Reid), who has been kidnapped and is being held for a $1 million ransom. Walter ensures that the planned exchange is a total botch, landing The Dude in a lot of trouble, especially when Maude Lebowski (Julianne Moore), the rich Lebowski's estranged daughter and an eccentric artist, gets involved, along with pornographer Jackie Treehorn (Ben Gazzara).

The Dude is one of the most indelible slackers created for the movies. Larger than life and utterly comfortable with doing nothing, he never lifts a finger in anger, and actually hardly ever gets angry. As his life gets ever more insane, he maintains an inner calmness and just gets on with extricating himself from each successive mess. Perpetually dressed in a jumble of a house robe, old shorts and ratty t-shirt, his face haggard yet still optimistic, The Dude is a one of a kind. Jeff Bridges embodies the role and delivers a memorable performance, dominating with tranquillity.

The Big Lebowski plot is maybe not as original as the main character, but it's close. The Coens draw inspiration from Raymond Chandler's overcomplicated detective mysteries as well as real-life Los Angeles characters to create a convoluted narrative that always threaten to break out of control, but is just held in check. Some distractions, such as the detective in the Volkswagen, do seem like needless clutter, but overall there are a lot more hits than misses. The juxtaposition of 1940s classic elements, like the old rich man in the mansion, his oily assistant, the vixen, the potentially more dangerous sister, and the pornography sub-plot are all easily modernized. Seen through the eyes of The Dude, who just wants a clean rug to bring together his room, they become often priceless fodder for humour.

Counterbalancing The Dude is Walter, a man strung out and unwilling to view life as anything other than a battlefield. In one his more prominent big screen roles John Goodman matches Bridges' coolness with delightfully unhealthy intensity and a misplaced sense of self-confidence. Walter's ideas rarely help the situation, but he is never short on ideas, which makes him a valuable friend to the passive Dude.

The Dude and Walter spend all their spare time (which is all their time) at the bowling centre, where the submissive Donny receives a constant stream of disrespect from Walter. Against the constant crash of balls striking pins, life's little problems are blown into full fledged crises, as The Dude and Walter manage to make every bad situation worse by talking it through.

The other characters are more linear but play their role in adding to the prevailing quirkiness. The rich Jeffrey Lebowski is the spiritual descendant of General Sternwood from The Big Sleep, and his wife Bunny is not far from Carmen, Sternwood's wild daughter. Julianne Moore is Maude Lebowski, the (relatively) more rational family member, echoing Carmen's sister Vivian. Only Maude has the iciness to compete with The Dude's nonchalance, and she is the only one to get what she wants out of him.

The main cast members are surrounded by hoods, nihilists, pornographers, and really strange bowlers. John Turturro as Jesus Quintana goes way over the top as The Dude's next opponent, but even he seems to fittingly belong in a Los Angeles brimming with wackos.

Filled with attitude and a unique brand of laid back energy, The Big Lebowski throws a perfect game.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.

  

Movie Review: The Wedding Singer (1998)

A romantic comedy that finds the often elusive magical balance between love and laughs, The Wedding Singer is a lot of fun. Adam Sandler has rarely been better, and Drew Barrymore consolidated her comeback and relaunched her career with the approachable girl-next-door persona.

It's 1985, and in a smallish New Jersey town Robbie Hart (Sandler) is the go-to wedding singer, invited with his band to perform cheesy favourites and keep the merriment on an even keel as the nuptial celebrations get going. While performing at a wedding, Robbie meets sweet waitress Julia Sullivan (Barrymore), and they become friends. Kind hearted and sensitive, Robbie is devastated when he is stood-up at his own wedding. His bride-to-be Linda (Angela Featherstone), a rock chick who never grew up, decides that he is too boring and leaves him standing at the altar.

Julia is engaged to be married to the very wealthy Glenn Gulia (Matthew Glave). As a broken-hearted Robbie helps her with the wedding preparations, he realizes that her future name of Julia Gulia is just one problem. Robbie uncovers Glenn as a first class egotistical sleazoid who does not hesitate to cheat on his fiancée, and with no plans to stop his womanizing after marriage. In the meantime Robbie and Julia and beginning to fall in love, which is further complicated by the sudden re-emergence of Linda looking to win Robbie's heart back.

Tim Herlihy's screenplay is razor sharp and witty. Full of references to the more cringe-worthy cultural artifacts of the 1980s, The Wedding Singer is a love letter to the decade of Culture Club, Madonna-inspired fashion, Van Halen in their prime, a snarling Billy Idol, and Kajagoogoo. The soundtrack is brimming with favourites from the era, a perfectly awkward backdrop to the sweetly irresistible corn of obvious romance. Frequent Sandler director Frank Coraci sets an uptempo pace and otherwise keeps a light touch at the controls, yielding to the inherent power of a budding romance between two appealing leads.

The Wedding Singer mercifully abandons Sandler's more juvenile and crude tendencies. Here he is relatively subdued, mostly calm and intelligently funny, a character that is actually likable as an adult. Barrymore is cute, perky and adorable almost to a fault, and the chemistry with Sandler is almost instantaneous. The secondary cast does lack some punch. The supporting characters include Julia's cousin and Madonna wannabe Holly (Christine Taylor), and Robbie's best friend and local limousine-driver-for-hire Sammy (Allen Covert). Jon Lovitz and Steve Buscemi make uncredited cameos, and both shine bright in very brief appearances.

In a genre with few surprises and predetermined endings, The Wedding Singer deserves a toast for getting everything else right.

All Ace Black Blog Movie Reviews are here.