It would have been perfect if not for Minnie Driver/Keanu Reeves
Grosse Pointe Blank
(1997):
Co-written by and starring John Cusack, this black comedy about a
hitman
rethinking his career is acidly smart. Too bad the love of
Cusack's
life is Minnie Driver.
An Ideal Husband
(1999--England):
Rupert Everett in possibly the most perfect role he's ever had, as an
elegant,
dissolute peer tossing off Wilde witticisms with admirable ease.
Too bad he has to pretend to be in love with Minnie Driver.
My Own Private Idaho (1991):
Gorgeous, poetic film, with an astonishing performance from River
Phoenix.
Too bad Keanu gums up the works doing Shakespeare as a surfer dude.
Charming Irish films
The Commitments (1991):
Terrific,
lively story of the rise and disintegration of a band in working-class
Dublin. Excellent soundtrack, and I highly recommend any of the
books
by Roddy Doyle, including the one on which this is based.
Eat the Peach
(1986):
A couple of unemployed Irishmen come up with a loopy money-making
scheme,
inspired by Elvis Presley's Roustabout. Lots of fun.
Hear My Song (1991): Great little
movie, by Peter Chelsom, about a nightclub owner (Adrian Dunbar) who,
to
win back his fiancee (Tara Fitzgerald), tracks down the legendary Irish
tenor Joseph Locke, who's in hiding due to tax problems. Ned
Beatty
is fantastic as Locke.
I Went Down (1998):
A low-key gangster comedy.
The Snapper (1993): Also based on
a Roddy Doyle novel, this too is energetic, fun, yet touching.
Like
The
Commitments, features a great performance by Colm Meaney.
Get out the Prozac
Ponette
(1996--France):
This movie, about a little girl whose mother has just died, wrecks
me.
It's excellent, very realistic, but extremely sad.
Smash Palace
(1981--New
Zealand): Also very well-made and raw -- also terminally
depressing.
Not really a recommendation, but....
The Comfort of
Strangers
(1991): Creepy, pointless, and dull. But Rupert Everett
gets
nekkid.
Virtuosity (1995): This is a
godawful
video-game of a movie, but Russell Crowe is briefly naked in it.
If someone tries to make you watch this (without specific intent to mock), they are not your friend.
Buffalo '66
(1998):
I have a deep, personal grudge against Vincent Gallo for making this
film.
Hamlet (2000):
Actually,
this is really funny and would be very entertaining to see with
friends.
But purely from a movie-making and Shakespeare-adapting standpoint,
it's
truly incredible how badly it sucks.
Mad Dog Time
(1996):
Surreally awful. Beware: it's now called Trigger Happy on
video.
Music of the Heart
(1999):
Sodden, sentimental crap. How Meryl Streep got an Oscar
nomination
for this is unfathomable.
Mystery, Alaska
(1999):
Even though Russell Crowe is in this movie, I walked out (yes, it's
worse
than Virtuosity). Dull and stupid.
One Tough Cop (1998):
One piece of crap.
The Other Sister
(1999):
Oh god, please, not more insufferable actors playing retarded people.
Random Hearts
(1999):
Ummmm... I'm trying to remember the last time Harrison Ford or Sydney
Pollack
made a good movie. Ummm.... Well, it isn't this one, that's
for sure.
Showgirls (1995):
Please, please, please don't mistake this for a "so bad it's good"
movie.
It's just bad. Horribly, unnaturally, hideously bad. It's
offensive
on so very many levels. And it's bad. Did I mention how bad
it is? Please don't see it.
If you're in the mood to see an Oscar-winning actor being vomited up by a giant snake
Anaconda
(1997). Your only option so far, but I gotta believe David
Cronenberg
will come through for me sooner or later.
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