ericho Cane (Schwarzenegger) is a former New York City
cop-cum-security mercenary who is locked in a nasty struggle with his
inner beast--and he's losing badly. The guilt he feels for not being
able to prevent the murders of his wife and daughter hangs over him like a
noxious, toxic gas. Alcoholism, suicidal tendencies and daily doses of
dissolution gnaw inexorably at his will to live, and they have ravaged his
religious faith altogether.
Cane is momentarily brought back from the edge of the abyss when a banker
he's been hired to protect is attacked by a deranged, mutilated priest. As Cane and his partner "Chicago" (Kevin Pollak) investigate the case,
strange, apocalyptic portents percolate to the surface: ancient
prophecies, supernormal phenomena, and an encroaching chaos that roils the city.
The disturbed priest leads Cane to the door of a slip of a girl (Robin
Tunney) just as a hit squad tries to assasinate her. Demanding
answers, Cane finds none, for the girl knows even less than he. But they
need to find some fast, for not only is a murderous cabal on their
trail, but so's the entire New York Police Department.
With a little more digging, Cane unearths part of the truth: this girl
has been chosen by Satan (Byrne) to be the key to his reign
on Earth. But in order for his fiery Armageddon to commence, he must mate
with her just near the stroke of midnight on the last day of the
millennium. With New Year's Eve only days away, Cane struggles to accept
what he finds incomprehensible, and he must battle evil with a faith he long ago abandoned.
Addictive chaos but a lousy payoff
This film is Schwarzenegger's first since his much-publicized heart surgery,
and it is, in true Arnold style, a physical flick juiced with lots of
great stunt work and over-the-top special effects. It is also probably one
of Schwarzenegger's most emotionally demanding roles, and thanks to director Peter Hyams, Schwarzenegger takes a lot of emotive risks.
Schwarzenegger is back, and in fine form. This film is not studded with
the usual smart-alecky Arnoldisms, but it's better for it. However, the
film breaks its strong stride whenever Schwarzenegger is asked to bring
complex emotions to the fore. This isn't so terrible throughout most of
the action, but the construction of Hyams' directing depends on
Schwarzenegger delivering emotion as well as testosterone, and in the last
20 minutes, the film falls like a house of cards in a class three
hurricane.
But the blame doesn't rest entirely on Schwarzenegger's robust, knotty
shoulders. This film works well as long as fear stays alive, and that fear
is alive as long as Byrne does his seductive, cruel best. Just at
the point where Hyams demands more thespian dexterity from his
action-icon, he pulls the devil out of Byrne and infuses him with
pyrotechnics and computer-generated imagery. The CGI Satan is inadequate, and the film cannot
withstand the loss of Byrne. Those last 20 minutes are absolutely,
perfectly silly.
The film crashes and burns in an unintended auto-da-fé; but Byrne is
unscathed and should be placed in the Satan Hall of Fame, right up there
with John Glover's witty, urbane Antichrist in Brimstone. Byrne is
genuinely terrifying, and his perfomance is worth the embarrassment of
watching the film's final minutes.
Hyams mostly handles the assets of Schwarzenegger and Byrne well, and
orchestrates the action in an addictive, pell-mell frenzy (although he
abandons development of all of the themes that make up Tunney's
character, a missing element in this triptych). End of Days is a
must-see for loyal Arnoldists, but for everyone else, it's caveat voyeur.
The devil, cloaked in Gabriel Byrne's understated, seductive
but thoroughly vicious satanic aura is a most powerful force. But once we actually see the Beast, he's just another future attraction at Universal's theme park.
-- Tamara
herever there was evil, wherever an innocent would suffer, there would be Hercules. But after six seasons, Hercules (Sorbo) takes his final journey. It begins when he visits Nemesis (Kimberley Joseph)
and her son,
Evander (Joseph Main). Nemesis explains that Zeus (Charles Keating) has
taken Evander (his grandson) because the boy's powers have become too
strong and he has no control over them. On the way to Olympus to confront
Zeus, Hercules and Iolaus (Hurst) discover a village that is being
terrorized by a dragon. However, this dragon has purple polka dots and is
just as likely to blow bubbles as breathe fire. Evander is the
cause of it all.
Zeus explains to Hercules that he's taken Evander because the boy needs
someone who can help him learn to control his powers. Hercules offers to
help Evander, and with Iolaus he begins to show him how to build and repair
rather than destroy. However, once Evander learns how to focus his powers,
Zeus disappears with him.
Ares appears and tells Hercules what Zeus really has in mind.
Zeus plans
to release Hera (Meg Foster) from the Tartarus abyss. Zeus has become
lonely and misses his wife. He hopes to gain forgiveness for his past
infidelities and become her husband again. Evander is the only one who
can free her, because the abyss was created so that only someone with the
power of a god and the innocence of a child would be able to release
anything caught within.
Evander indeed succeeds in releasing Hera, but she is no longer the evil Queen
of the Gods that Hercules trapped in the abyss. She's lost her memory and
has become confused. Unfortunately, Evander also succeeds in releasing the Titans:
Oceanus and Helios. While the giants are
a bit perplexed about why they are so much bigger than everything
else, Ares
quickly offers them a deal. He'll help lead them to their brother Atlas, and in return they can kill all the gods except him. But Ares isn't
going to stop there. After paying a little visit to The Fates, he may just
be able to help Hera get that nasty memory of hers back.
Can Hercules forgive his dad, stop the Titans, work things out with his
evil stepmonster and save little Evander from being caught in the middle?
If he lives through it all, retirement might look pretty good.
A fond farewell
With a wink of his eye and glib comment or two, Kevin Sorbo bids Hercules:
The Legendary Journeys a fond farewell. Fans won't be disappointed by
this final episode, which utilizes Bruce Campbell's sure-footed direction
and a clever script by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Gaston Orci.
"Full Circle" does indeed come full circle by dealing with issues that
began in the show's first episode. Hercules gets a chance to work
things out with his dysfunctional family members. There's plenty of action, Hercules saves the day
several times, and in the end he does a little counseling. He kicks some evil butt but never at the expense of a funny
comment or a light touch. While this final episode could have
offered a bit more resolution to the series, it's not disappointing because it's in
keeping with the tone of the show.
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys carved out a place for
itself on television with its unique and clever take on Greek mythology.
The series has been inventive and well produced. It has mixed sword and
sorcery with the '90s in a fun and exciting way, and Sorbo has been the
perfect star. He has lots of muscle and a sense of humor, and he
can handle a
dramatic moment. Even when scripts have been weak,
Sorbo has always gamely kept the series consistent and
entertaining.
With its good ratings and strong creativity, the show could have gone on longer. However, after six years Sorbo decided to say
goodbye. It's not a bad thing for a good show to go out while
it's still on
top. Sorbo fans may be disappointed; however, he's set to star in Gene
Roddenberry's Andromeda, so although he's leaving ancient Greece, he's not leaving television.
While Xena has created her own special niche in
syndication and will
continue the fight against evil, it's unlikely any series will come
close to replacing Hercules. Sorbo's shoes (and Hercules' muscles)
are just too big to fill. However, Hercules fans need not despair.
Their favorite hero will live on...in reruns.
-- Kathie
n 1799 New York, police detective Ichabod Crane (Depp) is dispatched
from Manhattan to the sylvan reaches of the Hudson River Valley to apply
his scientific skills to the investigation of a serial decapitator.
Upon arrival in gloomy Sleepy Hollow, he finds the populace spooked by
the belief that the perpetrator is a ghost, the Headless Horseman. When
Crane scoffs at these beliefs, he is warned by the village elders: "You're
a long way from New York, constable."
They tell him that the Headless Horseman is the ghost of a bloodthirsty
Hessian warrior with sharpened teeth (Walken) whose principal joy was
separating his enemies from their noggins. The Horseman came to a bad end
in a nearby forest, and he is now thought to practice revenge upon the
descendants of his executioners.
Told that the four victims were connected with the richest man in town,
Baltus Van Tassel (Michael Gambon), Crane pays a visit. He
arrives during a
party and is caught up in a kissing game played by the pre-Raphaelite
Katrina Van Tassel (Ricci), Baltus' daughter.
That evening, another man is murdered, and Crane takes up the
investigation with some squeamishness. Katrina offers to help, and Crane
discovers a bond with her in the ruins of her old cottage. She tells him
how her father married her mother's nurse (Richardson) after
the mother's
mysterious death.
Riding home late at night, Crane is pursued by what appears to be the
Headless Horseman, but is really Crane's rival for Katrina, Brom Van Brunt
(Casper Van Dien), who flings a flaming pumpkin at the constable. Knocked
unconscious, Crane has fitful and disturbing dreams of his lost
mother.
Later, one of the town elders attempts to tell Crane a secret about the
deaths. But before the elder can escape the village, he is attacked
by the real
Horseman, who cuts him down as Crane watches in horror. Utterly convinced
of the Horseman's reality, Crane fears for his life. But that night, he
valiantly rushes to Brom's aid as the Horseman attacks again, but he fails to
save Brom's life.
With the help of a boy orphaned by the Horseman, Crane and Katrina
journey into the forest to find the Horseman's lair. But the closer Crane
comes to the truth behind the murders, the more he fears his own
life may be in danger.
"Watch your heads."
Credited to Andrew Kevin Walker (Seven), the screenplay for Sleepy
Hollow was reportedly given a polish by Tom Stoppard
(Shakespeare in
Love), but shows the hands of others. Indeed, Washington Irving's
slender story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" has ballooned into a convoluted narrative that combines at
least four separate plots: a supernatural action thriller, a
psychological
drama, a period romance and a gnarled murder mystery. The pieces
don't come
together very well.
That's not to say there isn't a lot to like. In particular, Sleepy
Hollow is drenched in Burton's masterful visuals, which turn the
18th-century Hudson River Valley into a nightmarish world of perpetual
Halloween. This is heightened by elegantly twisted production design that
underscores the fairy-tale feel of the narrative. There is nice use of
humor and a few gripping action sequences, especially when the Headless
Horseman gallops through the night forest like death itself. Danny
Elfman's thundering score proves the perfect aural complement to Burton's
images.
There are also many scenes reminiscent of earlier, better Burton films.
Fitted with peculiar optics and handling razor-sharp tools, Depp
looks like
his character in Edward Scissorhands. A confrontation in a towering
windmill draws comparison with the final fight in Batman. And the
pumpkin-headed scarecrows bring to mind A Nightmare Before
Christmas.
But the film uses up its goodwill early. Once the mystery about the
Headless Horseman is resolved--is he a ghost or not?--the overly complicated story that follows becomes much less interesting. That
story feels like an excuse for extremely realistic carnage, drawn-out
chases and fight scenes, and liberal computer-generated special effects.
One of the film's greatest problems lies with the peculiar
conception of
its hero. In Irving's story, Crane was a shambling, cowardly
schoolteacher who believed a little too much in ghosts. In Burton's
fantasy, he's at once a highly principled 18th-century Dana Scully, a
fluttery fop too afraid to kill a spider, and an abandoned son with
mysterious scars, both psychological and physical. This perplexing
character is portrayed artificially, hampered by Depp's vague mid-Atlantic
accent and halting cadences.
Ricci is also miscast as Depp's love interest. Even ignoring the age
difference between the two stars, they generate as much chemistry
as Wednesday Addams and Ed Wood.
Audiences will probably love the abundant frights and general
creepiness of Sleepy Hollow. But I was disappointed that Burton
couldn't come up with a more resonant narrative to match his painterly
images
-- P.L.
oki (Damon) and Bartleby (Affleck) are two disgruntled angels who have
been on Earth for far too long. Centuries ago God (Alanis Morissette)
banished them to Wisconsin after Bartleby talked Loki into giving up the
slaughter of infidels, which was Loki's main responsibility as the angel of
death. Ever since then the pair has had to spend their time not drinking,
not having sex (angels are neuter) and, most importantly, not being in
heaven. But, thanks to an anonymous tip, they may have finally found a way
back home.
Because of an obscure loophole in Catholic dogma, Cardinal Glick (George
Carlin) has inadvertently created a way for the pair to get back into
Heaven...or so they think. If they pass through the doors of a church in
Redbank, N.J., all of their sins will be forgiven. Then all they have to do
is die--after cutting off their wings, which is the only way angels can become
mortal--and their purified souls will be whisked through the Pearly Gates,
no questions asked. What they don't realize is that by so doing they will
contravene the word of God, and since God is supposed to be infallible, that
will mean the end of all creation.
Normally this kind of problem would be pretty easy for God to take care of
on her own, but the Supreme Being has gone missing after assuming human form
in order to indulge her hobby of playing Skee-Ball. So the task falls to a
mortal named Bethany (Fiorentino), who isn't sure why she has been chosen
for the job, especially since she lost her faith years ago after having lost
both her husband and the ability to bear children. Opposing Bethany is the
misguided muse-turned-demon Azrael (Jason Lee), who thinks destroying all
of creation is a great way to escape Hell, where he's been cooling his heels
ever since he refused to choose sides during Lucifer's uprising. Luckily
for Bethany she's got the "prophets" Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin
Smith) on her side, as well as the 13th apostle, Rufus (Chris Rock)--who
says he was left out of the Bible because he's black--and a
muse-turned-stripper called Serendipity (Salma Hayek).
See no humor, speak no humor, hear no humor
Dogma is the latest flick from independent filmmaker Kevin Smith, who
has previously struck cinematic gold with his movies Clerks and
Chasing Amy (though 1995's Mallrats was a box-office bomb).
Smith is known as an irreverent writer/director who successfully combines
lowbrow humor with biting social commentary, and it seems like tackling
issues of faith and morality would be right up his line. However, while
Dogma flirts with some weighty topics (Is God a woman? Was Jesus
black? Can the Almighty be fallible?), the bathroom jokes and one-liners don't stop long enough for Smith to really sink his teeth into any of them.
Now there's nothing wrong with that, especially in a film that's billed as a "comedic fantasia" and not a sequel to The Last Temptation of
Christ. Unfortunately, Dogma's humor just isn't all that funny.
While most moviegoers will probably find a few lines that will make them
chuckle, overall Smith's jokes lack the caustic wit that infused his
earlier outings. For instance, when Loki makes a side trip to gun down the
board members of a Disney-like company (because they urge the masses to
worship a false idol, namely Mooby the Cow), the funniest thing Smith can
muster is delving briefly into their various sins, which are mostly
boring, obvious and related to sex.
Smith's other claim to fame is his usually clever dialogue, and
Dogma certainly does have its moments. But the film is
altogether too talky for its actors, who can barely manage to spit out their lengthy lines, let alone breathe life into their characters. The notable exceptions
are Rock--whose experience as a stand-up comic seems to stand him in good
stead when talking fast and funny--and Alan Rickman, who plays the angel
Metatron and serves as the voice of God.
All of this doesn't mean Dogma is a bad movie, it's just not a
particularly good one. A toned-down Smith combined with his always-awful
production style (Dogma looks like a film school project that happens
to star some well-known actors) is still better than most low-budget,
low-humor flicks. But Dogma certainly doesn't live up to the
attention it's garnered from the press, and even though it has already
become Smith's highest-grossing film by a wide margin, it's definitely not
his best effort. This flick is best saved until two-for-one night at the
local video store.
The critics are raving about this one and the Catholic League has openly
denounced it, but I don't see what all the fuss is about. And I'm a diehard Kevin Smith fan....
-- Craig
ericho Cane (Schwarzenegger) is a former New York City
cop-cum-security mercenary who is locked in a nasty struggle with his
inner beast--and he's losing badly. The guilt he feels for not being
able to prevent the murders of his wife and daughter hangs over him like a
noxious, toxic gas. Alcoholism, suicidal tendencies and daily doses of
dissolution gnaw inexorably at his will to live, and they have ravaged his
religious faith altogether.
herever there was evil, wherever an innocent would suffer, there would be Hercules. But after six seasons, Hercules (Sorbo) takes his final journey. It begins when he visits Nemesis (Kimberley Joseph)
and her son,
Evander (Joseph Main). Nemesis explains that Zeus (Charles Keating) has
taken Evander (his grandson) because the boy's powers have become too
strong and he has no control over them. On the way to Olympus to confront
Zeus, Hercules and Iolaus (Hurst) discover a village that is being
terrorized by a dragon. However, this dragon has purple polka dots and is
just as likely to blow bubbles as breathe fire. Evander is the
cause of it all.
n 1799 New York, police detective Ichabod Crane (Depp) is dispatched
from Manhattan to the sylvan reaches of the Hudson River Valley to apply
his scientific skills to the investigation of a serial decapitator.
oki (Damon) and Bartleby (Affleck) are two disgruntled angels who have
been on Earth for far too long. Centuries ago God (Alanis Morissette)
banished them to Wisconsin after Bartleby talked Loki into giving up the
slaughter of infidels, which was Loki's main responsibility as the angel of
death. Ever since then the pair has had to spend their time not drinking,
not having sex (angels are neuter) and, most importantly, not being in
heaven. But, thanks to an anonymous tip, they may have finally found a way
back home.
Dogma is the latest flick from independent filmmaker Kevin Smith, who
has previously struck cinematic gold with his movies Clerks and
Chasing Amy (though 1995's Mallrats was a box-office bomb).
Smith is known as an irreverent writer/director who successfully combines
lowbrow humor with biting social commentary, and it seems like tackling
issues of faith and morality would be right up his line. However, while
Dogma flirts with some weighty topics (Is God a woman? Was Jesus
black? Can the Almighty be fallible?), the bathroom jokes and one-liners don't stop long enough for Smith to really sink his teeth into any of them.
