Film Reviews
Der Struwwelpeter |
Der Struwwelpeter is a popular German children's book. It comprises of ten illustrated and rhymed stories, mostly about children. Each has a clear moral that demonstrates the disastrous consequences of misbehavior in an exaggerated way. Writer/director Fritz Genschow adapted Hoffmann's book to the big screen. He made a career doing such films, he had done Hansel and Gretel and would go on to adapt Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and other family films. Der Struwwelpeter, however, is weirder and darker than the Grimms' tales. They are heavy morality lessons in which children are burned to death, starved to death, or have their thumbs cut off. In Hoffmann's world the punishment usually far outweighs the crime. Genschow provided a happy ending: through the wonders of reverse action children are brought back from their fiery deaths, their thumbs are reattached, and their misdeeds undone through the power of St. Nicholas and some sort of Christmas miracle. (via forcesofgeek.com) |
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Cloud 9 |
Has-been sports promoter Billy Cole gets a second shot at fame and fortune when he puts together a women's volleyball team, comprised of exotic dancers... |
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The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial |
A full-length adaptation, originally staged as a play, of the court-martial segment from the novel "The Caine Mutiny". |
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The Most Wonderful Evening of My Life |
A successful businessman whose destiny leads him to a secluded Swiss chalet where his life is put on trial by a group of retired law professionals. The men assemble to analyze Sordi's rise to power and his increasingly immoral behavior as he attained success, and the warped perceptions of right and wrong he has adopted to remain successful. |
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Rosemary's Baby |
Modern 3 hour mini-series adaptation of the classic novel by Ira Levin focusing on young Rosemary Woodhouse's suspicions that her neighbors may belong to a Satanic cult who are hell bent on getting one thing: the baby she is carrying. |
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Disturbing the Peace |
Disturbing the Peace follows a group of former enemy combatants - Israeli soldiers from the most elite units, and Palestinian fighters, many of whom served years in prison - who have come together to challenge the status quo and and say “enough". The film traces their transformational journeys from soldiers committed to armed battle to non-violent peace activists. It is a story of the human potential unleashed when we stop participating in a story that no longer serves us, and with the power of our convictions take action to create a new possibility. |
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Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story |
A dramatization of the early years of the hard rock band, Def Leppard, the group faces both success and personal tragedies such as drummer, Rick Allen losing his arm in a car accident and guitarist Steve Clark's alcohol addiction. |
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Close Your Eyes |
While treating a policewoman for smoking, hypnotherapist Michael Strother has a telepathic vision of a young girl floating beneath the surface of a stream. The escaped victim of a ritualistic serial killer, the girl has become mute, and Michael is called upon by Scotland Yard to unlock the secrets she holds in order to catch a man who believes he has discovered the key to immortality. |
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Nine Lives |
Nine friends seclude themselves in an old, isolated Scottish mansion for a birthday weekend bash. Cut off from the outside world by a snowstorm, strange behavior soon invades the group and one by one they disappear. |
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A Town Like Alice |
In 1941, The advancing Japanese army captures a lot of British territory very quickly. The men are sent off to labor camps, but they have no plan on what to do with the women and children of the British. |
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Resurrected |
A Falklands War soldier missing, believed dead, turns up claiming amnesia. |
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Infestation |
Our hero, Cooper, awakes to find himself nauseous, weak and covered in webbing, hanging from the ceiling of an office where, just minutes ago, he started his new job. As he struggles out of his slimy prison he comes face to face with his opponent - a grotesque, powerful and very angry bug. All 3 ft of it |
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A Few Dollars for Django |
Django, bounty killer, hunter and repentant bandit wants to start a new life. No more bullets and blood, after years of killing and horror. Django wants to replace the sherrif and restore law and order to lawless land, but faces the history and bloodshed of his own past. Helped by the love of the daughter of a bandit Django can finally bring his life of violence to and end and spend his days in peace... If he can live that long! |
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Suddenly |
Four assassins led by Baron, pose as Secret Service agents to commandeer the house of war-widow ELLEN. Her home is a prime sniper position for their plan to assassinate the President on his visit to the small town of Suddenly. The men fool the local cops except for one, TODD. A washed-up former war hero and deputy who is now the town drunk, Todd served with Ellen’s deceased husband and has developed romantic feelings for her over the years. But she rebuffs his advances. Todd visits the house and is immediately suspicious of Baron, but no one will listen to the ravings of a drunk. Once Todd realizes what is going on, he manages to kill one of Baron’s crew, but is captured. Now he and Ellen must find a way to stop Baron and his men before they kill the President. |
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Zathura: A Space Adventure |
After their father is called into work, two young boys, Walter and Danny, are left in the care of their teenage sister, Lisa, and told they must stay inside. Walter and Danny, who anticipate a boring day, are shocked when they begin playing Zathura, a space-themed board game, which they realize has mystical powers when their house is shot into space. With the help of an astronaut, the boys attempt to return home. |
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