Leelee Sobieski (Joyride, Eyes Wide Shut) plays Ruby, a problematic teen who often takes her parents for granted and has a bad relationship with her brother Rhett. But one night while attempting to sneak into her house, she discovers that her parents have died in a car crash. They then come under the guardianship of what seem like the perfect couple, the Glasses, their neighbors. But what seems to be a perfect life at first turns out to be more than Ruby bargained for. Leelee Sobieski hams it up as the misguided teen / heroine who discovers her new foster parents plot early within the movie.
Tag Archives: Drama
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Okay, I’ll admit it. I’ve never read the entire Lord of the Rings series, but I am a casual fan. I’m in the midst of reading “The Hobbit”, which is of course the prequel to “The Lord of the Rings” Series, and I’ve seen the Ralph Bakshi Cartoon version of the series which is good, but not all great. But when I saw this, I was in for some ride. The movie begins by telling the story of Bilbo Baggins, who went on a journey to retrieve the ring and returns to Hobbiton, then it tells the story of the nine rings and how they came to get under the possession of the elf kings, humans, and dwarves. But then we hear about the evil tyrant, Sauron who created his own ring on “Mount Doom”. A ring more powerful then them all. A ring so powerful that it could corrupt even the most purest of souls.
Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000)
The good thing about “Blair Witch 2” is that it’s a head trip and major mind fuck that explores the ideas about fandom and how sometimes the ideas of fiction and reality can be blurred. The plus sides to this are the disturbing turns at violence that help accentuate the lengths some of the entities go through to instill a sense of reality, and while it doesn’t rear its ugly head until the shocking end, it leaves a very fine mark. True, this is not as innovative or awe inspiring as the original, but it at least aims for different and something that pays tribute to the first film more than anything.
It’s not an official sequel per se, presenting a meta-narrative where “The Blair Witch Project” was just a movie and popular. The people we see are in our reality. The whole reason why the kids go into the woods is because of the first one because they loved the movie so much. It provides a lot of memorable twists and turns at once. This movie illustrates the often blurry and always terrifying line between truth and fiction. That said, it isn’t a perfect movie folks. The acting is rocky and the characters are pretty uninteresting and one note. The dialogue is atrocious at times; there were terrible lines spouted out one after another and it was distracting.
“Blair Witch 2” is very beautifully directed, and conveys a unique Gothic tone in keeping with Eduardo Sanchez’s original horror film, and adding to the mythos of the Blair Witch. Joe Berlinger gives his film a very nightmarish feel and makes every element and plot twist feel like a fever dream where we and the characters are going mad. While the suspense is nil in the first half, the build up works very well and pay off is still quite great. I was initially left my jaw hanging down and just wanted to see much more about what unfolded, and if anything in the movie had a sense of rationality, since it blurs reality and eventually even universes as a whole.
Though I felt this would’ve benefitted with a better cast of performers, and a much better screenwriter, I got a real kick out of “Book of Shadows,” and think of it as a neat sequel that works in the way “Season of the Witch” did for “Halloween” as a tale from this mythology and not a direct follow up.
Red Planet (2000)
The entire story is very sophisticated. Astronauts go to mars to find algae that was implanted for oxygen. Pretty simple. The whole concept that new life exists on this planet is a big thought which often left me pondering on the thought. The character interaction is good. As always, the best character would be Tom Sizemore which gives a great performance. The effects with the robot AMEE are really good.
The Gift (2000)
I am a big fan of “Evil Dead” and Sam Raimi once again displays his skill for horror and movie-making brilliance. Though “The Gift” is tonally uneven, it’s still worth a watch if only for the mood and inherent dread present. The movie’s scenery is comprised of a country setting, but the entire landscape of the trees and bayou is so grim and dark like a painting. The night scenes are the best, showing off the odd structure of the Dali-esque trees and scenery. When a young rich woman, Jessica (Katie Holmes) disappears, Annie Wilson (Cate Blanchett) the local town psychic reader must investigate the murder, but to the relentless harassment of an abusive man named Donnie Barksdale (Keanu Reeves) who is angry at her advice to his wife about Annie advising her to leave him.
Space Cowboys (2000)
What a colossal disappointment. We have a paper-thin plot, under-acting by the “all-star” cast. The plot is so diluted and plain that it reaches the point of boredom. Eastwood couldn’t save this. You couldn’t have saved this movie if you put Jimmy Stewart in it. It’s also so far-fetched. I doubt NASA would risk the welfare of the earth by putting four old men in space. That’s just plain irresponsible. What was surprising was that the scene I was most looking forward to, The space scene, is the most dull of the entire film.
If I Die Before I Wake (1998)
This is a low budget movie and proves not all low-budget thrillers are bad. I’m still holding my breath from this one. “If I Die Before I Wake” opens on a dark night and starts off very fast with three hillbillies breaking into a house. Quickly they beging terrorizing and torture the poor defenseless suburban family within their home. The oldest daughter realizes her house is being infiltrated early, and hides herself and her little sister, devising a plan to get back at the murderers and defend her house once and for all. “If I Die Before I Wake” is an excellent thriller, mainly for the atmosphere and breakneck pacing.