Thomas' early 1997 viewings

1997 viewage

(1/4/97) Thunderball - it's tough to go wrong with a Bond film. Nevertheless, this is one of the best. A-
(1/4/97) The Spy Who Loved Me - Roger Moore's finest work as Bond, and he's complemented by the bodacious Barbara Bach. Yes sir. B+
(1/5/97) Pulp Fiction - it seems like every time I watch this one, I pick up some new details. In fact, I believe you have to see it at least twice to fully understand what's going on. A
(1/5/97) Moonraker - I'll agree with the general consensus here: it's one of the cornier of the series. Still, it's a Bond flick. B-
(1/7/97) Die Hard 2 - different setting, not quite as intense as the original, but still action-packed. B
(1/9/97) Silence of the Lambs - wasn't as good as I'd remembered, and it even grated on me a bit. B-
(1/11/97) The Outlaw Josey Wales - one of Clint's better works, it's got a bit of everything - and it also carries a greater message. A-
(1/11/97) Fled - more entertaining than any previews or reviews would lead me to believe. I didn't intend to sit through it, but it held me. C+
(1/13/97) Speed - bomb on hurtling bus driven by Sandra Bullock! But for some reason, I just don't like this movie. C+
(1/15/97) Tremors 2 - almost as entertaining as the original, though it got contrived toward the end. B-
(1/18/97) The Magnificent Seven - 1961 American remake of "The Seven Samurai" set in the old west. Dated but good. B
(1/19/97) Heroic Trio - a real action film, from Hong Kong. Stars three women who are not only pretty but can fight and do their own stunts. Solid action. B-
(1/19/97) Caveman - trials and antics of prehistoric men, women, and the dinosaurs that tried to eat them. Funny in spots, but corny. C
(1/20/97) Executioners - sequel to the Hong Kong import "Heroic Trio" which had more action than any 3 American martial arts flicks. This one stunk though. D
(1/21/97) Uncommon Valor - Vietnam veterans train, then go back to find their MIA buddy. Not all action and blood, and it's thought-provoking. C
(1/26/97) Striptease - Demi's breasts are nice, but this is actually a very funny and entertaining movie, and that's why you should see it. C+
(1/26-29/97) The Godfather Trilogy - more than the sum of their parts, this was the 10-hour re-edited boxed set. Long, confusing, but good. B
(2/2/97) Sheena - understand: we only got this for one reason. Tanya Roberts does two nude scenes and the laserdisc format is ideal for checking them out. Mostly for this reason, this film gets a C-
(2/10/97) The Ghost and the Darkness - a bridge-builder and a hunter try to kill two lions that apparently have supernatural abilities. Pretty foolish. D
(2/11/97) Bad Boys - the 1981 prison movie, not the action film from a few years back. Intense and grim, plus it features a bunch of kids who grew up to be stars. C+
(2/15/97) Rumble in the Bronx - martial arts, action, comedy with Jackie Chan. Corny, but in a good way. B-
(2/15/97) Soylent Green - bleak, resource-starved future America, with Charlton Heston as an antiheroic cop. Not bad, and a killer ending. C
(2/16/97) Last Days of Planet Earth - old Toho movie about how we stupid humans are destroying our world. Somewhat entertaining but slightly pushy. C-
(2/16/97) Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight - a riot. Solid plot, mixed bag of humor, gore, special effects. B
(2/21/97) The Howling - interesting, well-made, but too slow in places. C
(2/23/97) Last Man Standing - Bruce Willis as the man with no name in Prohibition-era Texas. Good and violent. C+
(2/23/97) The Fan - crazy baseball fan (DeNiro) stalks player (Snipes) and worse. It grated on me. D
(2/24/97) Maximum Overdrive - in the wake of a comet, machines & appliances run amok. Funny at times, and the soundtrack (by AC/DC) rocks the house. For a more detailed review, you can check here. C
(2/26/97) Terror Train - I watched this one because horror reviews on the net (not to mention my own treasured movie guide) recommended it. Mistake. It had people acting unrealistically; it had too much screaming; it had no nudity; it had David Copperfield. C-
(2/27/97) Bounty Tracker - Lorenzo Lamas kicks the shit out of a lot of people. Entertaining, but the plot took a nosedive at the end. C
(3/2/97) Pumping Iron - documentary of the 1975 race for Mr. Olympia, featuring Arnold, Lou, and others. There's now no doubt in my mind as to the sheer mass of these guys - they're monsters. You also get to see Arnold's psych tactics. B-
(3/2/97) Yojimbo - the 1959 Japanese film which "A Fistful of Dollars" was based on. Good, but not as entertaining as Clint and his twin six-shooters. C+
(3/3/97) Clerks - good lord, what a riot! I haven't laughed this hard in a long while. A superior amateur effort. B+
(3/6/97) Sneakers - light-hearted espionage and spy games with several talented actors. B
(3/9/97) Dead Man - Western shot in black-and-white; Johnny Depp is an accountant who unwittingly becomes a marked man. Lots of funny little bits, but no real plot (at least, not one that's easily understood.) C-
(3/10/97) One False Move - entertaining crime drama set mostly in Arkansas, starring Bill Paxton. Not a bad film, but not an outstanding one either. C
(3/11/97) Assassins - Stallone and Banderas are killers-for-hire (the best in the business) and they use laptops too! Entertaining, but no blockbuster. C+
(3/15/97) Falling Down - Michael Douglas loses it and goes on a rampage...and in the process, does some things that most of us probably want to do but would never admit it. B-
(3/15/97) Real Genius - very well-written and funny comedy about teenage prodigies run amok. B
(3/15/97) Truth or Dare - documentary of one of Madonna's tours. Interesting, but a one-time viewing for sure. C
(3/17/97) Body of Evidence - continuing the Madonna-watching, this one's a lot like "Basic Instinct" and you even get to see Madonna naked. It still wasn't that entertaining. C
(3/18/97) The Long Kiss Goodnight - Geena Davis, an amnesiac housewife, slips back into her previous identity: government assassin. Nifty and funny. B-
(3/22/97) Caddyshack - golfing hijinks; how the hell did I manage not to watch this one for 15+ years?!? I now accept that Rodney Dangerfield was once funny. B
(3/22/97) Stripes - parody of Army life & times; this one just gets less and less funny each time I see it. There may not be another time. C
(3/23/97) Predators of the Wild: Hunters & Prey - just one chapter of a greater saga; I felt that I had to rate it since it showed some cool animal deaths and had some good narration and music. B
(3/24/97) 1941 - comical, high-budget production of the chaos after Pearl Harbor. It had its moments, but much like Stripes, it just wasn't as funny this time around. Unfortunately, I don't expect it to be funny next time around either. C
(3/25/97) Cannonball Run - a racing comedy in the vein of Smokey and the Bandit, with an all-star cast. A little slow for the first half, though. B-
(3/27/97) Cannonball Run 2 - not a bad sequel, as sequels go. It got bogged down in the second half, though. C+
(3/28/97) Spies Like Us - Dan Aykroyd and Chevy Chase in a comic spy romp. Some good lines. C+
(3/30/97) Ghostbusters - Looks like I'm on a comedy romp, doesn't it? This movie was pretty good too. B-
(3/31/97) The Dark Crystal - human-less fantasy with cool puppets and scenery. B-
(4/2/97) Fletch Lives - sequel, just as funny as the original. B-
(4/3/97) Parenthood - everything you always wanted to know about the joys of raising kids. A funny drama with lots of stars. B
(4/6/97) Once Upon a Time in the West - 1969 Sergio Leone epic about heroes, villains, and innocents in the wild west. B-
(4/10/97) An Eye For an Eye - Chuck Norris in his golden days. Good action, decent plot. C+
(4/15/97) Arsenic and Old Lace - 1944. Cary Grant, two nice old ladies who poison people, a nephew who thinks he's Teddy Roosevelt, another nephew who murders professionally and looks like Boris Karloff. Oh, and it's a comedy! Absolutely hilarious and highly re-watchable. A
(4/25/97) Honor Among Thieves - old Bronson movie about a bank robber and a doctor who get trapped in a vault for three days. It was okay at times, slow at others, and it reeked of the 70s. C-
(4/25/97)The People Under the Stairs - weird and funny horror film concerning an evil family and those they victimize. Click here for a complete review. Entertaining flick. C+
(4/28/97) Tales From the Hood - typical horror anthology format. Entertaining, yet clearly designed for a certain audience. C
(4/29/97) Pet Sematary - pretty spooky movie about a place where you can bury dead things...and then they come back. "Sometimes, dead is better." It also features Victor Pascow, the ghost who tells it like it is. C+
(4/30/97) An American Werewolf in London - two kids from America wander the wrong moors in England, and pay the price. For a full review, click here. B-
(5/1/97) Body Bags - John Carpenter organized this trilogy of terror tales. The first one was the best, the second one was the weirdest, and the third one was the silliest. Worth watching, but only once. C

NEW! IMPROVED! BEGINNING AUGUST 1997, THE MOVIE REVIEWS HAVE SWITCHED TO A NEW FORMAT!!!