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(COOLLIST) Three Quick Film Reviews

Hey, (CL)ers.  IN this mail are three really short movie reviews of
films I've seen in the last week.  Take them with a grain of salt, and
remember, I always try to keep my plan, which lists the recent movies
I've seen and my numerical rating of them, up-to-date.  Just "finger -l
combee@yak.net".  Numerical ratings are on a -4 to +4 scale.

_The New Age_:  This film is from the same director, Michael Tolkein_,
as the earlier film _The Rapture_.  I never saw _The Rapture_, but it
seems to have quite a few net fans.  The primary reason I saw this film
was for the presence of Judy Davis, the amazingly great Australian
actress who has starred in _Impromptu_, _Husbands and Wifes_, the _The
Ref_.  The other lead was Peter Weller, of _Robocop_ fame.  The story
revolves around this L.A. couple who hit a professional and spiritual
crisis.  They attempt to resolve their problems, and are eventually
drawn towards different aspects of the new age movement.  It is at
times sarcastically funny, and has a special surprise for Subgeni
towards the end.  +3

_Equinox_:  I heard that the director of this film, Alan Rudolph, had
been an inspiration for Hal Hartley.  That was enough to get me to rent
this winner of a film.  Rudolph's work is at first confusing, but also
enthralling.  _Equinox_ plays with the idea of equality of identity as
we follow the strange lives of two characters, both played by Matthew
Modine (_Full Metal Jacket_).  Good support is given by Lori Singer
(_V.R.5_) and Lara Flynn Boyle (_Twin Peaks_), and the film, while not
hilarious, is very meaningful.  About the only complaint I have is the
ending, which is rather artsy-ambiguous, in a pointless kind of way. +3

_My Life's In Turnaround_: For a low budget, low effort film, this is
quite OK.  It tells the story of two filmmakers, both slackers to a
high degree, who try to make a film in Seattle without several
essentials, like scripts, actors, or money.  There are some neat cameos
from Phoebe Cates and John Sayles, but the movie just doesn't promote
much excitement in me.  +0

--
"A heart, a heart that hurts,    | Benjamin L. Combee
is a heart, a heart that works." | combee@techwood.org
     -- Juliana Hatfield         | http://www.yak.net/combee/