The Abyss (James Cameron, 1989) [letterboxd capsule]
I can think of several ways the movie could be more satisfying, but the truth is, after the death/resurrection/emotional climax, Cameron had nowhere else to go except into the pit. The theatrical version cuts his hokeyness a bit (thankfully), but it would never satisfy so long as he was committed to bringing us into direct contact with the aliens one last time. He forces them to become a contrived plot point rather than a mysterious texture.
Thankfully, there's lots of sturdy suspense and memorable setpieces leading up to that moment so the film still works for me overall.
Aliens (James Cameron, 1986) [letterboxd capsule]
There is a raw, relentless physicality to this that makes the film particularly intense. The death of Vazquez has always resonated with me in a strange way. The pain in her voice when she cries out "oh no" after being paralyzed by an acid burn on her leg....it's more than just imminent death, it is the deep sting of failure.
Any Given Sunday (Oliver Stone, 1999) [letterboxd capsule]
Stone's overwrought professional football movie is very entertaining (I've seen the film several times even though I don't think it's that great) but it thinks it is way more insightful and observant than it truly is. Add to that Stone getting a little carried away with his collage style editing and some frustratingly thin characterizations. I think Jerry Maguire played the changing-face-of-pro-sports-in-the-90's card way better, though it is fun to watch Al Pacino scream at Cameron Diaz.
The Bling Ring (Sophia Coppola, 2013)
It is such an unusual and shocking thing: bored teenagers of privilege sneaking into the homes of particular celebrities and stealing their clothes. If it seems foolish and vapid and narcissistic, it is. But such is the culture of celebrity idolatry America has manufactured, and such is the hope of wildest dream fulfillment bestowed upon it's children by well-meaning but misguided parents. Sophia Coppola sees all of it. And instead of building a tired, pointed and moralistic tirade against it, she has crafted a brilliant observational satire that exposes the complex sociological consequences that enable not only the existence of something like TMZ, but the ubiquity of it's tabloid interests. She also finds a more frightening cause lurking below the surface.
Unsung Performances of the 90's: Wilford Brimley
In Hard Target (1993), John Woo gave character actor Wilford Brimley one of his strangest supporting roles ever, cajun moonshiner, Uncle Douvee. He enjoys his homemade liquor, helps patch up our hero, uses his archery skills to aid the hero in his plight and flees on horseback as his moonshine shack is blown to smithereens by the ruthless bad guys. Brimley mumbles, speaks gibberish and laughs in-between those plot points, providing a strangely comic counterpoint to the absurdist action that has come before. True, it is a performance of histrionics and externals, but the whole film is built as a histrionic re-working of the beats of the Hollywood action film.
This is a pictoral appreciation of that character and performance.
