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The Killing of America, a review by Jimmy

Title: The Killing of America (1982)

Genre: Documentary
Director: Sheldon Renan           
Rating: Unrated
Length: 1h31
Video: Full Frame
Audio: English
Subtitles: No Subtitles

Stars:
Chuck Riley - Narrator   

Before I start my review I will be honest with you, I've not wrote a review for so long and my last one was so bad that I feel a lot of pressure this time. But I'm not here for that so here we go with the review.

I've decided for this one to go with one genre that I don't think that I've reviewed here : the documentary. I have some of them in my collection, but not that much (many mondo movie, the faces of death serie, the first 3 of Michael Moore, ...) and one that I can't really name as a documentary that show footage of people death (this is the only movie in my collection that I'm not able to watch. I've bought it to shock my relatives, but finally this one is too much for me). The movie that I review here was made for the Japanese market after the success of the first Faces of Death (a rites of passage for all the teenagers when I was young). But there are no real comparison between the two : much of FOD is fake. So what we see in the movie is real, I'm sure that some find that it will be a bad taste documentary. Surprise, this is a very well done movie about the culture of violence in the United States. The film start with the assasination of John Kennedy that are the end of the innocence for the country (I tend to agree with that). That continue with the mention of many others political murder : Martin Luther King, Robert Kennedy, Georges Wallace, Ronald Reagan (I know he was not murdered). After they continue with an analysis of many others tendancy : the sniper (Charles Whitman), the serial killer (Ted Bundy), the cult murder (Jim Jones) and the random killer (Brenda Spencer). Most of the footage came from the tv station or the police, except for 2 interviews : Thomas Noguchi (a well known LA coroner) and, a particulary good one, with Ed Kemper (a serial killer). Some of the footage can be hard to watch for some viewers (we talk of dead person here), but like I've said most of the image came from the news.

The documentary is more neutral than Bowling for Colombine that covers the same subject. The director didn't manipulate the image or the editing to convince the viewer, he present the facts and let the archives do the talking.

Sure, he mentions that the guns culture are a part of the problem (even the most gun crazy guy can agree with that) but not the only one. Another part of the problem is the media themselves (the more they talk about those murders the more they happen). Just to quote one of the killer (Robert Smith) that have killed many women in a beauty school when he was caught : I want to be somebody, I want to be known.

The film end with the John Lennon memorial at Central Park when we learn that 2 person were killed. To leave us on a positive note at the end the narrator told us that five people were killed while we were watching the documentary. This movie was made more than 20 years ago and sadly this is worst than ever. Even in a little town like where I live we don't feel secure, not that a murder happen everyday but more and more crime happen.       

The bad thing is that this movie is not available at all in America, my copy is a bootleg but it was released in Europe many years ago on dvd. Since I don't want to end my review with a bad news : the movie is available on youtube (can't understand since they have closed my account for a couple of trailer ).

Rating :

Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9FtOlVp5wo

(From The little known movie review depot on September 3rd, 2008)

The Contract, a review by Silence_of_Lambs

Summary:
Ray Keene (John Cusack), a father who wants to redeem himself in the eyes of his son (Jamie Anderson), is trying to bring Carden (Morgan Freeman), a world-class assassin to justice. All the while, he must protect his son and evade the assassin's team who are methodically hunting them down in the wilderness.

My Thoughts:
Now here we have a movie with a world-class start, that sadly can't keep up with its extremely promising beginning.
Very soon it's obvious that Cusack and Freeman are taking this as a routine-job. These two alone could make a movie sparkle, but both lack the necessary esprit for this here, so we learn that these two alone could pull a movie down to an average mass-production.
It's an entertaining movie, but it's only another variation of the old "Run & Hide"-genre.
The several implied subjects (father-/son conflict, or "the assassin as a tool of politics"), remain strangely flat and are miraculously solved at the end of the movie.
This movie is a "Must" for fans of either Cusack, Freeman or the genre. All others don't miss much if they never saw it. Most of it looks awfully familiar anyway.

My Rating: (out of possible 5)

(From Michael's random reviews on January 5th, 2011)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

Once and Again: Season One (1999/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia Buena Vista Home Entertainment (Canada) Length: 990 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: English

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Plot:Once And Again explored brave new territory with the compelling story of two families blending at the seams. The second marriage of Lily Manning (Ward) to Rick Sammler (Campbell) pushes both to the limit as they try for domestic normalcy while navigating divorce, parenting, financial hardship and many other life lessons.

From the creators of thirtysomething and My So-Called Life comes the complete first season DVD Collection. Enjoy all the moving moments and memorable performances of a brilliant supporting cast, including Shane West (A Walk To Remember) and Evan Rachel Wood (Practical Magic) once and again.


Once & Again
1.01 Pilot
Writer: Marshall Herskovitz (Story By), Edward Zwick (Story By)
Director: Marshall Herskovitz
Cast: Sela Ward (Lily Manning), Billy Campbell (Rick Sammler), Jeffrey Nordling (Jake Manning), Susanna Thompson (Karen Sammler), Shane West (Eli Sammler), Julia Whelan (Grace Manning), Evan Rachel Wood (Jessie Sammler), Meredith Deane (Zoe Manning), Todd Field (David Cassilli), Marin Hinkle (Judy Brooks), Kelly Coffield (Naomi), Kimberly McCullough (Jennifer), LaTanya Richardson (Counselor), Vanessa Lee Chester (Friend #1), Julie Marie Berman (Friend #2), Anna Mathias (Secretary), Suzanne Lanza (Assistant), Nicola Theodoropoulos (Soccer Coach), Jourdan Fremin (Laughing Mom)

I am still waiting for the third and last season of this great series to be released on DVD. The pilot is really good. I like how the two families are coming together and I think it is handled rather realistically. The two failed marriages are not necessarily one person's fault. Also the reaction of the children about this new relationship is handled well. I like all the actors here. All did a great job. Especially the child actors. Even the youngest (Meredith Deane) does a great job.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on June 17th, 2012)