(dir. E. Marko, 1999) **
A "DVD Single" from Mocean Worker, the drum and bass band of Adam Dorn. Two videos are included, "Detonator" and "Diagnosis." Though I liked the music, I have no idea what's good or bad in electronic music. The videos are your standard mix of concert footage, stock footage, and illustrations, all layered together and edited to the driving beat. DVD Extras: In the four little interview clips, shot in the basement of some club, Dorn comes across as an electronic dilettante. Not very well-spoken, he explains how he's influenced by Orbital and the jazz greats, then describes jazz as "freedom from preconceived notions." He also does a commentary track over the two videos along with the director of the videos, and again, he is unprepared and uninsightful. The director is a little better, explaining how he put the first video together using After Effects on the Macintosh and one weekend of free time. If you like electronica, it might be better to stick with the music.
RINGMASTER
(dir. Neil Abramson, 1998) *
A white-trash mother and daughter end up sleeping with the same men, a black guy sleeps around on his woman, and everybody ends up on The Jerry Springer Show (called Jerry in the movie "for legal reasons"), learning about love and life and themselves. The "comedy" comes across as pathetically sad, while the "drama" is hilarious, but mostly the movie is boring and nothing really works. DVD Extras: In the "bio" section of the DVD, the very first sentence of Springer's bio says he was born in London in 1941, "a child of the Holocaust. While his parents escaped from Berlin on the eve of World War II, many of his other relatives were forced into concentration camps." Make fun of him now, eh? There's a soul ballad music video, production notes, and more bios (of note: each of the producers had their faces obscured!). As the first studio film by Sundance veteran Neil Abramson, the director's commentary track is full of complaints about the budget and the shooting schedule, as well as choice quotes like "That blowjob scene really comes alive because of the sound effects."
Q (THE WINGED SERPENT)
(dir. Larry Cohen, 1982) ***
Director Larry Cohn (Black Caesar, the It's Alive trilogy) was and continues to be the heir-apparent to Roger Corman, making up for the budgetary limitations of his movies with humor and even brains. In Q, a rash of human sacrifices has awakened the winged serpent and Aztec god Quetzlcoatl, who's now plucking sunbathers off of Manhattan's skyscrapers like fruit from a tree. Michael Moriarty (Law & Order) gives a great and frantic performance as the dumb ex-junkie who bungles a diamond heist, hides out in the top of the Chrysler building (which is being remodeled), and discovers the nest of the giant winged beast. He strings the cops along while hiding from the bad guys, and occasionally uses the monster as a personal assassin. With David Carradine and Richard Roundtree. DVD Extras: None worth mentioning, but that doesn't mean the movie wouldn't make a good rental.
BAD BOYS
(dir. Rick Rosenthal, 1983) *
Standard cautionary tale about the dangers of living a violent life. Sean Penn is a troubled youth who goes to reform school after accidentally killing the kid brother of a gang leader in a failed robbery. When his nemesis is jailed in the same facility, a showdown ensues. Acclaimed at the time it was released, Bad Boys did not age well. DVD Extras: None. Oh, it's got the standard cast and crew filmographies, but that stuff is crap.
DECONSTRUCTING HARRY
(dir. Woody Allen, 1997) ***
Harry Block (Woody Allen) is a curmudgeonly author who has alienated any wife, girlfriend, or friend he has ever had by exploiting them in his books. Now he's suffering from writer's block, hooked on booze and pills, and addicted to whores. Woody Allen makes up for his lack of acting depth by perfectly casting himself as this creator of popular fiction whose personal life is a mess. As a director, Allen gives us glimpses into his fiction, acted out on screen, which work as glimpses into how he sees himself or how he'd like to be seen. Those with sensitive demeanors may want to stay away, because Harry Block in "real life" is a foul-mouthed ass. DVD Extras: As Allen is beloved by the French, you can hear him dubbed into French, and you have the option of running French or English subtitles.
