The
premise of this movie is sort of a modern version of the old
“ventriloquist and his living dummy” tale. You’re supposed to wonder if
the dummy is really alive, or if the ventriloquist is just nutty. Only
instead of a dummy, ‘Love Object’ substitutes a lifelike sex doll.
Also, for the most part, there’s never any question of whether the doll
is alive or not. It’s pretty apparent by about the halfway point in
this movie that our protagonist is out of his gourd. The problem is,
it’s never clear why our main character goes from being a quiet,
shy, but basically normal guy to a full on psycho. Apparently just
owning a lifelike sex doll is all it takes.
Director Robert Parigi
gets good performances out of his two lead actors, and Udo Kier and Rip
Torn make what could have been forgettable supporting roles
interesting. Unfortunately, after a decent set-up, the script lets the
actors down in the third act. The final third of this movie is just
typical low budget erotic thriller material, with a stupid twist ending
that I guess is supposed to be ironic. Hey, if you’re sitting around
the house and this comes on cable, you may want to give it a shot. The
only reason I’d even think about recommending that anyone go out and
rent this movie is the bonus interview with Udo Kier. Udo is one of
those great old school crazy actors, and he had some fun anecdotes.
(Bob Ignizio)
Opeth is one of
those rare acts where excellence isn't the goal, it’s the starting point.
Time after time they have exceeded the expectations of fans and critics
alike, and just when you think they've reached the pinnacle of their talent,
they go just that much further and blow the listener away again.
‘Lamentations’ is the first home video venture from the Swedish Prog/Death
Metal masters, and its just as impressive as you'd expect. The show was
shot on one night in 2003 at the Shepherd's Bush Empire Hall in England,
with the first half dedicated to their "mellow" album ‘Damnation’, played in
its entirety. This they followed with an equally long 'heavy" set of
material from their past releases. The DVD also features a 60 minute plus
"making-of" featurette on their tandem releases ‘Damnation’ and
‘Deliverance’.
Let's start with the
"Damnation" set. You know, the more I listen to this album, the more I'm
convinced that I'm listening to something whose importance we won't truly
know for years to come. It is *such* a masterful musical effort that it's
on the way towards being one of my favorite albums of all time (and I've
listened to thousands of albums). I can't wait to see what metal musicians
who've been similarly blown away by this release do with that inspiration.
In concert, the album comes alive, with an energy added to the ethereal
quality of the songwriting that kicks it to the next level. One standout is
"Closure", where the "Martins"...Martin Lopez (Drums) and Martin Menendez
(bass)...provide a rock-solid rhythmic foundation that the rest of the band
can soar away on. Other stand-out tracks include "Death Whispered A
Lullaby", "Hope Leaves", and "Ending Credits". Bridging the mellow and heavy
sets is "Harvest", one of the standout tracks from their magnum opus
‘Blackwater Park’. This has always been a favorite of mine, and it aptly
shows off the incredible variety this band is capable of.
Moving into the "heavy"
part of the concert, the band starts off in fine form with "Masters
Apprentices", from their ‘Deliverance’ album. If there's a band that's
tighter live, I have yet to hear them. Mikel Akerfelt and company charge
through some of the most complex arrangements in metal (hell, in music in
general) today with an effortlessness that's awe-inspiring. From there they
go into "The Drapery Falls", which is perhaps one of the best arrangements
I've heard in years. The way this band slips from metal fury into acoustic
mellowness, only to be flying at full speed again 30 seconds later...as a
musician, I'm envious. As a fan, I'm ecstatic.
The "making of"
documentary is a bit scattered. I, for one, would have liked to see one
particular track built from the beginning all the way to the final mix, much
the same way that Aerosmith did with "Love in an Elevator" on their ‘Making
of PUMP’ video. There is a great part that shows Mikel and producer Steve
Wilson layering the vocals for one of the acoustic breaks in "Masters
Apprentices" that shows the symbiotic way these two operate in the studio.
Overall, this DVD is more than worth the money. I got mine through The End
Distribution (www.theendrecords.com) for only $20. Clocking in at over
three hours, this DVD is worth the money.
Winslow
Leach (William Finley) is an unknown singer/songwriter who has written a
rock opera based on ‘Faust’. Record producer Swan (Paul Williams) hears
him playing, and decides he has to have the music for the opening of his
new rock hall, The Paradise. But he doesn’t want Leach. This leads to
a series of events which culminates in Leach being horribly disfigured
and presumed dead. But, like the Phantom of the Opera, he returns to
terrorize Swan’s theatre on opening night. Also like the Phantom, Leach
is smitten by a female singer (Jessica Harper) who he believes is the
only one who can perform his rock opera.
If you go into this expecting a horror movie, you
will be disappointed. There are a few murders, but nothing scary.
‘Phantom of the Paradise’ is more of a musical comedy with horror
trappings, and it’s primarily concerned with exposing the music industry
for the sleazy business it is. Although DePalma gets sole writing
credit for the screenplay, the songs, written and in some cases
performed by star Paul Williams, are as important to telling the story
as the spoken dialogue.
There are some good parts to ‘Phantom of the
Paradise’, and the music industry satire is right on, but ultimately
it’s too flawed to rate as a true classic. The story feels incomplete
and disjointed at times, like portions of the script either weren’t
filmed, or were arbitrarily cut to keep the running time down. It just
doesn’t quite come together like it should. Still, I enjoyed the music,
DePalma’s style is always visually interesting, and despite drawing from
two often adapted stories, the film actually feels pretty original.
As for this DVD, it’s pretty disappointing in the
bonus features department. Some interviews with Williams and DePalma
especially would have been nice. So even if you’re already a fan of
this flick, I’d say rent, don’t buy. You know you’re just going to get
hosed a year or two down the road when a better version comes out. (Bob
Ignizio)
In
its literary form, science fiction frequently deals with all manner of
weighty subject matter. What does it mean to be human? What is the
nature of God? Are we masters of our technology, or have we become its
slaves? You get the idea. Although there was something of a vogue for
serious sci-fi during the late sixties and early seventies, ever since
‘Star Wars’ the science fiction film has mostly been the domain of
juvenile space operas and shoot ‘em ups. So Stephen Soderbergh’s
‘Solaris’ is a nice change of pace. It treats its audience like adults,
and isn’t afraid to deal with truly cosmic ideas.
George Clooney plays a psychiatrist sent to a space
station to convince the crew to return to earth. When he gets there, he
finds most of the crew are already dead, and the remaining inhabitants
are clearly upset. Why? Because something is tapping into their minds
and creating duplicates of people from their past. Clooney soon gets a
taste of this firsthand when a duplicate of his dead wife appears. At
first, Clooney tries to get rid of this doppelganger, sending it off
into space in a shuttle. But when the duplicate of his wife reappears,
he starts to wonder if maybe this isn’t his second chance to make things
right.
On a
technical level, ‘Solaris’ is first rate. The special effects are
convincing but unobtrusive. They do their job right, by creating a
believable future world without calling attention to themselves. Steven
Soderbergh’s direction is excellent, and the performances by George
Clooney, Natasha McElhorne, Viola Davis, and Jeremy Davies are all
solid. The same story by Stanislaw Lem that this was adapted from also
served as the basis for a Russian film of the same name, but Soderbergh
claims his ‘Solaris’ is not a remake. I haven’t seen the original, so I
can’t comment on how the two compare. All I can say is, on its own
terms, this is a really good science fiction movie that deserves to be
seen. (Bob Ignizio)
The
premise of this movie is sort of a modern version of the old
“ventriloquist and his living dummy” tale. You’re supposed to wonder if
the dummy is really alive, or if the ventriloquist is just nutty. Only
instead of a dummy, ‘Love Object’ substitutes a lifelike sex doll.
Also, for the most part, there’s never any question of whether the doll
is alive or not. It’s pretty apparent by about the halfway point in
this movie that our protagonist is out of his gourd. The problem is,
it’s never clear why our main character goes from being a quiet,
shy, but basically normal guy to a full on psycho. Apparently just
owning a lifelike sex doll is all it takes. 
Opeth is one of
those rare acts where excellence isn't the goal, it’s the starting point.
Time after time they have exceeded the expectations of fans and critics
alike, and just when you think they've reached the pinnacle of their talent,
they go just that much further and blow the listener away again.
‘Lamentations’ is the first home video venture from the Swedish Prog/Death
Metal masters, and its just as impressive as you'd expect. The show was
shot on one night in 2003 at the Shepherd's Bush Empire Hall in England,
with the first half dedicated to their "mellow" album ‘Damnation’, played in
its entirety. This they followed with an equally long 'heavy" set of
material from their past releases. The DVD also features a 60 minute plus
"making-of" featurette on their tandem releases ‘Damnation’ and
‘Deliverance’. 
Winslow
Leach (William Finley) is an unknown singer/songwriter who has written a
rock opera based on ‘Faust’. Record producer Swan (Paul Williams) hears
him playing, and decides he has to have the music for the opening of his
new rock hall, The Paradise. But he doesn’t want Leach. This leads to
a series of events which culminates in Leach being horribly disfigured
and presumed dead. But, like the Phantom of the Opera, he returns to
terrorize Swan’s theatre on opening night. Also like the Phantom, Leach
is smitten by a female singer (Jessica Harper) who he believes is the
only one who can perform his rock opera. 
In
its literary form, science fiction frequently deals with all manner of
weighty subject matter. What does it mean to be human? What is the
nature of God? Are we masters of our technology, or have we become its
slaves? You get the idea. Although there was something of a vogue for
serious sci-fi during the late sixties and early seventies, ever since
‘Star Wars’ the science fiction film has mostly been the domain of
juvenile space operas and shoot ‘em ups. So Stephen Soderbergh’s
‘Solaris’ is a nice change of pace. It treats its audience like adults,
and isn’t afraid to deal with truly cosmic ideas. 