80s Movie Review - After Hours

Director: Martin Scorsese
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 97 minutes
Year: 1985
Starring: Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, Verna Bloom, Tommy Chong, Cheech Marin, Teri Garr, John Heard, Catherine O’Hara, Linda Fiorentino, Will Patton, Dick Miller, Bronson Pinchot

Description: Ordinary word processor Paul Hackett (Griffin Dunne) experiences the worst night of his life after he agrees to visit Marcy (Rosanna Arquette), a Soho resident that he met that evening at a coffee shop.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2025 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 7: A MOVIE FROM 1985
 
Review: Ironclad black comedy, one of Martine Scorsese’s lesser know films. We meet Paul, an office clerk, who rolls from one bizarre adventure into another, when he decides to drive to Soho to visit a girl he just met at a coffee shop.

“After Hours” is a rather atypical Scorsese, in which you are drawn into an alienating and at times even surreal nightmare. Laced with dark humor and a kind of hilarious absurdity, which really makes it a unique mix, especially compared to the rest of Scorsese’s oeuvre.

One crazy character and absurd situation follows another, and the night increasingly degenerates into a nightmare you can’t wake up from. I didn’t know this film before I watched it, but I’m glad I did. I had a good time.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Too Big To Fail

Director: Curtis Hanson
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 99 minutes
Year: 2011
Starring: William Hurt, Billy Crudup, James Woods, Bill Pullman, Tony Shalhoub, Topher Grace, Cynthia Nixon, John Heard, Edward Asner, Kathy Baker, Paul Giamatti

Description: Chronicles of the financial meltdown of 2008 and centers on Treasure Secretary Henry Paulson (William Hurt).

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2025 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 3: A FILM WITH WILLIAM HURT
 
Review: A fantastic cast who are all perfect for their roles. But the subject matter is the big draw. I’m not very good with financial topics, don’t know much about it nor does it interest me.

Because the dialogues are sharp and the acting is so strong, it did engage me for most of the runtime. But most of it went over my head, because the financial world is just not something that holds my interest for very long.

I would recommend this movie for anyone who wants to know more about this subject or for people who are interested and fascinated by the financial world.

Rating: 3/ 5

90s Movie Review - The Pelican Brief

Director: Alan J. Pakula
Genre: Thriller/ Crime/ Drama/ Action
Runtime: 141 minutes
Year: 1993
Starring: Julia Roberts, Denzel Washington, Sam Shepard, John Heard, John Lithgow, Stanley Tucci, Tony Goldwyn, Robert Culp, William Atherton

Description: A law students (Julia Roberts) uncovers a conspiracy, putting herself and others in danger.

Review: When two Supreme Court justices are murdered, everyone is groping in the dark for the culprit and his motives. Law student Darby Shaw, however, is determined to find out the truth. And so she sets out to investigate. The end result is a theory that initially seems too bizarre for words. Nevertheless, Darby incorporates her theory into a preliminary, speculative dossier, soon dubbed “The Pelican Brief”. After a while, this report makes its way to the highest levels of government, where it causes major shock waves. Together with investigative journalist Gray Grantham, Darby decides to make her discoveries public. At least, if they manage to survive.
“The Pelican Brief” is not one of the best films based on a John Grisham novel. It’s still a pretty good film though. There is enough tension and the acting is really strong. It’s probably the subject matter that makes the film a lot less gripping than that of movies like “A Time to Kill” or “The Rainmaker”. It’s fairly dull subject matter and the pace is slower.
But because of Denzel Washington (who doesn’t really have a bad movie) and Julie Roberts this movie is still one I would recommend.

Rating: 3 / 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 114: Runner Runner

Director: Brad Furman
Genre: Thriller/ Crime/ Drama
Runtime: 88 minutes
Year: 2013
Starring: Justin Timberlake, Gemma Arterton, Ben Affleck, Anthony Mackie, John Heard, Bob Gunton

Description: When a poor college student (Justin Timberlake) who cracks an online poker game goes bust, he arranges a face-to-face with the man (Ben Affleck) he thinks cheated him, a sly offshore entrepreneur.

Review: In 2011 director Brad Furman scored unexpectedly with “The Lincoln Lawyer”, a strong thriller that boosted Matthew McConaughey’s career. The follow up movie “Runner Runner” is ambitious, but misses inspiration and feels mediocre.
Richie Furst is an ambitious young student and is introduced to quick money, beautiful women and luxury. But off course he is not made for a world like that and it gets him into trouble. Richie is played by Justin Timberlake and the boss he has to face is Ben Affleck. To pay for his college Richie gets his money by gambling online. But one day, he gambles it all away and he feels like he was cheated. Richie decides to find the man behind the website, Ivan Block, who lives in Costa Rica.
The way the story goes is very farfetched and feels illogical. The movie does have a good pace at the beginning. But the movie collapses pretty quickly. The movie is filled with clichés. And the acting isn’t all that great either. Justin Timberlake is not a good actor, especially not for a leading role like this.Ben Affleck I was never a fan of and in “Runner Runner” he didn’t win me over. Gemma Arterton has the thankless job to play the woman between the two men, when she has so much more to offer as an actress. And Anthony Mackie is also underused.
With all that, “Runner Runner” is extremely predictable. You just know what’s going to happen and you don’t really care either. “Runner Runner” is a mediocre thriller, that I will forget in an instant. Forgotten!

Rating: 2/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 81: Beaches

Director: Garry Marshall
Genre: Drama/ Comedy
Runtime: 123 minutes
Year: 1988
Starring: Bette Midler, Barbara Hershey, John Heard, Mayim Bialik, Hector Elizondo

Description: A privileged rich debutante (Barbara Hershey) and a cynical struggling entertainer (Bette Midler) share a turbulent, but strong childhood friendship over the years.

Review: Garry Marshall’s adaptation of Iris Rainer Dart’s novel is about the tumultuous but unbreakable friendsip between C.C. Bloom and Hilary Whitney. “Beaches” follows the lives of two women and they are fascinating without having to depend on a man.
We meet C.C. and Hilary at age 11. C.C. is an aspiring singer and performer from the Bronx. Hilary is going to be a lawyer, like her father. The tow meet on a beach in Atlantic City and that’s the start of their friendship. They write each other letters, growing closer every day. When they are adults, they move in together in an apartment in New York.
“Beaches” is a sugar sweet film, sometimes it feels a bit kitschy. Midler saves the film with her humor and sensitivity, she brings it to a more down to earth film. The movie celebrates life and friendship.

Rating: 3/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 32: Sharknado

Director: Anthony C. Ferrante

Genre: Horror

Runtime: 90 minutes

Year: 2013

Starring: Ian Ziering, Tara Reid, John Heard, Cassie Scerbo, Jaason Simmons, Chuck Hittinger, Aubrey Peebles

Description: When a freak hurricane swamps Los Angeles, nature's deadliest killer rules sea, land, and air as thousands of sharks terrorize the waterlogged populace.

Review: When it comes to shark movies, there is only one really good one. The rest is mediocre and mostly very bad. When you see the trailer for “Sharknado”, you know it’s going to be bad. A tornado filled with sharks? But I wanted to see this. And I was surprised…. No, I wasn’t. “Sharknado” is a terrible movie. But it’s one of the best worst movies I’ve ever seen. It’s so bad, it’s hilarious.

The film starts with a deal gone wrong (which isn’t in the movie anymore after this scene, so why is it in here) and sharks attacking a boat. After this, we meet the main characters. And as you can predict, they have no depth, aren’t interesting and are pretty dumb. A big storm floods a city and also brings a lot of dangerous sharks with it. They are everywhere.

There is no rhyme or reason for anything that happens and the complete film is illogical. I can deal with the over-the-top part though. The special effects are very bad. They tried to make the sharks look a bit more real by adding some footage from Shark Week into it, but this is used wrong too. And there are also parts in the movie, that have nothing to do with anything. We don’t care about the family drama!

This is such a bad film, but it is a fun watch. I laughed my ass off!

Rating: 0,5/ 5