Oldies Movie Review - Days of Heaven

Director: Terence Mallick
Genre: Drama/ Romance
Runtime: 94 minutes
Year: 1978
Starring: Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, Sam Shepard

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2023 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 11: A MOVIE FROM THE 1970s
 
Description: A hot-tempered farm laborer (Richard Gere) convinces the woman he loves (Brooke Adams) to marry their rich but dying boss (Sam Shepard) so that they can have a claim to his fortune.

Review: Chicago 1916. Steelworker Bill, after a deadly scuffle, flees to North Texas with girlfriend Abby and sister Linda. When the terminally ill farmer with whom he finds work falls in love with Abby, a cynical plan ripens in Bill’s mind.

The film is directed by Terrance Mallick, and I have yet to really love a movie by him. I some how don’t really understand his vision, but I never seem to enjoy his films. The always look beautiful, the performances are always strong and he manages to get fantastic actors for his films. But somehow, it doesn’t work for me. I found “Days of Heaven” a fairly boring movie actually, but overall Mallick’s movies are just not my taste.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

90s Movie Review - Primal Fear

Director: Gregory Hoblit
Genre: Drama/ Thriller/ Crime/ Mystery
Runtime: 129 minutes
Year: 1996
Starring: Richard Gere, Edward Norton, Laura Linney, John Mahoney, Alfre Woodard, Frances McDormand, Maura Tierney, Andre Braugher, Terry O’Quinn, Steven Bauer

Description: An alter boy (Edward Norton) is accused of murdering a priest, and the truth is buried several layers deep.

Review: In Chicago, when an archbishop is murdered in cold blood, alter Boy Aaron Stampler is seen fleeing from the scene covered in blood. It’s as clear is day, but lawyer Martin Vail is eager to take on the defense. He likes cases that will generate a lot of media attention. His charming ex Janet is the prosecutor on the case. But it’s a tough job: the stuttering defendant is a wimpy kid, but was covered in blood.

“Primal Fear” is an exciting thriller, not just set in the courtroom. It’s one of Richard Gere’s best roles and Edward Norton’s first. And especially Norton impresses and he gives away an unforgettable performance. Norton deservedly received an Oscar nomination for his supporting role and knowing that Cuba Gooding Jr. won for “Jerry Maguire” that year, I believe Norton should have won it. He has not won an Academy Award to date, Norton is one of the finest actors out there, and already proved that in his first film.

The film has tension and is investing from start to finish. It has some surprising plot twist, midway and at the end, that blew my mind when I first saw it. But it still impacts after a rewatch. A very good thriller.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

00s Movie Review - Unfaithful

Director: Adrian Lyne
Genre: Drama/ Thriller/ Romance
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 2002
Starring: Diane Lane, Richard Gere, Olivier Martinez, Michelle Monaghan, Chad Lowe

Description: A New York suburban couple’s (Richard Gere, Diane Lane) goes dangerously awry when the wife indulges in an adulterous fling.

Review: Edward Sumner and his wife Connie lead an exemplary life consisting of a good marriage, a beautiful house in one of the suburbs of New York and son Charlie.
When Connie bumps into a handsome Frenchman during a major windstorm while attempting to find a cab, her life changes abruptly. The man, Paul Martel, invites her to his apartment to treat her scraped knees after a fall. She becomes completely intrigued by Paul. At first she tries to resist the feelings but eventually she falls for the stranger. She invents all kinds of excuses to meet him. The inevitable happens: together they end up in a passionate affair. Eventually the deception takes its toll when Edward discovers what is going on, based on his feelings and little lies from Connie.
Director Adrian Lyne previously made high-profile films as “Fatal Attraction”, Indecent Proposal” and “9 ½ Weeks”. Despire the fact that these films may not the artistic masterpieces, they still managed to achieve reasonable commercial success. Partly due to the lack of innovation, this movie is not nearly as good as the aforementioned movies. The theme of the adulterous man or woman and the consequences for the environment does much less nowadays. The film never really wants to take on serious thriller-like forms and “Unfaithful” cannot be called excitingly erotic either. Therefore, the film, especially the first part of the film, ripples along a bit. The of the film eventually makes up for some of this.  
Richard Gere gives a reasonable performance as Edward, but Diane Lane is particularly convincing.  
“Unfaithful” is not a movie that I would rewatch, but it’s also not a terrible film. The length of the film doesn’t help here, it drags on a bit, especially at the start. But when the thriller elements enter the stage, the movie is a bit better and gets more exciting.

Rating: 3/ 5

80s Movie Review - An Officer and a Gentleman

Director: Taylor Hackford
Genre: Drama/ Romance
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 1982
Starring: Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Louis Gossett Jr. David Keith, Robert Loggia

Description: A young man (Richard Gere) must complete his work at a Navy Flight school to become an aviator, with the help of a tough gunnery sergeant (Louis Gossett Jr.) and his new girlfriend (Debra Winger).

Review: “An Officer and a Gentleman” is seen as one of the most romantic films of the 80s. the movie has so many efficient clichés, that it’s no surprise it’s so popular: the impossible love between a man in uniform and a working girl, the choice between heart and mind.
Richard Gere, who broke through two years earlier with “American Gigolo”, really rose to the top after “An Officer and a Gentleman”. And I think every woman was in love with his character Zack Mayo, especially after that scene where he picks up Paula in the factory, wearing the white uniform. Louis Gossett Jr. got an Academy Award for his role as Sgt. Emil Foley. And well deserved.
“An Officer and a Gentleman” has a lot to offer. Good acting, strong story, classic romance, drama and a good soundtrack. I can totally understand why it’s my mother’s favorite movie. It’s actually because of her that I love this movie so much too.

Rating: 5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 46: Brooklyn's Finest

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Genre: Drama/ Crime/ Thriller

Runtime: 132 minutes

Year: 2009

Starring: Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke, Wesley Snipes, Vincent D’Onofrio, Lili Taylor, Will Patton, Ellen Barkin, Jesse Williams, Logan Marshall-Green

Description: Three unconnected Brooklyn cops wind up at the same deadly location after enduring vastly different career paths.

Review: Antoine Fuqua showed us the tough reality of cops and the street life in “Training Day”. Ethan Hawke, who was also in “Training Day”, stars in “Brooklyn’s Finest, together with Richard Gere and Don Cheadle. It’s a cop drama, but not standard: violent, without compromise and gritty as hell.

The effective intro sets the mood. The movie opens with criminal Carlo and cop Sal, in a parked car. The conversation isn’t important, but you can conclude that Sal needs money. He breaks the law for that. Then we meet cop Eddie, who wakes up and drinks a glass of whiskey right before he is about to start the last seven days of being a cop. Last we meet undercover cop Tango who, while driving a BMW, enters an apartment in the projects in Brooklyn with some gang members. It appears that a young dealer has just been shot by a cop.

This is the setup to the film and we shift between those three storylines. We follow them for a week and sometimes the stories intertwine. It gives you better insights in all the characters. For instance Sal, who needs to support his five children, and two on the way. Everyday there is the temptation of taking drug money that is found at the scene of the crime. Sal starts to take more risks. Ethan Hawke really impresses in his role. Eddie is set to pass on his experience to some new rookies. Richard Gere plays his role very subtle, he is a broken man. I liked seeing Gere in a role like this. Don Cheadle is undercover detective Tango and probably has the most interesting role. He managed to infiltrate and become friends with local drug lord Caz, played by Wesley Snipes. He is on the point of a break through and a promotion, so he can say goodbye to being an undercover agent. But his connection with Caz make the thin line between good and bad even thinner.

“Brooklyn’s Finest” is an above average cop drama, that doesn’t succeed because of its plot, but because of the strong cast and the anguished atmosphere. It’s an overlooked movie, that deserves more credit.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 18: Movie 43

Director: Elizabeth Banks, Bett Ratner, Bob Odenkirk, Steven Brill, Steve Carr, Rusty Cundieff, James Duffy, Griffin, Dunne, Peter Farrelly, Patrick Forsberg, Will Graham, James Gunn, Jonathan van Tulleken

Genre: Comedy

Runtime: 94 minutes

Year: 2013

Starring: Kate Winslet, Hugh Jackman, Anna Faris, Chris Pratt, Richard Gere, Kate Bosworth, Halle Berry, Stephen Merchant, Live Schreiber, Naomi Watts, Terrence Howard, Elizabeth Banks, Josh Duhamel, Kieran Culkin, Emma Stone, Chloë Grace Moretz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Uma Thurman, Jason Sudeikis, Kristen Bell, Justin Long, Leslie Bibb, Gerard Butler, Johnny Knoxville, Seann William Scott, Jeremy Allen White, J.B. Smoove, Jack McBrayer, Aasif Mandvi, Bobby Cannavale, Patrick Warburton, Jimmy Bennett, Matt Walsh, Adam Cagley, Devin Eash

Description: A series of interconnected short films.

Review: That a cast filled with Hollywood’s finest actors isn’t a guarantee for a good movie, is made painfully clear by “Movie 43”. In the US the movie got criticized and smashed by the audience and after seeing it myself I know why. It’s a comedy that simply isn’t funny, that barely has a script and has the goal to show the audience raunchy and ridiculous sketches. For instance, Kate Winslet going on a blind date with Hugh Jackman who has testicles under his chin, Halle Berry making guacamole with her boob and Elizabeth Banks who gets peed on by an animated cat. One sketch is even worse than the other.

Why all those actors and actresses (some with Academy Award wins and nominations) wanted to be in this movie, is a mystery. The movie is vulgar, obscene, nasty and especially really unfunny. You know how many times I laughed? Not once! The only reason to watch this movie is to see with your own eyes how terrible “Movie 43” is. But please, run away from it as fast as you can!

Rating: 0,5/ 5

Movie Tip # 54: Hachi

Director: Lasse Hallström

Starring: Richard Gere, Joan Allen, Sarah Roemer, Jason Alexander, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

Description: In Bedridge, Professor Parker Wilson (Gere) finds an abandoned dog at the train station and takes it home with the intention of returning the animal to its owner. He finds that the dog is an Akita and names it Hachi. However, nobody claims the dog so his family decides to keep Hachi.

Review: Parker finds a puppy and wants to return it to its owner. When no one claims the dog, he named Hachi, Parker and his wife Cate decide to keep him themselves. One day, Hachi follows Parker to the train station and ever since that day Hachi will wait for him when he returns at five o'clock. Everyone who comes to the train station knows Hachi. One day, when Parker collapses while working and dies from it, he doesn't return and Hachi is waiting for him at the train station. And he will return to that train station every day at five, for nine years long.
This story is so extraoridinay it's almost hard to believe it actually happened. Because it did. In real life it was in Japan, but Hachi really waited for his deceased owner for nine years long. When you own or owned a dog at one point in you life, you know what a bond you can develope with a dog. They are faithful, comforting and always there when you get home. The love a dog gives you is priceless. The bond between Parker and Hachi was so real and honest, so it broke my heart everytime Hachi walked to the train station and waited for him there. You have to be made of stone to not feel anything while watching "Hachi". Beautiful movie, amazing story.