THE BIG GREEN and Other Films
Film reviews by Michael John Legeros
Copyright 1995 Michael John Legeros
Contents ========
- THE BIG GREEN - AN AWFULLY BIG ADVENTURE - DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS - STEAL BIG, STEAL LITTLE - Recent Ratings
THE BIG GREEN =============
Has it really been two decades since Walter Matthau coached THE BAD NEWS BEARS? Nineteen years and two MIGHTY DUCKS later, the formula is still going strong. POLICE ACADEMY graduate Steve Guttenberg stars as a small-town deputy sheriff corralled into co-coaching the school's hastily formed soccer team. His partner-in-crime is the new British "exchange teacher" (Olivia D'Abo), a lively lass who has obviously seen DANGEROUS MINDS and knows that the best way to gain the respect of a disinterested, outer-city audience is to teach them something neat. Like soccer.
Most of the good-natured gags are of the fast-motion variety, such as runaway cows and out-of-control lawnmowers. Kids will laugh at the occasional belching bit, while their parents peacefully doze beside them. Other than letting a supporting character named Newt go unscathed, what's missing from THE BIG GREEN is a better integration of music and comedy. Instead of a peppy pop score, which would arguably work to better effect, most of the action is set to a bombastic orchestral score that belongs somewhere else.
Comedy needs music. Just watch any old Bugs Bunny short. The Marx Brothers knew it. Mel Brooks knows it. Unfortunately, the current trend is to "overscore." Lush strings and booming brass in every scene, at every moment. Remember the simple strains of Bizet's "Habanera" in the original BAD NEWS BEARS? These days, it's usually a bellowing fanfare that threatens to smother every scene in its path. Much like adding frosting to already frosted cake.
Grade: C-
AN AWFULLY BIG ADVENTURE ========================
The reteaming of director Mike Newell and star Hugh Grant is about as far removed as you can get from the lightsome comedy of FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL. Their second collaboration is a downbeat theatrical drama about a young intern (Georgina Cates) struggling to survive in post-W.W.II Liverpool. Hugh plays the gay director, an *extremely* unappealing character who may alienate whatever fans are left after the nonsense of NINE MONTHS. Bleak make-up and thick accents conspire to make this a difficult story to settle into. AN AWFUL ADVENTURE is not without *some* rewards, tho. The Peter Pan subtext is intriguing. As is the diverse ensemble cast that includes Peter Firth, Alan Rickman, and Prunella Scales. Basil!
Grade: C
DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS =====================
The comparisons to CHINATOWN are easy enough, except for the fact that this film isn't nearly as gripping. Writer/director Carl Franklin (ONE FALSE MOVE) is the force behind this accomplished-but-stiff adaptation of Walter Mosley's crime novel. Denzel Washington is as sturdy as ever, but he's burdened with a miscast supporting cast. Tom Sizemore and scene-stealer Don Cheadle are both fine. The problems start with Jennifer Beales, who never registers as the plot's femme fatale. She's a pretty face and nothing more. Also underweight are Maury Chaykin and Terry Kinney. They play opposing mayoral candidates in 1948 Los Angeles and neither actor commands enough authority to stifle giggles. John Huston, we miss you! Fine period detail and a strong sense of humor are a plus. They help to overcome a pace that's too polite for Mosley's jazzy, swingin' story.
Grade: B
STEAL BIG, STEAL LITTLE =======================
I can't say much about this one. Director Andrew Davis follows THE FUGITIVE with a wildly unfunny farce about twin brothers (Andy Garcia) with opposing moral codes. They're fighting over their adoptive mother's estate, a 40,000-acre ranch worth millions and supporting dozens of migrant farm workers. So many different plots are trying to come together--feuding brothers, reconciling husbands, loan-shark hired hitmen--that you have to admire the director's ambition. Too bad that almost every single person or plot-line is out of sync. That is, with the exception of Alan Arkin. He's the best thing in a movie that--despite the work of four credited writers--*still* manages to waste such diverse talents as David Odgen Stiers, Kevin McCarthy, and Joe Pantolinao. And what the heck does that title mean?
Grade: D+
Recent Ratings ==============
ANGUS : B- AN AWFULLY BIG ADVENTURE : C THE BIG GREEN : C- DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS : B HACKERS : B- SAFE : C+ SEVEN : A SHOWGIRLS : D+ STEAL BIG, STEAL LITTLE : D+ UNSTRUNG HEROES : C
-- Michael J. Legeros - Raleigh, NC legeros@nando.net (h) - legeros@unx.sas.com (w)
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