James-Belushi Movie Reviews

Wow, we just watched this today in science and I was amazed. This movie is really entertaining, with a cast of some major actors to back it up (Jim Belushi, Halle Berry and Casey Affleck who is Ben Affleck's younger brother). The story is really inspirational. Based on a true story, it follows a group of high school students who come together in detention class. Things happen in the beginning, giving these kids the motivation to build a solar car and race in the world championships. After overcoming many obstacles, the team eventually makes it into the big games.
Here's where things get interesting, as we look into each character's personality. For instance, we have the stereotypical fat guy whom no one would expect to fit into a car, let alone race. Then there's the troubled girl with the alcohol problem, who gets disqualified from the races. Next comes the nerdy girl, who finds love in interestig places.
Jim Belushi and Halle Berry once again prove how good they truly are in this wonderful movie (based on a true story). I hope everybody watches this because it is really exceptional.

I had no idea what this movie was about or anything before I watched it. I didn't even know who James Belushi was before this. Yah, now I know he's the Soprano guy. He's actually the best one out of all of them. Even though, Eliza Dushku is my favourite actress, she's only 15 years old here, so she still has a bit of her childhood left. Meaning, a little more whining then she usually does. Casie Affleck, later to become her ... partner in Soul Survivors, also stars in here as her step-brother. And of course, Halle Berry, who is almost always delivering at least a fine performance. This movie was predictable, but it reminded me of the movies I used to watch as a child, but without the cheesy dogs talking and stuff. So, it was a little more realistic. The Sun, is a motorized-vehicle that they built for a science project. Turns out, they race in Hawaii and win so they head off to Australia to compete for the championships. It's a really fun movie and I do plan on buying this if I find it. This movie is one of the best I've ever seen, I love it!! TWO THUMBS UP!!

I loved this movie, I thought it was brilliantly done and the drama mixed with the comidy I thought was amazing. This is a must see movie.

Wow, we just watched this today in science and I was amazed. This movie is really entertaining, with a cast of some major actors to back it up (Jim Belushi, Halle Berry and Casey Affleck who is Ben Affleck's younger brother). The story is really inspirational. Based on a true story, it follows a group of high school students who come together in detention class. Things happen in the beginning, giving these kids the motivation to build a solar car and race in the world championships. After overcoming many obstacles, the team eventually makes it into the big games.
Here's where things get interesting, as we look into each character's personality. For instance, we have the stereotypical fat guy whom no one would expect to fit into a car, let alone race. Then there's the troubled girl with the alcohol problem, who gets disqualified from the races. Next comes the nerdy girl, who finds love in interestig places.
Jim Belushi and Halle Berry once again prove how good they truly are in this wonderful movie (based on a true story). I hope everybody watches this because it is really exceptional.

I had no idea what this movie was about or anything before I watched it. I didn't even know who James Belushi was before this. Yah, now I know he's the Soprano guy. He's actually the best one out of all of them. Even though, Eliza Dushku is my favourite actress, she's only 15 years old here, so she still has a bit of her childhood left. Meaning, a little more whining then she usually does. Casie Affleck, later to become her ... partner in Soul Survivors, also stars in here as her step-brother. And of course, Halle Berry, who is almost always delivering at least a fine performance. This movie was predictable, but it reminded me of the movies I used to watch as a child, but without the cheesy dogs talking and stuff. So, it was a little more realistic. The Sun, is a motorized-vehicle that they built for a science project. Turns out, they race in Hawaii and win so they head off to Australia to compete for the championships. It's a really fun movie and I do plan on buying this if I find it. This movie is one of the best I've ever seen, I love it!! TWO THUMBS UP!!

I loved this movie, I thought it was brilliantly done and the drama mixed with the comidy I thought was amazing. This is a must see movie.

I thought this tape was real funny. They made fun of Entertainment Tonight and that was very funny. If you like Tom Hanks or Peewee Herman, you'll love this tape! 1985 was quite a funny year on SNL,which is proved on this tape.

The 1985-1986 season was the best season of SNL. However, nobody gave it a chance. Debuting strongly, the season got mixed reviews, and the ratings declinded, making SNL the 2nd [and at times 3rd] highest rated show of the evening. However, the humor was fresh, and due to the return of Lorne Michaels, everything seemed to be more like the original groundbreaking cast.

Salvador is an early Oliver Stone film, which required overcoming many production hurdles, lying and cheating to complete filming, and committing fraud for additional money (all admitted by Stone in the commentary.)

It was underrated during its brief theatrical release, although James Woods earned and deserved his Best Actor nomination as a press photographer who goes to El Salvador, accompanied by Jim Belushi, to make some money photographing the political mess and killings there, including the murder of nuns and a priest. ("Romero" is a movie about the priest).

Based on "real events" and "real people" like all Stone movies, some license has been taken, also as in all Stone movies.

Political viewpoints aside, the movie pulls no punches in showing the atrocities of war. If you are squeamish about seeing dead bodies, burning bodies and bloody bodies, then you will have to look away on occasion. As in real life, there is some sex and swearing.

The DVD extras, including Stone's commentary, deleted scenes, and cast interviews and clips, are very interesting as well.

What a moving drama full of engaging characters -- sordid, but engaging! While some of the politics may be handled ham-handedly, Woods manages to introduce moments of comedy, a very human comedy, in a story that is wrought with despair.

He plays a journalist whose days of glory have long begun to wane, and with his wife having left him, he is now at the end of his tether for that one good project to get him out of his corner. An article about the sordid goings-on in El Salvadore could very well be that project, so he heads out for there.

He is not alone though in his journey. Belushi provides much of the movie's comic relief and is a riot as the kvetching drug-and-booze soaked friend Dr. Rock, who unwittingly comes along for Woods' ride from San Francisco to El Salvador (he thinks they're going to Guatamala), and finds himself being brutalized by Salvadoran military, police, infected by the water (and the "professional" women), generally having a rough time of it.

The politically charged screenplay is somewhat clumsily delivered -- with the bumbling passion of a college radical a little too full of himself. The action speaks for itself, dead bodies everywhere, the American military hovering nearby constantly. And just in case we don't get it, the characters lecture us with familiar left vs. right themes, crow with indignation, and denounce the military characters, who are one-dimensional and disgusting. U.S. involvement is simplified far too much. As things stand, we have very little idea of what sort of El Salvadore culture was actually at stake, the movie does a lean job of providing a backdrop to all the mishap and political intrigue.

When that clarity does come about eventually, the movie leaves you with a great sense of energy, particularly from Woods' character. "Salvador", like JFK or Patton, remains one of my favorite high-octane human dramas of all time.

A proud DVD for anyone's collections, if only for the memorably pithy quotes, or the brilliant moments of photo journalism shown (it's not easy shooting mass riots, live) or quite simply the most inspired performance of Woods' career!

Finally, back in print!

I'll be honest and admit first thing that I'm not a huge Oliver Stone fan. I rented this because James Woods is so entertaining in almost anything he's in. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the movie itself turned out to be pretty good, too. The movies I liked that Stone directed didn't have a big political message, like U-Turn, The Doors, and Natural Born Killers (ok, that last one was slightly political) The only overtly hit-you-over-the-head-with-the-message scene in this movie is one where Woods and Savage were taking photos of a huge amount of dead bodies in a dump, and there's a subtitle saying "Blah-blah, dumping ground for corpses killed by death squads" (or something similar) Oh really? Thanks for the explanation Mr. Stone, I would have thought they were at the zoo.

I probably wasn't supposed to find this movie as funny as I did, but God James Woods was so hilarious. It's just his timing, or the way he says stuff --for example, "Hey man, where else can you get a 17-year old to (perform a sexual act that is unprintable here) for 7 dollars, man? 7...dollars!"--, or something, but he just totally steals the movie. He can just roll his eyes and I start cracking up. If it had a different actor in the starring role who wasn't as entertaining, I doubt I would have bought a copy. He was definitely robbed of a Best Actor Oscar for this movie--there's a scene near the start of the movie where he is barreling down the street in his crappy car and gets pulled over, that made me laugh so hard I played it back for my husband. Some of the scenes where they are driving down to Mexico are very Hunter S. Thompson-esque. The scene in the confessional where he asks the priest if it would still be okay to take a few hits of a joint once in a while is priceless. If you're a Woods fan, what are you waiting for? Get a copy fast! I can't imagine any other actor in the role, the other acting in the film is great, but he just acts circles around everyone else.

Oh yeah, and the movie itself is great, very emotional. You do care about the characters, even the sleazy ones. The ending also was unpredictable, and there a several scary, very tense scenes. One more thing--watch for John Doe of the punk band X in a small cameo as a restaurant owner-va va va voom!!! Recommended to Woods fans, Stone fans, or simply anyone who enjoys a good political thriller. Not recommended for kids, though.

Great cast,
All the bad boys of film are in this film!

We need more films like this all heavey hitters in one movie and it works! No egos it looks like it was fun to make

highly recommend !

This movie has moved into my top ten favorites of all time. What a hidden treasure! This movie must have lacked any public relations effort whatsoever, because it is just fantastic. You would be hard pressed to find a better group of character actors performing their craft at a higher level. The characters were true to life and the storyline was brilliant, funny, and at times, very moving. If you have a pulse and enjoy quality, get this movie! I would like to single out one or two actor's and talk about their performances, but that would not be fair to the rest of the cast. Just an awesome movie!!

The cast of this movie intrigued me so I felt it worth my time to view. Stagliano was not a director with whose work I was familiar but his masterful direction of this packed cast of stars was incredible! The themes in this movie, both overt and gently flowing under the surface are enough to keep you mind busy for weeks after viewing! Belushi and Holbrook are stunning and Perry begins to show his depth and ability. I HIGHLY RECCOMEND THIS MOVIE!!

The first thing one needs to know about this tape is that it is not a Best of Eddie Murphy collection by any means. This video contains the bulk of two SNL episodes hosted by Eddie Murphy: one when he, still a cast member, filled in for an ailing Nick Nolte, and one marking his return as host to the show he had recently left (oddly, they are shown in reverse chronological order). SNL just wasn't a very good show in those years; Eddie Murphy had basically been carrying the show on his own shoulders. Since all of the skits on this tape don't actually include Eddie Murphy, you get some pretty bad segments to go along with the good ones. Murphy even warned the audience in his first monologue that some things on the show would not be very funny, and he wasn't lying.

There are a few memorable skits on this tape, however. Buckwheat lives again to have an odd reunion with Alfalfa, Eddie delivers one of his vintage Stevie Wonder impressions, Mr. Robinson returns to the neighborhood, and Murphy goes undercover as a white man in his memorable documentary White Like Me. Throwaway skits such as Milestones (with Eddie as Desmond Tutu) and Hairem Skarem (with Eddie as an effeminate hair care professional) manage to dreg a few laughs out of the indifferent material. Gumby gets his own Christmas special, but the bad moments outweigh the good in this particular skit. The real highlight here, in my opinion, is Black History Moment. Eddie fudges his lines a couple of times and compensates with some very funny ad libs.

With the good comes the bad. Harry Anderson's eight minutes of comical magic seems to bring the video to a crashing halt. Lifestyles of the Relatives of the Rich and Famous, with Martin Short playing Jerry Lewis' niece, is bad; The Stairs, with Martin Short as a soldier who has no clue as to how to climb stairs, is even worse; Julia Louis-Dreyfus' A Christmas Message is simply atrocious. Eddie Murphy fans will certainly find some good material on this tape, but it comes with some pretty unfunny baggage. Don't let the title fool you: this is a far cry from a Best of Eddie Murphy video.

This video is probably the funniest compilation of SNL skits with Eddie Murphy. A college friend of mine had a copy and we spent many a night watching it over and over. Then we'd hit the bars and perform skits in our drunken stupor. I have been looking to purchase this video for the past couple of years, and would like to find it!!!

If yuo want an insane laugh, go for this tape anyday. It is blatantly offensive and very 80's, but that is what makes it so much fun- and neat, that he was great then and is great now as well!

It's lacking a few great skits, the Landshark opening was nice but one of the JAWS spoofs could have been added. It's definitley worth it but lets hope we see a season by season deal soon! Stuart Smalley, James Woods Dracula, Scream spoof with the
CheerSquad, Wayne & Garth's Halloween Costumes and Landshark are the highlights. But, come on, lets see NBC's SATURDAY NIGHT (live) Complete 1st Season on DVD soon! With Lorne Micheals & former Cast, Writers and Hosts interviews and behind the scenes stuff, maybe 5 discs? 4 for the show, one for extra's. It sounds good to me. "Oh well, good night and have a pleasant tomorrow"
Check out:
SNL-Christmas
SNL-25 Years Of Laughs
Nothing But Trouble-Chevy Chase
Caddyshack-Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Rodney Dangerfield

THIS 60 MINUTE TAPE, HOSTED BY WAYNE AND GARTH, IS A GOOD MIX OF OLD SCHOOL AND RECENT SNL SKETCHES. IT IS A GREAT COMPANION TAPE TO SNL'S CHRISTMAS VIDEO. GET BOTH AND HAVE MANY HOLIDAY LAUGHS FOR YEARS TO COME.

It is one of the best snl videos ever

A spinster who makes up corpses to look like movie stars and a cop who lives with his overbearing mother. A match made in heaven? Maybe, but there wasn;t much chemistry between Ally and John here. His mother does a good job and the neighbor nearly steals the film. not something to go out of your way to see.

This movie has all the makings of a winner. A plot that is identifiable to almost any moviegoer, (everybody knows somebody in this situation.)A cast consisting of a fine comic lead, good supporting characters and two Hollywood legends. And a script that fits each actor like a glove.

John Candy pleases in this low key role of a lonely police officer tied too tight to his mother (O'Hara) who has very strong opinons about almost everything and who plays the mother guilt card like no other as he is pursuing his interest in an equally lonely lady (Sheedy). I watched this with my own mother who is O'Hara's age and saw her nodding in agreement all over the film. (until her full blooded Siclian fists clenched when O'Hara's character described us. The look on her face was worth the price of the movie alone.)

The story is plesant and worth your money, Candy & O'Hara work well together (who would have thought she would outlive him!) but the real power of the film is her interaction with Anthony Quinn. Classic film buffs like myself will get a real charge out of Quinn once again persuing O'Hara, but this time without an Errol Flynn as a rival. That sub plot is at least as interesting as the main one and for my money is better. It is classic Maureen O'Hara, the strong woman who is chased by the strong man and frankly is a great contrast to the the exact opposite situation between Candy & Sheedy.

In the end to nobodys surprise love conquers all and Candy's final immagined scene (contrasting with several ones eariler in the film) gives him closure. That final scene is my favorite and show O'Hara playing a character she has always excelled at. Considering the events of 9/11/01 the ending has even more meaning as we see a member of "The Greatest Generation" setting an example (albert a fictious one) that would be bravely followed in reality 10 years later.

I've said little about the good performances by Sheedy and Belushi, not to mention several other supporting characters in minor roles, they all add to the picture, but the stars make this film. Buy it.

I saw the movie on Pax tv, channel 16 here in Salt Lake City and it was very good. I like Maureen O'hara, she played in Miracle on 34th Street, I have that video. I am going to order Only the Lonley because it is very moving and entertaining, I thought that it was interesting when Maureen O'Hara "Tells it like it is" to John Candy's girl friend and almost ruins their plans for getting married.

I was impressed with this mini-series when it was shown on Dutch television 10 years ago. Finally I got to buy a good version on DVD from somebody on eBay. I can hardly wait for the official DVD-version.

The Wild Palms Mini Series first aired a few years ago, it was made for TV and it is based on the comic strip by the same name that appeared in Details Magazine in the early 90's. Its main audience was Generation X'ers, but I've heard that the comic strip became very popular with aging hippies, potheads, and the "underground" in general because of its offbeat pace and cerebral content. I taped it off the TV when it first aired and have watched it many, many times. I will definitely buy it on DVD when it comes out. The film stars Jim Belushi as Harry Wyckoff; Dana Delaney as Grace, his wife; Angie Dickinson as Josie, Grace's mother; Robert Loggia as Senator Tony Kreutzer, Josie's brother; and a few others like Kim Catrall, Bebe Newirth , and Ernie Hudson.

Wild Palms is a story that takes place in the year 2065, and shows how technology has advanced to the point of being at the verge of making hollographic images physically interactive with human beings. Senator Kreutzer is about to launch a new sitcom on Channel 3 called Church Windows which will project the characters into people's living rooms. It will make people "feel" like part of the TV program. The dark side of the plan is that in order for people to interact with the hollograms, they have to take the drug MIMIZINE. Prolonged use of the drug has a side effect...it causes the user to see hallucinations of cathedrals and churches and it is ultimately fatal. But Senator Kreutzer wants the whole world to get hooked on hollographic TV for his own purposes, but you'll have to watch the film to find out what that is.

Wild Palms is the first major production concerning VIRTUAL REALITY, though there was a kind of predecessor in TRON and in other lesser known films. The concept of VR has been used in movies again and again since Wild Palms in varying degrees of benevolence and malevolence (e.i. THE LAWNMOWER MAN, VIRTUOSITY, THE MATRIX), but when Wild Palms first came out the idea of VR was pretty fresh and open to exploration. The premise of VR is that human beings can communicate, interact, copulate, and in essence live and die in VR which is an extension of the real world within a network of computers (like the internet).

The conflict in Wild Palms begins with Senator Kreutzer, he is the founder of a group called "The Fathers" who epitomize capitalism and right-wing, traditional politics (their corruption notwithstanding). Their antagonists are "The Friends" whose founder is a political prisoner named Eli Levitz. Eli used to be married to Josie...their daughter is Grace.

Chickie Levitz (played by Brad Douriff) has the secret to the GO CHIP, which is the thing that will allow Senator Kreutzer to achieve his final goal once everyone is hooked into the Church Windows Sitcom.

Throughout the film there's betrayal, seduction, incest, murder, and torture. None of it is overly graphic as it is not a "gore" film as such. The atmosphere of fear and impending doom is created more by what it implies than by what it shows. Like when Josie pokes the eyes out the artist. Not much is shown in the way of gore, but the scene is pretty disturbing.... Later in the film, as he prepares for revenge ,he says to Josie, "...once I was a painter, and mixing colors was my joy...", he then pokes her eyes out, and as she's screaming on the floor he shoots her a number of times.

The film is very textural and warbles in and out of psychological focus. It mixes Oriental mysticism, politics, philosophy, hi-tech drugs, and the American Dream in a mish-mash so weird, you just have to watch it to understand it. Many of the scenes are reminiscent of Peter Greenaway films (a.i. A Zed and Two Noughts, Drowning by Numbers, etc.)

I remember seeing this mini series when I was 13 years old. Ever since then I haven't been able to get it's images out of my mind. It is an awesome movie and a great cast. I would recommend this movie to anyone who wants to dive into fantasy and get lost in it's wonders.

I thought this movie was great the first time I saw it. But it gets boring the more you watch it. It still is a good movie. Just doesn't look like they took the time to come up with an elaborate story. It's like playing a video game and messing up then having to reset it and try again knowing what to expect. Like you're in one level and just can't beat it cause you keep on doing things wrong. Then at the end you finally figure out the right choice and make it past it. Then again, if time travel was ever to happen in real life, this most likely is what it would be like. Just replaying your life within the last hour. I don't think it'll ever be where we can have excellent adventures going back to other centuries or possibly other decades. But I do like this movie okay. It isn't as cool after the first time because you know what's going to happen. As you watch it the first time, it is amazing to see what is going to happen after what choice each character makes knowing what will happen in the next few moments. As long as the villain doesn't know, but that does eventually come to be a problem. Okay Sci-fi Adventure Story! But more adventurous ones are even better. More action.

At first this movie seemed to be B class at best. While it an A- at best it diffenately was worth the time. The acting could have been a little better at times, but the story is where this movie shows its glory. What I'm saying is the 'RETROACTIVE' parts of the movie...you'll see. It gets more and more interesting as the movie goes on. A must for any Sci-Fi fan.

I saw this movie by accident - it was a late show on a small-fry TV station which I flipped onto and stayed when I saw an ad for a film in which James Belushi dressed up as Elvis.

I'm glad I stayed - this is one of the most fun, clever and enjoyable films I've seen in a long time. Belushi is, frankly, brilliant (I had no idea he could actually ACT until I saw this movie) and Kylie Travis as "Our hero" who keeps trying to rectify a situation which has gone woefully wrong, making it worse by orders of magnitude each time is wonderful as well.

Well recommeded - buy it. I can't wait for my copy to arrive.