Leelee-Sobieski Movie Reviews
ROAD KILL
One ride you should not miss!What makes Joy Ride scary is its believability, this kind of thing can actually happen, probably not to the extreme as portrayed in the film, but people do play jokes on each other constantly, and some do get carried away. Composed of a relatively young cast, Steve Zahn (Fuller Thomas,) Paul Walker (Lewis Thomas) and Leelee Sobieski (Venna) did a good job keeping the audiences attention glued to the screen, the pacing was actually well done because there was not a dull moment on this road trip. Unfortunately, with this genre there is usually little character development, which is true for Joy Ride, but it isn't necessarily a bad thing here.
Joy Ride was an entertaining and short movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, the direction was tight and the script was decent, it's a great film for adults and teenager alike. Just remember, it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, and do unto others as you would have them done to you.
Actually is a very suspenseful movie!
ROAD KILLTHE PLOT: The film's instantly likeable hero, Lewis, played by Paul Walker (The Fast and The Furious) a scholarship student at Berkeley, buys a battered 1971 car so he can pick up Venna (Leelee Sobieski), who he has a major crush for, from the University of Colorado and drive her to the East Coast for summer vacation. However, on the way he unexpectedly has to pick up his irresponsible older brother Fuller (the always excellent Steve Zahn) who's in a Salt Lake City jail on a drunk-and-disorderly charge. During the journey Fuller buys a cheap CB radio and involves Lewis in an unpleasant practical joke at the expense of a truck driver with the CB handle 'Rusty Nail' but they find themselves in fear for their lives when old Rusty turns out to be a psychopath who takes a violent dislike to them. From then on, they themselves become the objects of the unseen Rusty Nail's revenge. After several hair-raising encounters, they resolve not to tell Venna of their adventures when they pick her up at the clean, well-lit Colorado campus.
It would be easy to criticise Joy Ride (known as Road kill in the UK). Its premise is hardly original and its reliance on a CB radio as a plot device harks back to the seventies, rather than the present day when everybody (except in this movie) has a cell phone. However, Joy Ride is actually a stunning success due to its faultless direction, which creates Hitchcock like suspense and provides many heart stopping moments. The script is excellent too combining and balancing humour and horror in equal measures, often hinting at violence that is not actually seen and providing nervous moments of humour whilst avoiding corniness. As for the three leads they are perfectly cast with Paul Walker, minus the blonde beach boy locks he sported in The Fast and the Furious, making a good fist of the part of the boy from the wrong side of the tracks in love with the girl from the right side of the tracks played by the equally impressive Leelee Sobieski (Deep Impact). Steve Zahn (Out of Sight) as the misfit brother Fuller is also excellent and he steals many of the scenes with witty one-liners but ultimately this is a movie whose strength lies in the sum of all its parts. Cheaply made it shows that its not big budgets that make great movies its talent and imagination. Here's hoping there's a sequel! Four stars, well merited. ****
One ride you should not miss!What makes Joy Ride scary is its believability, this kind of thing can actually happen, probably not to the extreme as portrayed in the film, but people do play jokes on each other constantly, and some do get carried away. Composed of a relatively young cast, Steve Zahn (Fuller Thomas,) Paul Walker (Lewis Thomas) and Leelee Sobieski (Venna) did a good job keeping the audiences attention glued to the screen, the pacing was actually well done because there was not a dull moment on this road trip. Unfortunately, with this genre there is usually little character development, which is true for Joy Ride, but it isn't necessarily a bad thing here.
Joy Ride was an entertaining and short movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, the direction was tight and the script was decent, it's a great film for adults and teenager alike. Just remember, it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, and do unto others as you would have them done to you.
Actually is a very suspenseful movie!
ROAD KILLTHE PLOT: The film's instantly likeable hero, Lewis, played by Paul Walker (The Fast and The Furious) a scholarship student at Berkeley, buys a battered 1971 car so he can pick up Venna (Leelee Sobieski), who he has a major crush for, from the University of Colorado and drive her to the East Coast for summer vacation. However, on the way he unexpectedly has to pick up his irresponsible older brother Fuller (the always excellent Steve Zahn) who's in a Salt Lake City jail on a drunk-and-disorderly charge. During the journey Fuller buys a cheap CB radio and involves Lewis in an unpleasant practical joke at the expense of a truck driver with the CB handle 'Rusty Nail' but they find themselves in fear for their lives when old Rusty turns out to be a psychopath who takes a violent dislike to them. From then on, they themselves become the objects of the unseen Rusty Nail's revenge. After several hair-raising encounters, they resolve not to tell Venna of their adventures when they pick her up at the clean, well-lit Colorado campus.
It would be easy to criticise Joy Ride (known as Road kill in the UK). Its premise is hardly original and its reliance on a CB radio as a plot device harks back to the seventies, rather than the present day when everybody (except in this movie) has a cell phone. However, Joy Ride is actually a stunning success due to its faultless direction, which creates Hitchcock like suspense and provides many heart stopping moments. The script is excellent too combining and balancing humour and horror in equal measures, often hinting at violence that is not actually seen and providing nervous moments of humour whilst avoiding corniness. As for the three leads they are perfectly cast with Paul Walker, minus the blonde beach boy locks he sported in The Fast and the Furious, making a good fist of the part of the boy from the wrong side of the tracks in love with the girl from the right side of the tracks played by the equally impressive Leelee Sobieski (Deep Impact). Steve Zahn (Out of Sight) as the misfit brother Fuller is also excellent and he steals many of the scenes with witty one-liners but ultimately this is a movie whose strength lies in the sum of all its parts. Cheaply made it shows that its not big budgets that make great movies its talent and imagination. Here's hoping there's a sequel! Four stars, well merited. ****
One ride you should not miss!What makes Joy Ride scary is its believability, this kind of thing can actually happen, probably not to the extreme as portrayed in the film, but people do play jokes on each other constantly, and some do get carried away. Composed of a relatively young cast, Steve Zahn (Fuller Thomas,) Paul Walker (Lewis Thomas) and Leelee Sobieski (Venna) did a good job keeping the audiences attention glued to the screen, the pacing was actually well done because there was not a dull moment on this road trip. Unfortunately, with this genre there is usually little character development, which is true for Joy Ride, but it isn't necessarily a bad thing here.
Joy Ride was an entertaining and short movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, the direction was tight and the script was decent, it's a great film for adults and teenager alike. Just remember, it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, and do unto others as you would have them done to you.
Actually is a very suspenseful movie!
ROAD KILLTHE PLOT: The film's instantly likeable hero, Lewis, played by Paul Walker (The Fast and The Furious) a scholarship student at Berkeley, buys a battered 1971 car so he can pick up Venna (Leelee Sobieski), who he has a major crush for, from the University of Colorado and drive her to the East Coast for summer vacation. However, on the way he unexpectedly has to pick up his irresponsible older brother Fuller (the always excellent Steve Zahn) who's in a Salt Lake City jail on a drunk-and-disorderly charge. During the journey Fuller buys a cheap CB radio and involves Lewis in an unpleasant practical joke at the expense of a truck driver with the CB handle 'Rusty Nail' but they find themselves in fear for their lives when old Rusty turns out to be a psychopath who takes a violent dislike to them. From then on, they themselves become the objects of the unseen Rusty Nail's revenge. After several hair-raising encounters, they resolve not to tell Venna of their adventures when they pick her up at the clean, well-lit Colorado campus.
It would be easy to criticise Joy Ride (known as Road kill in the UK). Its premise is hardly original and its reliance on a CB radio as a plot device harks back to the seventies, rather than the present day when everybody (except in this movie) has a cell phone. However, Joy Ride is actually a stunning success due to its faultless direction, which creates Hitchcock like suspense and provides many heart stopping moments. The script is excellent too combining and balancing humour and horror in equal measures, often hinting at violence that is not actually seen and providing nervous moments of humour whilst avoiding corniness. As for the three leads they are perfectly cast with Paul Walker, minus the blonde beach boy locks he sported in The Fast and the Furious, making a good fist of the part of the boy from the wrong side of the tracks in love with the girl from the right side of the tracks played by the equally impressive Leelee Sobieski (Deep Impact). Steve Zahn (Out of Sight) as the misfit brother Fuller is also excellent and he steals many of the scenes with witty one-liners but ultimately this is a movie whose strength lies in the sum of all its parts. Cheaply made it shows that its not big budgets that make great movies its talent and imagination. Here's hoping there's a sequel! Four stars, well merited. ****
One ride you should not miss!What makes Joy Ride scary is its believability, this kind of thing can actually happen, probably not to the extreme as portrayed in the film, but people do play jokes on each other constantly, and some do get carried away. Composed of a relatively young cast, Steve Zahn (Fuller Thomas,) Paul Walker (Lewis Thomas) and Leelee Sobieski (Venna) did a good job keeping the audiences attention glued to the screen, the pacing was actually well done because there was not a dull moment on this road trip. Unfortunately, with this genre there is usually little character development, which is true for Joy Ride, but it isn't necessarily a bad thing here.
Joy Ride was an entertaining and short movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, the direction was tight and the script was decent, it's a great film for adults and teenager alike. Just remember, it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, and do unto others as you would have them done to you.
Actually is a very suspenseful movie!
ROAD KILLTHE PLOT: The film's instantly likeable hero, Lewis, played by Paul Walker (The Fast and The Furious) a scholarship student at Berkeley, buys a battered 1971 car so he can pick up Venna (Leelee Sobieski), who he has a major crush for, from the University of Colorado and drive her to the East Coast for summer vacation. However, on the way he unexpectedly has to pick up his irresponsible older brother Fuller (the always excellent Steve Zahn) who's in a Salt Lake City jail on a drunk-and-disorderly charge. During the journey Fuller buys a cheap CB radio and involves Lewis in an unpleasant practical joke at the expense of a truck driver with the CB handle 'Rusty Nail' but they find themselves in fear for their lives when old Rusty turns out to be a psychopath who takes a violent dislike to them. From then on, they themselves become the objects of the unseen Rusty Nail's revenge. After several hair-raising encounters, they resolve not to tell Venna of their adventures when they pick her up at the clean, well-lit Colorado campus.
It would be easy to criticise Joy Ride (known as Road kill in the UK). Its premise is hardly original and its reliance on a CB radio as a plot device harks back to the seventies, rather than the present day when everybody (except in this movie) has a cell phone. However, Joy Ride is actually a stunning success due to its faultless direction, which creates Hitchcock like suspense and provides many heart stopping moments. The script is excellent too combining and balancing humour and horror in equal measures, often hinting at violence that is not actually seen and providing nervous moments of humour whilst avoiding corniness. As for the three leads they are perfectly cast with Paul Walker, minus the blonde beach boy locks he sported in The Fast and the Furious, making a good fist of the part of the boy from the wrong side of the tracks in love with the girl from the right side of the tracks played by the equally impressive Leelee Sobieski (Deep Impact). Steve Zahn (Out of Sight) as the misfit brother Fuller is also excellent and he steals many of the scenes with witty one-liners but ultimately this is a movie whose strength lies in the sum of all its parts. Cheaply made it shows that its not big budgets that make great movies its talent and imagination. Here's hoping there's a sequel! Four stars, well merited. ****
One ride you should not miss!What makes Joy Ride scary is its believability, this kind of thing can actually happen, probably not to the extreme as portrayed in the film, but people do play jokes on each other constantly, and some do get carried away. Composed of a relatively young cast, Steve Zahn (Fuller Thomas,) Paul Walker (Lewis Thomas) and Leelee Sobieski (Venna) did a good job keeping the audiences attention glued to the screen, the pacing was actually well done because there was not a dull moment on this road trip. Unfortunately, with this genre there is usually little character development, which is true for Joy Ride, but it isn't necessarily a bad thing here.
Joy Ride was an entertaining and short movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, the direction was tight and the script was decent, it's a great film for adults and teenager alike. Just remember, it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, and do unto others as you would have them done to you.
Actually is a very suspenseful movie!
The 140-minute feature follows Joan D'Arc's odyssey from peasant obscurity to notoriety as the "Maid of Orleans," spiritual fulcrum for the beleaguered French forces struggling to halt English invaders. As played by Leelee Sobieski (Eyes Wide Shut), her evolution from naive farm girl to seasoned soldier is convincing, as is her gradual awakening to the underlying agendas of church and state. Most critically, Sobieski radiates the young girl's fervent spiritual devotion.
Framing Sobieski's focal performance are two equally fine turns from Neil Patrick Harris, who erases his legacy as TV's Doogie Howser, M.D. with a neatly shaded, steely Charles, and Peter O'Toole, who balances his signature reserve and present physical frailty to make Cauchon a moral compass for the story. Having opposed Joan as a threat to orthodoxy, the Bishop recognizes her purity too late; O'Toole turns this moment into a dreadful epiphany that resonates through the story's inevitable, fiery denouement. Fine supporting performances from Peter Strauss, Shirley MacLaine, and Maximillian Schell, plus evocative medieval locations in the Czech Republic, further buttress the story. French-Canadian director Christian Duguay handles the large-scale battle sequences with fluid blocking and smart camera work. --Sam Sutherland
The Messenger is the Message (The Sequel)
Magnificently Moving!
Better have a dozen boxes of tissue when you watch this.....
Good teen movie, bad newspaper flick"Never Been Kissed" is just one of those sweet but geeky movies in which Ms. Barrymore, despite her well-known wild streak, is a perfect fit. It's not a deep, complicated movie, but a cute, sappy, first-date-on-a-Friday-night movie.
Barrymore plays Josie Gellar, a copy editor with the Chicago Sun-Times who was forced into going undercover as a high school student. The problem is, of course, she was a geek 10 years earlier as a real student, and quickly finds she isn't much better socially now. Until her brother, played by David Arquette, sneaks in and joins her. Her brother was a popular student and re-established himself as part of the lemming-like in-crowd. And along the way she falls in love with her English teacher, played by Michael Vartner.
Now, as a recently retired journalist, I worked at the local high school a lot. Once, I was even told by a teacher to get to class. Needless to say, high school wasn't that long ago for me.
As a newspaper flick, this is awful. Most copy editors despise the thought of being a reporter, most don't have their own office, most don't attend offical meetings, and most don't have assistants.
The high school half is better, especially illustrating the shallow nature of high school "coolness," drawn with a colorful character cast.
I recommend this movie as a date-movie only. And on a cool side note, I once interviewed a guy who was an extra in this movie.
Drew brings another hilarious performance to the screen
NEVER BEEN KISSEDJosie Gellar goes in as an undercover reporter and is just reminded of her past, being the biggest nerd in school, until her brother, played by David Arquet, steps in and Josie is having the time of her life with the "popular kids". Watch how Josie falls in love, and desperately wishes to receive her first kiss. See what happens when she blows her position as an undercover reporter. This is an amazing comedy with great actors, and an awesome script. A great date movie with an awesome message which is just to have confidence in yourself and just about anything can happen.
Good teen movie, bad newspaper flick"Never Been Kissed" is just one of those sweet but geeky movies in which Ms. Barrymore, despite her well-known wild streak, is a perfect fit. It's not a deep, complicated movie, but a cute, sappy, first-date-on-a-Friday-night movie.
Barrymore plays Josie Gellar, a copy editor with the Chicago Sun-Times who was forced into going undercover as a high school student. The problem is, of course, she was a geek 10 years earlier as a real student, and quickly finds she isn't much better socially now. Until her brother, played by David Arquette, sneaks in and joins her. Her brother was a popular student and re-established himself as part of the lemming-like in-crowd. And along the way she falls in love with her English teacher, played by Michael Vartner.
Now, as a recently retired journalist, I worked at the local high school a lot. Once, I was even told by a teacher to get to class. Needless to say, high school wasn't that long ago for me.
As a newspaper flick, this is awful. Most copy editors despise the thought of being a reporter, most don't have their own office, most don't attend offical meetings, and most don't have assistants.
The high school half is better, especially illustrating the shallow nature of high school "coolness," drawn with a colorful character cast.
I recommend this movie as a date-movie only. And on a cool side note, I once interviewed a guy who was an extra in this movie.
Drew brings another hilarious performance to the screen
NEVER BEEN KISSEDJosie Gellar goes in as an undercover reporter and is just reminded of her past, being the biggest nerd in school, until her brother, played by David Arquet, steps in and Josie is having the time of her life with the "popular kids". Watch how Josie falls in love, and desperately wishes to receive her first kiss. See what happens when she blows her position as an undercover reporter. This is an amazing comedy with great actors, and an awesome script. A great date movie with an awesome message which is just to have confidence in yourself and just about anything can happen.
Good teen movie, bad newspaper flick"Never Been Kissed" is just one of those sweet but geeky movies in which Ms. Barrymore, despite her well-known wild streak, is a perfect fit. It's not a deep, complicated movie, but a cute, sappy, first-date-on-a-Friday-night movie.
Barrymore plays Josie Gellar, a copy editor with the Chicago Sun-Times who was forced into going undercover as a high school student. The problem is, of course, she was a geek 10 years earlier as a real student, and quickly finds she isn't much better socially now. Until her brother, played by David Arquette, sneaks in and joins her. Her brother was a popular student and re-established himself as part of the lemming-like in-crowd. And along the way she falls in love with her English teacher, played by Michael Vartner.
Now, as a recently retired journalist, I worked at the local high school a lot. Once, I was even told by a teacher to get to class. Needless to say, high school wasn't that long ago for me.
As a newspaper flick, this is awful. Most copy editors despise the thought of being a reporter, most don't have their own office, most don't attend offical meetings, and most don't have assistants.
The high school half is better, especially illustrating the shallow nature of high school "coolness," drawn with a colorful character cast.
I recommend this movie as a date-movie only. And on a cool side note, I once interviewed a guy who was an extra in this movie.
Drew brings another hilarious performance to the screen
NEVER BEEN KISSEDJosie Gellar goes in as an undercover reporter and is just reminded of her past, being the biggest nerd in school, until her brother, played by David Arquet, steps in and Josie is having the time of her life with the "popular kids". Watch how Josie falls in love, and desperately wishes to receive her first kiss. See what happens when she blows her position as an undercover reporter. This is an amazing comedy with great actors, and an awesome script. A great date movie with an awesome message which is just to have confidence in yourself and just about anything can happen.
Good teen movie, bad newspaper flick"Never Been Kissed" is just one of those sweet but geeky movies in which Ms. Barrymore, despite her well-known wild streak, is a perfect fit. It's not a deep, complicated movie, but a cute, sappy, first-date-on-a-Friday-night movie.
Barrymore plays Josie Gellar, a copy editor with the Chicago Sun-Times who was forced into going undercover as a high school student. The problem is, of course, she was a geek 10 years earlier as a real student, and quickly finds she isn't much better socially now. Until her brother, played by David Arquette, sneaks in and joins her. Her brother was a popular student and re-established himself as part of the lemming-like in-crowd. And along the way she falls in love with her English teacher, played by Michael Vartner.
Now, as a recently retired journalist, I worked at the local high school a lot. Once, I was even told by a teacher to get to class. Needless to say, high school wasn't that long ago for me.
As a newspaper flick, this is awful. Most copy editors despise the thought of being a reporter, most don't have their own office, most don't attend offical meetings, and most don't have assistants.
The high school half is better, especially illustrating the shallow nature of high school "coolness," drawn with a colorful character cast.
I recommend this movie as a date-movie only. And on a cool side note, I once interviewed a guy who was an extra in this movie.
Drew brings another hilarious performance to the screen
NEVER BEEN KISSEDJosie Gellar goes in as an undercover reporter and is just reminded of her past, being the biggest nerd in school, until her brother, played by David Arquet, steps in and Josie is having the time of her life with the "popular kids". Watch how Josie falls in love, and desperately wishes to receive her first kiss. See what happens when she blows her position as an undercover reporter. This is an amazing comedy with great actors, and an awesome script. A great date movie with an awesome message which is just to have confidence in yourself and just about anything can happen.
THE PLOT: The film's instantly likeable hero, Lewis, played by Paul Walker (The Fast and The Furious) a scholarship student at Berkeley, buys a battered 1971 car so he can pick up Venna (Leelee Sobieski), who he has a major crush for, from the University of Colorado and drive her to the East Coast for summer vacation. However, on the way he unexpectedly has to pick up his irresponsible older brother Fuller (the always excellent Steve Zahn) who's in a Salt Lake City jail on a drunk-and-disorderly charge. During the journey Fuller buys a cheap CB radio and involves Lewis in an unpleasant practical joke at the expense of a truck driver with the CB handle 'Rusty Nail' but they find themselves in fear for their lives when old Rusty turns out to be a psychopath who takes a violent dislike to them. From then on, they themselves become the objects of the unseen Rusty Nail's revenge. After several hair-raising encounters, they resolve not to tell Venna of their adventures when they pick her up at the clean, well-lit Colorado campus.
It would be easy to criticise Joy Ride (known as Road kill in the UK). Its premise is hardly original and its reliance on a CB radio as a plot device harks back to the seventies, rather than the present day when everybody (except in this movie) has a cell phone. However, Joy Ride is actually a stunning success due to its faultless direction, which creates Hitchcock like suspense and provides many heart stopping moments. The script is excellent too combining and balancing humour and horror in equal measures, often hinting at violence that is not actually seen and providing nervous moments of humour whilst avoiding corniness. As for the three leads they are perfectly cast with Paul Walker, minus the blonde beach boy locks he sported in The Fast and the Furious, making a good fist of the part of the boy from the wrong side of the tracks in love with the girl from the right side of the tracks played by the equally impressive Leelee Sobieski (Deep Impact). Steve Zahn (Out of Sight) as the misfit brother Fuller is also excellent and he steals many of the scenes with witty one-liners but ultimately this is a movie whose strength lies in the sum of all its parts. Cheaply made it shows that its not big budgets that make great movies its talent and imagination. Here's hoping there's a sequel! Four stars, well merited. ****