Michael-Douglas Movie Reviews

Suzanne Stone (Nicole Kidman) is a small-town girl with a big-city dream, to become a famous television personality. Her dream seems remote when she marries a mild-mannered Italian (Matt Dillon), and then tries to make her dream a reality.

Securing a job at a local television station, Suzanne decides to produce a documentary about teenagers, and begins a torrid, illicit affair with James (Joaquin Phoenix). She begs him to kill her husband....

A lethal concoction of humour, sexuality, lust and unbridled ambition, TO DIE FOR is a fantastic, hypnotic film that is an exellent study in human obsession.

Suzanne Stone (Nicole Kidman) is a small-town girl with a big-city dream, to become a famous television personality. Her dream seems remote when she marries a mild-mannered Italian (Matt Dillon), and then tries to make her dream a reality.

Securing a job at a local television station, Suzanne decides to produce a documentary about teenagers, and begins a torrid, illicit affair with James (Joaquin Phoenix). She begs him to kill her husband....

A lethal concoction of humour, sexuality, lust and unbridled ambition, TO DIE FOR is a fantastic, hypnotic film that is an exellent study in human obsession.

The movie is about president who lost his wife, who falls for a environmental lobbyist. The struggle comes from Richard Dryfus's character "Bob Rumpsfeld" (bad nomanclature). He finds out that this woman is an extreme left lobbyist. He uses this to throw stones at the president, who he is trying to defeat in the coming election. The presidential staff characters are wonderfully acted and fun to watch. The interaction in the staff is Golden.

People should look at this movie as a movie, not a political statement. Of course the movie has liberal themes. When a filmmaker makes a movie, the audience is what he/she is working to please. It is hard to romanticize a conservative agenda. This movie's target audience is women(Even thought I love it). Do you think a woman is going to want a watch a romantic dramedy with a central theme of business, welfare reform, or maybe even limiting awards in malpractice suits? NO, of course not. I am a conservative, and I don't want to watch a romanitic comedy about my agenda. Two things that are heart felt issues on both sides of the isle are the environment and gun control. They use these issues because they are common and good plot points, and are easily dramatized. They are not the central theme of the movie.

Overall, the movie is quality. It is a movie that I never get tired of watching.

Michael Douglas plays somewhat against his usual type as a likeable, widowed, well-meaning single father who is also the President of the United States, Andrew Shepherd. He becomes romantically interested in an environmental lobbyist, Sidney Ellen Wade (Annette Benning) which turns out to cause a lot of problems for both of them.

These two high-powered actors manage to humanize their characters into ordinary, likable people who are just trying to fall in love despite unbelievable opulence of surroundings, ugly political maneuvering and living inside a media fishbowl of publicity. Along the way, there are plenty of funny, heartwarming moments including a couple of very funny telephone calls. (Imagine what YOU would do if you suddenly received a call from someone who claimed to be the President of the United States)

David Paymer, Michael J. Fox and Martin Sheen are excellent in their supporting roles as advisors to the President and Shawna Waldron is wonderful as the 1st daughter.

If you love humorous dialog, beautiful, nearly fairy-tale settings and happy endings, be sure to see this movie. You won't be disappointed.

Michael Douglas' realistic portrayal of the title character [President Andrew Shepherd] is a refreshingly-different change for Mr. Douglas, from his earlier rather--shall we say--steamy roles in "Fatal Attraction" (1987), "Basic Instinct" (1992), and "Disclosure" (1994).

Annette Bening also shines brightly here--as Douglas' love interest.

Written by "The West Wing's" Aaron Sorkin, it's nearly impossible to watch this movie today and not notice the similarities between Sorkin's work on the film and the excellent NBC-TV program it spawned.

Several of the actors in the film went on to star in the TV series as well, including Martin Sheen, Joshua Malina, and Anna Deavere Smith.

Mr. Sorkin is one heck of a writer. And he wrote an impressive movie in "The American President".

Unfortunately, there's no "Making Of" type of materials included on the DVD. We get a trailer for the film, plus some production and bio (text) notes, but nothing more in the way of bonuses. (Perhaps a "Special Edition" DVD Edition will some day surface. That'd be sweet indeed.)

While it's certainly true that the picture quality on this non-anamorphic Warner Brothers DVD-Video is far from being perfect....I still think it's in a highly-watchable condition. Sure, we get the usual amount of "jaggies" and blurred images of stuff in the background inherent to an image that's not been enhanced for 16x9 televisions. But I don't really think it's the worst DVD transfer ever to come along either. Of course, mileage will vary. Everyone has their own definition of "bad".

The soundtrack, on the other hand, seems quite robust and nice. There's a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track on this disc.

"The American President" is presented here in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1. I've seen information elsewhere that claims this DVD presents the movie in a 1.85:1 ratio, which is inaccurate. So don't be fooled, it's definitely shown here in its full w-i-d-e "scope" ratio of 2.35:1.

This is a fresh, funny, smart, sassy, intelligent film, no matter if it's your first time seeing it, or your hundreth. Despite a less-than-stellar video transfer, I'd still recommend every DVD collector pick this baby up right now!

"You think there's an assassin waiting in the flower shop just in the off-chance I might be stopping by?" -- President Shepherd

LOL! *wink*

The movie is about president who lost his wife, who falls for a environmental lobbyist. The struggle comes from Richard Dryfus's character "Bob Rumpsfeld" (bad nomanclature). He finds out that this woman is an extreme left lobbyist. He uses this to throw stones at the president, who he is trying to defeat in the coming election. The presidential staff characters are wonderfully acted and fun to watch. The interaction in the staff is Golden.

People should look at this movie as a movie, not a political statement. Of course the movie has liberal themes. When a filmmaker makes a movie, the audience is what he/she is working to please. It is hard to romanticize a conservative agenda. This movie's target audience is women(Even thought I love it). Do you think a woman is going to want a watch a romantic dramedy with a central theme of business, welfare reform, or maybe even limiting awards in malpractice suits? NO, of course not. I am a conservative, and I don't want to watch a romanitic comedy about my agenda. Two things that are heart felt issues on both sides of the isle are the environment and gun control. They use these issues because they are common and good plot points, and are easily dramatized. They are not the central theme of the movie.

Overall, the movie is quality. It is a movie that I never get tired of watching.

Michael Douglas plays somewhat against his usual type as a likeable, widowed, well-meaning single father who is also the President of the United States, Andrew Shepherd. He becomes romantically interested in an environmental lobbyist, Sidney Ellen Wade (Annette Benning) which turns out to cause a lot of problems for both of them.

These two high-powered actors manage to humanize their characters into ordinary, likable people who are just trying to fall in love despite unbelievable opulence of surroundings, ugly political maneuvering and living inside a media fishbowl of publicity. Along the way, there are plenty of funny, heartwarming moments including a couple of very funny telephone calls. (Imagine what YOU would do if you suddenly received a call from someone who claimed to be the President of the United States)

David Paymer, Michael J. Fox and Martin Sheen are excellent in their supporting roles as advisors to the President and Shawna Waldron is wonderful as the 1st daughter.

If you love humorous dialog, beautiful, nearly fairy-tale settings and happy endings, be sure to see this movie. You won't be disappointed.

Michael Douglas' realistic portrayal of the title character [President Andrew Shepherd] is a refreshingly-different change for Mr. Douglas, from his earlier rather--shall we say--steamy roles in "Fatal Attraction" (1987), "Basic Instinct" (1992), and "Disclosure" (1994).

Annette Bening also shines brightly here--as Douglas' love interest.

Written by "The West Wing's" Aaron Sorkin, it's nearly impossible to watch this movie today and not notice the similarities between Sorkin's work on the film and the excellent NBC-TV program it spawned.

Several of the actors in the film went on to star in the TV series as well, including Martin Sheen, Joshua Malina, and Anna Deavere Smith.

Mr. Sorkin is one heck of a writer. And he wrote an impressive movie in "The American President".

Unfortunately, there's no "Making Of" type of materials included on the DVD. We get a trailer for the film, plus some production and bio (text) notes, but nothing more in the way of bonuses. (Perhaps a "Special Edition" DVD Edition will some day surface. That'd be sweet indeed.)

While it's certainly true that the picture quality on this non-anamorphic Warner Brothers DVD-Video is far from being perfect....I still think it's in a highly-watchable condition. Sure, we get the usual amount of "jaggies" and blurred images of stuff in the background inherent to an image that's not been enhanced for 16x9 televisions. But I don't really think it's the worst DVD transfer ever to come along either. Of course, mileage will vary. Everyone has their own definition of "bad".

The soundtrack, on the other hand, seems quite robust and nice. There's a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track on this disc.

"The American President" is presented here in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1. I've seen information elsewhere that claims this DVD presents the movie in a 1.85:1 ratio, which is inaccurate. So don't be fooled, it's definitely shown here in its full w-i-d-e "scope" ratio of 2.35:1.

This is a fresh, funny, smart, sassy, intelligent film, no matter if it's your first time seeing it, or your hundreth. Despite a less-than-stellar video transfer, I'd still recommend every DVD collector pick this baby up right now!

"You think there's an assassin waiting in the flower shop just in the off-chance I might be stopping by?" -- President Shepherd

LOL! *wink*

The movie is about president who lost his wife, who falls for a environmental lobbyist. The struggle comes from Richard Dryfus's character "Bob Rumpsfeld" (bad nomanclature). He finds out that this woman is an extreme left lobbyist. He uses this to throw stones at the president, who he is trying to defeat in the coming election. The presidential staff characters are wonderfully acted and fun to watch. The interaction in the staff is Golden.

People should look at this movie as a movie, not a political statement. Of course the movie has liberal themes. When a filmmaker makes a movie, the audience is what he/she is working to please. It is hard to romanticize a conservative agenda. This movie's target audience is women(Even thought I love it). Do you think a woman is going to want a watch a romantic dramedy with a central theme of business, welfare reform, or maybe even limiting awards in malpractice suits? NO, of course not. I am a conservative, and I don't want to watch a romanitic comedy about my agenda. Two things that are heart felt issues on both sides of the isle are the environment and gun control. They use these issues because they are common and good plot points, and are easily dramatized. They are not the central theme of the movie.

Overall, the movie is quality. It is a movie that I never get tired of watching.

Michael Douglas plays somewhat against his usual type as a likeable, widowed, well-meaning single father who is also the President of the United States, Andrew Shepherd. He becomes romantically interested in an environmental lobbyist, Sidney Ellen Wade (Annette Benning) which turns out to cause a lot of problems for both of them.

These two high-powered actors manage to humanize their characters into ordinary, likable people who are just trying to fall in love despite unbelievable opulence of surroundings, ugly political maneuvering and living inside a media fishbowl of publicity. Along the way, there are plenty of funny, heartwarming moments including a couple of very funny telephone calls. (Imagine what YOU would do if you suddenly received a call from someone who claimed to be the President of the United States)

David Paymer, Michael J. Fox and Martin Sheen are excellent in their supporting roles as advisors to the President and Shawna Waldron is wonderful as the 1st daughter.

If you love humorous dialog, beautiful, nearly fairy-tale settings and happy endings, be sure to see this movie. You won't be disappointed.

Michael Douglas' realistic portrayal of the title character [President Andrew Shepherd] is a refreshingly-different change for Mr. Douglas, from his earlier rather--shall we say--steamy roles in "Fatal Attraction" (1987), "Basic Instinct" (1992), and "Disclosure" (1994).

Annette Bening also shines brightly here--as Douglas' love interest.

Written by "The West Wing's" Aaron Sorkin, it's nearly impossible to watch this movie today and not notice the similarities between Sorkin's work on the film and the excellent NBC-TV program it spawned.

Several of the actors in the film went on to star in the TV series as well, including Martin Sheen, Joshua Malina, and Anna Deavere Smith.

Mr. Sorkin is one heck of a writer. And he wrote an impressive movie in "The American President".

Unfortunately, there's no "Making Of" type of materials included on the DVD. We get a trailer for the film, plus some production and bio (text) notes, but nothing more in the way of bonuses. (Perhaps a "Special Edition" DVD Edition will some day surface. That'd be sweet indeed.)

While it's certainly true that the picture quality on this non-anamorphic Warner Brothers DVD-Video is far from being perfect....I still think it's in a highly-watchable condition. Sure, we get the usual amount of "jaggies" and blurred images of stuff in the background inherent to an image that's not been enhanced for 16x9 televisions. But I don't really think it's the worst DVD transfer ever to come along either. Of course, mileage will vary. Everyone has their own definition of "bad".

The soundtrack, on the other hand, seems quite robust and nice. There's a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track on this disc.

"The American President" is presented here in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1. I've seen information elsewhere that claims this DVD presents the movie in a 1.85:1 ratio, which is inaccurate. So don't be fooled, it's definitely shown here in its full w-i-d-e "scope" ratio of 2.35:1.

This is a fresh, funny, smart, sassy, intelligent film, no matter if it's your first time seeing it, or your hundreth. Despite a less-than-stellar video transfer, I'd still recommend every DVD collector pick this baby up right now!

"You think there's an assassin waiting in the flower shop just in the off-chance I might be stopping by?" -- President Shepherd

LOL! *wink*

I have a great love of historical dramas - "Titanic" and "JFK" are among my favorite films - but unlike these (and the earlier docudrama "21 Hours At Munich"), this film has much more to offer - specifically, the perspectives of those parties directly involved. The relatives of Andre Spitzer and Jacov Springer give voice to the dead (although, truthfully, I would like to have heard from the other families - Ankie Spitzer, while a great lady, is interviewed EVERY time this subject comes up). In a real coup for the producers and director of this film, the last survivor of the Munich murderers, Jamal Al-Gashey, crawled out of hiding long enough to proudly recount the deeds of his terrorist compatriots (A question - why is this man still alive? Mossad, where ARE you?). Several of the German police and government officials speak about their attempts to resolve the crisis without (for the most part) shirking their responsibility for the tragic ending (although one will be quite off-put by General Wegener's seeming callousness and the Keystone Kops-like bungling in general).

Newsreel footage brings the events of 1972 back to life in all its' horrendous flower. As a word of caution, I recommend that any viewer should steel him/herself for the last 10 minutes of the film. If the images don't infuriate you, they should at least make you cry. If neither happens, you have no soul.

The film is as visually stimulating as it is informative. The standoff and negotiations between the Palestinians and Germans were captured in their entirety on film, as was the ensuing journey to the airport; interspersed with the live footage were current news reports, including portions of the ABC sports broadcast and commentary about the scene at hand. Anything not captured live on film was photographed, and the film's music was artfully chosen to convey the events' drama and anguish. Amazingly, the sole surviving Palestinian terrorist was interviewed incognito for the film, who said about the initial hostage capture, "I felt very proud that for the first time I was able to confront the Israelis." The shots of the slain athletes (both at the compound and the airport) are a brutal reminder of what the Palestinian idea of "confronting" innocents entails.

One Day in September also shows that the Germans hadn't traveled very far from Nazism by 1972, except that their military ineptitude had grown in leaps and bounds. Not only did the German police and Olympic authorities handle the crisis as effectively as a cross between Gilligan, Mr. Magoo, and Inspector Clousseau, but they were more concerned with continuing the games than they were with saving the lives of the hostages. Furthermore, they held the Mossad at bay and prevented it from getting the job done; the Israeli squad, like so many others, was unfortunately initially fooled by what one called "The Myth of Utter German Ruthless Efficiency."

German cluelessness and cowardice abounded: the police tried to raid the compound from the roof, only to learn just in time that the terrorists could watch their every move on live TV coverage; agents got cold feet and bailed at the last second before descending on the terrorists; at the airport, they didn't even use real snipers, and had their men positioned in one another's lines of fire; one of the Germans accidentally shot a hostage. In the interviews given by the Germans for the documentary (especially that of General Wegener), the tone can best be described as a shrug of the shoulders and a, "Hey, what can you do?" The greatest insult of is that the Germans allowed the three surviving terrorists to escape during their transport, as cowardly means of insurance against future acts of terrorism. The terrorists received a hero's welcome in Libya.

An amazingly sad story, captured as vividly as can be- One Day in September is the essence of what documentaries of historical events should be. The only happy ending is that the Mossad later killed two out of the three terrorists- it's just too bad the remaining one couldn't have been shot in the face as soon as his interview for the project finished.

So this film was made during the mid eighties, so what? I thought it was a pretty good movie, during it's time and still is whenever I watch it on DVD. I particularly don't think it was a dumb movie. For those who bag this movie, please do some research first and you'll be surprised to know that there are some states or towns that, unfortunately, still ban dancing and rock music for which this movie was based on. My question is, who isn't cashing in on teen dance movies or teen dance music to this day? Yeah sure, some people might be ashamed of certain past decades and wonder how we even went through those years with certain fads, fashion and music, but still Footloose was a hit in those days as rap is with this current decade, not to mention all those generic and mass produced all boy or all girl dance groups currently around with similar or the same style dance moves and tunes. I believe Footloose can still hold it's own with some of today's movies, disregarding the decade it was made in. I also agree with everything Priscilla from Japan reviewed on the movie. Excellent and thoroughly enjoyed!

Going back to "Footloose" itself, I thought the music selected was perfect for the movie. Why else would they have recently produced a stage show/play production of the movie? The first time I saw Footloose in 1984, I got so hooked on the music, I bought the soundtrack the next day and listened to it for months on my walkman. It was also the only music I took with me during my first time vacation to the States in 1984. I love all the songs on it and to this day, I still think the Footloose soundtrack is one of my top 10 soundtack favorites. I'm glad that the record company re-released the soundtrack with extra tracks from the movie. I only wish that there were extras and special features added into the DVD. Perhaps Paramount Home Video will re-release a "20th Anniversary Footloose Special Edition" DVD with extra special features in time for 2004.

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Ren and his mom have just moved to this small town from the big city of Chicago. Naturally, Ren is a fish out of water here. Everytime there's trouble, people start pointing at him, whether it was his fault or not.

But don't feel too bad for Ren. He has made some friends in his High School, but he's also ticked off a few too. And his plan to have a Senior Prom (an event that has not happened in this town for 6 years) is threatening to divide the town in half.

Many people will not like this movie for the sole reason of the 80s music and dance. But there is a story behind the music, one that was brilliantly told. I have seen this movie many, many times, and each time I watch it I catch something that I had missed before. This was not a teen movie made for the sole purpose of cashing in on the teen movie craze at the time. It has a message worth listening to.

Unfortunatley, the DVD is lacking in extras. Of course, this movie was made back when DVDs were nothing more than an idea in somebody's head. Still, considering the popularity both then and now that this movie has enjoyed, it would have been nice to get the cast back together and produced something new to offer us.

The film's real star is Jimi Mistry ("East Is East") as handsome dance instructor Ramu Gupta living in India, dreaming of success in America. Determined to make it there just like his hero John Travolta's Danny in "Grease," he goes to New York City only to find that cold reality. The only chance he got is a porn film, and he blows it because of very embarrassing situation.

But he has a pep talk about sex from his co-star Heather Graham, and because of that advice accidentally is mistaken as a genuine New Age "guru" by Marisa Tomei's character. Ramu gets famous, with a help from unsuspecting Graham, among those people who are willing to pay for any good, enlightening advice on life -- and it's New York you know that -- and he is about to be big when he knows that he is using her. And moreover, he seems to have fallen in love with her.

The story is too contrived, and the script is too ineffective to be really interest us. Ironically the "guru" part is not as good as romance part, lacking the power to convince us of the situation. It is the characters that make up for the loss of plot coherence, brightening up with their good and delightful performances. Let's forget about Ms. Graham's "Killing Me Softly" debacle for she is very charming, and so is Ms. Tomei, the latter even given a brief moment of displaying her sexiness you usually miss in her films. But the most impressive is Jimi Mistry, always funny and likable even doing the most silly gags (see his auditioning dancing).

As to the Bollywood elements, "The Guru" succeeds in mixing them with Hollywood romantic comedy formula. The dancing and songs look like real Indian films, and the music is aptly the combination of traditional instruments and techno pop. I only regret that they use too few moments showing these "Bollywood" musical set-pieces. The rest of the film is made from rather clithed ingredients from usual rom-coms and tired jokes including the ones about gays.

Light as feather, but still funny thanks to the able actors included, "The Guru" is a romantic comedy with a twist. But the twist is too slight, and if you have not seen those delightful "Bollywood" films, I recommend you should see one of them first, or soon after watching this one.

Director Daisy von Scherler succeeds in creating a funny movie, especially during instances when Ramu gets his English confused. Jimi Mistry played a convincing role. I hope to see more of him in upcoming movies. Heather Graham and Marissa Tomei are also good. Sure, there's not much depth in THE GURU but that's okay with me. It's fun to watch a goofy comedy once in a while.