Michael-Douglas Movie Reviews

This 1983 version of the Hound, with Ian Richardson as Sherlock Holmes, has rarely received the accolades it so richly deserves. While not the most faithful adaptation of the Conan Doyle classic, it is nevertheless sumptuously atmospheric. It features a truly menacing hound that more closely approximates the horror elicited by the novel's original than the veritable slew of disappointing hounds from several other film versions, the obvious exception being the equally terrifying Basil Rathbone hound. This TV movie's strengths stem from a variety of sources. First of all, Michael Lewis's engaging, memorable film score is exquisitely dynamic and resonates with excitement. Secondly, the production's choice of authentic Devonshire locales for outdoor filming, and effective use of sound stages to evoke the melancholy and dreary mystique of the moors at nighttime,imbues this stylish version with an appropriately gothic flavor. It stunningly depicts the eerie essence of the Grimpen Mire, replete with its miasma of swirling, amorphous ground mist, and compellingly involves the viewer in the visual ambience of its surroundings. The film's denouement, as Holmes pursues his villainous quarry through the mire's impenetrable sea of fog, is masterfully photographed and provides a highly dramatic and satisfying catharsis to an enjoyable film.
This is not to discount the film's few shortcomings. Certainly Richardson's Holmes, invariably prone to overtly amiable behavior, deviates from the disconcerting arrogance and brooding demeanor so brilliantly and faithfully rendered by Peter Cushing and Jeremy Brett. This is not to negate Richardson's charismatic and magnetic presence, however, and he is a pleasure to watch. (Recently, he compellingly played Dr. Joseph Bell, the real-life inspiration for Sherlock Holmes, in an equally atmospheric mystery series broadcast on Public Television). However, his Holmes portrayal remains somewhat revisionist. Furthermore, Donald Churchill's slightly bumbling rendition of Dr. Watson is too much of a frustrating throwback to Nigel Bruce's comedic and dim-witted depiction of the much maligned-doctor in the classic Basil Rathbone films of the 1940s. As Watson's character, for once, takes center stage in the Hound, casting for this role is more imperatively crucial than for Holmes. Among the most convincing and enjoyable Watsons from productions past included the more cerebral Andre Morell from the 1959 Hammer film and the equally astute and somber Edward Hardwicke from the 1987 Jeremy Brett version. However, that said, this stylish production deserves unstinting praise for the masterful way in which it skillfully reproduces the macabre spirit of the classic novel.

Without doubt, this is by far the finest screen version of Conan Doyle's famous story I have (so far) seen. Ian Richardson (who will no doubt be familiar to fans of House of Cards and To Play the King) is perfect as Holmes. The film boasts just the right cast (whether central characters or bit parts, they all give strong performances), the moor's thin line between beauty and deadly is just right, the soundtrack is unforgettable, there is myriad memorable dialogue and the whole thing flows very well. There is not a dull moment. Recommended to fans of Sherlock Holmes, Doyle or just horror in general.

With the exception of the cheesy merry-go-round dog attack at the beginning of this TV movie, this version of "The Hound of the Baskervilles" is superb. Ian Richardson plays Holmes with a flair that matches the great Jeremy Brett. It's a shame that Richardson's Holmes is only captured in one other occasion on film. ("The Sign of Four")

In contrast, it's also a shame that "Hound" is probably the most screen adapted literary work ever (there are at least 10 films) but there is no perfect definitive version. This is probably as close as we're going to get. This film, made in 1983, far outshines the 2000 BBC version with its horrid CGI dog and a Watson who is likely computer generated as well. Fans of the Jeremy Brett film may be surprised at the stellar cast of this one, featuring Denholm Elliott ("Raiders of the Lost Ark"), Eleanor Bron ("The House of Mirth"), Connie Booth ("Monty Python"), and noted actor Brian Blessed (you'll know him when you see him if you don't already). The film also features Ronald Lacey as probably the best Inspector Lestrade ever. (Lacey was also in "Raiders" and the Jeremy Brett version of "The Sign of Four".) Martin Shaw's spin as the Texan Sir Henry Baskerville surprisingly turns out to be more pleasant than not.

At times the film is on the gritty side. The scene with Sir Hugo chasing his servant's daughter for that evening's recreational rape is darker than one would expect, but precisely where it needs to be cinematically. When you consider realism, this "Hound" is unequalled.

Fans of Ian Richardson should also check him out in "Murder Rooms", a BBC series where he plays Dr. Joseph Bell - a real Victorian doctor universally recognized as Arthur Conan Doyle's inspiration for the Sherlock Holmes character.

I'm a pretty well educated film goer--took film courses in college, read much, understand the vocabulary and history of film. AND I have a secret, forbidden list--a list of films I really love but critics didn't. Such gems as Gung Ho! (with Michael Keaton) and The Golden Child (Eddie Murphy) grace this list. Out with snobbery, in with fun I say!

The Air Up There is definitely on my list. I hate basketball--I'm bored by sports in general. But I love this movie. It makes me feel good. Kevin Bacon is at his brash and cocky best as an assistant coach for a Catholic college team which apparently is expected to win big. When his personal pride costs him the loss of a promising prospect, he journeys to Africa to recruit a VERY tall fellow he saw in a home movie from a priest doing Good Works out there. When the basketball prospect turns out to be a prince and some tribal rivalry and mining interests complicate matters, the brash assistant coach has to find out what really matters.

Cliched? Sure. Predictable. I hope to tell you. But I love it anyway. The acting is amiable, the characters fun, the setting just exotic enough, the writing sure-handed, the story uplifting, and I got excited watching the basketball sequences even though I hate the game.

So what can I tell you? We talk now about not letting terrorists run our lives. I say don't let critics run your life either. I watch this movie at least twice a year and feel a whole lot happier when it's over. Try it.

This movie proves that it doesn't matter where you are, if you have talent, someone will find it. I enjoyed this film a lot.

I love Kevin Bacon in anything he does. But this picture I feel was one of the best. I will buy it and watch it over and over and over.

If you are expecting anything of substance here, you will be disappointed. But I give this film five stars for audacity and total disregard for reality. After seeing this one will agree that Alaska is a magical place where black bears turn into grizzly bears; where one can travel thousands of miles in just a cutaway shot; where people just sit around with paragliding equipment in their trucks ready to hand out to to anyone with no instruction. The hodge-podge of footage and the slap-dash writing is richly complemented by the innane acting. Carmen Electra's "Fire and Ice Dance" performed in front of a glacier face had me hoping for a catastrophic calving. Makes me grateful that I don't have television service.

There came a time in my life, not too long ago, when I realized I had zero acting talent and sucking in my gut every time I was topless just wasn't cutting it anymore. Now if only David Hasselhoff had done the same...

I love the video and thought it was great that the show went on location in Alaska. I have the unrated version of the video. But I hope someday to get the rated version of the video. I think that David Hasselhoff and Gena Lee Nolin did a terrfic job on the video when their characters "Mitch and Neely Buchannon" got married on the Dawn Princess cruise and the honeymoon scene was so beautiful.

If you are expecting anything of substance here, you will be disappointed. But I give this film five stars for audacity and total disregard for reality. After seeing this one will agree that Alaska is a magical place where black bears turn into grizzly bears; where one can travel thousands of miles in just a cutaway shot; where people just sit around with paragliding equipment in their trucks ready to hand out to to anyone with no instruction. The hodge-podge of footage and the slap-dash writing is richly complemented by the innane acting. Carmen Electra's "Fire and Ice Dance" performed in front of a glacier face had me hoping for a catastrophic calving. Makes me grateful that I don't have television service.

There came a time in my life, not too long ago, when I realized I had zero acting talent and sucking in my gut every time I was topless just wasn't cutting it anymore. Now if only David Hasselhoff had done the same...

I love the video and thought it was great that the show went on location in Alaska. I have the unrated version of the video. But I hope someday to get the rated version of the video. I think that David Hasselhoff and Gena Lee Nolin did a terrfic job on the video when their characters "Mitch and Neely Buchannon" got married on the Dawn Princess cruise and the honeymoon scene was so beautiful.

Great Stuff. Two feature length baywatch movies from the early 90s. Nightmare Bay is Billed as the Feature lengh episode that started the show. But that is incorrect, as the pilot episode is Panic at malibu pier. And Nightmare bay is an episode from the second season. watch out for a hilarious Hasselhoff sequence at the start of River of no Return in which he strips his clothes off on the beach to music in front of gilrs playing volley ball. If you like baywatch, You must Own This.

Good DVD TV Show. This DVD was good I liked it because David Charvet, Jeremy Jackson, Nicole Eggert, and Pamela Anderson were in it. David Charvet and Jeremy Jackson are so hot! David has great everything: hair, face, body, abs, voice. Jeremy is still young in this show but as he got older he became a hunk. He has great everything too: face, body, abs, voice. Nicole Eggert and Pam Anderson are hot too. Nicole and Pam are hot back in the day in this DVD. They are older now and are sure showing it they are not as appealing these days. I must say that Pam sure does have great big ones...Being a teen guy I know Baywatch having seen it over the past few years on the spike t.v. channel.

At least Baywatch is in Dvd.

This Dvd contains 2 episodes one in each side of the Dvd of the 1991-92 season of the show.

The first one Nighmare Bay with Erika Eleniak(Shauni) follows an press investigation in the Santa Monica Bay about a Sea Monster which destroys boats on the ocean and a girl photographer is saved by Mitch Buchannon from a safe dead.

Shauni also saves a girl from drawning on the ocean after being pushed by her brother.

The second River Of No Return introduces Summer(Nicole Eggert) and his mom when moving to California and they met Jackie's ex-boyfriend which wants to return to her life and they are helped by Matt Brody(David Charvet) a fellow Malibu student who wants to be a lifeguard.

Mitch's uncle is killed when escaping from 2 hunters that wants his gold boot treasure that is hide somewhere in the river.

So Mitch goes there for an answer and to locate the treasure.

He goes with Hobie and Eddie and Shauni and then they find C.J. Parker(Pamela Anderson) a local kayak fanatic which joins them into the rapids of the river.

After locating the secret location of the treasure they are captived by the hunters,they escape,are pursued by them and finally they lost the gold located on the kayak which broke.

Finally there is a rookie swimming contest on the beach to qualify for Baywatch,CJ Summer and Matt and his friends qualifies winning the race.

The Dvd transfer is good,clear and full screen ratio with clear sound.However no subtitles nor captions are avaliable.

I'm waiting to see more episodes transfered in special the ones with Jasmine Bleeth.

I wanna more episodes!!!!.

Great Stuff. Two feature length baywatch movies from the early 90s. Nightmare Bay is Billed as the Feature lengh episode that started the show. But that is incorrect, as the pilot episode is Panic at malibu pier. And Nightmare bay is an episode from the second season. watch out for a hilarious Hasselhoff sequence at the start of River of no Return in which he strips his clothes off on the beach to music in front of gilrs playing volley ball. If you like baywatch, You must Own This.

Good DVD TV Show. This DVD was good I liked it because David Charvet, Jeremy Jackson, Nicole Eggert, and Pamela Anderson were in it. David Charvet and Jeremy Jackson are so hot! David has great everything: hair, face, body, abs, voice. Jeremy is still young in this show but as he got older he became a hunk. He has great everything too: face, body, abs, voice. Nicole Eggert and Pam Anderson are hot too. Nicole and Pam are hot back in the day in this DVD. They are older now and are sure showing it they are not as appealing these days. I must say that Pam sure does have great big ones...Being a teen guy I know Baywatch having seen it over the past few years on the spike t.v. channel.

At least Baywatch is in Dvd.

This Dvd contains 2 episodes one in each side of the Dvd of the 1991-92 season of the show.

The first one Nighmare Bay with Erika Eleniak(Shauni) follows an press investigation in the Santa Monica Bay about a Sea Monster which destroys boats on the ocean and a girl photographer is saved by Mitch Buchannon from a safe dead.

Shauni also saves a girl from drawning on the ocean after being pushed by her brother.

The second River Of No Return introduces Summer(Nicole Eggert) and his mom when moving to California and they met Jackie's ex-boyfriend which wants to return to her life and they are helped by Matt Brody(David Charvet) a fellow Malibu student who wants to be a lifeguard.

Mitch's uncle is killed when escaping from 2 hunters that wants his gold boot treasure that is hide somewhere in the river.

So Mitch goes there for an answer and to locate the treasure.

He goes with Hobie and Eddie and Shauni and then they find C.J. Parker(Pamela Anderson) a local kayak fanatic which joins them into the rapids of the river.

After locating the secret location of the treasure they are captived by the hunters,they escape,are pursued by them and finally they lost the gold located on the kayak which broke.

Finally there is a rookie swimming contest on the beach to qualify for Baywatch,CJ Summer and Matt and his friends qualifies winning the race.

The Dvd transfer is good,clear and full screen ratio with clear sound.However no subtitles nor captions are avaliable.

I'm waiting to see more episodes transfered in special the ones with Jasmine Bleeth.

I wanna more episodes!!!!.

"The Pirates of Penzance" was the first real operetta that I had the opportunity to perform, and have pure joy doing so. For that, I consider it very special. However, had I seen this taped production before auditioning, I might have been forever soured from experiencing "Pirates" as a show. I found this treatment of the operetta to be grossly sub-par.

The biggest flaws in this production were miscasting and the several augmentations to the original libretto. Jeff Hyslop as Frederic, the slave of duty, has an annoying, whiny vocal quality in a role that requires a seriously operatic Tenor sound. Caralyn Tomlin took on the role of Mabel with the right approach to the role's fierce soprano lines, but that was about all she did--Mabel isn't given much to "say" anyway. Brent Carver's pirate king had plenty of gusto in his performance, but the real flaw was in the director's decision to augment his lines. By far, the biggest disappointment in the cast had to be Douglas Chamberlain, whose Major-General was far too campy for my tastes. He had adequate diction, but really did not overwhelm in his singing. Despite these horrible miscastings, the actors portraying Ruth and the Sergeant of Police were delightful in their respective roles.

The second flaw of this production was augmentations. Whoever directed this production took FAR too many liberties with the libretto. I could live with a couple from the Pirate King and Ruth, but when the director decided to add verses to the famous patter song "I am the very model of a modern Major-General," I was very much bored with it. Not only were lines added, the director decided to turn what could be a simple swordfight in the end of Act Two, into a tedious 15-minute dance-a-thon by the company.

So, if you want a better adaptation of this operetta, DO NOT look here. Personally, I would suggest the 1983 film with Kevin Kline and Linda Ronstadt, or any other production that retains the silly spirit of G & S without adding new material.

I rented this from the library, luckily, thinking naively that because it was the Pirates of Penzance, it would be nothing other than a treat. What I found instead was a shabbily acted, and even more so sung, operetta where all I could do was cringe and be sorry that I was replacing my memories of the hilarious masterpiece with such an unworthy production.

What bothered me the most was that Maybel and Friedrich were both so unlikeable! Maybel I can't claim was off-key because she was on every key! Friedrich was anything but "exceeding beauty" and I don't think any girl would be wooed by that whiny, wimpy voice of his.
Just about every other character disappointed me as well, though the pirate king had his moments. I did find that they all sounded good together in the choruses. Overall, though, I expect better quality to match to the genius of Gilbert and Sullivan.

I have several versions of The Pirates of Penzance on DVD and video and I enjoy watching all of them . I Have this Stratford Festival version on DVD and I enjoy it and thought it was very good and I didn't think it was a bad production at all. In my opinion all of the performers are good but the best performers are Brent Carver as the Pirate King and Douglas Chamberlain as Major General Stanley and I personally think that the minor changes like the addded character, Mabel's Bluestocking sister and one or two added songs were done very well and didn't take away from Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta and I didn't see those changes an an insult to them and I thought the sets and props were good! I own this DVD and I don't feel like I wasted my money buying it!

While I could pick at one or two points about "Romancing the Stone", there's no reason to; it was a positively delightful and enjoyable film in every respect. A real gem (no pun intended, of course).
But "Jewel" had absolutely none of the charm of its predecessor. "Romancing..." ended exactly where it should have ended -- what a misguided thought it was to pick up the story after the "happily ever after" ending of the first film. Some stories just end where they're supposed to end; with Scarlett O'Hara losing Rhett; with Rick Blaine nobly giving up Ilsa for a greater good; with Atticus sitting up in Jem's bedroom while Jem sleeps. Sequels for any of these would be a travesty (sadly, it's happened anyway for a couple of them). While "Romancing..." is not on a par with these books and movies, it nevertheless ended in a very appropriate way, and it's a shame it wasn't left there.

The success of "Romancing the Stone" wasn't in the non-stop bickering between the principals. Rather, that was a component in a film -- one of my favorites -- that had a lot of other things going for it, like atmosphere, an intersting B-story featuring rival groups of antagonists, an interesting setting and, most importantly, the tension between Joan Wilder's romantic fictions and her romantic reality.

With "Jewel of the Nile," everything is gone except for the bickering. The most enjoyable villain is reformed (mostly), the setting is generic (and fairly insulting) Middle East, and the adventure features little of the fun that informed the first movie.

Apparently, there's a script for a third movie floating around in Hollywood that's allegedly far superior to "Jewel of the Nile," and there are people who are reportedly disappointed they couldn't ever make it, due to the lack of success this film had. I'm sorry, but "Jewel of the Nile" got what it deserved: It's a middle of the road remake to a film that really lucked into its breakout status to begin with. This is by-the-book filmmaking, and comes off that way.

Whereas I am pleased to own "Romancing the Stone," "Jewel of the Nile" is definitely just a rental, at best.

THE JEWEL OF THE NILE is a sequel to ROMANCING THE STONE. The director and the screenwriters are new but Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito are back in their old familiar roles. The cast also includes Spiros Focas and Avner Eisenberg.

This time the adventure takes place in North Africa where Turner is invited to accompany a wealthy Arab to his own country. She soon finds herself caught in another big mess in a very strange land. Naturally Douglas has to rescue her as he did before in ROMANCING THE STONE.

Danny DeVito's best scene comes near the beginning of the film when he suddenly emerges from a barrel on a dock with a rapid-fire description of his experiences in a Columbian jail. On balance JEWEL OF THE NILE is an entertaining movie but it does not quite recapture the magic of ROMANCING THE STONE.

rented this one. I'm a big Nastassja Kinski fan. This is just about Kinski who falls in love with Dennis Farina's son Michael and then Kinski has sex with him and she ends up pregnant and Michael ends up dead. Kinski puts her child in a church place for children and she gives her son her necklace. Then she enters Farina's famly, falling in love with Michael's brother, forgot his name. Then the other men marry their brides (including Jennifer Tilly and Illeana Douglas). Dennis Farina is married to Vanessa Redgrave. Farina has this enemy on the outside who wants to control everything he has got. Kinski's son grows up without any mother or father and he has a sick riddled friend who guides him the knowledge he gets when he grows up and he grows up into a man (played by The X-Men's James Marsden, he has some what of an ok role). He is adopted by Farina's enemy and remember his mother Kinski is in that family. Kinski bares 2 boys. Gina Phillips(from Jeepers Creepers #1) has a role as a daughter of I forgot. Marsdens is trained by Farina's enemy and he goes one night, kills Kinski's 2 boys( which he kills his little brothers and doesnt know) and he kills Farina and the husbands. Determined to kill, Kinski, Douglas, , Phillips, Redgrave and Tilly want revenge and Kinski just who to kill. At the funerals, Farina's enemy is there and then he is killed by Marsden. Marsden is hit by the car that Kinski's riding in, they take him back and then he realizes where he is and then he becomes like a stalker and the women don't know if he's good or bad. In the end Kinski kills Marsden who she reconizes the necklace and then it is all put together. Great movie, Kinski has never been sexier, I just want to lick her up and everyone gives strong performances. If you waanna hear James Marsden yelp and cry like a sappy baby, plus his performance when hes tied to the chair is great, I was being sarcastic, this is the movie

IS SUCH A GOOD MOVIE!!! IT HAS IT ALL...DRAMA, RESPECT, LOVE, HATE AND SADNESS! I COULD WATCH THIS MOVIE OVER AND OVER AND NEVER GET TIRED OF IT. SUCH GOOD ACTING...I LOVE THE ITALIAN ACCENTS AND LANGUAGE. IF YOU'VE NOT YET SEEN THIS MOVIE, I REALLY RECOMMEND IT AND KNOW YOU'LL LOVE IT TOO!!! BELLA MAFIA...LOVE IT!!!

After you've seen all the other mafia movies with all the men running the show, and women just being their trademark "jewelry", check out these five women who avenge their loved one's deaths. Proving that love and vengence is just as strong for women as it is men, "Bella Mafia" sheds the weak female characters of the mob with strong, stubborn, and purposeful women. The settings, costuming, and performances from the men also make this a movie event not to be missed. Being a man, myself, it is great to see women who can control their destiny. Venessa Redgrave and Jennifer Tilly give performances to "die" for!

I GIVE THIS MOVIE MINUS 5 STARS.
Why do we watch movies? Sometimes its because we like fantasy, or action, or romance, OR THE TELLING OF A TRUE STORY. I guess the idea with cast a giant shadow was to tell the true story of how a group terrorists [Jews] with great might and courage created an independent state of Israel- which of course is all false and utter rubbish. The film is light years away from the telling of a true story. The Jews were not mighty nor courageous, nor passionate. The truth is they were terrorists and with America's help defeated the Arabs. What ever the film potrays of the Jews was wrong and highly inaccurate. There was also some inaccuracies in the portrayl of the Arabs, but not on a grand scale as the Jews. Steven Speilberg wanted to do a movie very close to the truth about the same war, but when zionists saw the script they pressured Steven to drop the idea. Cast a Giant shadow underated the amreican involvement which was the only reason why Israel won that war. If you like a war movie there are plenty that are much better than this. If you are pro-israeli I think you will like it, but remember 80% of it is inccurate. Many people watch and then review a movie at amazon if it is a good ONE. On the basis of that, cast A Giant shadow has only 11 reviews, indicating what utter rubbish of a movie it is.

A good war film, about the creation of the modern Israeli army and the creation of the state of Israel. Kirk Douglas plays a recently demobilized American military expert who returns home from WWII only to find he still has fighting and wanderlust in his blood. A cloak-and-dagger offer to help train the beleagured Jewish militias is all he needs to tell his wife, "honey, I'll write you soon!" and zip off to the promised land. The film is very one-sided and romanticized, yet compelling... In retrospect, historians have argued that the Israelis weren't as badly outgunned in 1948 as the official version implies, but I'm sure it was still bad enough. Guest appearances by John Wayne, Frank Sinatra (who phoned in role as a happy-go-lucky fighter pilot) and Yul Brynner make this a bona fide Epic Film, but you might find your attention wandering more towards the Sophia Loren-alike hottie, Senta Berger, who plays Kirk's Israeli love interest. History and war buffs will find this an intertaining and engaging film; jihadists and moral relativists might want to skip it.

First off, this film contains a rousing score by Elmer Bernstein. It is brilliant. Melville Shavelson wrote and directed this sprawling biographical action picture about (Colonel) "Mickey" Marcus (Kirk Douglas), a West Point graduate and an adviser to President Roosevelt during W.W.II, who, at the request of the Israelis, went to there in the late 40s to re-organize their army. In this account, based on a book by Ted Berkman, Mickey Marcus is the master strategist who leads the Israelis to victory in the war with the Arabs. Melville Shavelson admires him, making him the cool but enigmatic leader. Shavelson is very eager to please the audience enough to throw in numerous guest stars, such as Frank Sinatra and Yul Brynner, and agonizes over Mickey's moral conflict between Angie Dickinson, the wife he leaves at home in the U.S., and Senta Berger, the female warrior he takes up with. Even those willing to accept the hours of incoherence and banality may recoil at the obscenity of being asked to experience the horrors of Dachau as reflected in John Wayne's bleary eyes. It also features Topol, James Donald, Stathis Giallelis, Ruth White, Gordon Jackson, Luther Adler, Gary Merrill, and Jeremy Kemp. Get the soundtrack.