Alex in Wonderland (1970)
“Is there a movie in it?”
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Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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“Is there a movie in it?”
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Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Review: Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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“A woman has to listen to her own voice.”
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Review: Note: Wildrose bears many similarities to independent filmmaker Victor Nunez’s Ruby in Paradise (1993): both deal with blue-collar females struggling to maintain financial autonomy while making healthy choices about work and love. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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“A woman is not allowed to come between two men who are friends. It’s not allowed! It’s illegal!”
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“Look at him, Tony: his leg shot full of holes, fever going up, no place to go, no place to sleep — just run, run, run till he can’t run anymore.”
“You know what this is, Amy? This is dope! This is the stick! This is marijuana! And this is what killed Cookie!”
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“My plants sense that he is a bad person!”
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Review: The Kirlian Witness (also known as The Plants Are Watching) was marketed as a horror film upon its release — indeed, my local video store inexplicably continues to file it in the horror section under “When Plants Attack” (!?) — but, as pointed out by Shane Burridge in his review, it’s actually more of a crime thriller than a horror flick, with amateur sleuth Nancy Snyder attempting to find out the identity of the killer while placing her own life in danger. As such, it’s a reasonably well-done, albeit unevenly paced, independent feature — and though there are only two primary suspects, Sarno manages to pull a nifty plot twist at the end. Nonetheless, all the nonsense about psychic plants and auras ruined my overall enjoyment of the film, and ultimately elicited more groans than chills. Redeeming Qualities and Moments: Must See? Links: |
“You’re all that’s left for either one of us; you have to decide between us.”
“She has a good husband, a nice home, a car, no worries about tomorrow — what else does she want?”
“What’s going on here at the zoo tonight? Everybody seems to be looking for somebody!”
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Review: Beyond this, however, it’s difficult to know exactly what message is being put forth by Lee, as the metaphors gradually fall apart. While it’s clearly not a good thing for the wild animals to be let loose out of their cages — unconfined, they will tear each other apart — we’re nonetheless meant to root for Eve and Zani’s escape. Perhaps the message is simply one of accepting all parts of our human nature, both “animal” and rational, while acknowledging the inevitable differences between species. Whatever its cryptic morality, Zoo in Budapest remains oddly compelling viewing, and will likely stay in your mind long after you’ve finished watching it. Note: Unfortunately, given that the American Humane Association has only been monitoring animals on movie sets since 1940, there’s no guarantee that these majestic animals were protected during the making of the film — a fact which greatly impeded my enjoyment of the otherwise impressive final scenes. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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“Sometimes at night I can’t sleep. I get up and I go to the mirror, and I stare at myself. Something strange seems to happen — it’s as though somebody else is staring back at me.”
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Review: These days, especially after the airing of Sybil (1976) on television, Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD) is much more widely known by the general public, and no longer quite so mysterious. Indeed, its name has changed — it’s currently referred to as Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) — and there is ongoing controversy over the veracity of its diagnosis. Nonetheless, MPD/DID remains ripe material for cinematic exploitation, given that there’s something undeniably fascinating — indeed, horrifying — about witnessing someone who is literally possessed by a “foreign” entity. While Lizzie isn’t a perfect film — things are wrapped up far too neatly in the end — it remains a compelling and scary little drama, well-worth watching at least once. Note: Shirley Jackson — author of “The Lottery” and The Haunting of Hill House — wrote the novel upon which Lizzie is based, originally entitled The Bird’s Nest. Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
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