robman-5

Love it or hate it, it's impossible to remain neutral about this movie. It's kind of like watching a train wreck-tough to look at, but equally tough to tear yourself away from. One thing its detractors point out is that the story is just not movie material, and they do have a point. This piece would play far better as a stage play or on TV, but it is totally unworkable on the big screen. Whoopi is one of the greatest talents of our generation but even she can't make this premise work. Since it more or less all takes place on one set, it does become claustrophobic. Still it does have its moments- Vashti Blue is definitely one sick puppy but she's still fascinating. This part is an actor's dream. And in lesser hands than Whoopi's this could have been a total disaster. It would have been easy to turn the whole part into a grotesque caricature but Whoopi, pro that she is sidesteps that. She makes the character oddly appealing. A definite wack-job, yes but also a very touching one. You definitely feel what this woman is going through, and almost wish you could help. And that ending? Whoa. I definitely did NOT see it coming, and afterwards I felt like I'd swallowed an ice-cream cone whole. I won't give it away, but suffice to say it's VERY disturbing. Personal taste will have to dictate its level of success.

No-one ever claimed this movie was Citizen Kane. But not every movie has to be though. And for sheer mindlessness and fun this movie has few peers. And talk about a once-in-a-lifetime cast. This is definitely the most eclectic group of people ever seen this side of an Ed Wood film. To say this movie was one of the final nails in disco's coffin is grossly unfair. By the time this movie hit theatres in the summer of 1980 disco was pretty much history anyway, so it's more a victim of bad timing than anything else. It could be argued that this movie plays better when under the influence of booze or some other controlled substance. Could be. But whatever state you're in it's a helluva lot of fun. It's mindless, has pretty good production values and the music is not as bad as you may have been led to believe. Someone should definitely put this movie in a time capsule, because it reflects its era probably better than any movie ever made. A definite must-have on your guilty pleasures list.

We all know this movie by it's reputation as one of the so-called icons of the Yuppie 80s, and as such I was expecting a lot more than the movie delivered. I sat through the whole thing waiting for something even remotely interesting to happen. Nothing ever did. Bluntly put, it's an overblown, self-important piece of yuppie garbage which might serve as a cure for insomnia but as a movie it's pig swill. None of the characters have any basis in reality, nor do any of them evoke even the slightest bit of empathy(although to be fair the acting-along with the soundtrack saves this movie from being a total catastrophe. There isn't a bad performance to be found here) These aren't exactly people you'd want to hang with.

This movie also got a lot of publicity for having edited Kevin Costner's performance completely out. Lucky guy that Kevin. Don't waste your time or money.