ovid1

This film is hilarious. Don't believe the nay-sayers--go see for yourself. The plot may not be the most original, but the execution is flawless, the timing for the slapstick impeccable. With good support from Michael Caine, Candice Bergen and William Shatner, Sandra Bullock carries off a virtuoso performance as a tomboy FBI agent who goes undercover in a beauty pageant to investigate a terrorist threat. Light fare, but good fun.

I'm in the camp of those who learned to love the Phantom as a comic strip and are thrilled to see him brought to such vivid life on the screen. The fabulous cinematography keeps the Ghost Who Walks riding, running, swimming and fighting his way through this film. Far from being a rip-off of Indiana Jones or Batman, Phantom is the inspiration for these characters and the period of adventure between the wars. To those who bristle at some of the campy dialogue, it's important to remember that this was a "comic" strip that ran in the Sunday paper--it's not supposed to be taken too seriously. Billy Zane acquits himself well as a young, vigorous version of Phantom, who will grow older and wiser. Catherine Zeta-Jones is not only beautiful but has some great lines (to the thugs assigned to take care of Kit Walker/Phantom, "I'll come to claim the body"). So sit back and enjoy.

A genuine comedy of manners and mores with razor sharp timing and a troupe of actors, including the inimitable Michele Piccoli, who can convey a vast range of feelings with the slightest nuances of gesture or tone. The story of a French critic most famous for reviewing a film he never saw and the ups and downs of his love life is especially delicious if you are familiar with the hothouse atmosphere of French intellectual life. But the French gift for portraying the childish emotions that beset adult activities makes this film enjoyable for a wide audience.