gapeach17

I was 19 when I saw this on Thanksgiving 2001, too old, perhaps, but I love "The Nutcracker" and had to make sure they didn't butcher it. To my surprise, it was an enjoyable, tasteful version of the ballet! Even though I've come to hate Barbie, she's not as bimbo-esque as they've made her to be over the years. Shocking still, Clara was actually a positive role model for young girls. Clara isn't your typical 14-year-old (I THINK that's how old the character was). She's more interested in travel and excitement than romance. She's also sweet, spunky, and brave, a nice modern girl.

There are new touches up the wazoo, but don't worry. There's still a ballet and love story to tell. For once, it's Barbie you can be proud of. So sit back come Christmas, relax, and let your young girls enjoy "Barbie in the Nutcracker"!

This is probably very un-American of me to say, but I never liked Disney's "Snow White", mainly because Snow White herself is such a twittering bimbo! There, I said it. On with the review:

I was very surprised at how good this version of "Snow White" was. The genie was cool, if a little creepy, and the acting is great. The highlight has to be the dwarves. Their names are days of the week and they travel by rainbow. One of them is even a girl! Faces to look for in the dwarf cast: veteran fantasy film star Warwick Davis ("Willow", "The 10th Kingdom"), as Saturday, Michael J. Anderson ("Twin Peaks") as the sweet leader dwarf Sunday, and Vincent Schiavelli (Uncle Enyos on season 2 of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer") as the negative Wednesday. The latter is an odd choice: he's not a dwarf at all! Oh, well.

Sadly, the biggest drawback is none other than Snow White herself. Kristin Kreuk ("Smallville") is unforgivably bland as Snow White. She's a stunning beauty, but little else. To break it down, Snow White's gone from having no brain to having no personality.

Still, "Snow White: The Fairest of Them All", is a treat for Hallmark movie fans. Catch it when it comes on video.

I can't believe that "Chocolat" was up for a Best Picture Oscar in 2001. This horrendous indie-wannabe is a sugary, anti-Catholic piece of garbage. The understated rebellion of the much more pleasant book is shoved in your face, and morals are scoffed at and bastardized. How the hell does following your Lenten vows make you a bad person??? What's wrong with attending church every week? And what's wrong with objecting to someone making chocolate treats called (I swear I'm not making this up) "Nipples of Venus"?!!?!?

Anyway, about the actors. Juliette Binoche may have won an Oscar for "The English Patient", but she's a human wasteland here, and what was with her facial expressions?! Most of the time she had none, and when she smiled, it looked like she was doped up with laughing gas! The normally pleasing Judi Dench is bland and annoying here, and I for one didn't like that creepy little grandson of Dench's character. His character is praised for being obsessed with death! I hated Alfred Molina's character: his laughable accent and Boris Badinoff moustache made him a ridiculous human cartoon of a villain. I normally love Johnny Depp, but he was miscast as an IRISH Gypsy (what the...?!). America is becoming less and less religious, and this movie probably made it worse. Lent is NOT that strict, and priests are not a bunch of blithering fools. Do yourself a favor: treat yourself to any chocolate you have in the house, anything to skip this unholy concoction.