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Reviews
The Shark Is Still Working (2007)
An Astounding Tale on the The Head, The Tail...
Now that the documentary is finished and I've seen a complete version tapping out at 3 hours and 8 minutes long (Universal, you REALLY need to release a full 2-disc version of this), I must say it is the quickest paced documentary on any subject that I have ever seen. Much less, one on THE best film ever made and my personal favorite film of all time.
TSISW certainly tells some very intriguing production stories that haven't been told and of the ones that it goes over that have been told, there are new elements in these tried-and-true tales that make them worth hearing yet again. Everyone is familiar with the troubled production and the Great-White-Turd (Spielberg's term) that rarely worked and a cast and crew that practically went stir crazy to get even 30 seconds "in the can" every day.
But TSISW delves further still into this famed film that was the inaugural fire-starter of the "summer-blockbuster". I won't give away any of these never-heard or never-seen treasures, but there are surprises that can captivate even the most jaded Jaws fan. It did for me. I was literally in mouth-gaping awe of many of these stories, including "The Legacy" section of the documentary which touched on the tremendous fan-base, making me feel not so alone in my obsession of a truly brilliant film, with a stellar cast, a powerful score, a crafty script, an up & coming director and an all around power house movie.
So, to the TSISW producers and to "Jaws" (& all of those associated with it), I tip my hat to you for a truly incredible piece of work on an incredible piece of work.
The Dam Busters (1955)
The Start of a Brilliant Career for Robert Shaw in a Supporting Role
I became enamored with the absolutely stunning acting talents of the late, great Robert Shaw, best known for his portrayal of Quint in "Jaws". But, it is this small supporting role that made Hollywood really take notice as many believed that he actually did a better job and upstaged veteran actor Michael Redgrave.
Aside from being a Shaw fan, I've always loved WWII history and am quite well read in everything from the Marianas Turkey Shoot to the German Blitzkrieg. This film surprised me at how well done it was for a mid-50's war picture. You can say "Oh, that's a model" all you want, but the special effects are very well done, with an interesting story and characters that are truly captivating to watch. Along with "The Battle of Britain" (Also co-starring Shaw), this is one of my favorite WWII related films.
On a historical note, these bombs were invented by a British aircraft designer named Barnes Wallace who helped design some of the bomber aircraft used in WWII for Warwick and Windsor, like the beautiful twin-tail Lancaster.
The Ghosts of Edendale (2003)
Watching paint dry is more entertaining
Paula Ficara is a talented actress, but it's unfortunate that she was given such a weak, stilted script to work with. The remainder of the cast were just cardboard cutouts of what the characters should have been. Granted, the ghost story that is tied into the early days of Hollywood is quite interesting. The cinematography looked like poorly lit mini-DV with blown out shots and poorly framed subjects, with edits being loosely done making shots appear as if they dragged on too long, needlessly. The one saving grace, aside from Ms. Ficara, were the special FX which were very well done indeed. The film did get better about 1.25 hours into it, but by that point you couldn't care one way or the other what happened. Then it was, thankfully, over.
The Hazing (2004)
Awesome Cinematography, Creative Shots, but...
The script was VERY weak w/o enough character arcs to make you care one bit about the characters or what happens to them. The script is way too talky and not enough gore or action to even call it slow paced. The story gets to the point that you just want everyone to shut up and die as quickly as possible so you don't have to listen to them talk this very muted, stiff dialogue. On a technical note, the music mix is way to high and makes it hard to understand what is being said most times. Then again, this could be called a blessing. Overall, this same story could have better been told in a short film w/ a running time under 30 minutes. The obvious "in your face" homages to Sam Raimi and "Evil Dead" would have been good had they been more subtle, but here they seem more like a bald faced rip off. C'mon, this kind of 35mm budget and THIS is the best that could be done? Still, the cinematography, lighting design and shots were very well done indeed.