JE4115 Reviews

Life Goes On (1989–1993)

I miss this program...

[10/10 · 18 July 2006]

I, too, wish that there were re-runs of this wonderful program (but on one of the broadcast TV channels, since I don't have cable). There were so many episodes that brought tears to my eyes, just because they portrayed what were so true-to-life happenings. I never missed an episode and would purposely stay at home between 6:30-7:00 PM on Sunday nights so that I could watch it. My very favorite episode was the one where Corky hides quite a large pig in the house, attempting to save it from being slaughtered (I think). That was hilarious. Showing how much a person (namely Corky) with Down Syndrome can accomplish, was a real ground-breaker for TV. Also, Chad Lowe, who portrayed a young man who was HIV positive, was wonderful, for the same reason.

"Life Goes On", but unfortunately, no longer on TV - at least not here in Minneapolis.

Death of a Soldier (1986)

Background on Coburn's character, Ira C. Rothgerber, Jr.

[6/10 · 28 August 2004]

Although James Coburn's character is called Major Donnenberg in the movie, the person who actually defended Leonski was Ira C. Rothgerber, Jr. He died in 1993 and was one of the greatest Colorado lawyers of the 20th Century.

With the outbreak of World War II, Ira joined the Army and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Stationed in the South Pacific and Australia, he served in combat areas and won a Bronze Star. In Australia, he served with another young lawyer from New Jersey, Colonel Bill Powers, whom he convinced to return with him to Denver and join the firm at the end of the war. The firm then became known as Rothgerber, Appel & Powers.

During his service in Australia, Ira was appointed as co-counsel to represent a young, uneducated private accused of the rape and murder of several Sydney women. General MacArthur's command was determined to show the Australians that U.S. soldiers in their country would be held to a strict code of conduct, and the prosecution sought the death penalty. The soldier, William Leonski, was by all accounts mentally deranged and likely insane. Nevertheless, he was found competent to stand trial, and his mental impairment defense-then unprecedented in military courts-was swiftly rejected.

His client summarily tried, convicted, and sentenced to hang, Ira sought an appeal through the military high command. Denied review, Ira dictated by long-distance telephone a petition for stay and certiorari to Denver for transmission to the U.S. Supreme Court. However, before the Court could consider the petition, Leonski was hanged

Last of the Dogmen (1995)

Too bad so few people have ever heard of this movie

[10/10 · 23 August 2004]

I just watched this movie on a local TV channel tonight. I had never heard of it, but it is now officially my favorite film. I absolutely loved the story, the scenery, the acting - and Zip, the dog was marvelous. The movie has something for everyone. They should make a sequel with the same actors, but I would prefer one without the voice-over narrative.

I don't recall seeing many movies with Tom Berenger in them, but this is one that I will never forget. I really could fall for that man.

My advice: beg, borrow, buy, rent or steal this movie. It's definitely worth which ever route you choose to get it. I'm certain to look for "Last of the Dogmen" to add to my extensive collection of videos and DVDs. I only hope that I can find a captioned version.

I am going to tell everyone I know about this wonderful film.

Gone in 60 Seconds (1974)

Great movie - even without sound!

[9/10 · 22 August 2004]

Background: Because I am nearly deaf, I depend upon videos and DVDs that are captioned or have subtitles. Most videos made within the past 10 years have captions and DVDs often offer BOTH of these capabilities. As you probably have guessed, I do not go to movie theaters to see a movie because I have absolutely no idea what is going on. Over the years, I have garnered an extensive collection of both videos and DVDs. All of them either captioned or having subtitles.

Current: My introduction to this movie was inspired after renting the 2000 DVD with Nickolas Cage, which I though was a terrific movie. While searching for the 1974 H.B. Halicki video, I found that it was not captioned, so I was thrilled to recently find the 25th Anniversary DVD which was released in 2000, assuming that it would at least have subtitles. Surprisingly, it is neither captioned NOR does it have subtitles. Unfortunately, I did not realize this until I attempted to view the movie. I could not return it because I had opened the package. What a disappointment.

I could not understand the dialogue and was a bit confused as to why the heist team ended up destroying the cars, I decided to check the plot at IMDb. It told me of a different reason for all of the cars being stolen as compared to the 2000 version, and that was helpful. Thank you, IMDb! So I decided to watch it anyway, because I was looking forward to the final chase scene, which had been described as even better than the N, Cage 2000 remake.

I loved this movie - EVEN IN SILENCE! I really enjoyed seeing the fashions from the 70's, hilarious as they now seem to me. Did I really dress that way? Yes! Seeing the older cars was wonderfully nostalgic. And the heist methods were ingenious. The final chase scene was terrific. Although I couldn't understand the dialogue, I laughed in a few places that seemed comic to me. Possibly not hearing what was being said made the movie even more enjoyable than it really was.

I recommend this movie very highly, even as a silent film.

Edward Scissorhands (1990)

Great intro to Johnny Depp

[8/10 · 24 July 2004]

This is the very first movie in which I saw Johnny Depp - and I was hooked.

A lot of things were very unbelievable, such as how the heck does the man dress himself with those hands? But then, it's a fantasy, or maybe I should say sci-fi story.

The topiary forms were most unbelievable, as those animals, etc. couldn't have been shaped from the trees and bushes that he worked on. The viewer just has to go with the flow and not be too critical of those things and must allow for a great stretch of the imagination.

That said, I love Depp's acting and since this movie, I have bought everything of his that I can get my hands on.

Runaway Jury (2003)

Comparing movie to the book

[9 June 2004]

If you read the book before seeing the movie, you may be disappointed. During the first few minutes of the film, I thought that the movie must have the incorrect title. Things were so different. The reason for the trial is not the same as it is in the book, but the two genres are the same as far as both plaintiffs are suing BIG business.

Here's a peculiar thing . . . as I was reading the book (long before the movie came out), I imagined John Cusack as the character Nick Easter. It was really weird for me to pick up the movie and see that Cusack had actually been cast in that role.

The movie has a lot of excitement, twists and turns, as does the book, but I was sorry to not see a bit more depth to the happenings of the jurors and their experiences during the trial. That's one of the more interesting parts of reading the book. But I suppose that they went about as far as they could in the time alloted.

I absolutely loved seeing the surveillance procedures that Fitch had set up in the courtroom. It was much more elaborate that I had imagined whilst reading the book.

It was a really terrific movie - if you hadn't read the book beforehand. I'm planning to watch it again so that I have my bearings right from the start the 2nd time around.