Harper's Review

Falling deeper into the 80's kick that I've been on, I stumbled on this sci-fi classic and realized it was past time that I saw it.  WarGames  follows a high-school nerd named David (played by Matthew Broderick) who inadvertently stumbles upon a computer program that is capable of learning and even accessing nuclear launch codes.  That's the gist of it, but I'm getting ahead of myself. The movie begins with a scene of military men going through multiple security checks to take a well guarded post surrounded by computers.  Suddenly, they are given the order to initiate a nuclear strike on America! There is a moment of intense drama while one soldier yells at the other to turn the key while he suffers a breakdown because of the moral dilemma he faces.  Very good.  Cut to the aftermath where we learn it was just a simulation (one of many apparently) to ensure that soldiers would follow orders to launch nuclear weapons without hesitation.  This lea...

In a previous post, I made note of the fact that every film I view is first subjected to a quick IMDB  review.  That includes thumbing through several of the user and critic reviews as well as a quick meta-score check.  While The 'Burbs has a decent 6.9 IMDB rating, the reviews lean towards a less than favorable opinion. Ultimately, I chose to watch The 'Burbs  for one reason: Tom Hanks.  I love Tom Hanks.  I also have been falling more in love with the whole 80's genre.  While I firmly believe that the 90's was our golden age of cinema (before everything became "realistic" and CGI ruined most aspects of photography in action flicks), the 80's was clearly the adolescence of modern film; a time in which trial and error was the preferred method of producing films! Not only did I grow up with these films but I feel as though they grew up with me.  Unfortunately that leaves us in the current stage of film;the mid-life crisis where originality is ...

I had originally decided that I wasn't going to review films I had already seen, but that I would watch and review movies specifically that were new to me despite whenever they came out.  Cloud Atlas  changed my mind on that.  I don't intend to do it often, however I feel strongly about this film. I have viewed Cloud Atlas  no less than 20 times and with every viewing I gained a deeper understanding of the film and the plot.  Cloud Atlas was directed by the Wachowskis (of The Matrix  fame) and Tom Tykwer.  It is an EPIC, three-hour film that consists of five or six different time periods throughout a tale of the power of love and the resonance of actions.  Starring Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Jim Broadbent, Susan Sarandon to name a few, we get every cent of our monies' worth from the performances set for by these players, who often play multiple roles. Cloud Atlas is neither for the faint of heart, nor the average mo...