Tag Archives: Action

Air Force One - * * *

Posted on July 25, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

Call it the “My Fellow Americans” syndrome. Any formula movie can be made better by making the main character a president. My Fellow Americans tackled the buddy road comedy, Independence Day used the formula for disaster pics, and The American … Continue reading →

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Operation Condor - * * 1/2*

Posted on July 18, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

There’s some very good action, and not much else in Jackie Chan’s latest outing. Actually, the term “latest” doesn’t really apply, since Operation Condor is actually a trimmed and dubbed rerelease of his 1990 effort, Armor of God II. This … Continue reading →

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Men in Black - * * *

Posted on July 2, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

Aliens are all around us. Disguised as humans, they roam the earth simply trying to blend in. On those occasions when one is discovered, a top secret government agency is dispatched to take care of matters, and cover up the … Continue reading →

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Face/Off - * * * 1/2*

Posted on June 25, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

It is not often that you encounter an action film that can actually challenge its actors (not counting featherbrained musclemen, of course). And it isn’t often that you get strong performances, either. Yet, both of those are true for Face/Off, … Continue reading →

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Batman & Robin - * *

Posted on June 20, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

Batman is back, this time not only saddled with Robin, but Batgirl as well, and facing some of the series’ most lightweight villains to date. Unfortunately, the caped crusader gets no help this time from the filmmakers. A truly awful … Continue reading →

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Speed 2: Cruise Control - *

Posted on June 13, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

There’s a memorable moment in Jurassic Park where Jeff Goldblum as Ian Malcolm cautions “your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.” While he was talking about genetic tampering, … Continue reading →

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Con Air - * * 1/2*

Posted on June 6, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

Con Air introduces, then fails to exploit, the largest collection of onscreen villains since the Legion of Doom. Instead, we are treated to a run of the mill plane hijacking, and more explosions and climactic fights than I’d care to … Continue reading →

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The Lost World: Jurassic Park - * * *

Posted on May 23, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

After an absence of nearly four years, Steven Spielberg has returned to the director’s chair, and has chosen to tackle a large, but simple, project. Large in the sense that his original Jurassic Park is still the top grossing film … Continue reading →

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The Fifth Element - * * *

Posted on May 9, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

The best science fiction films manage to create a unique world, populated with rich characters and coherent to its own logic. The Fifth Element only meets these goals partway. It creates a visually intriguing setting, but adds rudimentary characters and … Continue reading →

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The Saint - 1/2*

Posted on April 4, 1997 by Madeleine Williams

It’s simply stunning how shockingly bad a movie is The Saint. Val Kilmer gives the title role a good effort, and co-star Elisabeth Shue is appealing, so why is the film so amazingly awful? The answer: one of the most … Continue reading →

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