Reel Thoughts

Yeah, It's Funny...But I Still LIke Spaceballs Better

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Under discussion:

History of the World -- Part I (1981)

Listen, schmucks. People I know raved about History of the World, and so I had to see it, since I'd never seen it before. Yeah, I know, I'm living under a rock-occasionally. Let it be said that I do like Mel Brooks; I think he's wonderfully funny, even though he kind of rips off Monty Python a lot. That being said, of the flicks I've seen of his (Young Frankensten, Spaceballs, Men In Tights, and I think Blazing Saddles...and this one), Spaceballs is still currently my favorite. Don't get me wrong, I laughed at this one. Mostly during the Roman Empire chapter. It's just didn't strike me as funny as people made it out to be.

Still, it was pretty funny. The funniest character: Empress Nympho played by the eternal Madeleine Kahn. Her appearances in the early Brooks' films are always the best. She made me giggle for sure.

I'm not sure which were my favorite scenes. I will have to see it again.

If you like Mel Brooks and/or zany madcap humor, this is a good one. I think I might like it better on repeat viewing.

Still, nothing beats the "I'm Surrounded By Assholes" scene in Spaceballs. I still laugh at it. That, and Spaceballs: the Toilet Paper.

My rating for History: 8 out of 10 (minor flaws but still pretty good). Some parts dragged a bit, particularly the French Revolution, even if it is good to be king. P.S. I do think this movie is funnier than Young Frankenstein.

The test: will she be buying it? I'm considering the Mel Brooks boxed set, so if I get that, this one will be in it. I can't say definitely yes or no, though.

I own Spaceballs, though.

Posted Sunday, June 25, 2006 10:39 PM by pippin06 | with 0 comments

Puzzling But Satisfying

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Under discussion:

The Lake House (2006)

See the Fantasy group for the most details. Considering the thought I'm putting into it, I sure am glad there is a happy ending to this movie. But I'm still confused. Why does this magic thing even start working? I feel like major plot points were neglected and left too much to the viewers' interpretation. The film is based on a book; I wonder if the book explained everything?

The rating: I'm giving it a 7 out of 10. The overall work of the film is shaky (it's confusing, it's disjointed, it's vague, it leaves too much to the imagination) but I felt entertained/warm-hearted about the movie. It's better than a 6 (cute) because of the satisfying ending and the fact that the film was not cheesy, but I can't quite give it an 8 because I'm still trying to understand the story; I couldn't suspend my disbelief long enough to forget that in no way was this romance explained or this magical mailbox explained. It's kind of creepy, too, if you think about it, getting random letters from someone in the past. I blame this lacking ability on the screenwriter though. I really believe the book wasn't adapted well.

The test: will she be buying it? The answer: I would say the jury's out. I think I definitely need to watch it again before I make any hard and fast decisions. Sandra and Keanu have chemistry, and the sentiment is a beautiful one, but I just can't bring myself to accept the scenario that the film tries to sell. Who knows? Maybe I'll catch something I missed the first time around on a repeat viewing and think that the film is the greatest... Without another viewing first, though, I probably won't buy it.

Posted Sunday, June 25, 2006 1:44 AM by pippin06 | with 0 comments