MY LEFT FOOT (Theatrical Release USA 1989)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.3|5.0 Stars ìììì

My Left Foot, shown at the 1989 New York Film Festival, New York City, New York, becomes a great watch due to the outstanding acting skills of Daniel Day-Lewis and Hugh O’Conor. These two actors give an intensely realistic look into the life of Christy Brown, a person born in 1932 Dublin, Ireland to a poor, working class family. Christy Brown, challenged from birth with severe cerebral palsy, controls only the functions of his left foot. Despite limitations, Christy Brown becomes a painter, a poet, and a writer.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Additional Thanks

The film is great work for Director Jim Sheridan. Thank you to Executive Producers Paul Heller and Steve Morrison for making the film possible. Great job on musical composition by Elmer Berstein. Script Writers Shane Connaughton and Jim Sheridan based the story on the book by Christy Brown. Additional casting includes: Mrs. Brown (Brenda Fricker), Tom (Declan Croghan), Mary (Ruth McCabe), Dr. Eileen Cole (Fiona Shaw), Mr Brown (Ray McAnally), and Young Tom (Owen Sharp).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. a wonderful film that tells the history of Christy Brown in such a stylish way.

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Ben Meyers

A MERRY FRIGGIN’ CHRISTMAS (Carmel International Film Festival (CIFF) Carmel by the Sea, California USA 2014)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.1|5.0 Stars ììì

A Merry Friggin’ Christmas

 is a film festival movie with a limited theater release in the United States. It’s a depressing, visual portrayal of familial hatred, disrespect, chronic alcoholism, abandonment, betrayal, alienation, and complete dysfunction at a Christmas family gathering. The story’s thin storyline complicates its mediocre attempt to entertain. Definitely not an uplifting holiday watch, the film contains very little to smile about.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Additional Thanks

The work was directed by Tristram Shapeero. Executive Producers Michael Flynn and Anthony and Joe Russo made this film possible. Casting includes: Donna Mitchler (Candice Bergen), Virgil Mitchler (Robin Williams), Dave Weinke (Tim Heidecker), Boyd Mitchler (Joel McHale), Luann Mitchler (Lauren Graham), Nelson Mitchler (Clark Duke), Hobo Santa (Oliver Platt), Shauna Weinke (Wendi McLendon-Covey), Dave Weinke (Tim Heidecker), Rance Weinke (Ryan Lee), and Young Boyd (J.J. Jones).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Maybe. This movie leaves the audience with very little to smile about.

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Ben Meyers

RUMBLE IN THE BRONX (Theatrical Release Hong Kong and USA 1995/1996)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.4|5.0 Stars ìììì

Rumble in the Bronx—a classic Jackie Chan movie—makes the Ben Meyers International 1996 Favorite Films list. It’s a film you can see more than once, an example of honest acting. The moral of the story becomes: stand up and fight for your right to live life to the fullest no matter who/what you currently are. Don’t apologize for limitations or abilities. Move forward in life.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia 

Storyline

Keung (Jackie Chan),who comes to help his uncle run a convenience store in New York City’s The Bronx—a neighborhood controlled by gangs and crime—gets a good clean-up Jackie Chan style.

Additional Thanks

Great Work for Director Stanley Tong. Thank you to Executive Producers Raymond Chow and Leonard Ho for making the film possible. Good work by Musical Composer J. Peter Robinson. Great job by Script Writers Edward Tang and Fibe Ma. Additional casting includes: Gang Member Tony (Marc Akerstream), Mob Boss White Tiger (Kris Lord), Elaine (Anita Mui), Nancy (Françoise Yip), Uncle Bill (Bill Tung), Angelo (Garvin Cross), and Danny (Morgan Lam).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. Great action. Good storyline.

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Ben Meyers

THE IMITATION GAME (Telluride Film Festival (TFF) Telluride Colorado USA 2014)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.5|5.0 Stars ìììì

The Imitation Game magically transforms, what could have been a completely boring, information story, into a totally WOW! entertainment piece. The film—definitely worth your time and money—tells the story of Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch), the man who saved millions of lives by breaking the Enigma code during WWII so that Great Britain could tell where German war forces were located at any given time. Some experts believe that Turing’s work ended the war two years early.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Additional Thanks

This is a Best Work Effort for Director Morten Tyldum. Thank you to Executive Producer Graham Moore; Producers Nora Grossman, Ido Ostrowski, and Teddy Schwarzman; and Co-Producer Peter Heslop for making the film possible. Thank you to Musical Composer Alexandre Desplat for scoring the film. Good work for Script Writer Graham Moore who based his work on Andrew Hodges’ book, “Alan Turing: The Enigma.” Additional casting includes: Joan Clarke (Keira Knightley), Hugh Alexander (Matthew Goode), Detective Robert Nock (Rory Kinnear), John Cairncross (Allen Leech), Peter Hilton (Matthew Beard), Commander Denniston (Charles Dance), Stewart Menzies (Mark Strong), and Jack Good (James Northcote).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. A wonderful watch, Benedict Cumberbatch has great acting skills. 

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Ben Meyers

THE RIDICULOUS 6 (Television Release USA 2015)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 2.0|5.0 Stars ìì

The Ridiculous 6—a stupidly raunchy movie that degenerates the western film genre to below ridiculous. It seems many audiences may expect better from a Netflix Original film, from Adam Sandler, from Director Frank Coraci, and from everyone else connected with this film. It defines itself as a ‘not worth your time’ movie.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

In western times, a man goes looking for his family and finds more than he expected.

Additional Thanks

Poor work for Director Frank Coraci. Executive Producers Barry Bernardi, Pauline Fischer, Tim Herlihy, Heather Parry, and Nick Swardson made this film possible. Casting includes: Tommy (Adam Sandler), Smoking Fox (Julia Jones), Chico (Terry Crews), Herm (Jorge Garcia), Lil’ Pete (Taylor Lautner), Ramon (Rob Schneider), Danny (Luke Wilson), and Frank (Nick Nolte).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

No. Low quality fare that works on the boring side as an adult watch.

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Ben Meyers

AMREEKA (Sundance Film Festival (SFF) Park City, Utah USA 2009)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.6|5.0 Starsìììì

Amreeka—a very well-told tale of the difficulties of re-establishing oneself in a new country—establishes itself as an award-winning story on the difficulties of emigration and assimilation into new cultures. This completely deserves both time and money investment and becomes an excellent addition to the home video library.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia 

Storyline

A divorced, single parent Palestinian Christian woman who lived in Bethlehem and worked in West Bank Palestine. Muna Farah (Nisreen Faour), has been abandoned by her husband for another woman, wins an American Green Card through the lottery, and makes the decision to relocate her teen-age son, Fadi Farah (Melkar Muallem), to the USA. Muna is unable to get the same level of employment she enjoyed on the West Bank and settles for a position working in the fast food industry while living with her sister and brother-in-law. Tensions mount for this middle eastern family living in an American neighborhood after 9/11 and the story is off and running.

Additional Thanks

Best work for Director and Writer Cherien Dabis. Thank you to Executive Producers Cherien Dabis, Alicia Sams, and Greg Keever for making the film possible. Music Composer is Kareem Roustom. Additional casting includes: Salma Halaby (by Alia Shawkat), Nabeel Halaby, (by Yussuf Abu-Warda), Mr Novatski (by Joseph Ziegler), and Bank Employee (by Miriam Smith).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. This movie promotes understanding of the difficulties of relocating to a foreign country. It serves as an ideal older child/adult share film for the rich after viewing discussion it provides. It may be good to have a short review of the plotline before viewing, review geography, and discuss what a green card is before viewing the film.

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Ben Meyers

THE RUGRATS MOVIE (Theatrical Release USA 1998)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.2|5.0 Starsìììì

The Rugrats Movie—smart enough for adults and completely child friendly—becomes a classic animated feature from scene one. The moral of the story revolves around themes of love, courage, kindness, and doing your best to help family when needed. The Pickles family children decide that baby Dil needs to go back to the hospital because they don’t like babies that cry and don’t follow the rules. But, in the process of solving their ‘dilemma’ they all end up lost in the woods and need to find their way home.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Additional Thanks

Great work for Directors Igor Kavalyov and Norton Virgien. Thank you to Executive Producers John Andrews, Albie Hecht, Han-Young Kang, Debbie Beece, Elizabeth Seidman, and Alfonso and Thad Weinlein. The Music Composer is Mark Mothersbaugh. Voice casting includes: Tress MacNeille (Charlotte Pickles), Betty Deville (Kath Soucie), Howard Deville (Phil Proctor), Elizabeth Daily (Tommy Pickles), Melanie Chartoff (Didi Pickles), Jack Riley (Stu Pickles), Joe Alaskey (Grandpa Pickles), and Cheryl Chase (Angelica Pickles).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. Great film for families. Amazing movie for the Rugrats fan.

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Ben Meyers

HANG ‘EM HIGH (Theatrical Release USA 1968)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.8|5.0 Stars ììì

Hang ‘Em High—run of the mill western, nothing new—runs on the idea that sometimes you can get punished when you didn’t deserve it, sometimes you can get punished when you did deserve it, and sometimes punishment can be too lenient or too harsh depending on who is running the show. The film contains terrific actors such as Clint Eastwood, Bruce Dern, Pat Hingle, Ben Johnson, and Alan Hale Jr.; but all-in-all fails to enthrall as an entertainment piece.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

After surviving a lynching, a man returns as a lawman to establish justice.

Additional Thanks

Thank you to Director Ted Post for directing effort. Thank you to Supervising Producer Robert Stambler, Producer Leonard Freeman, and Associate Producer Irving Leonard for making the film possible. Casting includes: Rachel Warren (by Inger Steven), Captain Wilson (by Ed Bagley), Sherriff Calhoun (by Charles McGraw), and Madame Peaches (by Ruth White).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. The film is well-directed with very good timing by Director Ted Post.

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Ben Meyers

THE ADVENTURES OF MILO AND OTIS (Cannes International Film Festival, Cannes France 1986)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.0|5.0 Stars ìììì

The Adventures of Milo and Otis—a 1986 British-narrated Japanese film—tells a cute and well-narrated story about a kitten named Milo and his puppy friend named Otis. The movie uses staging techniques so professionally and with such artistry that the live animal performance scenes are believable and entertaining throughout its 77 minutes. The moral of the tale becomes ‘there is always a way home if you really want to go home.’ The film contains good wildlife scenery and performs as a good, clean pick for young children.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Additional Thanks

Great work for Director and Writer Masanori Hata. Thank you to Executive Producers Hisashi Hieda and Haruo Shikanai for making the film possible. Music Composer is Michael Boddicker. Excellent narration by Dudley Moore.

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. This film works in every way.  

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Ben Meyers

GERONIMO: AN AMERICAN LEGEND (Theatrical Release USA 1993)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.5|5.0 Stars ìììì

Geronimo: An American Legend succeeds beautifully in its attempt to tell Geronimo’s side of the American/Native American story. It drives the point that Geronimo has a mission in life to preserve his people and that he successfully accomplishes that mission.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

The movie covers the middle and latter part of Geronimo’s life.

Additional Thanks

The film is great work for Director Walter Hill. Thank you to Executive Producer Michael S. Glick and Producers Neil Canton and Walter Hill for making the film possible. Music Composer is Ry Cooder. Screenplay written by John Milius and Larry Gross. Casting includes: Lieutenant Charles Gatewood (Jason Patric), Brigadier General George Crook (Gene Hackman), Al Sieber (Robert Duvall), Lieutenant Britton Davis (Matt Damon), Mangas (Rodney A. Grant), Brigadier General Nelson Miles (Kevin Tighe), Chato (Steve Reevis)

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. A western worth watching for the western fan.

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Ben Meyers

THE GOOD GERMAN (Theatrical Release USA 2006)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 2.6|5.0 Stars ìì

The Good German, a WWII flick, slows down to a regular, grinding halt throughout its very long 105 black and white minutes. Scenes liberally cycle through boredom, immorality, and ‘where did that come from?’ The film fails on nearly every level despite casting that includes George Clooney (as Jake Geismer), Tobey Maguire (as Tully), Cate Blanchett (as Lena Brandt), and Beau Bridges (as Colonel Muller).

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Additional Thanks

Director Steven Soderbergh needed help with this one. Executive Producers Frederic W. Brost and Ben Waisbren made the film possible.

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

No. This movie needs a boost in presentation. 

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Ben Meyers

WATERSHIP DOWN (Theatrical Release USA 1978)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.4|5.0 Stars ììì

Watership Down, a British animated feature, is not a simple story, nor a story that can be lightly followed. It takes attention, thinking, and involvement to follow the storyline. But, while not well received in the United States, the movie is a completely, not-to-be-missed, more than interesting, good rendering of the importance of perseverance, instinct, and fight necessary to find, establish, and keep a safe home. Told through the eyes of rabbits, the film thoroughly and creatively explores life, death, the importance of females to the continuation of species, and the link to higher forces to successfully navigate even the most difficult of situations. Even though this film has all these good things, there is a down side to this film. It has little to no character development and the plot is a a little hard to follow as the story moves from warren to warren.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

A colony of rabbits needs to find a new warren.

Additional Thanks

Good work for Director and Producer Martin Rosen. Casting includes: Fiver (voiced by Richard Briers), Hazel (voiced by John Hurt), Bigwig (voiced by Michael Graham Cox), Captain Holly, (voiced by John Bennett), Blackberry (voiced by Simon Cadell), Silver (voiced by Terence Rigby), Pipkin (voiced by Roy Kennear), Dandelion (voiced by Richard O’Callaghan), Cowslip (voiced by Denholm Elliott), Cat (voiced by Lynn Farleigh), and Kehaar the Gull (voiced by Zero Mostel).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. The film may have little character development and the story may need a better plotline, but the upside is: the movie has 'impact' in that it is memorable, multi-layered, and appeals to the intellect due to its depth and value. The movie easily earns multiple watches because of the intellectual storyline.

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Ben Meyers

ROMANCING THE STONE (Theatrical Release USA 1984)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.8|5.0 Stars ììì

Romancing the Stone—a movie that allows you to fall in love with Michael Douglas as a lead role actor—allocates its scenes to a little adventure, romance, comedy, and outdoor scenery all rolled into one story. It’s a fair watch with some good camerawork.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

Joan Wilder (Kathleen Turner), a renowned and well received romance writer, finds her sister, Elaine (Mary Ellen Trainor), has been kidnapped from her Colombian home. The ransom is a treasure map which Joan holds. In Columbia, Joan gets on the wrong bus which crashes into a Jeep. Her day, gone bad, gets worse as she is held at gunpoint by corrupt Colonel Zolo (Manuel Ojada) and threatened. But, heaven’s grace sends Jack Colton (Michael Douglas) to save her day. They elude pursuing villains, find treasure, rescue the sister, and after a few surprise twists, find romance.

Additional Thanks

Thank you to Director Robert Zemeckis for directing effort. Thank you to Producers Michael Douglas, Co-Producers Joel Douglas and Jack Brodsky for making the film possible. Additional characters/cast include: Ralph (Danny DeVito), Ira (Zack Norman), Juan (Alfonso Arau), and Gloria (Holland Taylor). 

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. It’s a little above average for this film genre and worth a watch.

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Ben Meyers

CHICKEN RUN (Theatrical Release USA 2000)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.6|5.0 Stars ììì

Chicken Run performs well at box office, wins 13 movie awards, receives 13 nominations for additional awards, and backs itself with prestigious critic approval. Despite this, Ben Meyers International Movie Critics finds the movie lacking in that little ‘flare’ that makes higher quality entertainment possible. It's an okay watch with an okay story. It does not perform uniquely other than the outstanding stop motion figuring that it uses for its final product.  Overall, children will enjoy it and it works as a one time child/adult share. The voicing talent is excellent. Watch for the light and clever references to Indiana Jones and The Great Escape movies.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

The story begins with a nearly realistic looking animated moon, then scrolls to barbed wire, then to a wired-off place, then to a man inspecting the grounds with a flashlight while walking his dog. The man inspects a chain and a lock to ensure security. A chicken waits until the man passes, runs to the fence, leans her back against the fence, holds a spoon in her ‘hand,’ starts to dig under the fence, escapes, hides, and calls for the other chickens to follow. The story is off and running.

Additional Thanks

Thank you to Director Peter Lord and Nick Park for directing efforts. Thank you to Executive Producers Jeffery Katzenberg, Jake Eberts, and Michael Rose for making the film possible. Additional characters/cast include: Fetcher (voice of Phil Daniels), Mac (voice of Lynn Ferguson), Rocky (voice of Mel Gibson), Mr. Tweedy (voice of Tony Haygarth), Babs (voice of Jane Horrocks), Mrs. Tweedy (voice of Miranda Richardson), Ginger (voice of Julia Sawalha), Nick (voice of Timothy Spall), and Bunty (voice of Imelda Staunton).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Maybe. If one is a tremendous stop motion animated film fan, this movie will satisfy.

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Ben Meyers

THE PERFECT STORM (Theatrical Release USA 2000)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.2|5.0 Stars ììì

The Perfect Storm—based on the true story of the Andrea Gail, a commercial fishing boat that fails to return home—tries to perform as a ‘big-scale’ movie, but falls short of its aim. This tragic story has no happy ending and is a deep reminder of nature’s power to end life.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

A fishing boat comes to shore in Gloucester, Massachusetts, Fall 1991, with a small catch. Men wrench in a bucket of fish and throw them on ice. A carpenter planes a thin piece of wood for a boat. Other men wrap up buoys in nets. The camera moves to an old mansion turned into a City Hall and shows a plaque that says ‘Gloucester Settled in 1623, Incorporated into a town in 1642, a city 1873’. The camera then shows a ship in a glass case, a security guard sleeping in a chair against the wall with two lists of names posted to each side of him. The camera starts to zoom in on the ship in the glass case and the screen changes to one of the posters with two columns: one from 1914 and the other from 1918. Then the screens change to columns from 1804, 1805, 1813, 1789, 1924, 1929 that list people who have died at sea. Then the camera shows a metal statue of a fisherman driving his boat while looking across an endless ocean. The camera shows a room with curtains flapping in a storm and a sleeping woman calling out, ‘Bobby’. She awakes, gets out of bed, walks to the window, and looks into a tranquil night graced with a calm ocean, and the story is off and running.

Additional Thanks

Thank you to Director Wolfgang Petersen for directing efforts. Thank you to Executive Producers Duncan Henderson and Barry Levinson for making the film possible. Additional characters/cast include: Billy Tyne (George Clooney), Bobby Shatford (Mark Wahlberg), Dale Murphy (John C. Reilly), Christina Cotter (Diane Lane), David Sullivan (William Fichtner), Mike Moran (John Hawkes), Alfred Pierre (Allen Payne), Linda Greenlaw (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), and Melissa Brown (Karen Allen).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. While the film is not remarkable, it is not often that Hollywood chooses to tell a story about fishing as a livelihood and the perils that accompany that trade. It’s a fair afternoon watch even though it presents nothing new in story and does not offer a happy ending.

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Ben Meyers

BABE (Theatrical Release USA 1995)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.4|5.0 Stars ììì

Babe—a lovable, simple Australian film—tells its story with super, computer-animated mouthing on live animals and a completely fresh storyline that takes a baby pig from an orphaned state into the arena of a prize-winning sheep herding ‘dog’.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

Babe (voice of Christine Cavanaugh), an orphaned pig, finds itself a permanent home through a series of fortunate events.

Additional Thanks

Thank you to Director Chris Noonan for directing efforts. Thank you to Producers Bill Miller, George Miller and Doug Mitchell for making the film possible. Additional characters/cast include: Fly (voice of Miriam Margolyes), Ferdinand (voice of Danny Mann), Rex (voice of Hugo Weaving), Maa (voice of Miriam Flynn), Duchess the Cat (voice of Russi Taylor), Old Ewe (voice of Evelyn Krape), Horse (voice of Michael Edward Stevens), and Cow (voice of Charles Bartlett).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. It’s fresh

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Ben Meyers

THE LITTLE MERMAID (Theatrical Release USA 1989)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 4.2|5.0 Stars ìììì

The Little Mermaid could easily classify as Disney’s best, all-time, animated musical feature. It charms, enchants, and entertains. Don’t misjudge it as a ‘girls only’ movie. Disney provides enough adventure as villains compete, trick, and dare to upset the balance between good and evil to satisfy boys as well as girls. Kudos to Ron Clements and John Musker for transforming this Hans Christian Andersen classic tale into a wonderful 83-minute delight.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

Ariel (voice of Jodi Benson), a Mermaid in love with all things human, dares with her two friends Sebastian (voice of Samuel E. Wright) and Flounder (voice of Jason Marin) to watch Prince Eric’s (voice of Christopher Daniel Barnes) birthday party. The story is on as a sudden storm throws Eric overboard and Ariel rushes to rescue him.

Additional Thanks

Thank you to Directors Ron Clements and John Musker for directing efforts. Thank you to Producers Howard Ashman and John Musker for making the film possible. Additional characters/cast include: Louis (voice of René Auberjonois), Ursula (voice of Pat Carroll), Flotsam & Jetsam (voice of Paddi Edwards), Scuttle (voice of Buddy Hackett), Triton (voice of Kenneth Mars), and Carlotta (voice of Edie McClurg).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Yes. It’s a film for all ages. Good, clean fun.

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Ben Meyers