Musical Movie Review; ****^Anastasia (1997)

This is one of my favorite animated musicals.   This film boasts an all star cast.  Meg Ryan portrays Anastasia, and Kirsten Dunst plays the girl Anastasia.  However they do not provide the singing parts.  Liz Callaway sings for Anastasia.  John Cusack and Kelsey Grammer plan the two who discover her.  Christopher Lloyd plays the evil Rasputin.  Bernadette Peters plays the grandmother's cohort, and Angela Lansbury the Queen mother, or Anastasia's grand mother.  I love the song "Once Upon a December."  "Journey to the Past" is also wonderful.  And the story of finding yourself, and then maybe that is not the thing you really want to do.  I think the Rasputin character may be over done.  He is always falling apart and putting himself back together, and it gets old after a time.

Movie Review: The Cat's Meow

This is an interesting movie, with a very good cast of characters.  It tells a version of events aboard the boat of William Randolph Hearst (Edward Herrmann).  His wife Marion Davies (Kirsten Dunst) is thought to be involved in an affair with Charlie Chaplin (Eddie Izzard).  She is not, but Charlie is in love with her.  Thomas Ince (Cary Elwes) is hoping for a business deal with Heart to keep his career going, and for some reason flames the rumors of the illicit relationship between Chaplin and Davies.  This has terrible consequences for him.  The best part of movie is watching the jealousy of Hearst.  It finally blooms out of control.  A gossip reporter, Louella Parsons (Jennifer Tilly) is also on board, and observes the events.  Herrmann does an excellent job with the part.  Dunst is always good, and this case her bubbly personality comes through.
This movie is enjoyable, and it also is a good study of misperceptions and jealousy.  At times it is just a bit too busy; but since it is based on a party on a cruise, maybe the director intended it to be that way.

Movie Review: ****^Spider Man III

In this were are introduced to the Sand Man, who actually shot Uncle Ben.  Spider Man also faces his dark side, as he comes in contact with an alien symbiotic organism. Peter is then faced with a darker alter ego.  He becomes mean to those around him, but finally beats the symbiode off, and the symbiode attaches to Peter's rival photographer at the Bugle, making Carnage who becomes Spider Man's other rival.  They gang up on him.  In the mean time Harry has become the Green Goblin, and had run ins with Spider Man.  However the Green Goblin comes to Spidey's rescue in the end.  I really dislike the reporters when Spider Man is getting beat up.  They detract from the action rather than adding to it.
Tony loves Spider Man and talking about the symbiode that crashed from outer space and made Black Spider Man and Carnage. 

Movie Reviews:*****Spider-Man II

***** Spider Man II: This movie takes up where the last left off.  Harry has a sense of vengeance  against Spider Man.  This effects all he does, and his relationship with Peter Parker.  The relationship between Mary (whose hair has toned down some) and Peter continues to bloom, even through a wedding to The Bugle editor's (J Jonah Jameson's) son and Mary Jane.  She shows up at Peter's in her wedding dress, after fleeing the ceremony,  how romantic.  In the meantime Peter makes a friend with Dr. Octavius, whose experiment with nuclear fusion goes awry, turning him into a super villain with eight limbs, four metallic.  He makes a worthy bad guy as the robotics takes over his conscience.  Of course Mary Jane is put in harms way, and she discovers Peter is Spider Man.

Movie Reviews: *****Spider-Man

 

*****Spider Man: This movie introduced us to Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst, who had flaming red hair in the first movie of the trilogy.  We also see Mary Jane's family, and next door, Peter Parker living with his Aunt and Uncle.  Peter the nerd, becomes Spider Man, after a trip to a science laboratory and a spider bite.  He then faces the Green Goblin, (Willem Dafoe) who is Harry's (James Franco) father.  Harry is his best friend.  The action is great, as is the budding relationship between Mary Jane and Peter Parker.  We also see the emotions of the change, and accepting the responsibility of being a super hero.  Finally Peter realizes those he loves are in harms way, and this affects all he does.  Harry, dates Mary Jane, and Spider Man and the Green Goblin have a war, which results in the Goblin's death.  My only complaint, we want to know how Peter came to live with his aunt and uncle.