Is there a cooler actor than Peter O'Toole? Even at 84, and looking a spry 64, O'Toole literally sparkles with his unbelievably blue eyes and killer charisma in "Venus," a quite funny British comedy-drama about dying with grace while hungering for life.
O'Toole is Maurice, a famed actor of stage and screen, living out his last days with his best friend and fellow actor Ian (Leslie Phillips, also excellent) until the latter's great niece (Jodie Whittaker) arrives. The girl may be daft and clueless (she announces her intention to become a famous London-based model ... as she pigs out on junk food and noodles), but she's beautiful and full of spirit. She kick starts dying Maurice's passion for life.
There are quite a few out-there scenes here that flirt with territory already used in "The Piano," but the film's humor and touchy moments far outweigh any negatives. Credit here goes to screenwriter Hanif Kureishi. And O'Toole. Wow. The former "Laurence of Arabia" is the absolute zenith of film stars. B+
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Me
Movie reviews in 200 words, more of less.
Me
My take on films by
- Steven D. A. Mackay
- I love movies that thrill, challenge, move and excite me, no matter their genre, origin, year of creation, or language. I detest being pandered to and insulted, or blinded by glitz. For the sport of writing I will keep my reviews to 200 words or less. Not always, but for the most part. Some films demand a long response, be they great, bad, or simply baffling. I am a writer by trade, and if I cannot be precise, I need to be silent. Also know this: I do not turn my brain off or leave my brain at the door when I watch a movie, I have plenty of time to not think after I die. Hope you enjoy, even if you disagree.
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- Resident Evil: Extinction (2007) & Death Race (2008)
- Bolt (2008)
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- The Day the Earth Stood Stll (2008)
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- Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
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- Halloween (1978)
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- War, Inc. (2008)
- 88 Minutes (2008)
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- Leatherheads (2008)
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- The Thing (1982)
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- Cars (2005)
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Favorite Films
- 1. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
- 2. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
- 3. The Godfather, Parts 1 and 2 (1972, 1974)
- 4. The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- 5. Network (1976)
- 6. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
- 7. Pulp Fiction (1994)
- 8. There Will be Blood (2007)
- 9. Pinnochio (1940)
- 10. M (1931)
- And ... The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), The Apartment (1960), Apocalypse Now (1979), Badlands (1973), Blue Velvet (1986), Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), The Conversation (1974), Die Hard (1988), Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), A Face in the Crowd (1957), The French Connection (1971), The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), Goodfellas (1990), The Incredibles (2004), L.A. Confidential (1997), Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001-2003), Memento (2001), Miller's Crossing (1990), Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Pan's Labyrinth (2006), The Producers (1968), Ran (1985), Rosemary's Baby (1968), Saving Private Ryan (1998), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Strangers on a Train (1951), The Sweet Smell of Success (1957), Toy Story (1995), Tree of Life (2011), Unforgiven (1992), The Wages of Fear (1953)
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