2):
In 1914 Wallacestone (located outside of Boston), the Joneses are just making ends meet, and only if parents, Clinton and Annie, watch every cent that they spend. However, their seventeen year old daughter, Ruth, has no such concerns as she is single minded in her pursuit of wanting to become a stage actress. She believes it’s her destiny. Clinton does not know about his daughter’s dreams, but nonetheless is worried about her ability to eke out a life for herself. Both Clinton and Annie want her to lead what they consider a normal life, by taking up a trade – Clinton wants her to become a physical culture instructress – and accepting the marriage proposal of Fred Whitmarsh when he does eventually ask her as they know he will. But Clinton will ultimately have to find out about his daughter’s life goal and Ruth will have to deal with the consequences of his reaction.

• During first-run engagements of The Actress (1953), selected movie houses around the country projected the film’s opening sequence – a recreation of a production number from the play, “The Pink Lady”, in wide screen to emphasize the larger-than-life quality of Ruth Gordon’s fascination with the stage.
• Anthony Perkins film debut.

• Revealing mistakes: In a scene late in the film set in the kitchen, the light fixture over the kitchen table is seen (and heard!) to rise up to allow the camera to pass below it.

In Clinton Jones, Gordon penned a difficult but irresistible character. Settled unarguably into middle age but still fighting it, he chafes at his$37.50-a-week salary (it was 1913) and pores over the grocery list while hiswife (Teresa Wright) defends such frivolities as tangerines. A former seacaptain, he latches onto any opportune ears like the Ancient Mariner andspins his salty yarns of ports of call on the seven seas. In the dead of aNew England winter, he insists on sleeping in a hammock strung on anupstairs porch. The ham in Tracy rises to the challenge, and he manages tomake Jones recklessly funny while still a bit frightening (near the end,details of his dreadful boyhood emerge to put his cantankerousness infocus).

As screenwriters, Gordon and her husband Garson Kanin custom-tailored manyscreen vehicles for Tracy and co-star Katharine Hepburn, where theirrelationship is said to take the writers’ marriage as its model; here Tracyreturns the favor by making Gordon’s father so unforgettable. Gordon pays atribute, too, by sketching her character not as she remembered it but as hemust have seen her, showing little talent or wit but a penchant for dreamingup castles in Spain. By hiding her own bright light under a bushel, shelets the memory of her father shine.

2) Delightful turn-of-the-century comedy captures the silly,head-in-the-cloudsflush of adolescence. Dreaming of the glamour and magic of the theatre,small-town romantic Jean Simmons waltzes around the decidedly earthboundhousehold of her Papa: grizzled, opinionated sea-captain Spencer Tracy,whospends his time resisting the coming of the telephone. Anthony Perkinsmakesa charming screen debut as her beau in a raccoon coat [although the actorpreferred to downplay it]. Director George Cukor lavishes warmth andaffectionate detail on Ruth Gordon’s fine script as he guides the castthrough some of the most satisfying ensemble playing on thescreen.

3) Based on Ruth Gordon's play Years Ago about her childhood, The Actressis a good and uplifting tale about a young girl following her dream.Young Ruth Gordon Jones living in a Boston suburb dreams about going onstage. She doesn't get too much encouragement from her parents, SpencerTracy and Teresa Wright.

That does not stop our Ruth. She's determined to make it in thetheater, but there is a matter of cash.

Spencer Tracy is a former seaman who now works at a lowly factory joband needs every dime to support wife, daughter, and a cat that's notparticularly fond of him. This is not one of Tracy's better known rolesand that's a pity because it's one of his best performances.

He downplays his daughter's ambitions almost until the very end of thefilm. I won't reveal any more, but there is an interesting dinner scenewhich is the key to the film. Very similar to the breakfast scene withAdolphe Menjou and Kate Hepburn in State of the Union where he tellsthem of his ideas for when and if he becomes president. Only here hetells the family the reasons for why believes as he does.

Although Jean Simmons was well beyond being a senior in high schoolshe's a good enough actress to make it believable. It was certainly amore innocent time.

The Actress is a fine production from MGM and director George Cukor,pity it isn't out on VHS or DVD.

4) Lovely, beautiful, sentimental and also a funny movie that takes youback to a much, much earlier time in America that will never be again.A story of a young girl who wants to be an actress and her salty fatherwho is really a kind person. We have the appearance of the youngAnthony Perkins as well. The movie is very well acted and it is basedon the true life story of Ruth Gordon (born Ruth Gordon Jones). It is amovie that the whole family will enjoy–very nostalgic and endearing. Ienjoyed it. See it when you can or rent or buy it. Entertaining anddelightful and as I said at the beginning: it is a lovely old fashionedmovie. They don’t make them like this anymore and more’s the pity.

5) "The Actress" is Jean Simmons playing the great Ruth Gordon herself(real name Ruth Gordon Jones) in this 1953 film also starring SpencerTracy, Teresa Wright, and Anthony Perkins. Simmons is out of her teenyears but not by much – she was 24 – and manages to pull off being a17-year-old who falls in love with theater after seeing Hazel Dawn in"The Pink Lady." Determined to become an actress, she writes to Ms.Dawn and when Hazel answers, Ruth is heady with excitement. Thisdoesn't sit well with her beau (Perkins) or her mother (Wright) – andit wouldn't sit well with her irascible father either, except that heknows nothing about it. Yet.

The Massachusetts family home is lovingly depicted here, complete witha cat that is supposedly a big nuisance to all of them – Clinton Jones(Tracy) complains about him constantly, as he complains abouteverything, but yet has taught the cat a couple of tricks. You can seehe's one of the family and that Clinton isn't as tough as he appears tobe. The excellent Wright has what is often the maternal role in afamily – that of go-between. And for the time being, she advises Ruthto keep her mouth shut. The funniest scene in the film is Clintonshowing off his athletics with his group at the YMCU – he's a riot ashis daughter squirms in embarrassment.

This is not a big movie; it's one about a short girl who desperatelywants to be on the stage. As I was one of those teens once, I can saythat the acting and directing capture this perfectly. Simmons isclearly a girl who can't be dissuaded by any negativity and who seesher goal as the only thing that matters, and it's one of pure bliss.She has no sense of limitation or reality – nor should she at that age.Time gives us that soon enough. It was a brave step in those days torefuse a marriage proposal and want to go off to a city to live on yourown. Ruth Gordon did it and made good.

It's clear from the story how much Gordon loved her parents and howproud she was of her beginnings. She is one whose dreams came true,even if she had to wait until the age of 72 to become a movie star.There was plenty of a marvelous stage and writing career before that."The Actress" shows us where it all began.

6) Thought I had seen all of Spencer Tracy films and this is one I thoughthe gave an outstanding performance as a man who was a seaman and hassettled down with his wife and daughter. Clinton Jones, (Spencer Tracy)settled for a very low income working at a food company in the localtown and is always complaining about the cost of things and at the sametime has to deal with a family cat which keeps eating the familiesBoston Ivy. Annie Jones, (Teresa Wright) plays the role as the wife ofClinton and she does a great job as trying to please her husband and atthe same time wants to help her daughter, Ruth Gordon Jones, (JeanSimmons) to become an actress which she desperately wants to do in herlife no matter what happens. Anthony Perkins, (Fred Whitmarsh) gave agreat supporting role in one of his very first films in his long careerof stardom. Ruth Gordon, wrote the story and screen play and she alsois known for a great role she had in "Rosemary's Baby" '68. There islots of great comedy and Spencer Tracy was outstanding.

7) This is one of the more unusual films, in that the famous writer, RuthGordon, wrote this story about herself and her early desire to act.Jean Simmons plays her and her long-suffering father is played bySpencer Tracy. This is not what I would call an action or suspensefulfilm–since it’s written by Gordon long after she’d made a mark inHollywood as a writer and occasional actress (she went on to do manymore films and TV shows AFTER this movie). But, it’s just a nice sliceof life story about parents who are justifiably worried about theirlittle girl growing up and moving all alone to Hollywood. And, despitethis trepidation, they love her dearly. So, there are no grandfireworks–just good acting and writing (imagine that).

Set in 1913 New England, seventeen-year-old Ruth Gordon Jones (JeanSimmons) decides on a stage career at about the same time her fatherdecides to send her to the Boston Physical Culture Institute to becomea PE teacher. His inspiration is Emma Glavey (Mary Wickes).

Despite its title, "The Actress" (1953) is really Ruth Gordon's lovingtribute to her parents; written at a time when she could look back andreally appreciate them. It is based on a stage play she wrote and thenadapted to the screen. Although primarily known today (because of acouple of cult films) for her acting, Gordon was an excellent writer ofboth plays and screenplays.

If you are looking for spectacular sets and exciting action adventure,"The Actress" is not the film for you. But if you are looking for someof the best dialogue out there and what is arguably Spencer Tracy'smost amusing performance you should make it a point to track this down.

Gordon obviously got her love of performing from her father Clinton(played by Tracy), a one-time sailor with a gift for gab and a desireto pontificate and be the center of attention. The conflict in thestory is not so much over her desire to become an actress, but betweenthe tendency of both father and daughter to be overly dramatic. Theytend to get on each other's nerves with the mother Annie (TeresaWright) caught in the middle. Only the mother picks up on how alikefather and daughter actually are, the old acorn never falls far fromthe tree thing.

Much of what Clinton says is too original not to have been invented bythe author. My favorite is a lengthy piece about the family's grocerybills during which Clinton complains that Ruth is too lazy to walk to anearby farm for three pounds of butter. Annie excuses her daughter'sinactivity by citing her bad back. A little later when he notices thatAnnie has been buying expensive tangerines instead of oranges forRuth's school lunch, he speculates that carrying the lighter tangerineis easier on her back.

Although Wright is a little young for her role, her uncanny resemblanceto Gordon (some believed that she was actually Gordon's daughter) madecasting her as Gordon's mother a nice inside joke.

This production is extremely funny and has a lot of charm. They go outon a cool shot of the cat on windowsill eating a plant; with the familyvisible through the window heading off to the railroad station.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

9) Actress, The (1953)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A teenager (Jean Simmons) wants to become an actress but she's afraidto tell her hard as nails father (Spencer Tracy). Director George Cukordoesn't have a very good grip on the story because it goes from comedyto drama back to comedy in some strange ways. The real highlight,naturally, comes from the performance by Tracy. His rant towards catsis hilarious and when it comes down to the talk between father anddaughter, Tracy really shines. Anthony Perkins co-stars and delivers afine performance in his first role.

10) THE ACTRESS is a painfully laborious treatment of watching a moth turninto, presumably, a butterfly–but the catch is that the moment theworm turns, the story is over.

And it's sad to say that the title role of THE ACTRESS (the real lifestory of Ruth Gordon, who wrote the screenplay), is played by noneother than 24 year-old JEAN SIMMONS whose attempt to play a seventeenyear-old means that she plays the entire part in a Margaret O'Brienvoice that quivers with teen-age hysteria throughout.

Simmons, usually such a fine actress, was a disastrous choice to playRuth Gordon. Fortunately, the studio had the good fortune to castSPENCER TRACY as her eccentric father, who more than makes up forJean's inadequacy in the role of "the actress". Another good piece ofcasting is TERESA WRIGHT in the more conventional role of the "good,patient, understanding–if a bit narrow-minded, wife".

But the liability of casting Simmons as the unlikely actress (with nosense that she would develop into a comic actress of considerablegenius) is the film's biggest conceit.

On the plus side, there's a pleasant performance from ANTHONY PERKINSas Jean's handsome young suitor, awkward and unassuming in what isessentially a thankless role. But it's Tracy's film–he's excellent inevery aspect of his father role.

If only we didn't have to listen to Simmons speak in a voice pitched anoctave too high to simulate youth. What a shame!! On the other hand,there's nothing exceptional about the story either. It's all a bit tooobviously staged to be a bit of nostalgia about a girl wanting to breakinto the theater against the wishes of her more conventional parents.

Summing up: Very ordinary except for Tracy's performance and hardly afeather in George Cukor's directorial cap.

• Images of Witchfinder General album sleeves appear scattered throughout the film in tribute to the band’s influence on director Richard R. Anasky.
• The film is based on Richard R. Anasky’s own actual filmmaking experiences (and the impressions regarding those experiences) from the set of I Am Vengeance (2007)_.
• The version of Actress Apocalypse which was released (95 min) was supposed to be a limited edition version of the film. This 95 min version had extra padding which the director did NOT wish to include in the finished film but reluctantly agreed to keep it in as he was assured it was for a limited edition release ONLY. The TRUE (and preferred by the director) version of Actress Apocalypse was never released.
• The cover art was initially supposed to feature Vance Lincoln and Lily Walker beside Kenzie Lovelay’s face. The producers of the film saw fit to change the artwork from Vance and Lily to a nude shot of another actress. This ill conceived choice (amongst many other ridiculous choices) by the producers of the film buried Actress Apocalypse as most chains would not put the film on their shelves due to the nude actress on the front cover.
• The films lobby card collection (which were created by Ola Sjoberg) were stolen during the film’s theatrical premiere in Boston.

The film centers around three main characters producing the film withina film I’m not sure how much of the dialog was improve but it comesacross as very natural. What the film lacks in budget it makes up forwith a hilarious script, strong acting, and loads of gratuitous nudityfrom a very attractive group of supporting actors.

I came across this because it was listed as horror, but it’s primarilya dark comedy with a strong exploitation back beat. If you have atwisted sense of humor then you’ll probably appreciate this.

2) The first released film from director (and obvious psychedelic cinemafanatic) Richard R. Anasky is nothing less of an exploitationmasterpiece. You’ll get to be a fly on the wall when some seriouslydisturbed people decide to make their very own no-budget horror film.The two Lincoln brothers set out to make a slasher film involving a gaymullet-headed Indian, but as the feeble minded brother (David B.Lincoln the 3rd) can’t handle the situation his psychotic brother(Vance) takes over and chaos ensues. You’ll be treated to a whole hordeof beautiful nude women, a surprisingly amount of humor, the bestediting I’ve seen in a film. Although the nudity gets a little toodrawn out at the end, the film still delivers what it’s set out to do:giving you a great time in front of your TV. Greg G. Freeman as VanceLincoln and Dahlia Legault as Layla (the one person responsible for thewhole chaotic downward spiral of Vance) are really the two actors whostand out in this film. Greg’s chaotic and psychotic acting is amongthe best I’ve seen in a long time…this guy will go places. So whatare you waiting for? Get your Actress Apocalypse DVD, grab some popcornand enjoy a mighty fine piece of exploitation cinema!

3) That is the best way to describe how I feel about this film. I boughtthis as a blind buy at the local FYE and popped it into my player thatnight. It is probably one of the BEST blind buys I have ever done. Why,you ask? Simple…because it works. The back of the DVD says that it isa mockumentary-exploitation with the spirit of Russ Meyers…and that’sEXACTLY what it is. The movie is hilarious! But also VERY dark. There’ssome necro humor in there (not enough film these days have that!),which I thought was sick/hilarious. I don’t remember when the lasttime, or if ever for that matter, that I was laughing so hard and thenin a split second just go, "whoa…that was **cked up!" Also, I wouldlike to point out that this is one of the finest exploitation films Ihave seen as of late. It’s hilarious/sexy/**cked up, it’s got beautifulwomen as well as some great music. Listen, don’t go into the moviethinking you’re going to get a shot on film million dollarmasterpiece…cause you won’t get it. What you will get, is a shot ondv, hilariously screwed up exploitation movie. Just go with it, you’llhave a GREAT time! You’ll be laughing at the movie and at the same timegoing; "I was just laughing….but…why? This is so wrong!". All inall, a very, VERY good movie, with very dark undertones, and a greatcast. Note to you indie fans out there…at the end of the film, afterthe credits, Greg Freeman who plays "Vance", actually THANKS us forwatching the film. How many movies do you know that do that? So rent itoff Netflix if you want, or if you find it at your local FYE, pick itup. You’ll have a great time!…and besides…isn’t that what you wantin a movie?

4) Are movies fun to watch? Yes! Are they fun to make? Not really. EvenSteven Spielberg himself has often referred to "Jaws" as his ownpersonal Vietnam. Now we get an inside look on just how "not fun" it isin the hilarious mockumentary "Actress Apocalypse".

Filmmaker David B. Lincoln the 3rd sets out to make what he believeswill be his magnum opus, an epic slasher film called "ClearwaterCanyon". And what is this movie about? Get ready……….a big, gay,mulleted Indian who likes to murder women. Where is it being filmed? Ina shed. Lincoln has so much confidence in his project that he hires afilm crew to document the experience.

An actress shows up to read for a role. She is then exposed to thescript which, needless to say, contains some of the worst dialogue everwritten. This sets her off on a rant in which she insults the filmmakerand his would be film.

Enter the director's psychedelic nut case of a brother, Vance Lincoln,whom he puts in charge of the auditions. These two are as different asday and night. David wants to realize a vision and Vance just wants toget laid. Vance refers to the actresses as hookers and questions hisbrother's film-making methods. This leads to one of the funniestmoments in the film in which Vance proclaims "He doesn't even makethese girls suck his c**k! You call that professionalism?"

After a procession of bitchy actress, Vance starts to become unhingedright before our very eyes. He decides that he wants to take control of"Clearwater Canyon" and turn it into zombie movie. A gay zombie movie.This in turn causes even more tension between the two brothers. Morebickering ensues and then the inevitable happens. Vance kills one ofthe actresses and slasher turns to snuff. David however is determinedto get his film made so a dead actress is merely a temporary set back.He continues to leave Vance in charge of the auditions and the bodiescontinue to pile up.

Actress Apocalypse is one of the funniest off the wall comedies that Ihave seen in awhile! It takes the world of independent film-making andturns it on it's pretentious, overblown head. The performances aregreat too! Greg G. Freeman is a star in the making. An actor of immensecharisma and talent whose convincing performance as the murderousbrother will leave you hoping for some sort of continuation of thecharacter. Jay Ingle also provides many laughs as a camera man whoseflamboyant wardrobe would cause Elton John to do a double take. Andlast but not least, David Nigoghossian's dead on performance as the dimwitted yet egotistical director.

I should warn you that there is a large amount of nudity in this filmso if nudity is something that offends you then ummmm………good luckwith that.

Speaking of nudity I was very impressed with the caliber of women thatthe filmmakers found for this. Usually, when a film is this low budget,you tend to end up with broads covered in bruises and track marks. Thegirls of "Actress Apocalypse" are all very healthy and drop deadgorgeous.

Being that this is such a low budget film, the audio isn't exactly THXquality but if you are a Herschell Gordon Lewis fan like myself, thatshouldn't bother you too much.

So be sure to check out "Actress Apocalypse". I don't think I'll everlook at backyard film-making in quite the same way!

5) *SPOILER ALERT* *SPOILER ALERT*

A user on the IMDb recommended this movie to me. It does my heart goodto know that some people think of me when they find a sleazy movie."Actress Apocalypse" has many scenes of actresses disrobing, stripping,posing, and just generally being naked. In fact, the credits are playedover scenes of two girls kissing in the shower. As the man said,"That’s the way you start a movie."

Unfortunately, I didn’t like "Actress Apocalypse". The movie is set upas a fake documentary of the making of a B-movie. It’s got something todo with a mullet headed Indian killing women. I was not a fan of "TheBlair Witch Project" and like that movie, "Actress Apocalypse" is fullof improvisations. They make it up as they go along. Lots of improvisedconversation, lots of screaming, lots of improvised screaming. Thedirector screams at his psychotic brother who in turn screams back athim. They both argue with the boom operator and everybody bellows atthe actresses who are auditioning. The movie is set up as a series ofauditions for a slasher flick that usually ends in an actressapocalypse. The brother just cannot control himself.

"Actress Apocalypse" is one of the most hyper movies I’ve ever seen.Every film-making trick is used. It reminded me of "Natural BornKillers" in its attempt to beat the viewer into submission. I was wornout watching this kinetic mess. It was stuck in permanent overdrive:Switching from color to black and white, splicing in quick flashes ofnudity, etc. This movie made me tense with its non-stop screaming andfilm-making insanity.

Although I didn’t like the movie as a whole, there were still some goodthings here to enjoy. "Actress Apocalypse" does not skimp on thegratuitous nudity. There were some hot women in this one. Having thegirl continually walk back and forth naked was an especially nicetouch. It’s this dedication to exploitation that I admire.

Overall, "Actress Apocalypse" was just too wired for me. I loved thenudity in between the screaming matches but the continual yelling andfighting drowned out any sleazy goodness from all of the fineexploitation scenes.

• The character of Costica Caratase is based on legendary real-life actor and theatre director Constantin Tanase. What’s more, the name of the character is a composite made up of Toma Caragiu, the actor who plays Caratase, and Constantin Tanase.

The main character, Costicä Caratase, is a loose and transparentportrayal of the famous Romanian music-hall comedian Constantin Tänase.However, Tänase didn't have EVER any problems with King Carol II'sregime and the Iron Guard. Despite several excesses (murder of a numberof dignitaries, including the great historian Nicolae Iorga, or theministers I.G. Duca, Armand Cälinescu or Virgil Madgearu, thatfollowing the ruthless persecutions from the government's part and theslaughter of many legionnaires, including the Captain, Corneliu ZeleaCodreanu), the Iron Guard, aka "Legion of the Holy Archangel Michael",was a legitimate and patriotic nationalist right-wing organization,that never minded the arts and entertainment. At the same time,Caratase's grotesque portrayal of Adolf Hitler, although masterfullydone (thanks to Caragiu's genius), was also totally unlikely. At thattime, the huge majority of Romanian citizens, and mostly theintellectuals, artists and other elites, were deeply pro-German,respecting and admiring the Führer. It was only later, under theRussian influence, that the anti-Nazi hysteria started to spread overRomania.

To top it all, the ONLY ones to feel offended by Tänase's satirewere… THE COMMUNISTS! Soon after they took the power, they arrestedthe great comedian, for having made fun of their ridiculous pretensionsof democracy. This abusive imprisoning worsened his lungs condition,bringing over his death.

2) This film is an opportunity to watch great Romanian actors at work,under the direction of Manole Marcus, one of the first Romanian filmmakers that attended Film School (the first generation at the Academyof Theatre and Film in Bucharest). Toma Caragiu is portrayingConstantin Tanase, a great Romanian comedian from the '30s. The filmlooks like a musical-comedy, but in fact is tragic. The historicalbackground is carefully designed and crafted, starting with thecostumes and ending with the grim atmosphere, suggested mainly throughan attentive manipulation of light and shadows. Marcus took a prettylong shot with the subject, because Tanase was an "old-time"entertainer, from the the so-called "exploitation" period (that's howthe communists called the years of monarchy in Romania). A carefulwatcher can observe the sympathy for the culture and civilization ofthat troubled time. Watch for Mircea Diaconu and Mircea Albulescu intwo special appearances.

3) A imperfect beautiful film.

Toma Caragiu is magnificent in a gorgeous role. The interbelicatmosphere is recreated with talent and the acting of Marin Moraru,Mircea Albulescu or Mircea Diaconu is precise and subtle.

But, it is an important problem: the transformation of film in apolitical instrument. A very uncomfortable manicheism transforms adecent movie in a caricature and only the art of Caragiu may evit themetamorphosis in a Communist moral lesson.

The movement of right-extreme is a fundamental character in modernRomanian history and its gestures (murder of five Prime-Ministers),ideas ( a irrational ideology in which the influences of "Mein Kapf"was mixed with East Christianism dogmas), relations with Nazi Germanyare parts of reality.

But the message of film is more profound. And his consignee is everyanti-democratic regime.

4) This film is probably one of the best Romanian movies ever made. Greatscript, wonderful actors (among them, even the director Mircea Veroiu),ballet ensemble, good dramatic scenes, human mixture of comedy anddrama, talking about a troubled period of history when tension wasbuilding beneath the apparent tranquility of everyday life. Smallsignals suggesting the end of Romania's golden age, between the twoworld wars, when our currency was stronger than today's majorcurrencies. In my opinion, it is probably the most "Hollywood"-stylefilms set in showbiz life, but still very Romanian. I also liked a lotMargareta Pogonat, as the star's understanding wife, and Marin Moraru,as the butler, another brilliant actor, an acting icon for entiregenerations. One of Toma Caragiu's unforgettable roles – that of acomedian teaching his people dignity at all costs.

5) This film is set during the 1930s, when the pro-Nazi policy of KingCarol II of Romania gave support to the rising Iron Guard movement ofRomania. A theatre manager, Caratase (inspired by the real-life actorConstantin Tanase), is threatened by the Iron Guard in order to cancelhis upcoming show which presents a negative portrayal of Nazi Germany.

The film is rather slow and confusing, but it picks up speed during thefinal hour – Caratase and the Iron Guard members have a verbal duel,while the show begins to play.

The acting, especially if a current-day perspective is considered, canbe perceived as poor and unconvincing (with the exception of someoutstanding moments by Toma Caragiu). This, taken with the soundtrack,which doesn't always fit to the tone of the scenes, can sometimes breakthe suspension of disbelief. Note that this is a general problem ofRomanian films, and it has started to be corrected only recently (infilms such as "California Dreamin'" or "Restul e tacere").

All in all, the ending scenes are worth sitting through the whole 150minutes of the film. However, patience is advised to an uninitiatedviewer.

6) Almost 10 years Romania have been under the dark and dreadful politicalinfluence of the Hitler’s policy The movie show in the genialinterpretation of the great Toma Caragiu how difficult was for thetheater world to try to defend the freedom in their scenic life… Inthe final part of the movie, Toma Caragiu make an outstanding imitationof the Hitler’s paranoid behavior, Marin Moraru is perfect playing thedumb steward and all the actors play with a strange enthusiasm thatbecause in the real life the mind and soul of the regular citizen inRomania was poisoned by the dreadfully tyranny of the Ceasusescu’ssystem.The difference was not to much between the two historicalperiods… only a couple of decades…

At the time of release I must confess that the trailer did nothing tomake me want to see this but, by the time the television premier rolledaround I had forgotten this and decided to tune in for the presence ofDylan Moran whom I find very funny in certain things. Sadly this wasnot one of them and laughs were pretty thin on the ground throughout.So instead I settled into the plot, which at first seemed to offer someinteresting scenarios before quickly collapsing into a series ofdisguises and unconvincing ideas that don't really work. It isn't "bad"per se but it certainly isn't any good. It produced enough forwardmovement and amusing ideas to hold my interest but it rarely didanything to justify doing so and I was generally disappointed with thefact that it failed to do much.

The characters are not that well developed and the sort of pathos Ihoped would add value to the material and there isn't that much for theactors to work with. This lack of depth means Michael Caine can't domuch with his character and has no laughs to help him out – thus seeinghim finally dressed as a woman is yet another low in a career of highsand lows. Moran struggles with the lack of good comedy to work with butstill makes a good fist of his various characters and is amusing if notfunny. Gambon collects his check and turns in an average performancewhile Headey looks sexy but doesn't have much else to do. Iverson alsolacks material but she gives a nice performance and avoids being anannoying cute kid type of actor.

Overall this is a fairly average film that offers some fun early on butgenerally just becomes messy and poorly delivery the more it goes on.The cast are so-so mainly because they lack the laughs (Moran) or thedepth (Caine) that they needed to turn in good work. It all does enoughto be watchable but it doesn't do anything particularly well.

2) To surmise, this film involves two actors (Caine and Moran) trying to conagangster. The plot is flimsy at best as several plot holes occurthroughout.However this normally shouldn’t matter as the comedy should carry a filmlike this. There are some genuinely funny bits (mostly provided by DylanMoran). However, other times, there are long melodramatic scenes thatfailto add anything to the movie. Caine’s character seemed overdone to me.Especially at the start, he continually quotes Shakespeare and acts likeapompous actor. One could say he was playing the part properly but thecharacter seemed to me flat and unfunny. Overall I would say see only ifafan of the actors involved. Otherwise wait for video or tv.

3) Strange effort part funded by the now-defunct FilmFour and DreamWorksamongst others, supported by theIrish film board. Basically two actors trying to act their way out oftrouble.

Let’s start with the good news. Child actress,very good, convincing. Lena Headey as Dolores,stunning, smouldering, good performance, I’ll come back to her in amoment.Dylan Moran as Tom, good enough. Michael Caine as fading actor O’Malley,quite good, believable. Michael Gambon as Barreller, mostly quite goodthough sometimes he did look a bit too much like, well, Michael Gambon.Plota bit perfunctory, Tom (at O’Malley’s suggestion) pretends to be someonewhoBarreller owes money to and collects it instead. Things then start goingwrong.

So what’s the problem?

Though there are laughs along the way, some of it I found too horriblyembarassing to watch, and at one point even to listen to (I put my fingersin my ears for a minute or two). It does have a romantic sub-plot, but itisn’t central enough to call this a romantic film. I should also say thatsome of the material involving Dolores, towards the end, is dodgey for 15year olds, and this should really be considered X-rated. In the statesit’sa 17-cert (R rating) not a 15 as in the UK.

I liked the throwaway ending, but though I wanted to enjoy the film,reallyI did, too much of it was neither funny nor entertaining. Sorry but itdidn’t do it for me, in spite of favourable external reviews.

4) Look as being Anglo-Irish I assure you this reviewer is anything butBias. But I assure you this is very much an Irish Film – and notEnglish as the last comment seems to have suggested. This film waswritten by Neil Jorden and Conor McPherson and directed by ConorMcPherson too – both Irish. The Cast is almost entirely Irish – it wasshot in Ireland with an Irish crew. Even Michael Gambon was born inIreland – I remember him joking about it in an interview about thisfilm.

Michael Cane was evidently brought in to boost Box office takingsabroad.

Loved the film, I just wanted to correct a totally uninformed comment!

Now on with the review – I loved Dylan Moran, have always been a fan ofhis, himself and Michael Cane formed a surprisingly good double act. Itwas great to see Morans range as an actor as he plays several differentmade up characters during the film. I would recommend this film toanyone with an interest in comedy – as it represents a fresh, quirkyand inventive turn in Irish feature length chuckle films. I laughed alot. what more could you ask for?

5) I like Dylan Moran from his work in Black Books, although I found some ofhis stand-up to be really indulgent in terms of long confused gaps…however I was intrigued to see this film starring he and Michael Caine andcuriosity got the better of me.

I was stunned.

Dylan’s vocal range and characterisation of the different people he wasplaying in the film was absolutely perfect, something beyond the skills ofamere stand-up comedian and really truly on a par with alec guinness, johnhurt and the other greats- truly he was skilled in hisportrayal.

Michael Caine was a very convincing prima donna and the standard britishfilm device of having a precocious child on hand to be overly wise andwithering worked- the only aspect I didn’t really like was theunbelieveableplot feature of the chemistry between Dolores and the cockney gangsta’shardman played by Dylan.

Other than that, it was great.

I also like the non-cop-out ending where it did end up happily ever after,but with MC getting a beating. OK, it’s not exactly being strung up byyourgoolies and beijng disembowelled (which is what a real crime boss would doto you if you nicked £50k off them) but it showed at least a small measureof reality in the story.

I liked the film, and I would recommend it to anyone- but- I would alsowarnthem not to turn it off after 15 minutes because it started a bit slow. Ifyou stick it out, then it will all come back.

And with regards to the swearing- well, they’re in Ireland. It wouldn’t bereal otherwise.

6) At first I thought this film was going to annoy me.It was as though I hadseen this movie somewhere before. The disillusioned hero, the father figureand the 9 year old sister who is older and wiser than her years (seeGregory’s girl), but then, not 15 minutes in, it became a laugh out loud,comic gem of a movie. Dylan Moran (who I thought was just going to bug me)was excellent. As was Mr Gambon and the mad Scottish hitman. Lena Headey wasextremely sexy. For half of the film I was trying to remember where I’d seenher before. The Parole officer. She has the most amazing smile. But clearlythe true hero of this film is Mr Caine. This man should do much more comedy.This ranks alongside some of his best comedy roles (Without a Clue, DirtyRotten Scoundrels).He is a pleasure to watch in all of his scenes but especially theend.

No one can quite say f**k the way Michael can.

7) In following Dylan Moran's star from the charming misanthrope bookstoreowner in the surrealist sitcom Black Books, I could see his comicpotential begging to be utilised in theater or larger cinematicavenues. This first big screen outing in a starring role (he had acameo as Rufus the thief in Notting Hill) had oodles of promise, butlike the strained Steve Coogan vehicle, The Parole Officer, has toomany creases which should have been ironed out in preproduction.

The plot is so convoluted that I shan't bother repeating the finerdetails (the script has every character do that for us), and the laughsare sourced from show business in-jokes. Michael Caine is a pompoushas-been running a production of Richard III – updated to Nazioccupation (one of the few genuine laughs, a satirical jab at IanMcKellen), in which everyone is forever doing the Hitler salute everytime they take the stage. Convincing Dylan that acting should be aconceptual act unto itself, the two plot to steal money from somefairly harmless gangsters by way of their acting prowess. Confusionensues (both on screen and in the audience), there's a romanticsub-plot between Dylan and the daughter of one of the gangsters blahblah blah and Dylan gets to dress in odd clothes and do funny accents.Michael Caine delivers some choice lines, and Dylan's comic timing ison the money, so why isn't it any good? It does have a certain charmthat you would expect from Film 4, but it also has a precocious littlegirl acting as compass in a muddled and irrelevant plot – a no-no inscreen writing 101. Exposition overshadows everything else. You justwant to see Moran and Caine acting as comic foil to each other the waythe were at the beginning, but when they're together toward the end,the the pairing has lost its charisma.

The Actors is an amusing, albeit underwhelming effort. Should it comeon telly during a rainy Tuesday afternoon, then have at you. Otherwiseyou would be better off watching your old Black Books videos, orrenting Withnail & I.

Right, for a start, I liked it. It was funny, It was farcical; MichaelCaineand Dylan Moran threw themselves into their roles with such obvious glee,that I found it impossible not to be swayed by this film despite its manyobvious flaws.The musical score just didn’t seem appropriate; a number of the scenesappeared irrelevant and a little clunky; it just is not perfectly craftedand does appear cobbled together at times. But, and its a big but, itsjustfunny. It just is – Michael Caine is wonderful as the neverhasbeen,entirelyself absorbed O’Malley. While Moran handles his (definately morechallenging) role with an almost nonchalent ease – a superb actor and onetowatch in the future me thinks.In summary, and despite its flaws, if you don’t laugh at this nice littlefilm then your a bigger cynic than me – and you have mypity!

9) I know this film has had a fairly rough ride from the critics, but I havetosay that I thoroughly enjoyed it. The real star here is the fantasticDylanMoran. He never fails to be both hilarious and convincing in all of hisvaried disguises. He also manages to radiate a sweet charm that belieshisoutrageous pratfalls. Special mention must also go to Michael Gambon whoplays for laughs with a brilliantly accurate and yet comedic inner cityDublin accent. The only weak link is Caine who, while obviously having agreat laugh hamming it up, plays the least interesting and mostunsympathetic character. It probably won’t play that well overseas butit’swell worth a watch all the same.

10) The plot drunkenly careers from silly to ridiculous and makes less andlesssense as it nears the end. The photography isn’t exactly the stuff ofOscars, either. I still can’t see what the point of the little girl is.Andthe theme is, frankly, dreadful.

Fortunately, there is a reason to see this film. The two Sir Michaelsre -like the Richard III poster says – "Perfect-ly Adequate" but Dylan Moranisseriously good as Tom, and it was his performance that stopped me fromwalking out of the cinema. How frustrating to see his first major movierolebe in such a dumb film. Here’s hoping it doesn’t stop him from getting therecognition (and the roles) he deserves!

"Actor's and Sin" was very entertaining, and for the time of itsrelease, it would have been a fun way to spend a rainy afternoon. Itbegins with a drama of sorts. Marsha Hunt plays an actress who is aboutto strike it rich on Broadway. As she follows the path of fame andfortune, the path becomes a crooked one with each performance suddenlybubbling with more villains. Eventually, she is found dead – possiblesuicide – one could guess all day until Daddy-dearest decides to play"Clue" and unmask the real killer. Entitled "Actor's Blood", this wasthe weaker of the two. It was heavy, dull, overly dramatic, and ourcharacters seemed like they were lifted from Cracker Jack boxes thanfilm school. While the cinematography was simple enough with decentlighting and impressive cut scenes, what brought this opener down wastwo parts, the first is the story and the second were the actors."Actor's Blood" was a 43-minute short that could have been about20-minutes shorter. Too many characters were introduced in such a shortamount of time that not enough time was devoted to development. It wastough to follow some and to fully understand their roles in theclimaxing moment. If "Actor's Blood" would have been a feature film, itstill would have only had about 20-minutes of good meat, with the restjust fatty tissue. The actors were laughable at best. Edward G.Robinson loved his fatherly character so much that he decided to boreus with long monologues, pompous entrances, and a finale that criedmelodrama. It was pointless and at times certain to be "MST3K-ed" by agroup of college freshman. This opening film had everything we didn'twant to begin with, but thankfully our desserts were enough to bringthis film from horrid to mediocre.

The second part of "Actor's and Sin" is entitled "Woman of Sin", inwhich a slimy Hollywood agent unknowingly options a script for a 9-yearold bratty girl (insert laughter here or loud "ZOING"). This secondsegment seemed to pull everything that went wrong with the first,transform it into greatness, and insert it back into the film. Thecharacters were strong and had an honest humor to them, the concept wasfun – albeit maybe dated – but fun, and the beats seemed to gel wellwith the length of this film. Eddie Albert played Orlando Higgins withso much pizazz and energy; it is hard to keep your eyes on anyone elsebut him during the short. Those with an infatuation with "TheFlintstones" should watch "Woman of Sin" to see Alan Reed – Mr. FredFlintstone himself – as well as hear him as the big shot executivecaught in the shuffle. This is a great parody of Hollywood, which takesthe dirtiness of Ari Gold from "Entourage" and brings him into aPreston Sturges-esquire film. Watch when you meet the child's motherfor the first time, the entire scene is reminiscent of Lynch orAronofsky, very surreal, very eerie, very dark – but it counters thetone of the film very well. Our young writer, Daisy Marcher (played bythe director/producer's daughter Jenny) is very good at herperformance. She is feisty, cruel, and exactly what you would not thinkof a young girl writing about a woman and sin. This second half wasphenomenal. It brought together the zaniness of working in the filmbusiness with the sleaze of truth. It was funny and upbeat with pacingthat made you wish it was another hour long. Nearly the direct oppositeof "Actor's Blood", "Woman of Sin" pulls out as the obvious winner andmy vote for viewing this film at least once.

Overall, this was a mediocre entry into the world of cinema. There wasa level of annoyance with "Actor's Blood", with the wooden overlydramatic performances and the trite story that could have beenshortened another twenty minutes. Yet, this film was saved by itssecond half. "Woman of Sin" reminded me of a Preston Sturges film, withthe symbolism, energy, and audacity coming through every scene. It was(unlike the first) original and a definite suggestion to friends. Alas,I cannot suggest this entire film. It is a self-produced independentfilm that is a unique idea, but developed incorrectly. One could tellthat there was more passion and enjoyment in the second half than thefirst – perhaps with a change of directors this happened, but there wasno consistency or cohesiveness. For "Actor's and Sin" to work the twofilms had to connect at some level. It needed to be one film to theviewer, but two films on the VHS box. There was nothing to make thesetwo short films fit together, thus they suffered by merely workingsolo, with an obvious lack in the front, and a bit too bottom heavy. Iliked, but not loved. This film did raise itself above the one-starrating with its "Woman of Sin", but not too much further. Watch once,repeat viewings are not necessary.

Grade: *** out of *****

2) The first half is a 43 minute film called Actor’s Blood. Edward G.Robinsonplays an older actor whose daughter is a current star but troubled. Shediesat the start and the rest of the film is a who done it. This part isprettygood. The second film stars Eddie Albert and is a fairly silly storyabout anine year old female author that writes adult love stories. This one iscalled Woman Of Sin.

The story is told in an ill-chosen flashback structure. Hollywood,1936: Paul Muni (well-played by Michael Kidd) returns to his home withthe Oscar he has just won for "The Story of Louis Pasteur". Muni's wifeBella (always at his side in real life) is strangely absent here, so hestrikes up a conversation with his Mexican manservant. They discuss thedistinction between the concepts of 'macho' and 'mensch'. This leads tothe main story, which is supposedly about the childhood experiences ofyoung Muni Weisenfreund … but which is really about Muni's parents,who were itinerant entertainers. Herschel Bernardi and sweet GeorgiaBrown give the best performances of their career in "Actor".

It's been said that theatre is "a plank and a passion". Bernardi andBrown prove it here, performing several delightful musical numbers withminimal props but with maximum talent. The songs are pleasant but neverquite top-notch: I especially enjoyed "Kunye Lemel", a novelty songabout a stock character in Yiddish comedy. The Weisenfreunds are unableto make a decent living in Europe, so they bring their two young sonsto New York and try to prosper in the Yiddish theatre. Young (Paul)Muni and his older brother Joseph are minor characters in "Actor",played by two insipid child actors.

The flashback ends rather abruptly, returning us to Michael Kidd (who,regrettably, is given no chance to display his own considerablesong-and-dance talents in this musical) when the grown-up Paul Muniputs his Oscar on the shelf. This is a nice little show, but don'texpect to learn anything about Paul Muni here. For that, I recommendJerome Lawrence's book "Actor".

2) Herschel Bernardi had a long career in movies and television – he evenstarred in a show called ARNIE that was briefly on television in the1960s. But unfortunately he is rather forgotten today, although usuallya very capable performer. I think part of the problem is a resemblance(to me, anyway) to Herb Edelman, also a good, but lesser performer -but one lucky enough to have a successful running role in the show THEGOLDEN GIRLS which is still in syndication. So people still recallEdelman because they can see him on cable networks. Unless they seefilms like IRMA LA DOUCE or LOVE WITH A PROPER STRANGER (he was thecorrupt police chief in the former and the older brother of NatalieWood in the latter) you won't catch Bernardi too frequently.

Bernardi was (like David Opatashu and Molly Picon, and Luther Adler)one of the last actors that had any experience in the once very vitalYiddish Theater. He once did the narration on a pretty interestingdocumentary about the Yiddish theater and Yiddish films. So his castinghere as Paul Muni's father (Nahum Faivel Weissenfreund), a strugglingactor with his wife Georgia Brown (Salche Weissenfreund) in Europe andAmerica is quite good casting – he knows what he is dealing with.

Yiddish Theater peaked in the period from 1900 to 1939, when troops ofactors speaking Yiddish could appear in plays in theaters in EasternEurope and the United States' main cities (especially New York,Chicago, San Francisco, and Cincinatti). But the Holacaust killed offthe bulk of the audiences who spoke Yiddish, and those in the U.S.slowly assimilated so that – aside from words grafted into English like"schlamiel" or "bupkis" – most of the language became dead. It's apity, but that is what kills languages, and their resulting cultures.

There were sizable surviving fragments. Some major writers who usedYiddish are still widely read (in translation, usually): SolomonRabinowitz ("Sholem Aleichem" of the "Tevye the Dairyman stories thatbecame FIDDLER ON THE ROOF), Isaac Besheves Singer (Nobel Prize winner,who's YENTL became a Barbara Streisand movie), and Sholem Asch (authorof THE NAZARENE). But most of the writers, like dramatist and novelistAbraham Goldfadden, are totally forgotten today except by scholars.

But Nahum and Salche are not facing this at the beginning of thismusical. We see them as street performers in Eastern Europe, doing anumber about a simpleton played by Salche (a "Kuni Lemill" in Yiddish -one of these inspired idiots whom Nahum calls "the riddle of the humanrace"). Salche is expecting, and soon gives birth to their son Muni.And with a growing family Nahum is desperate to try to get a reputationin the Yiddish Theater, but he can't really get into it. So he decidesto take his family to "the provinces" of the U.S. to get ahead.

The show really chronicles the struggle of Nahum and Salche (andeventually their sons Muni and Joseph) in the American half of theYiddish Theater. Nahum tries everything – even trying to show what agood actor he is by faking a heart attack in the middled of belting outa song at a try-out (it doesn't work too well). We see them performYiddish vaudeville skits, with the boys, The growth of Muni is notshown as much as one would wish – but he does start noting how old menwalk and move (Paul Muni's film career has many old men parts in it:Zola, Pasteur, Juarez, Joseph Elsener in A SONG TO REMEMBER – this ishow he was able to pick up his abilities to do these roles). Thedisintegration of the marriage between Salche and Nahum (who playsaround) is noted too.

The television play was very good, setting up a time and place that isgone forever. Bernardi and Brown were terrific in their parts. I dowish more could be done with Michael Kidd as the older Paul Muni (whois reminiscing in his retirement about his roots – and does learn atthe end that his style of acting is now recognized as a model foremulation). But the conclusion is his acknowledgment that he owed hisfame and success to his parents, and we watch Bernardi at the end (nowlong dead – but in his son's memories) singing about being "Anactor…an actor".

An absolute piece of crap, with no storyline and lame acting…whatcan I say? If you havent seen it you’re missing the most absurdfilm ever!

A must see if you are a masochist or just in case you want to getrid of your wife’s sister…

2) The only way to watch this movie is with director’s commentary on!

Which the movie itself is sub-par, maybe even below, I can’t help butwatch this movie over and over again.

Whether its the director talking about

-trying to get the actor’s to shoot less blanks in exchange for moretaco’s -how one can’t remove his super bowl rings and even points out ascene -how he wrestles some of the actor’s -using the sub set from"Periscope Down" as a aircraft carrier -renting a plane prop from "JAG"that had no wings -always killing an actor -using a wal mart plasticairplane and holding it with his hands -The stock footage of a stealthplane and the one rented from JAG are completely different -simulatingclouds with cigar smoke and a fan -Did I mention that for every blankyou shoot that costs a dollar,and with that dollar we could buy anothertaco! -A water bottle is a cheap and effective sound effect to simulatethe breaking of your neck

Ever since I saw this movie Daniel Baldwin is my hero, one day I toocan be the ‘Lost’ Baldwin Brother.

3) Everything in this movie stinks — from a fat and wasted looking WilliamBaldwin to an insulting inattention to military detail. I don’t expect muchfrom mine-run action flicks but this one was incredibly bad, even by myrelaxed standards for the genre. For example, as our heroes are flying into make the rescue (don’t ask), a young female soldier asks the Colonel backat the base, "Do you think they have a chance, sir?" to which the Colonelanswers, "Not a chance in hell, but they might make it anyway." Perhaps theonly trite line I did not hear was, "It’s an old trick, but it just mightwork." Maxwell Smart would have been comfortable in thisone.

4) I liked the movie except for two things. One, of the guys in theexplosion scene, didn’t "blow up" like he was supposed to. He fellforward about a second late. Secondly the number they used for theaircraft carrier was wrong. SSN’s are submarines, not carriers. AnyNavy/Military buff ( and this films target audience) probably picked upon that. It makes the director look bad as they didn’t do theirresearch . Other than that I liked it. I love the twists the film tookat the end. And I can also agree somewhat with the earlier WilliamBaldwin comment. He looked a little off in some scenes but maybe I’mjust picky. Who knows. Also I thought they kept that agent’s charactera little too underplayed. It didn’t make sense.

It seemed to me that she was just the "token woman" at times.

5) I only caught part of this movie as it was playing on HBO… One thing thatcaught me, aside from the hat the carrier commander was wearing said SSN,instead of CVN, was that when the pilot of the stealth went to hit hiscountermeasures, two of the buttons he hit were marked "FLIR" and "DLIR". For anyone who knows even a little about military aircraft, FLIR and DLIRare radars, NOT flares or other countermeasures. This was just a bad movie,even from the few parts I saw. It’s an insult to every military pilot outthere and to anyone who even knows a little bit about the planes featured. The fact that the F-117 is NOT a 2-seater, let alone has no room forpassengers in the back. I can’t believe that the producers and othersinvolved would pay no attention whatsoever to detail.

6) Recap: After a failed diplomatic mission were Captain Murphy himselfwas held hostage, a rescue team is sent. Able to free the captives but,Murphy's friend, and the leader of the rescue team, Rifkin is woundedand left behind. Later the team get a video showing Rifkin held hostageby the drug lord Salvatore. Now it seems they will get a third andfinal shot at rescuing their man, and taking out Salvatore. To givethem an edge, they have a modified Stealth Fighter, able to carrypersonnel, that will fly them into the (fictive) South AmericanCountry.

Comments: Clearly an attempt to put together an hour and a half ofaction and little more. Barely to keep the story floating. There aretwo major problems though. First off, as often in these kind of movies,the soldiers are under-equipped and clearly not trained. In mostfirefights people, mostly bad guys, drop like flies. But had there beenreal ammo, I doubt they would have hit the same village. The secondproblem is that Stealth Fighters must be hard to come by. Although thefighting is set in a dry and warm country in South America, mostpictures show the Stealth flying over a snow-covered landscape.

Both problems make it hard to take the movie seriously. But then again,we are not really supposed to do that anyway, are we? If one arewilling, and able, to ignore those problems, this is a decentlow-budget action. If you're not, you will probably want to skip thisone…

3/10

7) I happened to catch this on one of the cable channels a while back, andthe previous reviewer is square-on, it is terrible. This film couldn'thave cost more than a hundred grand to make. I've seen better homemovies. Daniel Baldwin walks through this looking like he has aperpetual hang-over, and is way too overweight to be taken seriously asa military pilot. He must have been desperate for work at the time. Ionce served in the Army Rangers with Tim Abell, which is why I keptwatching this. While he will never be mistaken for Olivier, Tim hasmade a name for himself as a notable B-actor, and he seems to find alot of work. However, this is definitely not his finest effort; infact, the producers should have hired him as a military consultantinstead.

This is one of the few entertaining jet fighting movies i’ve seen lately,since the Top Gun day’s. For someone who loves jet fighters, I think it wasquite a well made movie, which had a capturing story, and goodacting.

9) This is easily the worst military movie ever made. I understand thatthere can be some far fetched concepts in the movies, but that’s OK,this was just acting, poorly advised, and poorly written. I find ithard to believe that they had a military adviser at all. I’m sure ifthey had at least tried they could have found a homeless veteran thatwould have advised for the fee of a bottle of Jack Daniels. This was aneven worse portrayal of Army Rangers than Basic with John Travolta. Andthey had a female ranger in that movie. Even some one with absolutelyno knowledge of the army would think that the military operations inthe movie were terrible. And the packaging has pictures of Navy SeaStallion Helicopters and the write up on the back mentions an Apacheattack Helicopter squadron, none of which are in the movie. I could goon for hours. A promotion from captain to lieutenant colonel?? Myfriend and I are in Iraq right now and it came to us in a care package.Clearly whoever sent tnis movie already saw it and wanted it as faraway from them as possible.

10) Just like my joke it was terrible. The plot was lame, the acting dire. Thewarning on the end of the film should have read, "Any similarity torealities real or imaginary is coincidental’. I will say one thing in itsdefence. No one on the film probably even talked to the army or airforce,most of the Intruder scenes at the start of the movie are stolen from`Flight of the Intruder’ a Vietnam War film. These clips seem to have beenincluded where they generally looked good for the plot so of course, theinternal shots didn’t match the externals. All I can really say about thisfilm is AVOID!