Can a mere mortal (with only inspired facial expressions at his disposal) be more bizarre, more outlandish than a phallic, goopy, black lacquered S&M monster with a mouth-inside-its-mouth and a decades-old cult following? The answer is, plainly: YES.
It also bears mentioning that ALIEN: RESURRECTION is not nearly so bad as its reputation, and is a fairly enjoyable Euro-trash romp featuring nice character-actor performances from Dourif, Ron Perlman, Dan Hedaya, J.E. Freeman, and Dominique Pinon. There are some really nice latex-ey creature effects juxtaposed with some horrible 90s CGI; Winona Ryder joins the ranks of Ian Holm and Lance Henriksen as an android; and Sigourney Weaver gets to do a zany, basketball-themed "action" scene, the best/worst of its kind since ESCAPE FROM L.A. Amen!
ha. Great scene! Love that one. Dourif is always good even if he's in something for a few minutes.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I loved Alien R.
I also think it's a lot better than Escape From L.A.. But to each their own of course.
But as you said, great performances and a great look from the Euro director. TWO THUMBS UP SEAN!
Happy New Year.
I only saw ALIEN: RESURRECTION for the first time this past week (avoiding it until now, based on its reputation, and also the fact that when I saw Jean-Pierre Jeunet speak in NYC for the MICMACS premiere, he publicly and hilariously apologized for this film), and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Thanks for your kind words, and a happy new year to you, my friend!
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure. I didn't know Jenet felt that way about the film Sean. That's ashame.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe you're just seeing it.
I think it's terrible to see him apologize for the film. It may be funny, but its unbecoming.
It was a script from Joss Whedon. The film looks great. I just don't get it. I know it has lapses of credulity and has an almost comic book outlandishness to a degree but it's still a delicious picture for those performances etc..
Again, all the best.
Dourif is awesome, plain and simple. If you can, I heartily recommend tracking down a little known indie film he starred in called HORSEPLAYER, which is sadly hard to track down but every so often I pull out my old VHS copy. So rare that he gets to carry a picture and this film is one of his best.
ReplyDeleteSFF,
ReplyDeleteYes, I suppose you're right– considering the caliber of his talent, it is somewhat unbecoming for Jeunet to apologize for the film. He probably felt somewhat overwhelmed leaping from the French art house into an American blockbuster, and probably believes that he failed to deliver the film that the public wanted, given the prevailing view that it's a failure. I suppose we ought to stick to our artistic guns in the midst of bad reviews!
J.D.,
I always love me some Dourif. I'd never heard of HORSEPLAYER, and now have decided I must see it at all cost. He certainly deserves to carry more pictures– offhand, I'm remembering his starring role in WISE BLOOD is pretty phenomenal, and SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION is bizarre fun if not terribly good.
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ReplyDeleteSean,
ReplyDeleteLate return, but EXACTLY! You understood exactly what I was trying to say. Thanks for articulating it so nicely. I suspect you are spot on and Jeunet needn't apologize. Well said.
Love your browsable archive too. I have to bookmark that one.
SFF