Brian's Thoughts on Movies

"As the sun sets in the west we bid you a fond farewell" True Romance plays like a heist film in reverse in which a newlywed couple named Clarence and Alabama, played by Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette, try to secure their future by selling cocaine that Clarence inadvertently stole from Alabama’s former pimp, Drexel played by Gary Oldman.  The film focuses on their burgeoning relationship as much as the unpredictable environment the couple finds themselves in while getting mixed up with some pretty nasty and colorful characters. As always I discuss spoilers so please watch the film first. Quentin Tarantino sold this script, one of two from early in his career before he was able to direct his own film.  Natural Born Killers is the other, a story about a vile couple that was changed substantially by director Oliver Stone.  Director Tony Scott in turn made some structural changes to True Romance but maintained the soul of the script and injected it with ...

“Then you have my resignation sir.” James Bond to M in Licence to Kill Licence to Kill is the most controversial James Bond film.  Rarely have I heard comments that it is poorly made, but many Bond fans, especially those who have not read the books, do not like it.  I feel this is good example of the need for film discussion.  For example, I like David Fincher as a director and I admire the structure of his film Fight Club.  However despite two viewings I do not enjoy the experience of watching it, though many disagree with me. Please note, I do include spoilers and third act revelations in this post so I encourage every reader to watch the film first and then come back. Producers Albert R. Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson decided to create a story to showcase Bond’s darker side, now that they had Timothy Dalton, whose interpretation was based on the more serious character from the books.  Licence was Dalton's second Bond film.  During the late 198...