FILM FRENZY

Chow Yun-fat  in A Better Tomorrow (Photo: Shout! Studios)

By Matt Brunson

(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray, 4K, and DVD. Ratings are on a four-star scale.)

A BETTER TOMORROW TRILOGY (1986-1989). The Hong Kong Cinema Classics line from Shout! Studios continues with a triple-feature 4K + Blu-ray box set, with the first film not only making a superstar out of one of its leads but its director as well.

The “good brother, bad brother” dynamic is at least as old as 1930’s Hell’s Angels (reviewed below), and it finds new employment in A Better Tomorrow (1986), a surprise box office hit that influenced a generation of films and filmmakers. It was a breakthrough for writer-director John Woo, who had been toiling on lesser projects but was finally handed a production on which he could demonstrate what would become his signature style — kinetic gun battles staged as ballets and operas — and his signature theme — the code of honor that exists among select criminals. Ti Lung stars as Ho, a counterfeiter and ex-con who wants to go straight but finds his efforts hampered by the actions of duplicitous gang lord Shing (Waise Lee). Leslie Cheung co-stars as Kit, a wet-behind-the-ears cop who blames his brother Ho for their father’s death and who makes it his mission to take down Shing. Lung and Cheung are memorable as the siblings, yet it’s Chow Yun-fat who steals the picture and thus propelled himself to superstar status. He’s Mike, Ho’s partner-in-crime and the individual who most represents ideals involving loyalty and friendship. The movie — and, subsequently, the entire genre — would be defined by its melding of melodramatic storylines and riveting action sequences, and while Woo would find even greater success with later projects, A Better Tomorrow proved to be a potent calling card.

A Better Tomorrow was produced by Tsui Hark, who was the one largely responsible for giving Woo his big break. Both men returned for A Better Tomorrow II (1987), with Woo again directing, Hark again producing, and both having a hand in the screenplay. Unfortunately, each man had a different vision for how the picture should turn out, which may partly explain why it’s the least satisfying movie in the trilogy. Ti Lung and Leslie Cheung return as bros Ho and Kit, now reconciled and working together, while Dean Shek joins the primary cast as Lung, Ho’s former mentor and now the target of a hostile takeover of his organization by an ambitious underling (Kwan Shan). Of course, a sequel had to have breakout star Chow Yun-fat in its line-up, but since his character of Mark was no longer available following the events of the first film, Woo and Hark came up with the idea of — you guessed it — Mark having a twin brother that he kept a secret even from his best bud Ho. Ken is the twin, now living in the U.S. but deciding to return to Hong Kong to help out Lung. The action is again aces, but Shek’s broad characterization and the one-dimensionality of Chow’s new role take their toll.

Woo and Hark parted ways after A Better Tomorrow II, so Hark ended up producing, directing, and co-scripting A Better Tomorrow III: Love & Death in Saigon (1989). This prequel allows Chow to once again essay his star-making role of Mark, who here journeys to Vietnam 20 years before the events of A Better Tomorrow (never mind that Mark looks the same age in both decades; apparently, the character gained possession of Dorian Gray’s mirror at some point). With the end of the Vietnam War as its backdrop, this finds Mark arriving in Saigon to hook up with his cousin Michael (Tony Leung); both men end up falling for a mysterious beauty (Anita Mui) who’s involved with a charismatic arms dealer (Saburō Tokitō). With Mark as its only connective tissue, this doesn’t feel of a piece with the first two pictures — that’s not a knock, though, as Tsui has made an exciting yarn that adds some sociopolitical heft to the guns’n’poses proceedings.

All three films are available with the original Cantonese with English subtitles or the English dub. Extras include audio commentaries on all three films with Hong Kong cinema experts; interviews with Woo; the long-lost A Better Tomorrow II workprint featuring over 30 minutes of never-before-seen footage; and the Taiwanese cut of A Better Tomorrow III: Love & Death in Saigon.

A Better Tomorrow: ★★★

A Better Tomorrow II: ★★½

A Better Tomorrow III: Love & Death in Saigon: ★★★

CAUGHT STEALING (2025). Darren Aronofsky is known as the director of such heavy-lifting titles as Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan, and mother!, so even though Caught Stealing easily earns its R rating for (as per the MPA) its “strong violent content” and “pervasive language,” the lack of his usual gun-in-the-mouth sensibilities and psychologically knotty musings make it seem as comparatively light as a Trolls sequel (OK, maybe not that light). Based on Charlie Huston’s novel (with the author adapting his own work), this stars Elvis’ Austin Butler as Hank Thompson, a bartender who’s forever haunted by the car accident that killed his best friend and left him unable to pursue the major league baseball career that was his for the taking. He has a smart and sexy girlfriend in Yvonne (Zoe Kravitz) and a doltish neighbor in mohawked punker Russ (Matt Smith). Flying back to England to be with his ailing father, Russ forces Hank to look after his cat — a seemingly harmless favor until a pair of scary-looking men come looking for Russ and beat up Hank, convinced he knows what they’re after. Also involved in the proceedings are the no-nonsense Detective Roman (Regina King), the excitable crook Colorado (Benito Martínez Ocasio, aka Bad Bunny), and Lipa and Shmully Drucker (Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio), two Hasidic Jews who are also violent killers. If it all sounds like a Tarantino or Guy Ritchie wanna-be, it certainly doesn’t play that way, with Aronofsky relatively restrained in his shooting style and Huston’s dialogue more grounded and less hipper-than-thou. Butler makes for a sympathetic lead, although the scene-stealers are Schreiber and D’Onofrio as the lethal yet chatty Drucker brothers.

Blu-ray extras include making-of pieces featuring interviews with Aronofsky, Butler, and other cast and crew members.

Movie: ★★★

GOTHIKA (2003). Gothika is the sort of derivative supernatural tale that was getting approved by studio wonks with alarming regularity in the years right after Haley Joel Osment saw both dead people and rich box office. The film’s absurdity begins with its title, a cutesy variation on “Gothic.” Yet although the promo material at the time of its original release pleaded its case that this drivel has its origins in both the same-named French architecture of the 12th century and the English literature of the 1700s, this movie ultimately feels about as Gothic as The Smurfs. The premise certainly holds promise, with Halle Berry cast as a criminal psychologist who’s suspected of murder and finds herself locked up in her own looney bin. Is Miranda really crazy, or is she the victim of some mass conspiracy? Or is there credence to the third scenario, that she’s possessed by some sort of supernatural entity? It’s pretty clear early on that there are paranormal forces at work, yet this dash of the fantastic provides the story’s center with a glaring dilemma: How are we supposed to reconcile our sympathy regarding the plight of the ghost with our disgust at how thoroughly it’s destroying the innocent Miranda’s life? Then again, it seems most everything in this doltish drama needs to be accepted with a shrug, from the cheap chiller elements fostered by director Mathieu Kassovitz — including the harmless animal that appears out of nowhere to jolt impressionable viewers — to the idiocy of its characters. The killer may indeed be not guilty by reason of insanity, but Gothika is clearly guilty by reason of stupidity.

Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by Kassovitz and director of photography Matthew Libatique; a pair of making-of pieces; and the music video for Limp Bizkit’s “Behind Blue Eyes.”

Movie: ★½

HELL’S ANGELS (1930). After nearly a full century, the aerial combat sequences in Hell’s Angels remain among the best ever committed to celluloid. That’s entirely due to the vision (some would say fanaticism) of director-producer Howard Hughes, who spared no expense. He apparently also spared no lives — three pilots and one mechanic were killed making this movie, and Hughes himself was seriously injured when he performed a stunt that not even the seasoned flyers would attempt. One of the most expensive motion pictures made at that time, this began production during the days of silent cinema — once the filming stretched into the sound era, Hughes retained the flying sequences but had the melodramatic plot reworked (James Whale, who would direct Frankenstein the very next year, is credited with “dialogue staged by”). The creaky storyline is the least interesting aspect, as two British brothers, the noble and upstanding Roy Rutledge (James Hall) and the caddish and womanizing Monte Rutledge (Ben Lyon), both find themselves attracted to the same woman (Jean Harlow) as World War I breaks out. Pre-Code sensibilities are clearly at work here, from Harlow’s brazen sexuality (classic line: “Would you be shocked if I put on something more comfortable?”) to the pilots’ profane outbursts (“Goddamn it,” “son of a bitch,” “for Christ’s sake,” etc.). The highlights are two lengthy sequences well above ground, one involving a Zeppelin and the other a climactic dogfight that’s staggering to behold. This earned an Oscar nomination for Best Cinematography.

Extras in the 4K + Blu-ray edition include outtakes from the film, with commentary by Harlow biographer David Stenn, and a discussion of the movie’s groundbreaking aerial visuals with Robert Legato, the visual effects supervisor on Martin Scorsese’s Hughes biopic The Aviator (see From Screen To Stream below).

Movie: ★★★½

HOWARDS END (1992). The best of the countless Merchant Ivory productions from producer Ismail Merchant and director James Ivory, this rich adaptation of E.M. Forster’s Edwardian-era novel remains one of cinema’s defining statements on the rigid class structures that too often create irreparable riffs between a nation’s citizenry. The story centers on sisters Margaret and Helen Schlegel (Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter) and their relationships with those who inhabit the classes directly above and below them. On the upper end of the scale, there’s the Wilcox family, whose patriarch (Anthony Hopkins) ends up marrying Margaret after his ailing wife (Vanessa Redgrave) passes away; on the bottom rung, there’s Leonard Bast (Samuel West), a struggling clerk whose cause is championed by Helen. The fiercely independent sisters offer a fascinating contrast in pre-modern feminism — Margaret’s bend-but-don’t-break diplomacy is a far cry from Helen’s firebrand radicalism — and scripter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala takes care to preserve the staggering ironies that permeate the tale. Thompson delivers an astounding performance, but also noteworthy are the turns by Hopkins (who somehow finds a shred of humanity in a despicable character) and Bonham Carter. Nominated for nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Supporting Actress (Redgrave, her statuses as an Oscar darling and a screen veteran overriding the far more deserving Bonham Carter), and Director, this won three: Best Actress for Thompson, Best Adapted Screenplay for Jhabvala, and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration.

Extras in the 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray edition include film critic audio commentary; a vintage behind-the-scenes featurette; and interviews with Ivory.

Movie: ★★★½

LAUREL & HARDY: THE DEFINITIVE RESTORATIONS VOLUME 2 (2025). The 2020s have certainly proven to be a marvelous period for fans of the legendary comedy team of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, with various home entertainment groups releasing many of their features and shorts in Blu-ray editions. In 2020, MVD and Kit Parker Films released Laurel & Hardy: The Definitive Restorations, which was followed by Flicker Alley offering Laurel or Hardy: Early Solo Films of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy in 2021. Flicker Alley continued its devotion to L&H by releasing Laurel & Hardy: Year One in 2023 and Laurel & Hardy: Year Two in 2024, with Year Three scheduled for release next month. December will also see yet another outfit, ClassicFlix, serving up Laurel & Hardy: The Restored Features Vol. 1. Not to be outdone, MVD and Kit Parker Films have rejoined the fray with Laurel & Hardy: The Definitive Restorations Volume 2. While Volume 1 was a four-disc affair that contained two feature films, 19 shorts, and a plethora of special features, this two-disc second volume is more modest, offering no features and only eight shorts but also including a sizable amount of bonus material. The shorts date from 1929 through 1935; all are choice, although the biggest laughs are provided by 1933’s Dirty Work, in which the boys are chimney sweeps at a house occupied by a mad scientist and his droll butler, and 1934’s Going Bye-Bye!, in which they decide to skip town after a criminal they fingered promises to escape from prison and exact his revenge.

Extras include audio commentaries on select shorts by L&H scholars Randy Skretvedt and Richard W. Bann; a 1952 episode of the show Ship’s Reporter featuring Laurel and Hardy; a 1954 episode of This Is Your Life showcasing the comedy team; and a handful of trailers.

Collection: ★★★½

THE NAKED GUN (2025). By sheer benefit of inflation and arriving nearly four decades later, this reboot of 1988’s The Naked Gun should logically have grossed far more than its predecessor (reviewed below in From Screen To Stream). Instead, this Naked Gun earned less in 2025 dollars ($52M) than that Naked Gun earned in 1988 dollars ($78M, which converts to $213M today). That sounds like final, financial justice when it comes to the fortunes of a spin-off that likewise only delivers a lesser amount when it comes to sustained merriment. Liam Neeson stars as Frank Drebin Jr., the son of the detective portrayed in the original trilogy by Leslie Nielsen. Junior proves to be almost as inept as Pop, bungling his way through various police cases — yet like his dad, he invariably always gets his man. Here, that man would be tech industrialist Richard Cane (Danny Huston), who’s hatching a diabolical scheme that will naturally only benefit himself and his fellow billionaires. Also pursuing Cane is crime writer Beth Davenport (Pamela Anderson), seeking revenge for the murder of her brother. The Naked Gun ’25 is a movie of many smiles, which just isn’t good enough when dealing with a franchise as explosively funny as this one. Your mileage will of course vary, but I found only one gag worthy of a roar of approval (perhaps not surprisingly, it involves O.J. Simpson), whereas the ’88 original was packed with howlers. Part of the problem rests in the casting of Neeson, who, besides not having a great rubbery face like Nielsen (he can only scowl), has already appeared in so many formulaic crime flicks that they themselves were already on the verge of parody.

Blu-ray extras include a making-of featurette; over a dozen deleted, alternate, and extended scenes; pieces on the contributions of Neeson and Anderson; outtakes; and mock ads.

Movie: ★★½

RENDITION (2007). What’s the point of tackling a real-life hot-button issue if everything about it is presented in an only-in-Hollywood style of fantasy filmmaking? The post-9/11 topic on hand is “extraordinary rendition,” which allows the U.S. government to send suspected terrorists to other countries in order to be interrogated. Since the Bush Jr. administration had no qualms about torturing any foreigner whose skin was darker than, say, Nicole Kidman’s, it was a viable and volatile subject for a movie to tackle, but this does so in the most simplistic manner possible. Reese Witherspoon plays Isabella, a pregnant mom whose Egyptian-born, U.S.-raised husband (Omar Metwally) has disappeared without a trace, snatched at the Washington, D.C. airport for his suspected part in a bombing. The U.S. government’s evidence is feeble, but Senator Whitman (Meryl Streep, not particularly effective) decides that’s all the proof she needs to ship him off to be subjected to all manner of pain. The American analyst (Jake Gyllenhaal) assigned to preside over the torture finds the treatment shocking; meanwhile, Isabella seeks help from a former college fling (Peter Sarsgaard) who just happens to be the assistant to a senator (Alan Arkin) who works closely with Whitman. As if this weren’t all convenient enough for the sake of tidy storytelling and tentative armchair liberalism, there’s also a plot thread involving a love affair between a terrorist and the daughter of the head of the torture unit. Coupled with a narrative “Gotcha!” more suited to Memento, it all adds up to a dilution of the real issues at hand.

Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Gavin Hood; a making-of featurette; and deleted scenes.

Movie: ★★

SNOWDEN (2016). It’s no match for 2014’s Citizenfour, the Edward Snowden confessional that won the Best Documentary Feature Oscar, but say this about Snowden: It’s the best movie Oliver Stone has helmed since the 20th century. While it lacks the emotional wallop or technical prowess of his revered projects from the 1980s and ’90s (Platoon, JFK, etc.), it at least found the controversial filmmaker shakily getting back on his feet following a post-Y2K resume that included the disastrous likes of Alexander, W., Savages, and that Wall Street sequel with Shia LaBeouf. Snowden, with a script by Stone and Kieran Fitzgerald (meshing together a pair of books), even uses as its starting point the meetings between the whistleblower (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), Citizenfour director Laura Poitras (Melissa Leo), and The Guardian journalists Glenn Greenwald (Zachary Quinto) and Ewen MacAskill (Tom Wilkinson), thereafter employing flashbacks as Snowden explains how he progressed from a blinders-on conservative to a man whose disgust in the government’s illegal surveillance of Americans led to him deciding to leak thousands of NSA files. The film clearly views Snowden as a hero rather than a traitor, and it cuts no slack for anyone on either side of the political aisle, particularly the Bush Jr. administration for implementation and the Obama administration for continuation (there are also sound bites of Hillary Clinton stating that Snowden needs to be held accountable and Donald Trump suggesting that he be “executed”). And if Stone has over the years lost the ability to infuse his pictures with righteous indignity, he at least has again applied his talents to a movie that matters.

Extras in the 4K + Blu-ray edition include audio commentary by Stone; a new interview with Stone; deleted scenes; and a Q&A with Snowden, Stone, Gordon-Levitt, and co-star Shailene Woodley.

Movie: ★★★

FROM SCREEN TO STREAM

ANASTASIA (1956). Thanks to such pictures as Gaslight (for which she won her first Oscar), Spellbound, and, of course, Casablanca, Ingrid Bergman was one of the hottest actresses in America during the 1940s, but that love affair ended when she began her own love affair in 1949 with Roberto Rossellini (and bore a child out of wedlock) while still married to her first husband. Religious leaders sputtered while politicians fumed (one even denounced her from the Senate floor as “a powerful influence for evil”), and it took seven years until this country finally “forgave” her by turning out for her starring role in Anastasia. She plays Anna, a destitute woman whose resemblance to the daughter of Russian Tsar Nicholas II and the only family member rumored to have survived the execution by Bolsheviks prompts the scheming Bounine (Yul Brynner) to pass her off as the genuine article in an attempt to tap into a sizable bounty. But could she actually be the real Anastasia? The romance between Anna and Bounine seems like an afterthought, but other story strands prove compelling, particularly those involving the Dowager Empress (a wonderful Helen Hayes). Bergman captured the Best Actress Oscar for her excellent performance; for his part, Brynner nabbed Best Actor for another 1956 release, The King and I.

Movie: ★★★

THE AVIATOR (2004). This sprawling biopic about the notorious Howard Hughes employs all the cinematic razzle-dazzle we’ve come to expect from director Martin Scorsese, yet there’s an added layer of excitement as the eternal cineaste finally gets to step back in time via his meticulous recreations of the sights and sounds of Old Hollywood. Rather than trying to cram an overstuffed life into one motion picture, Scorsese and writer John Logan focus on Hughes’ anecdote-rich period from the late 1920s through the late 1940s, when the billionaire industrialist (an intense Leonardo DiCaprio) produced movies such as Hell’s Angels and The Outlaw, romanced actresses like Katharine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett), made significant strides in aviation, and continued his lifelong battle with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Like most biopics, this plays fast and loose with many of the specifics of Hughes’ life (the chronology is especially sloppy), but when it hones in on the effects of a disease so ghastly it could bring even this visionary to his knees, the historical inaccuracies suddenly seem irrelevant. At its best, the movie is a stirring tale about a man whose inner drive allowed him to climb ever higher, grazing the heavens before his inner demons seized the controls and forced the inevitable, dreary descent. Nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Actor, Supporting Actor (Alan Alda), Director, and Original Screenplay, it won five, including Best Supporting Actress (Blanchett).

Movie: ★★★½

THE DEADLY BEES (1966). One of my favorite so-bad-it’s-awesome-to-watch movies — up there with Starcrash and a few others — is 1978’s The Swarm, the Irwin Allen mega-bomb in which Michael Caine and an all-star cast face off against killer bees. By comparison, The Deadly Bees is too inert and too joyless to withstand multiple viewings — although it did receive the prime Mystery Science Theater 3000 treatment in 1998. The script for this tedious slog comes courtesy of Robert Bloch, best known for penning the novel upon which Hitchcock’s Psycho was based. Don’t be too hard to Bloch, as it’s been noted that his screenplay — based on H.F. Heard’s novel A Taste for Honey and originally designed to serve as a vehicle for Boris Karloff and Christopher Lee — was heavily rewritten without his involvement or consent. What’s left is a predictable murder-mystery which posits that someone in a small English village is breeding a strain of lethal bees. All evidence points to the gruff Mr. Hargrove (Guy Doleman), leading visiting pop star Vicki Robbins (Suzanna Leigh) to team up with the kindly Mr. Manfred (Frank Finley in unconvincing makeup meant to make him look older) to crack the case. The special effects surrounding the bee attacks are poor, and the climactic twist shouldn’t fool anyone over the age of 12.

Movie: ★½

LAURA (1944). A genuine classic — not only of film noir but of film, period — director Otto Preminger’s adaptation of Vera Caspary’s novel lathers the murder-mystery with a heavy dollop of kinkiness, beginning with the fact that its hero may well be a necrophiliac-in-spirit. Detective Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) is sent to investigate when a beautiful woman named Laura (Gene Tierney) appears to have been brutally murdered, the victim of a shotgun blast to the face. As McPherson rounds up the unusual suspects — Laura’s cynical mentor (a superb Clifton Webb), her leechlike fiancé (Vincent Price, also excellent), and her duplicitous aunt (Judith Anderson) — he discovers that he’s slowly falling in love with a corpse. Matching Hitchcock’s Vertigo as a study of unhealthy obsession and the male desire to harness the feminine mystique — and throwing in a measure of class warfare, to boot — Laura owes a sizable debt to both cinematographer Joseph LaShelle, whose black-and-white lensing earned an Oscar, and composer David Raksin, whose gorgeous score still reigns as one of cinema’s finest. Raksin’s music suits the occasion: Like the film itself, it’s lush, haunting, and an invitation to wallow in the decadence. In addition to LaShelle’s win, this nabbed four other nominations, including Best Supporting Actor (Webb), Best Director, and Best Screenplay (but, alas, not Best Picture nor for Raksin’s score).

Movie: ★★★★

THE NAKED GUN: FROM THE FILES OF POLICE SQUAD! (1988) / THE NAKED GUN 2½: THE SMELL OF FEAR (1991) / NAKED GUN 33⅓: THE FINAL INSULT (1994). The ZAZ team behind Airplane! and Kentucky Fried Movie — Jerry Zucker, Jim Abrahams and David Zucker — briefly turned to television and created Police Squad! (“In Color!”), a 1982 comedy series in the style of their big-screen successes. Unfortunately, boob tube audiences more accustomed to the gentle and predictable humor of shows like The Love Boat and Silver Spoons were bewildered, and the show was cancelled after a paltry six episodes. But the story didn’t end there, since the gang brought series star Leslie Nielsen and his character, the clueless Lieutenant Frank Drebin, to the multiplex with 1988’s The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! Movie audiences were far more appreciative, with the film successful enough to rank among the year’s Top 10 grossers (#8 with a $78 million take, just under Die Hard and just above Cocktail). It deserved its riches, offering a hefty number of laugh-out-loud moments as Drebin is put on the trail of a heroin operation and an assassination plot against Queen Elizabeth II, both nefarious activities instigated by a prominent Los Angeles businessman (Ricardo Montalban). Nielsen is wonderful as Drebin, mostly playing the role straight (which only accentuates the humor) but breaking into exaggeration when it’s guaranteed to yield the most guffaws. Look for a great cameo by “Weird Al” Yankovic, who would also appear in the two sequels and the reboot.

Nielsen’s co-stars from the first picture — Priscilla Presley as Drebin’s true love Jane Spencer, George Kennedy as his often befuddled commanding officer Captain Ed Hocken, and O.J. Simpson as hapless fellow detective Nordberg — all returned for both sequels, and all again proved to be good sports (although Simpson’s appearances now add a level of discomfort that were obviously not there pre-murders). The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear earned even more than the original film ($86M, good enough for a #10 finish in ’91). While it may not deliver as many sustained laughs as the first flick, the hit-to-miss ratio of its comic content is still high, as Drebin squares off against anti-environment baddies led by the debonair Quentin Hapsburg (Robert Goulet). Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult found the template finally running out of steam, even though it still brought in a respectable $51M (and internationally, both sequels earned more than they did stateside). Although not as consistently funny as its predecessors, there are still enough gags worth catching, with the plot finding Drebin attempting to stop a homegrown terrorist (Fred Ward) scheming to blow up the Academy Awards ceremony.

The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!: ★★★½

The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: ★★★

The Naked Gun 33-1/3: The Final Insult: ★★½

NEWSIES (1992). Ah, the power of the home theater. Upon its initial release, Newsies became one of the biggest bombs of the year, failing miserably with critics and at the box office. Yet thanks to VHS and DVD, it built an audience of die-hards over the ensuing years. As a drama, it features strong material: With the real-life Newsboys Strike of 1899 as its inspiration, it shows how struggling newspaper boys, many of them living on the streets, scored a victory against moguls Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst when the two millionaires tried to increase their profit margins at the expense of the poverty-stricken kids. But by presenting this as a musical, all hope is lost, thanks to forgettable tunes and the casting of actors who can’t sing (including star Christian Bale, all of 17 when filming occurred). The adults fare even worse than the kids: Robert Duvall is atypically awful as Pulitzer, Bill Pullman does nothing but grin as a sympathetic journalist, and Ann-Margret is wasted as a Swedish vaudeville performer. Although it’s harsh, my favorite quote regarding this film was from Michael Atkinson in a 1996 article for Movieline magazine: “I couldn’t care if [director Kenny Ortega] wrote Shakespeare plays, filled the belly of every starving child in the third world, and had the ability to stop violence and war everywhere just by farting, he’d still be the guy responsible for Newsies. What other director would have touched this nonsense with Ed Wood’s dead hand?”

Movie: ★½

U-TURN (1997). With the exception of 1988’s lacerating Talk Radio, U-Turn might be the most forgotten film in the Oliver Stone canon — a shame, since it offers sinful pleasures for those willing to take the ride. Adapted by John Ridley from his own novel Stray Dogs, this is pulp fiction as filtered through Stone’s hyperkinetic lenses, and it’s set in a locale (Superior, Arizona, a real town!) that seems to exist on the map somewhere between Twin Peaks and Sin City. Sean Penn stars as Bobby Cooper, an unscrupulous small-timer whose unexpected stop in Superior (his car breaks down) finds him meeting a gallery of eccentrics, including a repulsive redneck mechanic (Billy Bob Thornton), a blind Native American beggar (Jon Voight), a teenage hothead (Joaquin Phoenix), and a big-hair waitress (Julie Hagerty) whose name really is Flo. He also meets — and lusts after — Grace (Jennifer Lopez), a desert flower married to her late mom’s sleazy husband (Nick Nolte, armed with Gary Busey’s choppers). Like all Stone productions from the period, U-Turn is a technical marvel, with Robert Richardson’s cinematography and Ennio Morricone’s score worthy of special mention. The picture is darkly humorous, frequently violent, and always playful (love the homage to Duel in the Sun), and its excesses clearly mark it as not for all tastes.

Movie: ★★★