Lady Sheherazahde's Journal

A young widow, Edwina (Natasha Richardson), moves into an Irish town run by old widows and makes trouble by seducing the son, Godfrey (Adrian Dunbar), of the powerful Mrs. Counihan (Joan Plowright) and inexplicably alienating Miss O'Hare (Mia Farrow)

There is a bit of a mystery involved. This is an entertaining story about class and revenge in 1920s Ireland.

Based on the true story of the year novelist Pat Conroy spent teaching in a one room school house in Daufuskie Island, South Carolina. For some reason no-one could pronounce "Conroy" so they called him "Conrack".

He was an unconventional teacher but very good. When he arrived the children were illiterate and corporal punishment was common. He refused to beat them and made learning fun.

It's a good story about poverty and racism and not too horrific. No one is beaten or killed.

(I think kaaren would like this one.)

A homeless kid, Toby (Michael Pitt), gets taken in as an assistant by paparazzo Les (Steve Buscemi). But they fall out over pop singer K'Harma Leeds (Alison Lohman). Toby is in love with her. Les wants his career making shot.

Steve Buscemi is very good at playing sleezy characters. Toby seems like a nice kid. But it's a strange sort of story. Everyone is shallow and self serving although not actually evil or malicious. Just Hollywood I suppose.

The animated biography of Marjane Satrapi. Based on her graphic novels about growing up in Iran during the overthrow of the Shah.

The black and white art looks like a combination of wood cuts and intricate traditional Persian art.

This is a wonderful insight into Iranian culture and history. She really catches the child's view of events.

I went out and picked up the graphic novel to get a more detailed version of the story.

I highly recommend this movie.

I have decided to watch every Bruce Campbell movie I can. In case you don't know who Bruce Campbell is he is the King of B horror movies.

This Sci Fi Channel original film looks like a remake of the man with two brains. Well, there are a lot of differences in the plot and Bruce Campbell is less slapstick and wacky than Steve Martin. But they are both about unfaithful wives, true love, a serial killer, and brain transplants.

Bruce Campbell plays a wealthy CEO tho goes to Bulgaria with his wife to look for new investment opportunities. His wife has an affair with a taxi driver and Bruce and the taxi driver are killed by a crazy Gypsy lady. A scientist, looking for funding for his transplant serum, transplants part of the taxi driver's brain into Bruce's head and brings them back to life.

This is a fun low budget horror comedy with not much gore. I don't like gore and I do like comedy, so I enjoyed it.

This is the classic horror movie that started Bruce Campbell's career.

Five college students go to a cabin in the woods to spend a holiday weekend. But they find a tape of the previous occupant, an archeologist, reading an incantation from a Sumerian book to summon demons. When they play the recording the demons are summoned once again and start possessing people.

This is very gory and I can see why people talk about the misogyny of horror movies, the rape scene was totally unnecessary. Not much intentional humor. I prefer more humor with my horror. But I can see why it is a classic. They studied the horror formula and cranked it out.

A sequel to the 1960s TV series this version this version takes place in the present and involves international terrorists instead of the Japanese as the enemy. But otherwise preserves the spirit of the original.

A US Navy base in the Caribbean has gone native and Captain Binghamton has been sent to shape them up. At the same time the worlds second best terrorist, Major Vladikov (Tim Curry), has set up a base on the island with a nefarious plan.

There are lots of well known character actors: Ernest Borgnine, Dean Stockwell, David Alan Grier, French Stewart, Bruce Campbell, Tommy Chong, Erick Avari. I had fun spotting familiar faces.

An enjoyable romp. Bruce Campbell plays a minor character but he has some lines. Tim Curry is delightfuly camp as Major Vladikov. I loved Major Vladikov's personal psychiatrist David (Scott Cleverdon).

Maniac Cop (1988)

A large man in a police uniform is killing people. Lt. McCrae (Tom Atkins) thinks it's a rogue cop. When Officer Jack Forrest's (Bruce Campbell) wife is killed everyone thinks he did it. With the help of his lover, undercover vice cop, (Laurene Landon) he set's out to clear his name.

I kept hoping for a horror angle but this is more of a action adventure detective story.

Maniac Cop 2 (1990)

This one starts with a recap of the last movie. Officer Jack Forrest (Bruce Campbell) is cleared of the murders but the real maniac cop Matt Cordell (Robert Z'Dar) isn't dead. His first victim this time is Jack Forrest (and Bruce Campbell is gone from the series). The new main characters are detective Sean McKinney (Robert Davi) and police psychologist Susan Riley (Claudia Christian) (Yay Ivanova!). Then the maniac cop teams up with a serial killer Turkell (Leo Rossi), who is killing strippers.

Still more of a action adventure detective story than horror.

Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence (1993)

This time it is a horror movie and should have been called "Bride of Maniac Cop".

A Vodou Houngan raises Matt Cordell (Robert Z'Dar) from the dead. Detective Sean McKinney (Robert Davi) is trying to clear the name of Officer Katie Sullivan (Gretchen Becker) who is in a coma after a shootout in a drug store. Dr. Susan Fowler (Caitlin Dulany) helps him out when the maniac cop kidnaps Kate to be his undead bride.