‘About a Boy’ review
“About a Boy” — This is the latest film adapted from a novel by witty Brit Nick Hornby (“High Fidelity”). Featuring Hugh Grant as a 30-something layabout, “About a Boy” features even more of Hornby’s […]
Movies
‘Spider-Man’ reviews
John’s “Spider-Man” flashback review, May 18, 2019 “Spider-Man” — This is a colorful start to a new film franchise, but it has some nagging flaws: The Green Goblin, despite the best efforts of Willem Dafoe, […]
‘Frailty’ review
“Frailty” — Bill Paxton’s directorial debut takes a theme that other movies may use for entertainment purposes — people getting chopped up into little pieces with an axe — and makes it genuinely disturbing. Matthew […]
‘E.T. The Extra Terrestrial’ review
“E.T. The Extra Terrestrial” — This 20th Anniversary release allows Steven Spielberg fans to go back to a time when a simple movie about intergalactic friendship could make you cry. A time when Drew Barrymore […]
‘Do It For Uncle Manny’ review
NDSU Spectrum: Movie review Pseudo-‘Swingers’: ‘Manny’ finds humor in Hollywood fakeness By JOHN HANSEN March 8, 2002 “Do It For Uncle Manny” may be one of the first films directly influenced by “Swingers,” the 1996 […]
‘Soul Survivors’ review
“Soul Survivors” — Eliza Dushku, Wes Bentley and Melissa Sagemiller star in this horror film that tries desperately to be weird and original. It seems that writer/director Steve Carpenter structured the whole film around a […]
‘Session 9’ review
“Session 9” — A group of workers goes in to clear asbestos from an abandoned insane asylum. One of the workers becomes obsessed with old tape reels of doctor-patient conversations. You’d think it would be […]
‘John Q’ review
“John Q” — Denzel Washington, James Woods and Robert Duvall go slumming in this heavy-handed and predictable story about a dad (Washington) who takes a hospital hostage so they’ll put his son’s name on a […]
‘Lost and Delirious’ review
NDSU Spectrum: Video review ‘Lost and Delirious’ a delicate character study By JOHN HANSEN Dec. 7, 2001 It’s hard to believe that love and betrayal, themes that date back to the very roots of literature, […]
‘Shallow Hal’ review
NDSU Spectrum: Movie review Farrellys trade crass for class in ‘Shallow Hal’ By JOHN HANSEN Nov. 16, 2001 A remarkable thing happens when you take (some of) the crass humor away from a Farrelly Bros. […]