I'm not a big fan of his 70s work, which is generally regarded as Coppola's best, but do appreciate his penchant for dark and Gothic horror cinema. Coppola is one of the biggest names in cinema, so his work is impossible to ignore.
Movies
A surprisingly fun and playful biopic that leans heavily on the performance of Bridges, but is aided by some solid direction of Coppola too. I don't care much for the US car industry, nor for all the practical and legal issues Tucker had to face, but his flamboyant character was infectious and the film does justice to the man's legacy.
I was a bit surprised to bump into this film. With names like Scorsese, Coppola and Woody Allen directing, you'd think the film would be better known. Honestly, I'd never heard of it before. Anthologies are rarely seen as worthwhile films though, so that's probably what's been holding this one back. Scorsese's short is pretty decent for a Scorsese film, but his attempts to be a bit more artistic feel rather forced and Nolte's performance is too over the top (2.0*). Coppola's entry is probably the weirdest of the bunch as it seems to be targeted at kids (2.0*), luckily there's Allen's film to give this anthology a needed quality boost (3.5*). Allen's short is by far the most interesting and funny of the bunch. It's also the film that feels the most like "New York". While not a terrible anthology, considering the names involved people would be excused for expecting a bit more. Apart from Allen, the other directors disappoint.Read all
You don't see courtroom dramas being released that often nowadays, and that's probably not a bad thing. By far one of the most narrative-driven, lengthy and sentimental genres in the film industry, I don't think I've ever seen a really good one either. The Rainmaker fits right in with the rest of the bunch. A young and spirited lawyer is assigned an insurance case. He's really not equipped to battle the legion of lawyers representing the insurance company, but he wants to support the victims and still believes in the juridical system, but he'll be fighting an uphill battle if he wants justice to prevail. Performances are okay and there are a handful of decent scenes, but the runtime is indefensible, the drama feels forced, and the courtroom scenes are really predictable. You start a film like this pretty much knowing every single story beat that's going to come, which simply isn't that much fun, especially since films like these have little else to offer.Read all
I've never been a big fan of Robin Williams, so it should come as no surprise that I skipped a lot of his films when I was younger. Still, it seems Williams was quite respected, and he made quite a few films with famous directors. Jack is one of those films, though you have wonder what Coppola was thinking when he made this one. The film puts a fantasy spin on progeria, the disease where your body ages quicker than it is supposed to. Jack is a boy that suffers from such an affliction, by the time he is 10 years old he looks like a regular 40-year-old man. This makes him an outcast in school, until one of his classmates discovers Jack's mature appearance can come in handy. The part is a perfect match for Williams, still I can't stand the way he acts. There are some notable cameos (Drescher, Cosby and Lopez), but none of them left a big impression. The film is terribly cheesy, the drama is unbearable, the ending simply stupefying. Poor Coppola, I hope he at least made a buck or two from this film.Read all
