Saturday Matinee #3

Audiobook Reviews from Audiobook-Heaven
Presents Saturday Matinee

-----Movie Review #1-----

Title: Twister
Starring: Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Jamie Gertz
Narrator: Matthew Vickers
Running time: 93 minutes
Released in: 1996
Genre: action
Filed in: Movie reviews

A former husband and wife team of storm chasers look for peace amid some of the most violent and chaotic storms they have ever seen. Jo (Helen Hunt) has spent her entire life chasing the wind storms that took her father when she was a child. It was her obsession that broke up her marriage. Bill (Bill Paxton) only came to get his divorce papers signed, but realizes he still has feelings for Jo. For each of them to find what they seek, they’ll have to survive one of the biggest twisters tornado alley has ever seen.
“Twister” was the big blockbuster hit of 1996, and totally changed the way we view tornadoes. I’ve lived in tornado alley all my life, and we always knew they were dangerous, but in “Twister”, they suddenly became rabid and malevolent, something almost sentient, and hungry.
If you like rock ‘n’ roll, this movie also had an excellent soundtrack, featuring new songs from Van Halen, Mark Knopfler, Soul Asylum, and Red Hot Chili Peppers.
No end credits.

-----Movie Review #2-----

Title: Awakenings
Starring: Robin Williams, Robert DeNiro
Narrator: Uncredited
Running time: 111 minutes
Released in: 1990
Genre: drama
Filed in: Movie reviews

Based on the true story of Dr. Malcolm Sayer. In 1969, Sayer worked extensively with patients who had been catatonic for decades. After hearing a lecture on an experimental drug called L-Dopa, Sayer tried it on his catatonic patients, and was astounded as, one by one, they all awoke from their long sleep. After several weeks, however, serious side-effects began to set in, and Sayer was forced to discontinue the experiments. The patients gradually returned to their previous states.
This was a touching movie, and one of those gratifying moments when Robin Williams showed us that he is not just a comedian. “Awakenings” was nominated for best picture, and best actor (Robert DeNiro), but won neither.
This story is uncannily similar to the short fiction, “Flowers for Algernon” by Daniel Keyes, where a mentally retarded man receives an experimental surgery and becomes an uber-genius for a while, before returning to his original condition. The story was written ten years before Dr. Sayer’s experiments with L-Dopa.
Julie Kavner, the voice of Marge Simpson, played an important role in this film. It was odd hearing Marge in a dramatic role.

----------dotted line----------

All of the DVS movies I listen to come from the Three Blind Mice. They have hundreds of titles in mp3 format to choose from, and they can all be downloaded to your computer completely free. Visit Three Blind Mice by following the link on the sidebar.

Movie reviews by Steven Brandt.
Come back soon for more movie reviews from Audiobook-Heaven.