Tropical Snow is a film which seems to have been
forgotten completely by DVD producers, but it's pretty much THE film
to see if you are into Madeleine Stowe's
pretty bum, which is featured in several scenes. There are even a few
rear views of the Cave of the Eighth Happiness, as my imaginary Asian
friends call it. Here's the
zipped
.avi from a VHS tape. A few sample captures follow. The quality is
not good, but there's nothing better available, to my knowledge. Maybe
we'll get lucky and they'll air it on HDTV.
Madeleine Stowe
Mia Sara has a lot of fans
among us, but some of her prime exposure hasn't migrated to DVD. Today
we're looking at two 1995 films, when she was 27 year old. The Set-Up
(zipped .avi from
a VHS tape) is not available on DVD anywhere, to my knowledge. The
quality of the film clip is not bad at all, considering that the
source is VHS. Here are some samples:
Mia Sara in
the Set-Up
The Maddening, another 1995 film starring Mia Sara, is available in
a German DVD and has just been released on a Region 4 DVD in
Australia, but has never come to Region 1 DVD. I don't actually have a
clip from this one, but there is only a quick flash of nipple anyway.
Here is a capture from the Graphic Response collection:
Japanese kids are always thrilled when they see the clunky truck and hear the merry tinkling music in the streets on a hot day ...
"Porn man's comin'!"
"Armed with a Winchester rifle, two Morrocan boys set out to look after their family's herd of goats. In the silent echoes of the desert, they decide to test the rifle... but the bullet goes farther than they thought it would. In an instant, the lives of four separate groups of strangers on three different continents collide. Caught up in the rising tide of an accident that escalates beyond anyone's control are a vacationing American couple (Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett), a rebellious deaf Japanese teenager and her father, and a Mexican nanny who, without permission, takes two American children across the border. None of these strangers will ever meet; in spite of the sudden, unlikely connection between them, they will all remain isolated due to their own inability to communicate meaningfully with anyone around them. From Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu comes a film that is at once intimate and epic, shot in four countries, cast with actors and non-actors, and concludes his trilogy that started with 'Amores Perros' and '21 Grams.'"
WTF? You never know what kind of crap will catch the internet's attention. This is now floating around everywhere. This one is only 13 seconds long, but one version is three minutes long, with the same phrase repeated again and again.
"These photos were taken at Ground Zero, the World Trade Center site in New York, on September 13, 2001. They were taken by someone named 'Ed' who was allowed into the area by a member of the emergency response crew, at a time when all civilians -- including most journalists -- were forbidden to enter the area. As a result, these photos are just about the only close-ups ever taken of the World Trade Center site so soon after the 9/11 attacks."
Master storyteller Brian De Palma, known for such classic crime dramas as "The Untouchables," "Scarface" and "Carlito's Way," as well as his suspense thrillers "Carrie," "Dressed to Kill" and "Blow Out," directs this adaptation of James Ellroy's ("L.A. Confidential," "American Tabloid") best-selling crime novel. "The Black Dahlia" weaves a fictionalized tale of obsession, love, corruption, greed and depravity around the true story of the brutal murder of a fledgling Hollywood starlet that shocked and fascinated the nation in 1947 and remains unsolved today. Two ex-pugilist cops, Lee Blanchard (Aaron Eckhart) and Bucky Bleichert (Josh Hartnett), are called to investigate the homicide of ambitious silver-screen B-lister Betty Ann Short (Mia Kirshner) A.K.A. "The Black Dahlia"-an attack so grisly that images of the killing were kept from the public. While Blanchard's growing preoccupation with the sensational murder threatens his marriage to Kay (Scarlett Johansson), his partner Bleichert finds himself attracted to the enigmatic Madeleine Linscott (two-time Oscar® winner Hilary Swank), the daughter of one of the city's most prominent families-who just happens to have an unsavory connection to the murder victim. True crime meets urban legend when De Palma brings Ellroy's "The Black Dahlia" to the big screen.
He thinks it will be a tepid week, with Miami Vice topping the field with an uninspiring $29 million, and the other two new films coming in below $15m.
Movie Reviews:
Yellow asterisk: funny (maybe). White asterisk: expanded format.
Blue asterisk: not mine. No asterisk: it probably sucks.
The Last September (1999)
The Last September (1999) is an adaptation of a novel
by famous Anglo-Irish author Elizabeth Bowen. An Anglo/Irish co-production
which IMDb lists as French, it is a first film by theater director Deborah
Warner, and has an all-star cast of acting talent including Maggie Smith, Jane
Birkin, Fiona Shaw and Michael Gambon. It is set in September of 1920 during
the period when the British control of Ireland was challenged by Irish rebels,
and it was obvious to the members of the Anglo-Irish aristocracy that that
life as they knew it was about to end and their grand houses would have to be
abandoned. The story takes place at one such house.
So far, I am describing an historical drama, but this
film is actually a love story, which may account for the sharp division among
critics.
Michael Gambon and Maggie Smith, solid members of the
Anglo-Irish ruling tribe, preside over a grand house, which fills with
visitors trying to enjoy September, but having trouble with the violent
backdrop that continuously reminds them of impending change. Their niece,
played by then newcomer Keeley Hawes, is now of age, and seems to be in love
with romance. She has a suitor, a dashing captain with the British Army that
is too far beneath her social station for anything permanent, and she has an
interest in the brother of her best friend, a member of the resistance.
Lambert Wilson and Jane Birkin arrive as houseguests,
trying to hide the fact that they are now homeless. Fiona Shaw, who is also in
her own "Last September" as she is again engaged, but this time at an age
where she can't break it off, and will have to wed a stuffy old stockbroker.
She does become the friend and confidant of Keeley Hawes. In fact, many in the
cast are gong through their own "Last Septembers" giving the title extra
meaning. In addition to the acting talent, County Cork and cinematographer
Slawomir Idziak became important characters in this film.
IMDb readers have this at 6.0. Ebert scores it 2 stars, or not very good by
his rating system, while Berardinelli says 3 stars, which is very good from
him. Metacritic rates it 69. It grossed less than $.5M in a very small US
release, and doesn't seem to have been screened in the UK at all. If you like
historical dramas and love stories, you might enjoy this one. If not, at 103
minutes, it will be a long watch. C.
Keeley Hawes shows breasts in a foreplay
scene.
Scoop's note: see Keeley's latest nudity down in the Catch o' The Day
Chloe Sevigny in 3 Needles
Danielle Winits in SeEuFosseVoce
Robin Weigert (Calamity Jane) in
Deadwood, S3, E7.
One more gorgeous Hugo collage of
Salma Hayek in Ask the Dust
One more Hugo collage of
Siena Guillory in Silence Becomes You
From my mailbox:
Hey Scoop.
You know you've been looking at celeb sites way too long when you can not only
spot a fake right away but also recall the original as well! That's the case
with the alleged Holly Marie Combs scan that you were sent. The original was
actually Heather Stewart Whyte ... I guess I have that embedded in my mind
because I searched out all of her pics way back in the 90s when she was a
regular in the Victoria's Secret catalogs.
Anyway, here's the side by side comparison
J
Original
Fake
Alison Routledge in
The Quiet Earth
Keeley Hawes
in A Cock and Bull Story
Pat's comments in yellow...
Some little girls in Charleston, West
Virginia, got a thrill when President Bush came to town for a Congressional
fundraiser. They had a lemonade stand with a sign reading "Lemonade 50
cents. Cool, refreshing, yum." Bush spotted it from his motorcade, had all
the cars stop, and asked reporters, "Anybody thirsty?" He passed out
lemonade, posed for some photos with the girls and gave them five dollars.
* Of course, as soon as he left, their lemonade stand was driven out of business by
Wal-Mart.
Plantation, Florida, police officer Laurie Primeau was
suspended without pay until a hearing after she allegedly swerved and
nearly collided with a police car. The deputy stopped her and said she was
drunk and naked from the waist down. He said he asked her, "Where are your
pants?" and she replied, "I don't know." Primeau is a 27-year police
veteran, the 1994 Officer of the Year, and the DUI instructor at the police
academy. She had a large open bottle of Southern Comfort in the car, but
her attorney claims she used it to train police recruits.
