The Color of Money (1986)

 

Fast Eddie Felson teaches a cocky but immensely talented protégé the ropes of pool hustling, which in turn inspires him to make an unlikely comeback.

Skillfully made continuation of the classic The Hustler is not among the director's best works, but is interesting and exciting enough to hold one's attention, due also to the excellent performances by Newman and Cruise.

Halliwell**: "Slackly told but consistently enjoyable adventures of Fast Eddie Felson in his older age." 

Maltin***: "Sharply made, nicely textured sequel...Hardboiled script by Richard Price, flamboyant camerwaork by Michael Ballhaus,, and top-notch performances by Cruise and especially Newman make this a must-see...though film's second half is protracted and disappointing, with a hoped-for climax that never occurs."

Scarface (1983)

In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug cartel and succumbs to greed.

Deliberately sleazy, but engrossing gangster saga (clearly an Oliver Stone script!) with no redeeming character in sight with screechingly over-the-top performances by Pacino and Pfeiffer, a gawdawful 80s soundtrack (which was already dated at the time of its release) and lots of explicit violence.

Halliwell (no star): "Absurdly brutalized remake, with detailed violence and a superabundance of foul language; the film seems to want to make a political statement."

Maltin*1/2: "...but this film wallows in excess and unpleasantness for nearly three hours, and offers no insights except that crime doesn't pay. At least the 1932 movie moved. Even so, this has become a pop-culture phenomenon, with Pacino's Montana an underdog hero!"

The Perfect Storm (2000)

In the Fall of 1991, the "Andrea Gail" left Gloucester, Mass. and headed for the fishing grounds of the North Atlantic. Two weeks later, an event took place that had never occurred in recorded history: a giant storm.

The story is told presenting the crew of the ship as simple fisherman who become heroes. But the only true hero in this movie is the storm.

On second viewing: it's watchable mostly for the storm scenes.

Halliwell*: "There are some astonishing visual moments here - notably the small boat attemting to climb an impossibly high wave - but the crew members, each equpiied with a personal crisis to fill in the gaps between the waves, are no more than stereotypes so that their elemental struggle remains uninvolving."

Maltin**1/2: "...drenched with special effects and noisy, exciting seagoing action, but its characters and story points are bathed in cliche'."