Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Hard Boiled, the Innocents, Jack Frost

Philip Barrett

Associate editor, atomicpopcorn.net

Hard Boiled is what most action films aspire to be but lose their plot along the way. Directed by John Woo, this opus of bullets actually has a story worth telling about two men who’ve been pushed to the edge of sanity. Chow Yun-Fat gives a terrific performance as Tequila, the brash hothead of the force who leaps (literally) before he looks. He’s counterbalanced by Tony Leung as Alan, a quiet undercover cop blurring the line between good and evil. Action is in abundance and it’s all top-notch, featuring a teahouse shootout and an explosive finale at a hospital. Hard Boiled is a near perfect action film that deserves your attention.

Hard Boiled (Two-Disc Ultimate Edition) (Hong Kong) 1992, Dragon Dynasty

Sponsored
Sponsored

Robert Patrick

Editor, cinemaspartan.com

The cackle of distortion rages over 1960s rock songs, while Max Fischer, a wunderkind at a prestigious academy, stargazes over a teacher in director Wes Anderson’s idiosyncratic romantic comedy Rushmore. The movie is a buoyant ode to style and love as ribbons of color shoot over the screen. Rushmore is spattered by witty dialogue, and one of the best, most unlikely love triangles in movie history. Make sure to pay attention to the breezy, flippant score by former Devo member Mark Mothersbaugh.

One of the best horror films ever made is The Innocents. Deborah Kerr, ravaged by reveries of washed-out colors and the creepiest children, battles for her sanity in this 1960s film adaptation of Turn of the Screw.

Rushmore (USA) 1999, Criterion Collection

The Innocents (USA) 1961, Twentieth Century Fox

Ian Forbes
Founder/senior editor, soberingconclusion.com

Jack Frost. No, not the Michael Keaton version but the 1996 B-comedy-horror film with a Shannon Elizabeth cameo. In this delightful romp, a killer mutates into a snowman and uses his newfound powers to begin a bloodbath. The special effects are hilariously (and intentionally) bad enough to make this a perfect “horrible but fun” film to enjoy with friends.

Susanne Bier’s After the Wedding is a beautiful portrayal of the lengths people will go to in order to spare their loved ones pain. Whether that means pandering to a rich man to save a haven for poor children in India or revisiting painful former relationships to mitigate the pain of loss, Bier triumphs at bearing the human condition on screen like a badge of honor.

Jack Frost (USA) 1997, Allumination

After the Wedding (Denmark) 2006

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Bringing Order to the Christmas Chaos

There is a sense of grandeur in Messiah that period performance mavens miss.
Next Article

East San Diego County has only one bike lane

So you can get out of town – from Santee to Tierrasanta

Philip Barrett

Associate editor, atomicpopcorn.net

Hard Boiled is what most action films aspire to be but lose their plot along the way. Directed by John Woo, this opus of bullets actually has a story worth telling about two men who’ve been pushed to the edge of sanity. Chow Yun-Fat gives a terrific performance as Tequila, the brash hothead of the force who leaps (literally) before he looks. He’s counterbalanced by Tony Leung as Alan, a quiet undercover cop blurring the line between good and evil. Action is in abundance and it’s all top-notch, featuring a teahouse shootout and an explosive finale at a hospital. Hard Boiled is a near perfect action film that deserves your attention.

Hard Boiled (Two-Disc Ultimate Edition) (Hong Kong) 1992, Dragon Dynasty

Sponsored
Sponsored

Robert Patrick

Editor, cinemaspartan.com

The cackle of distortion rages over 1960s rock songs, while Max Fischer, a wunderkind at a prestigious academy, stargazes over a teacher in director Wes Anderson’s idiosyncratic romantic comedy Rushmore. The movie is a buoyant ode to style and love as ribbons of color shoot over the screen. Rushmore is spattered by witty dialogue, and one of the best, most unlikely love triangles in movie history. Make sure to pay attention to the breezy, flippant score by former Devo member Mark Mothersbaugh.

One of the best horror films ever made is The Innocents. Deborah Kerr, ravaged by reveries of washed-out colors and the creepiest children, battles for her sanity in this 1960s film adaptation of Turn of the Screw.

Rushmore (USA) 1999, Criterion Collection

The Innocents (USA) 1961, Twentieth Century Fox

Ian Forbes
Founder/senior editor, soberingconclusion.com

Jack Frost. No, not the Michael Keaton version but the 1996 B-comedy-horror film with a Shannon Elizabeth cameo. In this delightful romp, a killer mutates into a snowman and uses his newfound powers to begin a bloodbath. The special effects are hilariously (and intentionally) bad enough to make this a perfect “horrible but fun” film to enjoy with friends.

Susanne Bier’s After the Wedding is a beautiful portrayal of the lengths people will go to in order to spare their loved ones pain. Whether that means pandering to a rich man to save a haven for poor children in India or revisiting painful former relationships to mitigate the pain of loss, Bier triumphs at bearing the human condition on screen like a badge of honor.

Jack Frost (USA) 1997, Allumination

After the Wedding (Denmark) 2006

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Live Five: Rebecca Jade, Stoney B. Blues, Manzanita Blues, Blame Betty, Marujah

Holiday music, blues, rockabilly, and record releases in Carlsbad, San Carlos, Little Italy, downtown
Next Article

Victorian Christmas Tours, Jingle Bell Cruises

Events December 22-December 25, 2024
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader