Zero, through August 1997.
September seems to be breaking the record, however. However, they've all been rental movies; not seen in theatres. Maybe I just hate greasy overpriced popcorn.
Movies seen by video rental:
- The Absolutely Fabulous Movie Special. B-
- This movie is based on the now-defunct British tv comedy series of the same name. And it isn't as good, although there are some splashes of funny bits. Rent or find the videos of the tv series for the true flavor of this wild and politically incorrect show. (This one was rented by friends.)
- Joe's Apartment. C
- Another one rented by friends. Incredibly stupid, which may well have been its drawing card. I couldn't pull myself away; I needed to see the depths it could sink down to. The plot had holes wide enough to sink battleships in, and the characters lacked any real sense of believable (or unbelievable) charm. A young man finds himself an apartment, shares it with a horde of singing cockroaches (animated reasonably well), has romance, and saves the place from being knocked over in favor of a federal pen. All with the torments and the help of the aforementioned cockroaches. It rates as high as "C" out of its sheer chutzpah.
- Like Water For Chocolate. A-
- I rented this one. ( !!!! ) Dubbed dialog which would have been better most likely if one could watch this in its original Spanish. An innovative approach to a tragic relationship -- a young man marries the sister of a woman he is in love with, so as to be near her, as she is not allowed to marry. The ups and downs of the young woman's emotional states are conveyed through food.
- The Saint. C+
- This started with promise. We got bored quickly. I was hoping that this one would be at least redeemably campy, but no. Fortunately, I didn't choose to rent this one, either.
- The Fifth Element. B+
- I liked this one, amazingly enough. It dudded out quickly and went to video. It probably requires a second viewing, to catch some of the ideas which spring by fast. The end was rather anti-climatic, as if the director and screenwriters had run out of ideas; a shame, as the rest of the movie had good innovative moments. I especially liked the traffic organization of the cities of the future, although I'd never want to drive there... (I actually ended up seeing this movie a second time, in 1998, although I only mention it here. I still like it. Go figure...)
- The Hobbit. A-
- Well-drawn and designed cartoon version of the classic Tolkien tale. They had to cram a lot into a small time frame, which is where any weaknesses crop in; overall though well worth the look-see. The character of Gollum is great!
