BigScreenBytes

“Hairspray” the musical is a remake of the cult classic movie “Hairspray” by John Waters. The musical version evolved on Broadway and from there was taken to film. This version is a good film with plenty of energy, quirky characters and great musical numbers. The two stand out performances are by newcomers Nikki Blonsky and [...]

“The Heartbreak Kid” is a light comedy starring Ben Stiller with an interesting premise of a desperate bachelor marrying who he thinks is the “perfect woman” for him. This is a Farrelly brothers film, not one of Ben Stiller’s clever, biting comedies he has written but it is still mostly enjoyable as light comedy. The [...]

Cult Classic comes to mind when you talk about “Spinal Tap”. Hilarious, clever and brilliant also come to mind in this well known “mockumentary” of the rock and roll industry. If you haven’t seen this film yet, rent it. “This Is Spinal Tap” follows the behind the scenes action of the once famous British heavy [...]

“Charlie Wilson’s War” is the admirable story based on the real life political work of the hard partying, charming Texas congressman Charlie Wilson. The movie has its light comic moments but really this is a study of the relationships forged during Wilson’s covert operations to provide weapons for Afghanis to fight the Russian occupation of [...]

“Sweeney Todd” the musical is well known in the theater world. I have seen a few scenes on PBS from the musical with George Hearn and Patti LuPone years ago so I knew it was a dark musical. Tim Burton makes it even darker (as he often does), the perfect director to bring this musical [...]

“Awakenings” is one of my favorite films. The screenplay is based on a book by Dr. Oliver Sacks. Williams and De Niro as always are brilliant, they are two of my favorite movie actors. Dr. Malcom Sayer is played by Robin Williams in an understated performance. The story focuses on Dr. Sayers work with patients [...]