Stoutor
It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.
Married Baby
Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?
Fleur
Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.
capone666
Cast a Deadly Spell The problem with living in a world where magic is possible is all of the tacky wardrobes you have to see everyday.Thankfully, the magicians in this mystery dress in 1940s garb.In an alternate universe where magic exists, a clichéd PI that hates the black arts, H. Phillip Lovecraft (Fred Ward), is hired by an affluent client (David Warner) to retain a tome for him called the Necronomicon.To do so, Lovecraft must not only navigate the supernatural streets of L.A. but also his on-again off-again ex (Julianne Moore).All the while, Lovecraft is unaware that his obtaining of the Necronomicon will ultimately unleash the Old Ones, an ancient monster race that will enslave the city.Part Dashiell Hammett detective yarn, part Lovecraftian horror. This HBO produced amalgamation has the hard-boiled lingo and the slimy subspecies of the two genres down pat.But beware: Lovecraftian dames usually have tentacles.Yellow Light vidiotreviews.blogspot.com
kclipper
Here's a delightfully imaginative blend of traditional film noir and magical fantasy come alive from HBO Original Pictures. The year is 1948, and the setting is full of night clubs, dark, shiny streets, dames, gangsters, and all sorts of colorful characters. Now this is where the originality comes in. Its some sort of alternate reality where everyone uses magic on a practical everyday basis, and naughty gremlins, ghouls and a multitude of other creatures inhabit the corrupt streets of the city in a perfect homage to H.P. Lovecraft. Fred Ward (who has a serious case of Clint Eastwood-itis) is a stubborn private-eye detective named Lovecraft who thinks all this sorcery is just another means to corruption and greed, and he's hot on the trail of the Necronomicon (Book of the Dead). Along the way he meets all sorts of resistance from the more unsavory types who also want the book to unleash more demons into the world. Add talented and beautiful Julianne Moore as the night club singer/love interest, David Warner as the villain, Clancy Brown, and Lee Tergeson into the mix, and the fun never lets up. Good action scenes, good creature effects, and loads of subtle but noticeable homages including Charles Hallahan as a cop named Bradbury and a night club called Dunwitch. This is like 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit' on a bad trip, but in a good old-fashioned charming way.The cast has plenty of fun with it, and so does director Martin Campbell (Mask of Zorro). This has never been officially released on DVD, so if you find a copy somehow, you're in for a rare treat. Look for a great scene in the beginning: Death by paper-cuts!!!
eastwood67
You hear before you realize the magic is really there.. The rendition of "Danny Boy" by the vagrant/tenor remains the most pure of all I have heard, and it has taken 16 years to rediscover this gem of a movie. If Fred don't mind I'll claim him as a local boy since my sister-in-law worked with him in a small theatre production years ago in S.F. I digress. Can we canvass HBO to release it in DVD? What would it take? It sits in their archives, we all know it., so anybody willing to cobble together a battle plan or offer some sage advice? It is a shame that this work is not able to be enjoyed by any audience since it is withheld from circulation. HHHHHMMMMM< (public domain?)
ccthemovieman-1
I wonder why this isn't a movie that people know? After all, it is definitely unique and fun to watch, and how many films do you know that are a combination 1940s film noir and horror? Man, this is a real "curiosity piece."It's Los Angeles and 1948 and everyone, except the hero (Fred Ward) is using magic, occult witchcraft-type stuff (which this reviewer hardly endorses). Ludicrous, yes, but fascinating and funny in parts.Too bad this isn't out on DVD because the colors and atmosphere just ooze 1940s. It's also simply great entertainment. Juliane Moore looks gorgeous and Ward is likable in the lead role. He has the authentic look of a private eye, and I like the idea that he has more morals than all the other characters in the movie combined.If any story can be called truly "unique," this is one of them.
