Cast: Denzel Washington (Coach Herman Boone), Will Patton (Coach Bill Yoast)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Remember the Titans page.
This true story of racial integration and a team dealing with an African-American coach for the first time is wonderful. I'm so glad that it was made into a movie. Remember the Titans is the best of both worlds - football and a touching story!
Grade: B+
Labels: 2000, Denzel Washington, drama, movie, Ryan Gosling, sports
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Juliette Binoche (Vianne Rocher), Johnny Depp (Roux), Victoire Thivisol (Vianne Rocher)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Chocolat page.
A woman and her daughter who shake up a small French village when they open up a chocolate shop. This mouth-watering movie is very well done. The cast is wonderful, the story is great, the soundtrack is beautiful, the scenery is gorgeous, and the chocolate is delectable. What more could one ask for in a romantic comedy/drama (other than, perhaps, that it not be released during Lent, as some of my Catholic friends have pointed out)?
I highly recommend this movie. It takes the idea of chocolate and romance being intertwined to the next level and is thoroughly enjoyable.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2000, comedy, drama, Johnny Depp, Juliette Binoche, movie, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 5:55 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: David Spade, John Goodman, Eartha Kitt, Patrick Warburton
For complete cast info, see IMDb's The Emperor's New Groove page.
Just another example in what it seems will be a long list of Disney animated movies that fall short of old Disney expectations. At least I was smart enough to see it for free from Disney, rather than seeing it in a movie theatre or renting it. The Emperor's New Groove has a wonderful cast! I love David Spade, John Goodman, Patrick Warburton, etc. But, even their improv (which I'm sure they did to some extent) couldn't save this movie.
It's amusing, but not as funny as many past Disney movies. I'm sure the kids will still love it, but don't expect to be laughing along with them as much as you did for Disney animated greats (like Aladdin).
As long as you expect this movie to only meet the standards of new Disney movies and not to have the best animation or story, you should be able to enjoy The Emperor's New Groove.
Grade: C+
Labels: 2000, animated, comedy, Disney, family, John Goodman, movie, musical
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:55 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Sean Connery (William Forrester), Rob Brown (Jamal Wallace), Anna Paquin (Claire Spence)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Finding Forrester page.
This story of a gifted boy and his reclusive mentor is very well told. I highly recommend this touching story about finding someone you can trust in the strangest places. The friendship changes Jamal and William's lives forever and makes for a wonderful movie.
I highly recommend this great movie with a wonderful cast and fabulous screenplay. It's even better if you're a teacher or have had one of those amazing teachers who can change your life forever somewhere along the way.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2000, drama, movie, Rob Brown, Sean Connery
Reviewed by Kat at the 9:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Cary Shields (Roger Davis), Matt Caplan (Mark Cohen)
The Rent tour is still going strong. Rent's theme will never grow old. Heck, La Boheme was already an old show before Rent was conceived by Jonathan Larson. The music and the lyrics Jonathan incorporated into his updated version of this timeless story are so wonderful and moving. If you haven't seen this yet, you must go see it! The tour is reaching everywhere, so everyone will have the opportunity to enjoy my favorite musical!
Grade: A-
Labels: 2000, Best Musical, drama, musical, Rent, romance, tour
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Ben Affleck (Buddy Amaral), Gwyneth Paltrow (Abby Janello), Natasha Henstridge (Mimi Prager), Edward Edwards (Ron Wachter), Jennifer Grey (Janice Guerrero)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Bounce page.
I think Bounce is a very enjoyable romantic/dramatic comedy, as long as you go in expecting what you get, which is a cute date movie. A man switches plane tickets with another man and then the plane goes down. He then feels sorry for the deceased man's wife and ends up falling in love with her while working to make sure she's okay. It's a very sweet movie.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2000, Ben Affleck, drama, Gwyneth Paltrow, movie, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:40 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Singers: Ann Crumb, Alan H. Green, Charlie Marcus, Sarah Jane Nelson; Dancers: Warren Adams, Jeb Bounds, Randie Shane Brotman, Kim Craven, Desiree Duarte, Scott Fowler, Kevin Michael Gaudin, Bryan S. Haynes, Carrie Helms, Bruce Lineberry, Gary McIntyre, Lisa McIntyre, Marielys Molina, Jermaine R. Rembert, Dana Solimando
From everything I had heard about Swing!, I didn't expect there to be any story. I just expected a concert with dancing. The information I had received was very misleading. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that there was most definitely a story in Swing!. The story was just told more by dance and movement than anything else. It was really a fun show - especially if you like swing music.
The cast of the touring company is great, the music is wonderful, the dancing is amazing, and the story is really cute. Definitely a much better show than it's advertised. Their marketing department isn't doing Swing! justice.
Grade: B
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Rufus Bonds, Jr. (Mufasa), KaRonn A. Henderson (Young Simba), Clifton Oliver (Simba), Moe Daniels (Nala), and an amazing cast
The costumes and sets of The Lion King are absolutely amazing and that is probably the only reason this show got the Tony award for best musical in 1998. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of Disney movies and I think The Lion King has very good music by Elton John & Tim Rice. I think they make a wonderful team and that Julie Taymor made the animals of the pride lands look amazingly real with her award winning costumes. I don't think that's enough to make this the best musical of the year.
I do, however, think it's great that Disney is making musicals to help parents introduce their children to musical theatre. Anything that introduces children to this wonderful art form is a good thing. I hope that they will continue to make musicals on stage the children will love. When I was younger, I had Annie. Now, kids have The Lion King & Beauty and the Beast. I don't consider the new ones on the same level as those I had when I was younger, but they achieve the same purpose of providing a show that children and parents can enjoy together and I think that's wonderful!
Grade: B-
Labels: 2000, Best Musical, Disney, drama, Elton John, family, musical, tour
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Bruce Willis (David Dunn), Samuel L. Jackson (Elijah Price), Robin Wright Penn (Audrey Dunn)
For complete info, see IMDb's Unbreakable page.
I'll go see anything that M. Night Shyamalan does for the screen - period. This isn't as amazing as The Sixth Sense, but I think most of that is because we now know that M. Night Shyamalan will have a twist. Knowing that makes you think more about all the possibilities as you're watching the movie, which detracts from the work a bit. The idea of one man who can't be killed by normal means and one man who is very frail and suspect to injury discovering each other and the events that follow is great and I can't think of anyone better to present this than M. Night Shyamalan.
I look forward to many more movies by M. Night Shyamalan and recommend Unbreakable.
Grade: B
Labels: 2000, Bruce Willis, comics, drama, fantasy, M. Night Shyamalan, movie, Robin Wright Penn, Samuel L. Jackson, thriller
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:10 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Jim Carrey (Grinch), Taylor Momsen (Cindy Lou Who), Jeffrey Tambor (Mayor Augustus Maywho)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's How the Grinch Stole Christmas page.
I had heard this wasn't a very good telling of the movie before I saw it, but I really thought it had to be better than it turned out to be. I'm not a huge Jim Carrey fan, but he tends to be funny. I was very disappointed with what they did with this wonderful story.
I definitely recommend that you simply enjoy the original animated version and leave the live-action one on the shelf.
Grade: C-
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:20 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Drew Barrymore (Dylan Sanders), Cameron Diaz (Natalie Cook), Lucy Liu (Alex Munday), Bill Murray (John Bosley), Sam Rockwell (Eric Knox)
For complete info, see IMDb's Charlie's Angels page.
I loved the TV show and think that they did a really good job with the Charlie's Angels movie. I think they put in a lot of little things that you'll recognize if you watched the show. Not the best of the detective movies, but the TV show wasn't super-intelligent and difficult to figure out, either, so that's to be expected.
The cast is great and the action is very well done. I think they did a good job and that this is worth watching.
Grade: B
Labels: 2000, action, adventure, Cameron Diaz, comedy, Drew Barrymore, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 2:55 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Will Smith (Bagger Vance), Matt Damon (Rannulph Junuh), Charlize Theron (Adele Invergordon), Bruce McGill (Walter Hagen)
For complete cast, see IMDb's The Legend of Bagger Vance page.
I'm not a fan of golf, but the cast of The Legend of Bagger Vance had me immediately interested in this movie. I wasn't disappointed. I think the cast is amazing and the story is very good. I think The Legend of Bagger Vance addresses the issues involved in picking up something you were very good at later in the game after having left it for years. It's very difficult to do and Bagger Vance's help was definitely needed in achieving that goal.
Definitely worth the time to watch this movie. Even if you don't like golf, give it a chance.
Grade: B
Labels: 2000, Charlize Theron, drama, Matt Damon, movie, romance, sports, Will Smith
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:40 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Stephanie Pope, Elizabeth Perkins, Keith Roberts, Scott Wise, Ken Alan, Bill Burns, Lynn Calamia, Marc Calamia, J. P. Christensen, Angel Creeks
Having always loved Bob Fosse's choreography, I was very excited about seeing Fosse - especially since it won the Tony for best musical. Fosse did not let me down. The dancing was amazing! It was basically like a dance concert with Fosse choreography and great music. The cast is great and the show is wonderful if you like Fosse dancing.
I had a fever and should have probably gone to the doctor before seeing this, but we had good seats and I've been wanting to see Fosse since it opened, so I suffered through.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2000, Best Musical, Broadway, dancing, musical
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Patrick Cassidy (Frank Butler), Cheryl Ladd (Annie Oakley), and many other wonderful performers
I hadn't seen Annie Get Your Gun in years and I liked the story ever since I saw it when I was younger, so I was happy about the revival. Of course, I would have preferred to see Bernadette Peters, but Cheryl Ladd did a wonderful job as Annie Oakley. I didn't realize she had such a good voice. Patrick Cassidy was great as Frank, and the rest of the cast did a wondrful job.
I think Annie Get Your Gun is a great story about a strong woman (and the guy she meets). This is a good show for children, since it's very entertaining when Annie and Frank compete.
Grade: B-
Labels: 2000, Broadway, comedy, drama, musical, revival, romance, sports
Reviewed by Kat at the 2:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: J. Mark McVey (Jean Valjean), David McDonald (Javert, understudy), Catherine Brunell (Eponine), Peter Lockyer (Marius), Tobi Foster (Cosette), and many other wonderful performers
I loved Les Mis when I first saw it (on Broadway in 1989), but every time I see it, the cast is a little bit worse overall.
I know it's very difficult to be an understudy, but normally they still do an amazing job. I'm sure David McDonald will get there the more that he plays Javert, but tonight I couldn't wait for Javert's suicide. Gavroche also left a lot to be desired. The show just doesn't have the same spark it used to.
My advice with Les Mis is to see it on tour when it comes to a theatre near you, since the last couple times I've seen it on Broadway it was not well done. The music is amazing and it's such a wonderful show. Seeing it with a mediocre cast is just too sad.
Grade: C+
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Manley Pope (Roger Davis), Trey Ellett (Mark Cohen)
Trey Ellett is my second favorite Mark Cohen that I've seen. He wasn't quite as good as Neil Patrick Harris, but he was really great - I highly recommend seeing Rent while he's still in the cast.
Of course, Andy Senor has left the tour and moved to Broadway as Angel. *sigh* I was hoping to see it with someone else when I saw it on Broadway for the first time.
If you like the musical Rent and have not seen it on Broadway yet, you must go see it there! The Nederlander Theatre was re-furbished with Rent in mind and even the light fixtures fit the look and feel of Rent. It's definitely an experience to see a show like Rent on Broadway, even years after the original Broadway cast has left it behind.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2000, Best Musical, Broadway, drama, musical, Rent, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Kelli Fournier (Amneris, understudy), Adam Pascal (Radames), Heather Headley (Aida), Damian Perkins (Mereb), John Hickok (Zozer)
For complete cast information, see IBDb's Aida page.
What a great show! I already knew I loved the music. Although I normally don't listen to recordings before seeing a show, I couldn't resist the concept album, since it was released so far before Aida was going to Broadway. I loved it! A lot of things were changed for the musical, of course, and I really love the show.
I'm especially happy with the changes they made to the opening and ending. I think that the opening and ending really tie the whole thing together with this time period and make the story seem so much more applicable.
The cast is amazing! I finally got to see Adam Pascal on stage (I've been a huge fan of his since Rent) and Heather Headley and everyone else did an amazing job. I'm sorry I missed Sherie Rene Scott, but Kelli Fournier did a wonderful job as Amneris. I can't imagine it being done much better than that. Amneris is such a fun roll.
Aida is a timeless love story and I'm glad that Elton John & Tim Rice have made a musical version of it that I can enjoy. (I don't think I'll ever be an opera fan.) I highly recommend this musical!
Grade: A
Labels: 2000, Adam Pascal, Broadway, drama, Elton John, musical, original
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Billy Crudup (Russell Hammond), Kate Hudson (Penny Lane), Patrick Fugit (William Miller). Zooey Deschanel (Anita Miller)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Almost Famous page.
This is an amazing story about a high school kid who gets a chance to write an article for Rolling Stone and gets a bit over his head while accompanying the band on their tour.
Almost Famous is a very clever script with great music and good times. So far, it has my vote for best picture, though I doubt the academy will go for it. Not enough bells and whistles for them, but it has everything I wanted in a movie!
Grade: A+
Labels: 2000, Best Musical, Billy Crudup, drama, Kate Hudson, movie, Zooey Deschanel
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:40 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Gwyneth Paltrow (Liv), Huey Lewis (Ricky Dean), Scott Speedman (Billy Hannan), Maria Bello (Suzi Loomis), Andre Braugher (Reggie Kane), Paul Giamatti (Todd Woods)
For complete info, see IMDb's Duets page.
I really enjoyed this odd dramadic musical comedy. Quite an interesting space filled by Duets that isn't really tackled often. It's rare to see so many characters and different plot lines fit well together in a movie. It's also rare to see a movie with this much drama and music in one. The cast is wonderful and the story is well done. I found it interesting to see all these different stories converge in one karaoke competition - of all things. I definitely recommend renting this movie.
Grade: B
Labels: 2000, comedy, drama, Gwyneth Paltrow, Maria Bello, movie, musical, Paul Giamatti
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:15 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Ricky Ashley (The Little Boy), Cathy Wydner (Mother), Lawrence Hamilton (Coalhouse Walker, Jr.), Lovena Fox (Sarah), Sam Samuelson (Mother's Younger Brother), and a great cast
Ragtime is such a moving story about racism and its effects. This is such a powerful show. Definitely very sad in parts, but it still tries to leave you with a sense of hope for the future.
The music by Stephen Flaherty & lyrics by Lynn Ahrens are so wonderful. They really set the proper tone for Ragtime. After seeing Ragtime, I am a bit upset that it got beaten by The Lion King for best musical. Ragtime may not have animal costumes, but it is a much more powerful show.
Grade: A-
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams