citrin@ucbvax.UUCP (12/12/83)
Christine - A mediocre and forgettable movie, but never so bad that it becomes truly awful. Boy falls in love with killer car; car helps destroy their common enemies, until the inevitable and predictable end. Some of the characters lack motivation, and there are a few points that are left unexplained, but some of the early high-school scenes ring true, and some of the car stunts are fun. Not worth first-run prices unless you're a Stephen King fan, which I'm not. Less violence than you would expect. (rating: ** out of ****). Scarface - Quite a good film. The ultimate fates of the characters are predictable, but that didn't keep it from holding my interest for its almost three hours. Although comparisons with "The Godfather" are inevitable, this film lacks any of "The Godfather"'s moral ambiguity (one of the things which made that film so great), but instead is just a simple moral fable; this guy is just plain bad. In fact, the one moral thing that he does ultimately seals his fate. To make up for this moral simplicity, the film has an emotional and visual intensity that just does not let up. Although "Scarface" is not in a league with "The Godfather" (one of the greatest films of all time), I strongly recommend it as very powerful and exciting story. Just as much violence as you would expect. (rating: *** out of ****). Wayne Citrin (ucbvax!citrin)